We have a particular passion for cookbooks here at LeafSalon, so we were interested to see the report in the Guardian about the ten most useful recipe books ever written.

The list was compiled by Waitrose Food Illustrated, 'the world's most beautiful food magazine', and in our opinion, contains an unforgivable omission: it doesn’t include anything by Nigella Lawson. And although the excellent Nigel Slater is in, Jamie Oliver is not featured (which we can live with, although we’re fans of his eye-opening TV show Jamie's School Dinners).

There’s also no mention of Edouard de Pomiane’s Cooking in 10 Minutes, a pocket-sized French classic first published in 1948, and possibly the best-ever primer for young or incompetent cooks.

Anyway, here’s the list. If your appetite is whetted, click the underlined title to buy online from Real Groovy:

1 Roast Chicken and Other Stories by Simon Hopkinson with Lindsey Bareham

2 Delia's Complete Cookery Course by Delia Smith

3 Real Fast Food by Nigel Slater

4 The River Cottage Meat Book by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall

5 A New Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden

6 Leith's Techniques Bible by Susan Spaull and Lucinda Bruce-Gardyne

7 Elizabeth David Classics by Elizabeth David

8 Rick Stein's Seafood School Cookbook by Rick Stein

9 Chez Panisse Cafe Cookbook by Alice Waters

10 The Cook's Companion by Stephanie Alexander