A little cookery
Hello, I have a problem. I am addicted to collecting cookbooks. I have over 40 Caribbean cookbooks – including several that are now out of print – and a collection of about 80 others, ranging from some published in the 1930s to more contemporary fare. I will also confess that I have 2 vegetarian cookbooks, neither of which is used, and only 1 “celebrity chef” book (all gifts.) My favourites for reading are my vintage books, where there were few convenience foods or appliances; the selection of ingredients was limited; and instructions often include the statement “If you have a refrigerator…” Granted, these books are either British or Canadian in origin, so they reflect heavily the cultures of those countries. One of them, by the noted Marguerite Patten addresses rationing and cooking using scarce ingredients (it was written during WWII) and it does provide a look at extreme economy. As interesting as some of those are, I’m not moved to try them. Then there is the classic