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Clandestine Top-Notch Food-Literature

If you think you’ve read the classics of food literature... reconsider... here are ten little-known classics for the hungry mind:
by AbeBooks bookseller Janet Jarvits, owner of Cook Books

 

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Home CookingHome Cooking
Laurie Colwin

Comfortable, gastro-literary writing rich in references to other cookbooks and literature; she stands solidly on her own and yet, provides a window to other classics, like Elizabeth David, M.F.K. Fisher and Erma Bombeck rolled into one. Also of interest, More Home Cooking.

All Editions of Home Cooking

 

From the Wilder Shores of GastronomyFrom The Wilder Shores Of Gastronomy: Twenty Years Of The Best Food Writing From The Journal Petits Propos Culinaires.
Alan Davidson

An collection of the best articles published in the journal Petits Propos Culinaires. Contributors include Elizabeth David, Jane Grigson, Richard Olney, Sophie Grigson and Claudia Roden. For foodie-by-night, pencil-pocket-protector-wearer-by-day types.

All Editions of From the Wilder Shores of Gastronomy

 

Culinary CampaignCulinary Campaigns
Alexis Soyer

Alexis Soyer wrote three recipe book which sold in the hundreds of thousands. An autobiographical tale, first published in 1857, that chronicles his voluntary service in the Crimean War during which he pioneered the camp stove and fundamentally altered cooking in the hospitals and army camps there. Soyer also recounts his budding friendship with Florence Nightingale which led to them collaborating on reforming British army catering. Also of interest, The Pantropheon, or A History Of Food, And Its Preparation From The Earliest Ages Of The World.

All Editions of Culinary Campaigns

 

Pot Shots from a Grosse Ile Kitchen
Lucy and Sidney Corbett

The Corbett's first regional memoir about life, philosophy and food tells how they rebuilt their life on Grosse Ile when when sudden paralysis put Sidney Corbett, prominent General Motors executive in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. Grosse Ile is an island that sits in the middle of the Detroit River. Illustrated with woodcuts by William Thomas Woodward. Also of interest, Long Windows, Being More Pot Shots From A Grosse Ile Kitchen.

Cook Books Edition of Pot Shots from a Grosse Ile Kitchen
All Editions of Pot Shots from a Grosse Ile Kitchen

How To Cook A Rogue ElephantHow To Cook A Rogue Elephant
Peter Van Rensselaer Livingson

An existential exploration of the philosophies and techniques behind dozens of schools of cookery. Livingston's experiences range from simple to elaborate, esoteric to widely known. His World War I Atlantic crossing in an Italian refugee ship introduces a spaghetti recipe and he later includes the very different Northern Italian cuisine he came to know after World War II.

All Editions of How to Cook A Rogue Elephant

 

Dying For ChocolateDying For Chocolate
Diane Mott Davidson

The second book in the author's culinary whodunit saga of Colorado caterer Goldy Schulz, ex-husband "The Jerk," only son Arch, and new husband police officer Tom. Like the proverbial box of chocolates, it's hard to put any of Davidson's culinary mysteries down without finishing the whole thing in one sitting.


All Editions of Dying for Chocolate

 

Honey From A WeedHoney From A Weed
Patience Gray

The author of the 1950s classic Plats du Jour adapts herself and her cooking to the primitive conditions she encounters while keeping house for her sculptor husband in Tuscany, Catalonia, the Cyclades and Apulia. Blends her extensive knowledge of things culinary, a multi-language literary background and perceptive interpretation of her immediate surroundings.

All Edition of Honey From A Weed

 

Table TopicsTable Topics
Julian Street

A posthumous scrapbook compiled from the house organ of Bellows, the great New York wine merchants. Contains articles like Old Cookery Bookery, which tells about Hannah Glasse's Art of Cookery in detail and Chronicler of the Old-Time Saloon, George Ade. Also of interest, Wines.

All Editions of Table Topics

 

The Cook
Harry Kressing

A gripping, allegorical tale of an enigmatic cook and his domination of the wealthy family he works for; chiefly through the food he serves. The stealthy nature of Kressing's allegory affects the reader in the same way the Cook manipulates his employers. Filmed as Something For Everyone with Angela Lansbury and Michael York.

All Editions of The Cook