“[Irma Rombauer] wrote ‘The Joy of Cooking’ during the Depression,” says Bill LeBlond, the editorial director of Chronicle Books in San Francisco. “Her upper-middle-class friends (in St. Louis) had lost their servants, and for the first time these women had to do their own cooking. So ‘Joy’ began with ‘Stand facing the stove,’ and it survives as a classic cookbook today because it is one of the few that covers the basics.” More from ‘Basic Training’…
This past week, the Sacramento Bee published a series of fantastic articles revisiting the foundations of our collective cooking consciousness: basics. All you have to do is register for a username, do it, the rewards await.
- 5 new basics
- The basic bible for every cuisine, from breakfast to grilling to southern food.
- What to look for when buying a basic cookbook
- More…
Don’t want a shiny new one? Buy original, antique editions here.
Next week: Moms cook!
