Instead it is a glossy homage to fine dining and haute cuisine - showcasing the talents of some of the city's most successful northside restaurateurs and providores and presenting a delicious array of recipes which are both artfully styled and professionally photographed.

"When we started this project we knew it was never going to be a type-it-up and photocopy a picture type of cookbook - it was going to be glorious," said school board chair and one of the photographers behind the book, Mel McDonald.

Initiated two years ago by Ainslie Primary principal Kate Chapman as a fundraiser and a celebration of the school community's love of all things edible, the Ainslie Food cookbook will be officially launched on Thursday.

Ms Chapman got the idea from a similar fundraiser conducted by the Avalon Public School in 2012 which saw the humble school cookbook elevated to a glossy competitor in the crowded cook-book market. Ms Chapman knew her students and their families loved cooking and experimenting in the kitchen - as evidenced by the enthusiastic embrace of school vegie patches which produce food for the canteen.

At 250 pages, Ainslie Food will retail for $35. It includes recipes ranging from local school dad Dave Versace's chickpea fattoush, to one of the sponsor restaurants Sage Dining room's poached chicken with Morbier and raw broccoli.

A handful of recipes also come from Ainslie School parents Justin Kavanagh and Jeff Piper who run the acclaimed Thirst Wine Bar and Eatery in Civic.

You can chose between the Thai-style beef salad, chicken larb, baked fish in curry coconut crust or chicken coconut salad for a home-made take on some of their restaurant staples.

Meanwhile, recipes such as a hearty veal pie and a foolproof pavlova cater for more traditional tastes.

With sponsors including Italian and Sons, Sage Dining Rooms, Shop Girl Flower Girl, and the Ainslie IGA, the book has some fine-dining street credibility with more than a few cheese ingredients thrown in for good measure.

One of the driving forces behind it (P&C president and a mother to three girls at the school) Nova Inkpen said every effort was made by the organising committee and parents involved to keep the standards of production high.

"The Ainslie school community has really gotten behind this project and it is a community which takes its food very seriously, so we feel blessed in that sense to have the calibre of recipes included and to have the beautiful photography by food photographer Nathan Lanham and community photographer Mel McDonald."

Dr Inkpen also singled out former Fairfax Food and Wine editor Kirsten Lawson for editing the book "and for helping make sure that for us non-foodie types we can recreate these dishes, knowing what exact amount to use when someone calls for a dash of this or a sprinkle of that."

So far, pre-orders of the book have raised $2000 with Dr Inkpen hoping the rest of Canberra might like to share in the secrets of Canberra's gastronomic inner north.

And for those still wanting brownie recipes – two made the cut – triple chocolate and exceedingly gooey brownies.

Ainslie Food is available for sale at Ainslie School's Green Canteen, Shop Girl Flower Girl at Ainslie Shops and via http://www.ainslies.act.edu.au/home