This new cookbook, by Natalie Oldfield, features recipes made with love and tested over time by 60 grandmothers from Australia and around the world.

If you flip to page 74 you’ll be greeted by a photo of Nevenka Barac on her wedding day. Nevenka and her husband immigrated to Australia from Croatia in 1969 and now call Canberra home.

Nevenka – 82 years of age – is the only Canberran in the cookbook and her recipe is for Croatian Bear Claws.

I made the recipe and although my claws would never match Nevenka’s, I was chuffed. It’s a “yum” recipe: simply cream butter and sugar, add an egg, honey, vanilla and blend. Mix in sifted flour, baking powder, walnuts and heaps of love. Bake, dust with icing sugar and serve.

But why did my eyes well up with “Love & Food at Gran’s Table”?

It’s a beautiful cookbook, with wonderful stories about the contributors, mostly written by granddaughters, grandsons and other family members. There are photos of grans, many taken in years gone by, images of handwritten recipes and bits of advice, such as: “Have a good attitude towards life and a gin and tonic in the evening always helps”.

Nevenka’s daughter, Dragica Barac, remembers how her parents made their own kobasica (sausages) and prosciutto, long before it became trendy to do so. Today, her mum, who she affectionately calls Baba, is still “wildly talented in the kitchen”

“She still sometimes cooks like there are 14 of us instead of just four,” says Dragica. “She tries to teach us our traditional foods, but my desserts never, ever taste the same as Baba’s.

“If you’re a visitor at Baba’s house, the first thing she will ask you is: ‘Are you hungry?’ or ‘Have you eaten anything? You look hungry’. Baba gets offended if you don’t eat at her house,” says Dragica.

The grans featured come from every corner of this planet, including NZ, Lebanon, Germany, Cook Islands, Sweden, Greece, Spain, Italy, India, England and Scotland.

More than 120 recipes, covering all bases, are included. As you might suspect, there are loads of recipes for baked goods, but the savoury line-up is also impressive, such as gingeroo (kangaroo cooked with ginger), bacon and egg pie, and raw fish salad. The photos of the sauces, vinegars and jams are sensational.

Natalie, who was born and raised in Auckland and has spent her life in hospitality, says: “We are assured of two things from our grans: love and food, often on a single plate, and always in abundance”.

Natalie’s other cookbooks are all best sellers.