A Taste Of Ireland

Discover the many lives of free-spirited and much-loved Irish Times cookery writer Theodora FitzGibbon 'I have starved in some of the most beautiful places in the world ...' The Irish Times food writer Theodora FitzGibbon lived a life filled to the brim. Born in London in 1916, her appetite for love, pleasure, good food and adventure took her all over the globe until she died, in Dublin, in 1991. A Taste of Love, her two-volume autobiography, reveals a life fully lived: the names she used before settling on 'Theodora'; the cookery lessons given to her by the former Queen Natalie of Serbia; the 1920s childhood spent on food-chomping travels with her rakish father in Europe, the Middle East and India. Paris in the 1930s was home to Theodora's struggle to maintain an independent life as a young actress, where she began an affair with photographer Peter Rose Pulham and kept company with Balthus, Cocteau, Dali and Picasso. During the Blitz, Theodora escaped wartime Paris for bomb-ridden London, where she was friendly with Dylan and Caitlin Thomas, Francis Bacon and Soviet spy Donald Maclean, and adopted Gwladys the penguin and Mouche the poodle. In 1944, she married Irish-American writer Constantine FitzGibbon, travelling with him to the US, and divorced him fifteen famously stormy years later. In 1960 she married George Morrison, the film maker and archivist, and moved with him to live in Dalkey, Co. Dublin. Be enthralled by the fascinating story behind the woman who broadened the culinary horizons of many people in Ireland and beyond. In this highly entertaining memoir, discover the sights, sounds and tastes of Theodora FitzGibbon – food writer, adventurer and thoroughly modern woman. 'Theodora FitzGibbon was the most extraordinary woman. If you read her autobiography you realise how many lives she led.'Maeve Binchy

World exhibitions have been widely acknowledged as important sources for understanding the development of the modern consumer and urbanized society, yet whilst the function and purpose of architecture at these major events has been well-studied, the place of food has received very little attention. Food played a crucial part in the lived experience of the exhibitions: for visitors, who could acquaint themselves with the latest food innovations, exotic cuisines and ’traditional’ dishes; for officials attending lavish banquets; for the manufacturers who displayed their new culinary products; and for scientists who met to discuss the latest technologies in food hygiene. Food stood as a powerful semiotic device for communicating and maintaining conceptions of identity, history, traditions and progress, of inclusion and exclusion, making it a valuable tool for researching the construction of national or corporate sentiments. Combining recent developments in food studies and the history of major international exhibitions, this volume provides a refreshing alternative view of these international and intercultural spectacles.

Beyond being just fuel for the body, food carries symbolic importance used to define individuals, situations, and places, making it an ideal communication tool. In musical theater, food can be used as a shortcut to tell the audience more about a setting, character, or situation. Because everyone relates to eating, food can also be used to evoke empathy, amusement, or shock from the audience. In some cases, food is central to show’s plot. This book looks at popular musical theater shows to examine which foods are used, how they are used, why they are important, and how the food or usage relates to the broader world. Included are recipes for many of the foods that are significant in the shows discussed.

As a world destination for its history, culture and food, Barcelona occupies a special place for international visitors and food lovers. The book reveals the culinary history of the city of Barcelona and the region of Catalonia in Spain that narrates its rich gastronomic traditions and recent epicurean revolution.

The delicious, informative, and entertaining cookbook tie-in to PBS's Emmy Award-winning series A Taste of History. A TASTE OF HISTORY COOKBOOK provides a fascinating look into 18th and 19th century American history. Featuring over 150 elegant and approachable recipes featured in the Taste of History television series, paired with elegantly styled food photography, readers will want to recreate these dishes in their modern-day kitchens. Woven throughout the recipes are fascinating history lessons that introduce the people, places, and events that shaped our unique American democracy and cuisine. For instance, did you know that tofu has been a part of our culture's diet for centuries? Ben Franklin sung its praises in a letter written in 1770! With recipes like West Indies Pepperpot Soup, which was served to George Washington's troops to nourish them during the long winter at Valley Forge to Cornmeal Fried Oysters, the greatest staple of the 18th century diet to Boston's eponymous Boston Cream Pie, A TASTE OF HISTORY COOKBOOK is a must-have for both cookbook and history enthusiasts alike.