Penguin Life wins rights to Rudin's cookbook in heated nine-way auction

Penguin Life has won the rights to a first title by cookery influencer Natalia Rudin in a heated nine-way auction. 

Amy McWalters, commissioning editor, bought world rights from Ludo Cinelli at Eve White Literary Agency to Cooking Fast and Slow: Soul-satisfying recipes for every time-frame. It will publish in May 2025.

Rudin has more than one million followers across her various social media platforms, under the handle @natsnourishments, where she posts recipes for plant-based food. Cooking Fast and Slow will show readers “how to take simple everyday ingredients like beans, peppers, yoghurt, veg, spices, pasta and tomatoes and elevate them to another level so that simple food feels posh, and posh food feels simple”.

Penguin Life says the book "will combine the elegance of Ottolenghi, the plant-based approach of Deliciously Ella and the ease of Mob Kitchen to create a new must-have for every home cook who wants soul-nourishing, comforting food, no matter how much time they have on their hands".

McWalters said: “I have been hooked on Natalia’s recipes since the first recipe I cooked; a hearty dish of garlicky, cheesy beans covered in pine nuts and basil, what could be better!? As someone who tries to avoid meat at home, I love how she makes cooking plant-based food so effortless and comforting that it feels more like an indulgence than a sacrifice.”