Book picks similar to
The Englishman's Food: Five Centuries of English Diet by J.C. Drummond
food
food-and-drink
non-fiction
history
Dirt: Adventures, with Family, in the Kitchens of Lyon, Looking for the Origins of French Cooking
Bill Buford - 2020
Baffled by the language, but convinced that he can master the art of French cooking--or at least get to the bottom of why it is so revered-- he begins what becomes a five-year odyssey by shadowing the esteemed French chef Michel Richard, in Washington, D.C. But when Buford (quickly) realizes that a stage in France is necessary, he goes--this time with his wife and three-year-old twin sons in tow--to Lyon, the gastronomic capital of France. Studying at L'Institut Bocuse, cooking at the storied, Michelin-starred La Mère Brazier, enduring the endless hours and exacting rigeur of the kitchen, Buford becomes a man obsessed--with proving himself on the line, proving that he is worthy of the gastronomic secrets he's learning, proving that French cooking actually derives from (mon dieu!) the Italian.
No Experience Necessary: The Culinary Odyssey of Chef Norman Van Aken
Norman Van Aken - 2013
In it he spans twenty-plus years and nearly as many jobs--including the fateful job advertisement in the local paper for a short-order cook with "no experience necessary." Long considered a culinary renegade and a pioneering chef, Van Aken is an American original who chopped and charred, sweated and seared his way to cooking stardom with no formal training, but with extra helpings of energy, creativity, and faith. After landing on the deceptively breezy shores of Key West, Van Aken faced hurricanes, economic downturns, and mercurial moneymen during the decades when a restaurant could open and close faster than you can type haute cuisine. From a graveyard shift grunt at an all-night barbeque joint to a James Beard-award finalist for best restaurant in America, Van Aken put his trusting heart, poetic soul, natural talent, and ever-expanding experience into every venture--and helped transform the American culinary landscape along the way. In the irreverent tradition of Anthony Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential, and populated by a rogues' gallery of colorful characters--including movie stars, legendary musicians, and culinary giants Julia Child, Emeril Lagasse, and Charlie Trotter--No Experience Necessary offers a uniquely personal, highly-entertaining under-the-tablecloth view of the high-stakes world of American cuisine told with wit, insight, and great affection by a natural storyteller.
The Lost Art of Real Cooking: Rediscovering the Pleasures of Traditional Food One Recipe at a Time
Ken Albala - 2010
It's time to unlock the pantry and break free from the shackles of ready-made, industrial food. It's time to cook supper."The Lost Art of Real Cooking" heralds a new old-fashioned approach to food-laborious and inconvenient, yet extraordinarily rewarding and worth bragging about. From jam, yogurt, and fresh pasta to salami, smoked meat, and strudel, Ken Albala and Rosanna Nafziger arm you with the knowledge and skills that let you connect on a deeper level with what goes into your body.Ken and Rosanna celebrate the patience it takes to make your own sauerkraut and pickles. They divulge the mysteries of capturing wild sourdoughs and culturing butter, the beauty of rendering lard, making cheese, and brewing beer, all without the fancy toys that take away from the adventure of truly "experiencing" your food.These foods were once made by the family, in the home, rather than a factory. And they can still be made in the smallest kitchens without expensive equipment, capturing flavors that speak of place and personality. What you won't find here is a collection of rigid rules for the perfect meal. Ken and Rosanna offer a wealth of recipes, history, and techniques that start with the basics and evolve into dishes that are entirely your own.
The Laura Ingalls Wilder Country Cookbook
Laura Ingalls Wilder - 1900
Over 70 of Laura's original recipes, updated for modern kitchens, are enriched with anecdotes about the Wilders by noted historian William Anderson and enhanced by Leslie Kelly's full-color photos.
