If my friends are to remember me for anything when I’m gone, I would like it to be for the gatherings around our table.
Wood’s title encapsulates her attitude to cooking which she grew to love after a lunch at her tutor’s house in her twenties. His wife introduced her to Elizabeth David’s cooking whose A Book of Mediterranean Food she bought shortly afterwards, hoping to replicate the glorious smells and tastes of that Sunday afternoon. For her food and love are inextricably bound, welcoming friends for meals they can begin to savour as soon as she opens her door to them, a celebration of friendship which begins in the selection and care with which ingredients are combined and served. It’s an expression of creativity which lacks the pressure of her day job with its nervous anticipation of damning reviews, although I suspect she doesn’t get too many of those. From childhood delights such as her father’s birthday Hedgehog Slice, lovingly made by a neighbour, to learning to enjoy oysters, Wood shares her foodie adventures and tips, always with the emphasis on sharing and conviviality.
In the same week my friend told me of her culinary ennui, I found myself in the throes of a syndrome at the opposite end of the spectrum – an episode of insomnia which saw me lying awake at 3 am, rigid with excitement about a bag of chicken bones in the fridge.
I nodded along to a good deal of Wood’s ideas – I’ve never hosted a dinner party either, always asked people to supper and tried to do as much in advance as possible – although I have balked at tripe. Maybe I should give it a try. Each of her chapters is followed by uncomplicated, clearly organised recipes, from How to Brine a Chicken to Pomegranate Honey, including that Hedgehog Slice. She writes beautifully – her description of lentils should convert even the most hardened resister. Wood’s love for friends and family runs through its anecdotal style together with humour and humanity: there’s a poignant chapter on how to cook for those enduring chemo. I’d expected to enjoy this one but not nearly as much as I did. It’s a perfect combination of memoir, life philosophy and practicality I’m not surprised Nigella Lawson praises it to the skies in her foreword.
Sceptre Books: London 9781399756143 288 pages Hardback (NetGalley)
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Yes! I WANT this book! And while tripe looks unappetising here, I urge you to give it a whirl in Italy or France. Trippa alla fiorentina, and tripes à la mode de Caen really shouldn’t disgust anybody. Well, vegans and vegetarians, obviously. I’m not a big meat-eater at all, but those two dishes have won me over.
Recommend this one unreservedly! As luck would have it, we’re planning an Italian holiday for next year so I may have to rise to your challenge.
I’m counting on you, Susan.
H will eat pretty much anything so I’ll delegate and have a taste of his!
Sounds like a plan!
Sounds brilliant. Just my kind of book.
I’m sure you’d love this one.
I grabbed this from NetGalley as well — looking forward to it.
It’s a treat! She writes beautifully about food and the importance of sharing it with others. Hope you enjoy it.
I love this sort of foodie/memoir/anecdotal book so definitely one for me, thanks!
My pleasure, Jane. I loved it, so cheering.
Oh wow! I’ve read two of Wood’s novels and loved this. This sounds fantastic!
I love this genre and this one’s a brilliant example.
Sounds great! I’m not sure about tripe either though…
I think Margaret is counting on me to try it next year in Italy. I’m counting on H to help me out.
Oh this sounds like a lovely book. I haven’t read any of Wood’s fiction yet. I am an Elizabeth David fan. I have that cookery book for years and her paella recipe is foolproof.
It’s a real treat, Lucy. I liked her intertwining of food and friendship. She had the best introduction with Elizabeth David.
This sounds very good. I read, but wasn’t thrilled with her novel The Weekend, but I think I’d like to read this one. I now want to pull out my Elizabeth David book–French Provincal Cooking. Question: You say you’ve had people to supper but never hosted a dinner party. I am accustomed to supper & dinner being synonyms and use being based on region or class.
Heartily recommend this one. An invitation to dinner here would likely raise expectations of three courses whereas supper lowers them to two which probably won’t be elaborate. That said, there’s a class element to it; our Eton educated PM, David Cameron, used the term ‘kitchen supper’ which made me cringe!
Thanks for the explaination! Ha! The only old Etonians who are perhaps more cinge-y are Harry and the late Prince Charles Edward, Duke of Albany! But David was such a toff, wasn’t he??
I read this book more than a decade ago and absolutely loved it – can’t quite believe it has taken so long to be published in the UK! She writes so mindfully.
I’m so glad they finally got around to it. I’m loath to mention Christmas, but with my old bookseller hat on I can see it would make a brilliant stocking filler.
So glad this is getting some o/s love too. I read it back in 2012 and loved it (review on my blog if you are interested).
I went to a High Tea launch for the book with Charlotte at a local bookshop – it was great fun even though Charlotte had lost her voice. She actually started out writing a food blog called How To Shuck an Oyster which is how I first heard ‘knew’ her. It is still live, though has not been updated for quite a few years now.
My book is now bespattered, dog-eared and looking its age with browning papers, but I still refer to it. I made stock from scratch for the first time thanks to Charlotte!
Oh, I’ll look that up. Thank you.
That’s exactly the state good foodie books should be in. I’m sure she’d be delighted. My partner is a keen stock maker. It makes such a difference to even the most ordinary meal doesn’t it.
It really does. I haven’t made any for ages; I really should give it another go.