Media: Initial Research

 I decided to follow my culinary passion and in today's blog post I will do initial research about the idea. My project will be a cookbook. Following Encyclopedia Britannica cookbook - is a "collection of recipes, instructions, and information about the preparation and serving of foods At its best, a cookbook is also a chronicle and treasury of the fine art of cooking, an art whose masterpieces—created only to be consumed—would otherwise be lost".  

I would like to begin with origins and look at one of the most famous early one that came from Greece : Deipnosophistai - The Learned Banquet" written by Greek grammarian - Athenaeus. Its is written as a form of aristocratic symposium, where a number of learned men meet at a banquet and discuss food and other topics. 

The work is divided into 15 books and it is presented as a dialogue between two banqueters, who relate recipes for dishes such as vine leaves and cheesecake. The value of the work partly consist of quotations and unusual information about all aspects of life in the ancient Greco- Roman world. 

                                                

                                                Deipnosophistai - Athenaeus - Book III 

Medieval Europe also made cookbooks. The early one in England was "The Forme of Cury" made in 12th century. It has 196 recipes and most of them have French origin and names such as "Payn Fondewe". Considering the fact that the original manuscript has been lost, the text has been saved in nine copies, the most famous of which is a scroll with an original article referring to it as the product of "King Richard II's main Master Cooks." The name The Forme of Cury is more commonly applied to a group of recipes than to a single manuscript book. It is one of the oldest surviving English recipe books, and it is the first to mention olive oil, gourds, and spices like mace and cloves.

Then one of first French cookbooks was La Menagier de Paris, published in 1394 and contains recipes for specialties such as frogs and snails. It's a manuscript book about home and culinary economy prepared for a Parisian bourgeois by his wife to teach him how to keep his house and cook. The text, written in the (fictional) voice of an elderly husband to his younger wife, provides a rare look into late mediaeval gender, home, and marriage ideals. The fundamental theme of the book, which is important for its language and combination of prose and poetry, is wifely obedience. The cookbook is presented in the second part of the book, article five. Its many recipes, like most original middle ages cuisine resources (that is, books and manuscripts actually written during the middle ages), include information on ingredients and preparation methods but do not accurately measure anything; most ingredients are given without specifying amounts, and most cooking methods are listed without specifying amount of heat or cooking time. Soups, meat, egg, and fish dishes, sauces, beverages, pastries, and tarts are included recipes in Le Menagier.

     

                                                   Le Menagier de Paris translation - 1394

I read one of the review of Italian cookbook and this is what I would like to achieve in my project: “Not just a recipe book, but a genuine overview of Tuscany's culinary history and culture, a journey in images through photograph taken .” -  Tuscookany -  The flavours of Tuscany

Now I have understanding on history of cookbooks and have knowledge about its variety of form. As I can see there were not only included recipes but also the interesting facts from different ages, dialogues and beautiful handwriting. As I am English language student it is very interesting. In my own project I can include images and recipes. I will do further research to investigate how to make culinary e-book and decide on if I would do my own images or copy-right free images and choose which country's cuisine I would like to introduce in my Cookbook. Also I think about presenting list of recipes as a Menu card.  In the next week I will be working on Smart Objective and Project Sign-Off. I can't wait to begin my project! I'm sure it will be exciting!

 

References

Encyclopedia Britannica. 2022. Athenaeus | Greek grammarian and author. [online] Available at: <https://www.britannica.com/biography/Athenaeus#ref17743> [Accessed 09 April 2022].

Encyclopedia Britannica. 2022. cookbook | Definition & History. [online] Available at: <https://www.britannica.com/topic/cookbook> [Accessed 09 April 2022].

Gallica. 2022. Ménagier de Paris.. [online] Available at: <https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b10501679k> [Accessed 09 April 2022].

Goodreads. 2022. The Deipnosophists, or Banquet of the Learned: Volume I. [online] Available at: <https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/14612778-the-deipnosophists-or-banquet-of-the-learned> [Accessed 09 April 2022].

Medievalists.net. 2022. Le Menagier de Paris: A Parisian Bourgeoisie Household in 1400 - Medievalists.net. [online] Available at: <https://www.medievalists.net/2010/12/le-menagier-de-paris-a-parisian-bourgeoisie-household-in-1400/> [Accessed 09 April 2022].

Pbm.com. 2022. Le Ménagier De Paris. [online] Available a09 April 2022].

Taylor & Francis. 2022. The Forme of Cury. [online] Available at: <https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13528165.2020.1918892> [Accessed 09 April 2022].