Customer Reviews:
Simply more than a recipe book - Jane Grigson`s `English Food`! March 30, 2007 32 out of 34 found this review helpful
`In this classic work, Jane Grigson reveals the richness and surprising diversity of England's culinary heritage. From modest dishes such as `Gloucestershire Cheese and Ale`, and `Toad-in-the-Hole', to grander ones using roast game, local fish and fresh vegetables, as well as traditional puddings, teatime cakes and preserves, this joyful celebration of our national cuisine is a pleasure to cook from and a delight to read. '
Penguin Cookery Library format - paperback with 384 pages, split over chapters:-
Soups Cheese and egg dishes Vegetables Meat, poultry and game Puddings Teatime: - bread, cake, griddle cakes and pancakes, biscuits Stuffings, sauces and preserves
sandwiched between a foreword, from daughter Sophie plus an introduction, and a concise index. Interspersed with just the odd black and white line drawing this chunky paperback is serious reading material, with acknowledgements and endearing references to other great cooks and cookery writers including Elizabeth David and the reproduction of three of her famous recipes:-
Elizabeth David's Potted Crab Elizabeth David's Prawn Paste Elizabeth David's Everlasting Syllabub
Each chapter opens with general information and observations, as does each recipe, e.g.
Soused Herrings:- Herring cooked this way makes a good cold dish, so long as you don't overdo the vinegar. I recommend you follow the Scandinavian practice of serving them with a bowl of cream, beaten with lemon juice, salt and pepper, and flavoured with chives.
Other delicious recipes include:-
Roast Rack of Lamb with Laverbread Isle of Man Herring Pie Venison Pasty Chilled Mange Tout Creams Chicken with Leek Pie from Wales Bloater and Potato Salad Jellied Stock Pork Pie Filling English Game Pie Raspberry Pie Chocolate Pie Mussel and Leek Roly Poly Queen of Puddings Salmon in Pastry with a Herb Sauce Sedgemoor Eel Stew Mushrooms in Snuffboxes Anchovy Matchsticks Liver and Bacon Salad Little Cheese Souffle Rice Bread Cinnamon Toast Oyster Sauce Ginger Cake
Each recipe is clearly laid out with number of servings, ingredients lists and method.
Oh hooray for Jane Grigson November 1, 2004 33 out of 39 found this review helpful
It is so good that Jane Grigson remains in print. Supremely unfussy, fabulously unpretentious, her books are invaluable. last night I decided to bone and stuff a chicken for roasting and sifted through piles of more contemporary cookbooks looking for an interesting stuffing recipe. They were few and far between - then I remembered the Sainted Jane and hooray a whole chapter of stuffing recipes. I plumped for a hazelnut stuffing and it was fabulous. Now she's been dusted off, I'm going to be using her a lot more again - perfect for the winter months!
Excellent book, with an honest, back to basics outlook. August 14, 2001 58 out of 63 found this review helpful
An excellent book, full of the author's own opinion regarding food preparation and ingredient suggestions. Having tried several of the recipees, they all have had excellent results; however, there is plenty of value added through the author's own "editorial" sections, which are available at the introduction of new chapters and often as a prelude to the recipees themselves.A must for any kitchen/cooking lover.
|