Cooks & Books: Alissa Timoshkina for Lozhka

Alissa Timoshkina is coming to Topping & Company Booksellers on Thursday 19 November for a cookery demonstration, as part of their Cooks & Books series. It's a night built around her new cookbook, Lozhka, which she describes as a love letter to Eastern European comfort food. The title itself is a nod to the wooden spoon — the lozhka — that's a staple in so many of these kitchens.

Timoshkina is an award-winning food writer and historian, and that background comes through in what she's doing here. It's not just about following a recipe; she'll be sharing seasonal recipes alongside the food stories and cultural traditions that sit behind the comforting flavours of Eastern European cuisine. If you've ever wondered why certain dishes taste the way they do, or the history that put them on the table, that's where the historian side of things comes in.

As for the format, it's a proper demonstration: you'll see the dishes being made right there in front of you, and then you'll get to taste them. It's a good way to pick up a few tips and see how the recipes work in practice, rather than just reading them on the page. If you're into cooking, it's a chance to watch a professional work through a few of the book's recipes and then have a sample of the results.

The evening starts at 7pm at Topping & Company Booksellers on Museum Street, just opposite York Minster. It's part of Cooks & Books, a series of author events they run at the shop, which is the largest independent bookshop in the country. So, if you're planning to be there, you'll be in the heart of the city on a Thursday night.