Forget cookies - think cookbooks – as two young Cambridge UK technology entrepreneurs serve up a summer sizzler that has excited Apple.
Ex-Perse School pupils Alexander Yandell and Edward Taylor, both from Cambridge and now undergrads from Cambridge and Durham Universities - have produced a revolutionary multi-touch summer cookbookfor iPad in the UK and US.It has been featured on the 'new and noteworthy' section of the Apple iBookstore UK and on a banner at the top of the food section in the iBookstore US.
The recipes are all written and tested by Yandell and the book has been made exclusively by the partners during last term and the Easter holidays. “We also shot all the photos ourselves, with borrowed professional camera equipment,” Yandell told Business Weekly.
“Apple fast-tracked the interactive eBook for approval saying it 'looks great', and it is available to buy via the iBookstore or through iTunes in both the US and UK.”
Alex Yandell is a passionate chef, studying French and Classics at Durham University. Cooking in a country-home kitchen in the university holidays for the owner and guests, he has written, prepared, and tested all of the recipes featured in this interactive book.
Edward Taylor is an engineering student at Cambridge University and a budding entrepreneur. Designing and photographing for this project has allowed him to channel his creative and technological interests towards interactive media and publishing.
Yandell said: “With no professional training or funding we have undertaken this project entirely independently, balancing it alongside university commitments.
“We are confident that our product is highly marketable and competitive. It revolutionises the cookbook experience and exploits a gap in an ever- changing market sector. The recipes are stylish and delicious, while the book has an elegance and simplicity that sets it apart.”
Designed exclusively for the iPad from the outset, Yandell says it is natural and intuitive to use. Unlike most other interactive eBooks, which are first published in print then adapted for iPad, our book makes innovative use of portrait and landscape modes, which sets it apart from all other competition.
Each mode has a distinctive purpose and style: portrait allows you to view an entire recipe on one page, while landscape provides clear step-by-step instructions that allow viewing from anywhere in the kitchen.
The book consists of 30 carefully chosen recipes, which both look and taste stunning, and are straightforward to produce. Included are three Mediterranean-inspired set menus, each with a wine recommendation, as well as suggestions for making the dishes cheaper and healthier.
There are a number of other sections offering a variety of contemporary yet classic dishes and introducing the reader to a selection of essential and versatile store-cupboard ingredients.
