Culinary historian Anne Willan “has melded her passions for culinary history, writing, and teaching into her fascinating new book” (Chicago Tribune) that traces the origins of American cooking through profiles of twelve influential women–from Hannah Woolley in the mid-1600s to Fannie Farmer, Julia Child, and Alice Waters–whose recipes and ideas changed the way we eat. Anne Willan, … Anne Willan, multi-award-winning culinary historian, cookbook writer, teacher, and founder of La Varenne Cooking School in Paris, explores the lives and work of women cookbook authors whose essential books have defined cooking over the past three hundred years. Beginning with the first published cookbook by Hannah Woolley in 1661 to the early colonial days to the transformative popular works by Fannie Farmer, Irma Rombauer, Julia Child, Edna Lewis, Marcella Hazan, and up to Alice Waters working today.
Willan offers a brief biography of each influential woman, highlighting her key contributions, seminal books, and representative dishes. The book features fifty original recipes–as well as updated versions Willan has tested and modernized for the contemporary kitchen.
Women in the Kitchen is an engaging narrative moves seamlessly moves through the centuries to help readers understand the ways cookbook authors inspire one another, that they in part owe their places in history to those who came before them, and how they forever change the culinary landscape. This “informative and inspiring book is a reminder that the love of delicious food and the care and preparation that goes into it can create a common bond” (Booklist).
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“Women in the Kitchen: Twelve Essential Cookbook Writers Who Defined the Way We Eat, from 1661 to Today”, by culinary historian Anne Willan, spans a time frame of more than 350 years and offers an enlightening look at a dozen great women and the great food they prepared. While cooking terms, techniques, trends, and tastes have certainly changed through the years (centuries), the love of cooking and sharing food is timeless. The author, who has been cooking professionally for 60 years and operated a Paris-based cooking school, writes with a great love of subject and an expansive knowledge of cooking and those who cook. The twelve women are each featured in a brief biography accompanied by several of their own recipes. Here’s a sampler of what you’ll find: Hannah Woolley (1622-1675)–“Savory Pumpkin and Apple Pie”; Hannah Glasse (1708-1770)–“Rose Petal Syrup”; Amelia Simmons (dates unknown)–“Corn Griddle Cakes”; Maria Rundell (1745-1828)–“Potato Yeast Rolls”; Lydia Child (1802-1880) –“Thanksgiving Pudding”; Sarah Rutledge (1782-1855)–“Golden Chicken”; Fannie Farmer (1857-1915)–“Bread Pudding with Raisins”; Irma Rombauer (1877-1962)–“Never-Fail Dinner Rolls”; Julia Child (1912-2004)–“Coq Au Vin”; Edna Lewis (1906-2006)–“Brown Sugar Caramel Pie”; Marcella Hazan (1924-2013)–“Polenta with Italian Sausages”; and Alice Waters (born 1944)–“Mango Salad with Chile Pepper”. While these women represent a variety of cultures and levels of fame, each of them is a fascinating trailblazer in their own right. Author Anne Willan not only shines a spotlight on these wonderful women, she gives us a compelling look at almost four centuries of culinary history. As a child, I was taught to cook by my beloved Gran, who was also a very knowledgeable, intuitive and gifted cook. Over 50 years later, I am still at home in the kitchen, and I love to read and collect cookbooks. I greatly enjoyed “Women in the Kitchen”.
Book Copy Gratis Scribner Books
Survey of 350 Years of Cookbooks Written By Women
I have been reading cookbooks like novels since I was a teenager; my mother started me on the practice! This book looks at the cookbook contributions of female writers from the 17th century to the modern day. The female cooks of history may not be well known to you, but you will probably recognize the others featured recipe writers and cookbook authors, like Julia Child, Irma Rombauer (Joy of Cooking fame), and Alice Waters. The book has a fascinating introductory section, where Mrs. Willan talks about these authors and their books collectively, how the books came about, and a little of the cultural milieu—including the fact that women’s cookery books tend to be more simple and home based than men’s. The rest of the book looks at each cookbook author in chronological order. Each chapter gives more detail about the woman and her cookbook(s), and Mrs. Willan has not only included recipes from the original texts, but she has also created modern updates of them. Some older “receipts” were written with no measurements at all. I appreciated the author’s modern spin on these older recipes. I found it fascinating that quite often the women wrote these books because they needed money, not unlike motivations today. One actually wrote the book to instruct her staff and shared it with friends so they could give it to their servants. Given the ease of ebook publishing these days, I found the little bits of information about how these women published their books interesting as well; it was certainly a different world. If you love cookbooks as I do, if you have an interest in English and American culinary history, or if you are a fan of any of the ladies featured in the book, you may very well enjoy this book as much as I did.
I received a free copy of this book, but that did not affect my review.
This is a multi-faceted book – part cookbook history, part women’s history, part cookbook. Willan, a cookbook author herself having published over four dozen cookbooks, traces published cookbook writing back to the mid-1600s and tells us about the women who blazoned the trail for today’s cookbook authors. Willan includes cookbook authors like Fannie Farmer, Irma Rombauer, and of course, Julia Child as well as the lesser known Alice Water.
With each of the cookbook authors’ short biography, Willan includes a few of their recipes, and then modernizes them for today’s kitchens.
Willan has written a book about cookbooks that is fascinating to read even if you don’t use cookbooks or don’t cook at all.
My thanks to Simon & Schuster and Edelweiss for an eArc.