Elizabeth David
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Elizabeth David was a British cookery writer. In the mid-20th century she strongly influenced the revitalisation of home cookery in her native country and beyond with articles and books about European
David, c. 1960
Grounds of Wootton Manor, David's family home
Regent's Park Open Air Theatre (2008 photograph)
Norman Douglas, David's mentor from 1938
A Book of Mediterranean Food
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A Book of Mediterranean Food was an influential cookery book written by Elizabeth David in 1950, her first, and published by John Lehmann. After years of rationing and wartime austerity, the book brou
Elizabeth David
…she began to write magazine articles about Mediterranean cooking. They attracted favourable attention, and in 1950, at the age of 36, she published A Book of Mediterranean Food. Her recipes called for ingredients such as aubergines, basil, figs, garlic, olive oil and saffron, which at the time were scarcely available in Britain…
Front cover of the first edition
The reality of rationing and austerity: queuing for fish in London, 1945
Mediterranean port scene, drawn by John Minton for the book. Elizabeth David did not like the illustrations.
Cassoulet, a southern French dish described in the book