Delia Smith. In my experience, the mere mention of her name (at least in the UK) can evoke an array of reactions, from outright praise to downright damnation. Much like Rachel Ray, she's one of those cooks that some people love, some people hate, and some people, well, just love to hate.

For all I have to say about Rachel Ray, however (and believe me, I have a LOT to say about Rachel Ray -- but we'll save that for later), I harbour very few ill feelings towards Delia. Perhaps it's because she is, quite literally, the very first "celebrity chef" I ever knew. Her presence still hovers vaguely at the back of so many childhood memories - echoes of television programmes and mentions of her name by my mother and her friends. Hers was also one of the very first cookbooks I remember -- a glossy black slipcovered hardback.

In other words, in 1970's Britain, Delia Smith was a big deal.

And over the decades she has continued to be, with various incarnations as television chef and cookbook author. But somewhere along the way -- sometime when I had already left the country - she apparently fell out of favor with the very vast, very vocal British cooking public.

According to my mother, who knows these things, it currently has something to do with her latest television series and accompanying book. Apparently she "recommended far too many shortcuts" -- advocating the ready-made over the homemade -- a move that, given the rise of Gordon, Hugh, Jamie and Nigellla, to name but a few, can only be considered an act of sheer desperation. Why else would the maven of domestic kitchen prowess suddenly co-opt the cheap and half-arsed tactics of made-for-tv fabrications like Rachel Ray and Sandra Lee?

But I digress.

Delia might have had a bit of a "what was she thinking?" moment with her latest incarnation, but the re-release of her 1970's bestseller Delia's Frugal Food is nothing short of genius. Or at least eerily canny marketing -- something akin to clairvoyant given the economy right now.

Why?

Because like the 1970's (inasmuch as I remember, given that I was born in 1974), we once again find ourselves in a world of escalating prices (including rising food costs), job shortages (or at least rising unemployment) and - without sounding like a complete pessimist - no clear "end" in sight right now. Not a bright, shiny one, at least.

So what does good old Delia do? She churns out a whole tome of wholesome, easy to prepare recipes that harken back to even simpler times and simpler meals. Good old Cornish Pasties, ham hock stew, "poor man's cassoulet", pot roasts and purees -- and those traditional English kid favorites that will always hold a place in my heart because, well, they're some of the earliest meals I recall. Like Toad-in-the-Hole, hot pot and bread pudding.

It's been updated, of course, with little notes from Delia that either add to the almost-archaic feel of some of the recipes, like the note explaining "what potato crisis?" in reference to the 1976 potato futures market crash. Yes, there is a potato futures market. Yes, it went haywire in 1976 and yes, it caused the price of potatoes to skyrocket. "Difficult at the time," according to Delia, "but now thankfully all forgotten."

What I like most about this latest addition to my library, though, is simply this. The recipes aren't just interesting, simple and affordable. They promote a way of eating that I believe is so important: local food, local produce, purchased in small quantities (what you need and nothing more), and they lead us back to our own kitchens and our own dinner tables -- both then, and now.

You don't have to know me well to know that cooking a meal (or two) is at the top of my list of "things to do" whenever I'm in Nailsworth. Between William's Kitchen, Hobbs Bakery, "the veg shop" and a couple of good butchers, there's little reason to look beyond the village for ingredients (it's interesting to note that I have access to a far broader range of ingredients -- including fresh local meats, fish and cheeses - than I do in all of Chattanooga, TN). But with Tetbury not ten minutes away and Cirencester about 15 minutes away, there's always the temptation to shop slightly further afield.

Fresh Meringues in the window of Hobbs House Bakery

Today we headed off to Tetbury, one of England's oldest market towns and home to Highgrove, the home of Prince Charles. Known for its extensive organic farm and gardens, Highgrove produces the "Duchy" products you may have seen in specialty stores. But it also produces a whole lot more -- from honey and chocolate to all kinds of jams, jellies, sauces and handicrafts produced using wood and wool harvested from Highgrove.

Pigs' trotters ready to place in the window of Jessie Smith Butchers, Tetbury, Glos.

Tetbury is one of my favorite places to "drop in" on when I'm in Gloucestershire, and this time one of the highlights was a trip to the new Highgrove shop -- already decorated for Christmas and packed to the gills with a gorgeous array of fudge, cookies, Christmas puddings, jams, jellies, honey, chocolates, handmade wooden toys, ceramics and gardening toosl. As with everywhere else I've been this week, I could have spent an easy fortune in there -- but for me the real highlight will always be Jesse Smith's Butchers and Hobbs House Bakery -- two of my top five Cotswold shopping stops. Hobbs also has a great location in Nailsworth, but this was my first opportunity to go in (and enjoy a lovely donut and coffee!). Likewise, Jessie Smith's has locations in Cirencester and Marlborough, too - all with the same amazing selection of meat and game, 99.9% of it from the surrounding area.

The butchers sawed this section of venison haunch for me as I waited. You can't get much fresher...

I spent the first part of this past weekend with my great friends - and fellow foodies - Sarah and Pip in Wiltshire. In addition to a fabulous roast vegetable and chorizo dish that Pip prepared upon my arrival Thursday evening, we also indulged in one of the many items on my "UK Food List," a takeaway curry. Actually, it was a takeaway Chicken Tikka Biryani to be precise. Along with onion bargi and a fabulous paratha bread.

I ought to have documented the meal with a few snapshots, as I am wont to do, but to be honest, we were all ready to tuck in and in the excitement of my first proper takeaway curry in more than a year, I totally forgot!

Later in the evening, Pip and I did get to discussing those favourite cookbooks we all have. Like me, Sarah and Pip are also cookbook junkies, but like me, they find themselves reverting to the same couple of go-to "bibles" time and again. Pip proffered these two as his favorite -- and I immediately delved into Darina Allen's Ballymaloe Cookery Course book (plus made a note of it for future reference). If the introduction amnd a little time skiming through the recipes is any indication, it's not only on my "must have" list - it's about to usurp Nigella (or....come a close second, at least).