The Constance Spry Cookery Book

One of the all-time great cookbooks receives a lavish update and remains an essential resource and inspiration for cooks of all levels. One of the greatest cookbooks of all time, The Constance Spry Cookery Book remains an essential kitchen bible: astonishingly informative, supremely practical, and constantly at-hand for countless home cooks and future top chefs for over fifty years. With over a thousand pages filled with recipes, cooking history, and miraculous tips, this indispensable resource has now been updated and elegantly redesigned with specially commissioned how-to line drawings. Cooks of every level will find invaluable information on kitchen processes, soups and sauces, vegetables, meat, poultry, game, cold dishes, and pastry making. This timeless treasure is “a monument to ‘civilised living’ . . . If you can’t find a recipe for something anywhere else, it will be in Constance Spry” (The Guardian). “Cookery is vast, detailed, and lovely. The purpose of the book was to take the knowledge of culinary professionals and write it in a form that British housewives could understand and use. It was, and it remains, the British cookery [and cooking] bible.” —Cooking by the Book

Fascinating ... to be eagerly devoured’ Clarissa Dickson-Wright Most people today, if they have heard of her, associate Constance Spry with the cookery book bearing her name. But Connie was much, much more than the author of a bestselling cookery book. She was deeply unconventional, extremely charming and very determined; Spry’s life took her from the back streets of Victorian Derby to running a hugely successful business as the florist of choice for the highest of high society, organizing the flowers for royal weddings and indeed for the Queen's coronation. She endured a violent first marriage, had a lesbian affair with a cross-dressing artist and was a pioneer for working women at a time when few women had careers. Sue Shephard tells her extraordinary story with insight, wit and flair. 'Riveting.’ Jane Fearnley-Whittingstall ‘Makes you fall utterly in love with its subject’ New York Times Magazine ‘Reveals with the greatest skill and sympathy an extraordinary person - complicated, driven, sometimes secretive but gifted and artistic to an nth degree. What a story.' Elizabeth Buchan

"House and Garden has recently called Constance Spry "the first superstar florist": her heyday in England lasted from the late 1920's through the '50s, during which she arranged flowers for Elsie de Wolfe, for Wallis Simpson's wedding to the Duke of Windsor, and for Elizabeth II's coronation. But what will most endear her to today's American flower lovers is her propensity for breaking rules." "Unorthodox arrangements in alternative containers were her trademark; she fearlessly utilized anything of beauty. "Perhaps," she writes, "a leaf from the vegetable garden attracts your attention, or a spray of ripe fruit. You don't stop to think that this material is labelled, so to speak, 'for eating'; you realize it is decorative, and that is enough; it suits your purpose and you use it."" "Decrying "tame vases of flowers", she mixed blooms - a fairly daring practice in her day - in order to achieve "the thrill of the beholder" that the Dutch and Flemish achieved with their still-lifes. She reacted most of all against the imposition of arbitrary rules on an activity she felt should be spontaneous and alive. She felt "strongly that the art of flower arrangement should be a means of self-expression for everyone and that nobody should be afraid to express his feeling for color and line through this medium."" "Flower Decoration reveals Constance Spry to be an English rebel with a cause and a chatty style. This, her first book, has been long out of print: it will be greeted with appreciation by today's sophisticated gardeners who, along with everyone interested in home decor, will love what HG has called her "lush, funky style". The time has come to reintroduce Constance Spry to America."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

A stylish compendium of 100 of the world's best cookery books, from the seventeenth century to the present day.

Imparting all the warmth and fragrance of an old-fashioned, turn-of-the-century kitchen, The Settlement Cook Book was originally devised as a cooking and homemaking primer for newly arrived immigrants. Filled with hundreds of recipes for good eating, this back-to-basics book is also good reading. A blend of hardy, old-fashioned dishes and simple recipes that will fit today's demanding lifestyles, the text covers everything from making roast chicken (with chestnut dressing) to the best way to dust a room. Clearly detailed, easy-to-read directions tell how to create such tasty fare as griddle cakes, shrimp Creole, and mulligatawny soup; cheese fondue, oyster a la poulette, and other Continental specialties; as well as ethnic foods such as gefilte fish and matzo ball soup. Sections on preserving, canning, and pickling are interspersed with quaint "lessons" on how to sterilize milk, build a fire, and discern fresh eggs from stale ones. A delightful culinary education from the days before convection ovens and "dream kitchens," The Settlement Cook Book is a treasury of Americana, a delightful sampling of cultural history that will enchant lovers of old cookbooks and well-prepared foods.

"Good cooking depends on two things: common sense and good taste." In England, no food writer's star shines brighter than Simon Hopkinson's. His breakthrough Roast Chicken and Other Stories was voted the most useful cookbook ever by a panel of chefs, food writers, and consumers. At last, American cooks can enjoy endearing stories from the highly acclaimed food writer and his simple yet elegant recipes. In this richly satisfying culinary narrative, Hopkinson shares his unique philosophy on the limitless possibilities of cooking. With its friendly tone backed by the author's impeccable expertise, this cookbook can help anyone--from the novice cook to the experienced chef--prepare delicious cuisine . . . and enjoy every minute of it! Irresistible recipes in this book include: Eggs Florentine Chocolate Tart Poached Salmon with Beurre Blanc And, of course, the book's namesake recipe, Roast Chicken Winner of both the 1994 Andre Simon and 1995 Glenfiddich awards (the gastronomic world's equivalent to an Oscar), this acclaimed book will inspire anyone who enjoys sharing the ideas of a truly creative cook and delights in getting the best out of good ingredients.

Favourite recipes and stories of a life in food come together in a beautiful cookbook by one of New Zealand's best-known food writers Lauraine Jacobs is a New Zealand food legend. Whether it's through her hundreds of recipes written over the years for Cuisine magazine, her weekly column in the Listener or her cooking demonstrations at the Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch Food Shows, New Zealand cooks know that her recipes are utterly reliable and totally delicious. There are few food writers more experienced or more expert. Lauraine trained at the Cordon Bleu school in Paris, and for over 40 years since she has travelled widely, championned New Zealand food and wine producers, judged restaurant awards, been president of the International Association of Culinary Professionals, sat on government advisory panels, written several cookbooks and eaten at some of the world's finest restaurants. Above all, she has never stopped loving cooking and exploring new ways to bring beautifully prepared meals to the table. It's been an everlasting feast. Whether it's traditional baking or a glamorous dinner-party menu, Lauraine has the recipes homecooks can count on. She shares 100 of them with her fans in this gorgeous new cookbook that tells the fascinating stories of her life in food and showcases her favourite recipes and cooking tips and techniques.

Second Helpings of Roast Chicken takes forty-seven of Simon Hopkinson's favourite ingredients as a starting point. There is a section on apples with a perfect apple tart recipe, a section on curry recipes with Constance Spry's original Coronation chicken salad dressing and a section on duck, with recipes for Braised duck with peas and classic Roast duck and apple sauce. There are also recipes for Pear and ginger sponge, 'a good' Waldorf salad, Armenian lamb pilaf, Baked whole plaice with lemon butter sauce and what is, quite simply, the best Bloody Mary. Roast Chicken and Other Stories was voted the most useful cookbook of all time by Waitrose Food Illustrated and also won the Andre Simon and Glenfiddich awards. Second Helpings of Roast Chicken will provide new inspiration the many fans of Simon Hopkinson's sensible, practical, creative approach to cooking and love of good food, prepared to please rather than simply impress.