I have, over the past week, acquired from the Multnomah County Library, and read, The Lord Peter Wimsey Cookbook.
As you can see by Itzl's concerned look, this group is for us to check in at to let people know we are alive, doing OK, and not affected by such things as heat, blizzards, floods, wild fires, hurricanes, tornadoes, power outages, or other such things that could keep us off DKos. It's also so we can find other Kossacks nearby for in-person checks when other methods of communication fail - a buddy system. Members come here to check in. If you're not here, or anywhere else on DKos, and there are adverse conditions in your area (floods, heatwaves, hurricanes, etc.), we and your buddy are going to check up on you. If you are going to be away from your computer for a day or a week, let us know here. We care!
IAN is a great group to join, and a good place to learn to write diaries. Drop one of us a PM to be added to the Itzl Alert Network anytime! We all share the publishing duties, and we welcome everyone who reads IAN to write diaries for the group! Every member is an editor, so anyone can take a turn when they have something to say, photos and music to share, a cause to promote or news!
There is only one review of it on Amazon. I do agree with what it says - especially the bit about all the recipes, from cookies to sandwiches, in the chapter on teas requiring an inordinate amount of butter. On the other hand, I tend to use about half the amount of
anything that spreads compared to many other people.
Shall we go over the wad of zest for more?
The book was published in 1981, which will help you understand when they start talking about the particular vintages of wine that are suitable for the food in question. A little simple arithmetic will let you figure out how old was considered properly aged at the time Dorothy Sayers was writing. They also have a list in the back of equivalent California wines - I can personally (and enthusiastically) recommend Beaulieu Vineyards as the source of some fine wines, indeed.
I am very much afraid that my descriptions will not make this sound anywhere near so entertaining as it actually is.
Chapter 1. Incunabula
The chapter title is a word that refers to the early stages of something. And to books printed before 1501, which is something that Lord Peter collects. The chapter, quite appropriately, deals with some of what led to this book being written, and some of what led to Dorothy Sayers dealing with food as she does in the books.
Chapter 2. The Lord at the Breakfast Table
This chapter deals with five different breakfasts from four different books, one taste test of different porridges from Murder Must Advertise, and a brief aside on hangover cures from a book written by Dorothy Sayers's husband.
Each section includes a brief description of the situation, sometimes direct quotes from the book involved, and recipes or instructions on how to do something that doesn't necessarily require a recipe.
Recipes include:
Bunter's Kidneys with Bacon
Bloaters (herring)
Riddlesdale Breakfast Curry
Belated Omelette
Almost Flawless Kippers
There are also instructions for how to deal with a mixed grill, frying bacon and eggs, and making oatmeal.
The breakfast curry sounded really good to me. It's described as a good way to use up extra rice. It also calls for leftover fish. I would, however, use whole eggs instead of just the yolks, as is called for.
Chapter 3. A Jolly Time at Lunch
Five meals from three different novels, and an aside involving the picnic lunch provided after the post-mortem in Busman's Honeymoon. The format is the same.
Recipes include:
Consomme Polonais
Headwaiter's Grilled Sole
Mr. Murble's Roast Saddle of Mutton
Very Particular Peas
Cauliflower in Cheese Sauce
Rose and Crown Potted Shrimps
Watchett's Steak and Kidney Pie
Trifle
Lord's Day Roast Beef
Yorkshire Pudding
Rectory Apple Pie
Angels on Horseback
Fenchurch Shepherd's Pie
Treacle Tart
There are also instructions for cooking new potatoes, roasting potatoes, cooking Brussels sprouts, and mashed turnips.
Chapter 4. An Orgy of Teas
This chapter includes a long section on different characters having tea (Miss Climpson, in Strong Poison, features largely), then briefly describes how to make tea in the proper English manner. There follows a recipe for beef tea (recommended for invalids) and lots of recipes for assorted goodies.
Recipes include:
Tomato Sandwiches
Cucumber Sandwiches
Watercress Sandwiches
Shortbread
Date and Apricot Tea Bread
Crumpets (two variants)
Hot Buttery English Muffins
Seedy Cake
Devonshire Splits (scones)
Potato Scones
Cider Cake
Ginger Cake
Lemon Biscuits (cookies)
Almond Rice Cakes
Chelsea Buns
Dundee Cake
Chapter 5. Dinner: A Slice of the Breast and a Glass of the Best
This chapter includes seven dinners from five novels and a short story, and an aside involving an incident in Clouds of Witness.
There are recommendations for dealing with cooking a steak, and the occasional comment on what Bunter would have done differently. There is also the suggestion that if the menu includes turtle soup, you go for the canned stuff.
Recipes include:
Genuine English Grass (asparagus)
Rhubarb Pie
Correct Casserole of Beef with Vegetables
Admirable Cheese Souffle
Roast Duck with Sage and Onion Dressing
Mushrooms on Toast
Jellied Beef Consomme
Poached Turbot with Parsley Sauce
Poulet en Casserole a la Pettican
Sweet Omelette
Turkish Coffee
Perdrix aux Choux (partridges with cabbage)
Welsh Rarebit
Consomme Marmite
Filets de Sole Bercy aux Champignons
Poulet Poele a l'Estragon (roast chicken)
Gigot de Pre-Sale Roti mon Souci (roast lamb with vegetables and sauce)
Epinards a la Creme (creamed spinach)
Huitres Musgraves (oysters)
Filet de Sole with Sauce Mousseline Sabayon
Roast Pheasant with Bread Sauce
Potatoes Byron
Souffle Glace au Citron
Several of these recipes are based on a short story set in France (The Bibulous Business of the Matter of Taste), and some of the others are on the menu of assorted fancy restaurants.
I might, at some point, try the partridges with cabbage - I know what stores locally sell partridges (and game hens would work as well), and I like cabbage. However, the only recipe that immediately appeals in this chapter is the rhubarb pie - I'd never thought of adding orange juice.
Chapter 6. A Bolt for the Supper Room
Supper being the light meal that guests are fed late at night, as a break from the more serious partying. There are four suppers from three novels discussed and the aside comes early in the chapter, from Busman's Honeymoon, about Bunter's toast when Peter and Harriet get married.
Recipes include:
Sole Colbert
Apple Charlotte
Devils on Horseback
Major Fleming's Trotters (pigs feet)
Soviet Club Fish Soup
Red Army Borscht
Comrades' Mutton Stew
People's Black Bread
Sally Hardy's Favorite Savoury Sandwiches
1. Tongue Paste
2. Sardine Paste
3. Smoked Salmon
Curious Little Stuffed Buns
1. Crabmeat
2. Ham
3. Chicken
Petits Fours
The black bread takes a couple of days to make, but it sounds good. If you like rye bread.
Chapter 7. Lord Peter Picks His Poison: Pubs and Cellars
This chapter is about beers and wines and goes into detail about social conventions as well as given a pretty good look at Lord Peter's tastes.
Basic directions are given for hot toddies and for perry, which is basically cider made with pears.
There are a few recipes:
Miss Twitterton's Unforgettable Parsnip Wine
Mrs. Ashton's Mother's Peggle Wine
Dr. Threep's Shirt-Front Ginger Beer
Wassail
And I am very much afraid that my descriptions don't do the book justice. I enjoyed it thoroughly.