Here are some culinary resources looking back in time
Delicious by
A savory account of how the pursuit of delicious foods shaped human evolution Nature, it has been said, invites us to eat by appetite and rewards by flavor. But what exactly are flavors? Why are some so pleasing while others are not? Delicious is a supremely entertaining foray into the heart of such questions. With generous helpings of warmth and wit, Rob Dunn and Monica Sanchez offer bold new perspectives on why food is enjoyable and how the pursuit of delicious flavors has guided the course of human history. They consider the role that flavor may have played in the invention of the first tools, the extinction of giant mammals, the evolution of the world's most delicious and fatty fruits, the creation of beer, and our own sociality. Along the way, you will learn about the taste receptors you didn't even know you had, the best way to ferment a mastodon, the relationship between Paleolithic art and cheese, and much more. Blending irresistible storytelling with the latest science, Delicious is a deep history of flavor that will transform the way you think about human evolution and the gustatory pleasures of the foods we eat.
Agriculture in New Jersey: a three-hundred-year history by 
Fashionable Food by
Organized by decade, spanning the 1920s to the 1990s, this first complete history of gourmet food in America offers an irreverent approach to every food fad of the 20th century--from Crepe Suzettes to blue corn chips. Recipes, menus and illustrations for these creations can be found throughout. 40 photos.
From Hardtack to Home Fries by
An authority on women's history and the history of food takes readers on a cook's tour of American history, offering a savory new perspective on our country's past. 25 illustrations.
A History of Cooks and Cooking by
A history of the art of cooking begins with the clay ovens of the prehistoric Mediterranean world and the the bronze ovens of ancient China and paints a vivid portrait of what would follow in Asian street markets, palace kitchens, greasy diners, and Taco Bell.
Slumps, Grunts, and Snickerdoodles by
Portrays the historical context and domestic surroundings in which the early settlers lived. Includes thirteen authentic recipes.
The American History Cookbook for Students by
This book uses historical commentary and recipes to trace the history of American cooking from the first European contact with Native Americans to the 1970s. Each of 50 chronologically arranged topical chapters contain 500-1,000 words of general commentary followed by descriptions and clear, step-by-step instructions for 3-4 recipes. The recipes are drawn from a wide variety of historical cookbooks and other historical sources. The topics cover broad periods (e.g., Settlers and Indians, Early American Spring Meals, Health Food in Victorian America); particular events (e.g., Civil War South, The Great Depression); and particular trends or movements (e.g., Railroad Food, School Lunch, The Labor Movement). Also presented are engaging special topics such as Patriotic Cakes, Abolitionist Recipes, Communal Experiments, and Modern Health Food. The book is indexed by year of publication of recipes, states, and broad subjects.
As Long As We Both Shall Eat by
As Long as we Both Shall Eat is a culinary history of wedding feasts. Examining the various food customs associated with weddings in America and around the world, Claire Stewart not only provides a rich account of the foods most loved and frequently served at wedding celebrations, she also offers a glimpse into the customs and celebrations themselves, as they are experienced in the West and in various other cultures. She sheds light on the historical and contemporary significance of wedding food, and explores patterns of the varieties of conspicuous consumption linked to American wedding feasts in particular. There are stories of celebrity excess, and the book is peppered with accounts of lavish strange-but-true wedding tales. The antics of wealthy socialites and celebrities is a topic rich for exploration, and the telling of their exploits can be used to track the fads and changes in conventional and contemporary wedding feasts and celebrations. From cocktail hours to wedding cakes, showers to brunches, the food we enjoy to celebrate the joining of life partners helps bring us together, no matter our differences. Readers are treated to a tasty trip down the aisle in this entertaining and lively account of nuptial noshing.
A Companion to Food in the Ancient World by
A Companion to Food in the Ancient World presents a comprehensive overview of the cultural aspects relating to the production, preparation, and consumption of food and drink in antiquity. * Provides an up-to-date overview of the study of food in the ancient world * Addresses all aspects of food production, distribution, preparation, and consumption during antiquity * Features original scholarship from some of the most influential North American and European specialists in Classical history, ancient history, and archaeology * Covers a wide geographical range from Britain to ancient Asia, including Egypt and Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, regions surrounding the Black Sea, and China * Considers the relationships of food in relation to ancient diet, nutrition, philosophy, gender, class, religion, and more
Food and Eating in America by
Guides students through a rich menu of American history through food and eating This book features a wide and diverse range of primary sources covering the cultivation, preparation, marketing, and consumption of food from the time before Europeans arrived in North America to the present-day United States. It is organized around what the authors label the "Four P's"--production, politics, price, and preference--in order to show readers that food represents something more than nutrition and the daily meals that keep us alive. The documents in this book demonstrate that food we eat is a "highly condensed social fact" that both reflects and is shaped by politics, economics, culture, religion, region, race, class, and gender. Food and Eating in America covers more than 500 years of American food and eating history with sections on: An Appetizer: What Food and Eating Tell Us About America; Hunting, Harvesting, Starving, and the Occasional Feast: Food in Early America; Fields and Foods in the Nineteenth Century; Feeding a Modern World: Revolutions in Farming, Food, and Famine; and Counterculture Cuisines and Culinary Tourism. Presents primary sources from a wide variety of perspectives--Native Americans, explorers, public officials, generals, soldiers, slaves, slaveholders, clergy, businessmen, workers, immigrants, activists, African Americans, Hispanics, Asian Americans, artists, writers, investigative reporters, judges, the owners of food trucks, and prison inmates Illustrates the importance of eating and food through speeches, letters, diaries, memoirs, newspaper and magazine articles, illustrations, photographs, song lyrics, advertisements, legislative statutes, court rulings, interviews, manifestoes, government reports, and recipes Offers a new way of exploring how people lived in the past by looking closely and imaginatively at food Food and Eating in America: A Documentary Reader is an ideal book for students of United States history, food, and the social sciences. It will also appeal to foodies and those with a curiosity for documentary-style books of all kinds.
