SC - An Interesting Cookbook- OOP

[Alderton, Philippa]

A neighbor just loaned me "The Virginia House-wife" by Mary Randolph, edited
by Karen Hess. I've found it very interesting, and I was hoping someone
might be able to help me find my own copy. Its isbn # is 0-87249-423-3 and
it's published by the University of South Carolina Press. Corwyn- can you
check down there?

The introduction includes a lot of information relating to transitional
English cooking, specificly differenciating between common practice in
England of the time, and some of the cookbooks of the early to middle 17th
centeury, and the additions made by both the African slave-cooks and the
exposure to American foods and Native American practices as well as the
Spanish Infuence- it includes the earliest recipe I've yet found for
Gazpacho, for example.

One interesting comment she makes is that " These Creole cuisines were to
color Virginia cookery to an extent which has not been fully appreciated, I
think, because in addition to actual borrowings, there is the thumb print
that each cook leaves on a recipe, even within the same culture, no matter
how skilled she may be or how faithfully she follows the recipe... And so it
was when thoroughly English dishes were cooked by hands that had known other
products." when discussing the influence of the black slaves on Virginia
cookery- a repetition of your Chinese vs American going to the same grocery,
eh, Cariadoc?

The cover blurb says that the text includes such things as:

- - how to cure beef, bacon, and herrings
- - recipes for 14 different kinds of soup, including catfish soup
- - how to cook pigs' feet
- - how to make lavender water, scented soap, and starch
- - recipes for a number of wines and cordials (yes, Puck- I'll type them into
SCA-distilling)

Among other interesting things I've found browsing, Mrs Randolph does not
believe in long cooking- her vegetables are done to crisp-tender, and Ms.
Hess suggests that our more recent business of cooking things until they're
grey might be a direct result of commercial canning processes, backing up
her words with other comments from other cooks in that period. She also
recommends proper roasting, rather than the baking we do for most meats, in
a hot oven for a short time. Mrs. Randolph also gives instructions for 40
plus vegetables and 17 aromatic herbs.

All in all, I'm finding the book quite fascinating, both as a Virginian, and
as a cook.


Phlip

phlip at morganco.net

Philippa Farrour
Caer Frig
Southeastern Ohio

So many Gods, so many creeds,
So many paths that wind and wind,
When just the art of being kind
Is all this sad world needs.



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