Mary Berry’s Quick Cooking
Mary Berry - 2019
In this brand-new, official tie-in to the major BBC Two series, Mary shows how being in a rush will never be a problem again. Find brilliant 20- and 30-minute meals and enjoy wonderful dishes that can be swiftly assembled and then left to cook away while you do something else.Mary’s utterly reliable, always delicious fast dishes tempt any tastebuds and her no-fuss expertise means you can cook from scratch and put mouth-watering home-cooked food on your family’s table without compromising on quality or freshness.This stunning cookbook, packed with colourful photography, includes over 120 new recipes, including all the recipes from the series, plus Mary’s trademark no-nonsense tips and techniques for getting ahead in the kitchen so cooking is always stress-free.Looking for a fast, satisfying supper? There’s Crumble fish pie, Lamb tagine with preserved lemon or Pan-fried spiced falafels. Something special for Sunday lunch or dinner with friends? Roast Venison fillet and peppercorn sauce, 30-minute Beef ragu or Roast fillet pork with sage and mustard sauce followed by Upside-down rhubarb pudding.With Mary’s trusted advice and recipes, discover how easy fantastic fast cooking can be.
Milk: The Surprising Story of Milk Through the Ages
Anne Mendelson - 2008
Out of this ancient heritage from lands that include Greece, Bosnia, Turkey, Israel, Persia, Afghanistan, and India, she mines a rich source of culinary traditions.Mendelson then takes us on a journey through the lands that traditionally only consumed milk fresh from the cow—what she calls the Northwestern Cow Belt (northern Europe, Great Britain, North America). She shows us how milk reached such prominence in our diet in the nineteenth century that it led to the current practice of overbreeding cows and overprocessing dairy products. Her lucid explanation of the chemical intricacies of milk and the simple home experiments she encourages us to try are a revelation of how pure milk products should really taste.The delightfully wide-ranging recipes that follow are grouped according to the main dairy ingredient: fresh milk and cream, yogurt, cultured milk and cream, butter and true buttermilk, fresh cheeses. We learn how to make luscious Clotted Cream, magical Lemon Curd, that beautiful quasi-cheese Mascarpone, as well as homemade yogurt, sour cream, true buttermilk, and homemade butter. She gives us comfort foods such as Milk Toast and Cream of Tomato Soup alongside Panir and Chhenna from India. Here, too, are old favorites like Herring with Sour Cream Sauce, Beef Stroganoff, a New Englandish Clam Chowder, and the elegant Russian Easter dessert, Paskha. And there are drinks for every season, from Turkish Ayran and Indian Lassis to Batidos (Latin American milkshakes) and an authentic hot chocolate.
This illuminating book will be an essential part of any food lover’s collection and is bound to win converts determined to restore the purity of flavor to our First Food.
Thomas Jefferson's Creme Brulee: How a Founding Father and His Slave James Hemings Introduced French Cuisine to America
Thomas J. Craughwell - 2012
The founding father was traveling to Paris and wanted to bring James along “for a particular purpose”— to master the art of French cooking. In exchange for James’s cooperation, Jefferson would grant his freedom.
Thus began one of the strangest partnerships in United States history. As Hemings apprenticed under master French chefs, Jefferson studied the cultivation of French crops (especially grapes for winemaking) so the might be replicated in American agriculture. The two men returned home with such marvels as pasta, French fries, Champagne, macaroni and cheese, crème brûlée, and a host of other treats. This narrative history tells the story of their remarkable adventure—and even includes a few of their favorite recipes!
