The Way We Ate: Pacific Northwest Cooking, 1843-1900

The history of food fascinates me, and early american history is no exception. This is a very good recounting of early cooking and preservation methods in the pacific northwest. Note some people who glimpsed it on my desk were disappointed, thinking it a cookbook. It isn't intended to be one. It is, however, a very good review of how people ate given the times in which they lived. Some basic information about early preservation, pickling, flour processing and sugar. Let's just say that we should all be really glad our modern staples are regulated by the government somewhat! I quite enjoyed it. Even if you don't typically like history books, if food fascinates you, give this a whirl. It's full of tasty trivia.

Jackie Williams is a friend of ours, a fellow collector of spud-abilia and appreciator of the potato, who has written several cookbooks as well as a fine food history work, Wagon Wheel Kitchens, Food on the Oregon Trail. Happily we can say that her newest book is a superb sequel, looking in on the pioneers once they reached their new home bases. Jackie has researched this subject down to the last eggless cake and translates all her findings into pleasing prose.Starting with all-essential water, then moving from early kitchens--every woman wanted a proper cookstove, but many made do with Dutch ovens over hot coals--to the perils of pickling , Jackie Williams paints an engaging picture of the improvisational skills of early settlers and their appreciation for the bounty of the land when it came their way.