Refined Tastes by
American consumers today regard sugar as a mundane and sometimes even troublesome substance linked to hyperactivity in children and other health concerns. Yet two hundred years ago American consumers treasured sugar as a rare commodity and consumed it only in small amounts. In Refined Tastes: Sugar, Confectionery, and Consumers in Nineteenth-Century America, Wendy A. Woloson demonstrates how the cultural role of sugar changed from being a precious luxury good to a ubiquitous necessity. Sugar became a social marker that established and reinforced class and gender differences. During the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, Woloson explains, the social elite saw expensive sugar and sweet confections as symbols of their wealth. As refined sugar became more affordable and accessible, new confections--children's candy, ice cream, and wedding cakes--made their way into American culture, acquiring a broad array of social meanings. Originally signifying male economic prowess, sugar eventually became associated with femininity and women's consumerism. Woloson's work offers a vivid account of this social transformation--along with the emergence of consumer culture in America.
Abraham Lincoln in the Kitchen by
"Abraham Lincoln in the Kitchen is a culinary biography unlike any before. The very assertion of the title--that Abraham Lincoln cooked--is fascinating and true. It's an insight into the everyday life of one of our nation's favorite and most esteemed presidents and a way to experience flavors and textures of the past. Eighmey solves riddles such as what type of barbecue could be served to thousands at political rallies when paper plates and napkins didn't exist, and what gingerbread recipe could have been Lincoln's childhood favorite when few families owned cookie cutters and he could carry the cookies in his pocket. Through Eighmey's eyes and culinary research and experiments--including sleuthing for Lincoln's grocery bills in Springfield ledgers and turning a backyard grill into a cast-iron stove--the foods that Lincoln enjoyed, cooked, or served are translated into modern recipes so that authentic meals and foods of 1820-1865 are possible for home cooks. Feel free to pull up a chair to Lincoln's table."
A Culinary History of Cape May by
Author John Howard-Fusco traces the roots of Cape May's delectable dishes and recipes from long ago to the modern day. Cape May is America's first seaside resort, and with that comes a mouthwatering food history. The New York Times even proclaimed the city "Restaurant Capital of New Jersey." The first settlers, the Kechemeche of the Lenape tribe, feasted on the fish and wild game in the area. The whaling industry briefly brought attention to the island, but Ellis Hughes's 1801 advertisement offering seashore entertainment with "fish, oysters, crabs, and good liquors" gave birth to a beachside haven. From the mint juleps to the Sunny Hall Café and the Chalfonte, culinary creativity thrives on the shore. Modern chefs like Lucas Manteca at the Red Store and Brooke Dodds's Empanada Mamas help keep the unique flair alive.
Home on the Range by
A chronicle of the roots of American frontier cooking- in anecdotes, pioneer writing, and vintage photographs. 145 halftones throughout.
Stirring the Pot with Benjamin Franklin by
In this remarkable culinary biography, Rae Katherine Eighmey presents Benjamin Franklin's experimentation with food throughout his life. At age sixteen, he began dabbling in vegetarianism. In his early twenties, citing the health benefits of water over alcohol, he convinced his printing press colleagues to abandon their traditional breakfast of beer and bread for "water gruel," a kind of porridge he enjoyed. Franklin is known for his scientific discoveries, including electricity and the lightning rod, and his curiosity and logical mind extended to the kitchen- he even conducted an electrical experiment to try to cook a turkey. Later in life, on his diplomatic missions--he lived fifteen years in England and nine in France--Franklin ate like a local. Eighmey discovers the meals served at his London home-away-from-home and analyzes his account books from Passy, France, for tips to his diet there. Yet he also longed for American foods; his wife Deborah sent over some favorites including cranberries, which amazed the London kitchen staff. He saw food as key to the developing culture of the United States, penning two essays presenting maize as the defining grain of America. Eighmey revives and re-creates recipes from each chapter in his life. Stirring the Pot with Benjamin Franklin conveys all of Franklin's culinary adventures, demonstrating how Franklin's love of food shaped not only his life, but also the character of the young nation he helped build.