Synopsis
This assortment of Elizabeth David's writings is a neat introduction to the famous British food writer. One of 20 books in the new Penguin Great Food series, it's a whistlestop tour of the summer cuisines of Britain and the Mediterranean. David's prose is dated yet somehow timeless. She talks of "new" electric toasters, alludes to "the footman", shops on the Brompton Road in Knightsbridge and discusses the ideal wicker hampers for picnics. But her knowledge of Italian, French and British home cooking – culturally and practically – gives the book enduring appeal.
She is full of wisdom about the history of pasta, the nuances of regional Italian fish soups, and the best wines to accompany a picnic. Her audience is clearly British women, whom she seeks to make "inventive and imaginative" in the kitchen. Nevertheless, she defends British cooking, honouring culinary traditions like "enticing" toast and the "syllabub of pastoral England".
Despite being laid out in dense blocks of prose, the recipes are generally unfussy and easy to follow. This book is a winner for anyone seeking to broaden their knowledge of French, Italian and English food.