Caviar: The Strange History and Uncertain Future of the World's Most Coveted Delicacy
Inga Saffron - 2002
In Caviar, Inga Saffron tells, for the first time, the story of how the virgin eggs of the prehistoric-looking, bottom-feeding sturgeon were transformed from a humble peasant food into a czar’s delicacy–and ultimately a coveted status symbol for a rising middle class. She explores how the glistening black eggs became the epitome of culinary extravagance, while taking us on a revealing excursion into the murky world of caviar on the banks of the Volga River and Caspian Sea in Russia, the Elbe in Europe, and the Hudson and Delaware Rivers in the United States. At the same time, Saffron describes the complex industry caviar has spawned, illustrating the unfortunate consequences of mass marketing such a rare commodity.The story of caviar has long been one of conflict, crisis, extravagant claims, and colorful characters, such as the Greek sea captain who first discovered the secret method of transporting the perishable delicacy to Europe, the canny German businessmen who encountered a wealth of untapped sturgeon in American waters, the Russian Communists who created a sophisticated cartel to market caviar to an affluent Western clientele, the dirt-poor poachers who eked out a living from sturgeon in the aftermath of the Soviet collapse and the “caviar Mafia” that has risen in their wake, and the committed scientists who sacrificed their careers to keep caviar on our tables. Filled with lore and intrigue, Caviar is a captivating work of culinary, natural, and cultural history.From the Hardcover edition.
Honey & Co: The Baking Book
Sarit Packer - 2015
Lunch is a crisp, crumbly shell of pastry filled with spiced lamb or burnt aubergine, and at teatime there are cheesecakes and fruit cakes, small cakes and massive cookies - so many cakes that it's hard to choose one. (There's no need to worry, whatever you choose will be great!) After dinner there might be poached peaches with roses or something more traditional, sweet and salty Knafe drenched in orange blossom syrup, or maybe just a small piece of fresh marzipan. There's something sweet, something in the oven for everyone, all day long - welcome to Honey & Co.
Things Mother Used to Make A Collection of Old Time Recipes, Some Nearly One Hundred Years Old and Never Published Before
Lydia Maria Gurney - 1913
You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.
Homemade Bread Recipes: The Top Easy and Delicious Homemade Bread Recipes!
Kim DeWalt - 2013
Making your own bread is easier, healthier, and cheaper than buying from a store! Start making your own bread TODAY with these delicious and EASY homemade bread recipes! From your conventional breads, to your non-conventional specialty recipes, this homemade bread recipes book HAS IT ALL! Best of all, all these recipes have EASY TO FOLLOW steps so ANYONE can make delicious bread in no time at all! Try a few of these homemade bread recipes and I guarantee you'll never want to buy bread from the store again!
Our Street: East End Life in the Second World War
Gilda O'Neill - 2003
This book focuses on the lives of Londoners in the East End during the Second World War. Showing the concerns, hopes and fears of these so-called 'ordinary people' Our Street illustrates these times by looking at the every day rituals which marked the patterns of daily life during WWII. It is an important book and also an affectionate record of an often fondly remembered, more communal, way of life that has all but disappeared.
Lobscouse and Spotted Dog: Which It's a Gastronomic Companion to the Aubrey/Maturin Novels
Anne Chotzinoff Grossman - 1997
Collected here are authentic and practical recipes for such eighteenth- and early-nineteenth- century dishes as Burgoo, Drowned Baby, Sea-Pie, Solomongundy, Jam Roly-Poly, Toasted Cheese, Sucking Pig, Treacle-Dowdy, and, of course, Spotted Dog. Also included are historical notes on the origins of the dishes as well as sections on the preparing of roasts, puddings, and raised pies."[A] splendid cookbook...graced with erudite bits of naval and gastronomical history....Deftly researched and written in prose nearly as funny as O'Brian's own."—Publishers Weekly "A thoroughly readable cookbook, as well as a useful appendix to a great series of novels and a newly opened window into a time now nearly 200 years gone."—San Jose Mercury News
Candyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America
Steve Almond - 2004
From the Twin Bing to the Idaho Spud, the Valomilk to the Abba-Zaba, and discontinued bars such as the Caravelle, Marathon, and Choco-Lite, Almond uncovers a trove of singular candy bars made by unsung heroes working in old-fashioned factories to produce something they love. And in true candyfreak fashion, Almond lusciously describes the rich tastes that he has loved since childhood and continues to crave today. Steve Almond has written a comic but ultimately bittersweet story of how he grew up on candy-and how, for better and worse, the candy industry has grown up, too. Candyfreak is the delicious story of one man's lifelong obsession with candy and his quest to discover its origins in America.