Dining at Monticello: In Good Taste and Abundance combines recipes, background essays, and lush illustrations to provide an inviting view of the renowned hospitality offered at Thomas Jefferson's table. Ten introductory essays by Monticello scholars and by outside experts illuminate all areas of food and drink at Jefferson's home, ranging from the groceries and wine imported from Europe, to the recently revealed kitchen restoration, to the African Americans who participated in this rich food culture at every stage. Following these essays are seventy-five recipes found in the family manuscripts, some written in Jefferson's own hand. Updated by Damon Lee Fowler, author of Classical Southern Cooking, the recipes are authentic to the period yet accessible to the home cook. Filled with anecdotes, recipes, solid information, and beautiful color photography, this book satisfies both hunger and curiosity.
Book Description
Among Thomas Jefferson's flaws, according to Patrick Henry, was the manner in which "he has abjured his native victuals in favor of French cuisine." While Jefferson's years in Paris enhanced his fondness for French food, the offerings at Monticello incorporated Continental cuisine with more common Virginian fare, yielding a celebrated blend of cultures and traditions.
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Was Thomas Jefferson a vegetarian? Maybe not, but he was an unusually moderate consumer of meat and ate a notable quantity and variety of vegetables. These and other facts are on display in this intriguing book, which will appeal to fans of Americana and culinary history. Fowler draws on Jefferson's family's personal letters, recipe manuscripts, accounts of food purchases and Jefferson's own notebook to reveal what eating was like during Jefferson's era at the famed Virginia manor. Culinary historian Fowler, author of five cookbooks, includes Jefferson's notes describing the 1,000-foot-long vegetable garden he designed, as well as other interesting tidbits, such as an explanation of what service "à la francaise" is, how scholars knew what to recreate in renovating Monticello's kitchen, and a description of the kinds of visitors Monticello hosted, from statesmen to scientists to socialites. The second half of the book contains recipes (the names of which are written in a hard-to-read script) from various sources relating to Jefferson's family, some penned by Jefferson himself. Only the most intrepid readers will actually try them, though: Forcemeat Balls, Mushroom Catsup, Creamed Cod, and Cabbage with Butter Sauce may be better off left in the history books.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Review
"Ambitious [and] beautiful."
— Journal of Southern History
— Journal of Southern History
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24 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
DINING AT MONTICELLO,
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This review is from: Dining at Monticello: In Good Taste and Abundance (Distributed for the Thomas Jefferson Foundation) (Hardcover)
INCREDIBLE BOOK I AM PROUD TO OWN. THIS BEAUTIFUL BOOK, WITH ALL THE PHOTOGRAPHS IS FAR MORE THAN A COOKBOOK AS ITS HISTORICAL INFORMATION ALONE MAKES IT A MUST HAVE FOR MY LIBRARY. THIS IS ONE OF THE FEW BOOKS YOU CAN SAY GIVES YOU YOUR MONEY'S WORTH. YOU ARE IN FOR A VISUAL TREAT
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
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Extremely enlightening.,
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This review is from: Dining at Monticello: In Good Taste and Abundance (Distributed for the Thomas Jefferson Foundation) (Hardcover)
Fascinating facts of life not only in late eighteen and nineteenth century America, but also details of Thomas Jefferson's favorite entrees, traditions, and dining habits.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A useful cookbook and history book about one of America's most interesting men,
By A Life-long Learner/Reader (Palo Alto, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Dining at Monticello: In Good Taste and Abundance (Distributed for the Thomas Jefferson Foundation) (Hardcover)
This is fantastic book. It is filled with history as well as practical and useful information for recreating the food of the past today, while retaining the spirit of how food tasted in Jefferson's day at Monticello. The photographs are intriguing. I only wish the mentioned campanion book by the late Karen Hess would soon, somehow, be available.
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
LOST BETWEEN EXAGGERATION AND INATTENTION, Thomas Jefferson's true place in American food history is difficult to pin down. Read the first page Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Mary Randolph, President's House, Thomas Jefferson, Martha Randolph, Martha Jefferson Randolph, African Americans, Etienne Lemaire, Browned Flour, Edith Fossett, Karen Hess, James Hemings, Burwell Colbert, Garden Book, United States, Daniel Webster, Wine Sauce, Beef Soup, Damon Lee Fowler, Edmund Bacon, Ellen Coolidge, James Herrings, Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson, South Carolina, The Virginia Housewife, Isaac Jefferson New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
LOST BETWEEN EXAGGERATION AND INATTENTION, Thomas Jefferson's true place in American food history is difficult to pin down. Read the first page Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Mary Randolph, President's House, Thomas Jefferson, Martha Randolph, Martha Jefferson Randolph, African Americans, Etienne Lemaire, Browned Flour, Edith Fossett, Karen Hess, James Hemings, Burwell Colbert, Garden Book, United States, Daniel Webster, Wine Sauce, Beef Soup, Damon Lee Fowler, Edmund Bacon, Ellen Coolidge, James Herrings, Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson, South Carolina, The Virginia Housewife, Isaac Jefferson New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 23
books:
See all 23 books this book cites
- The Virginia House-Wife by Mary Randolph on 5 pages
- The Fruits and Fruit Trees of Monticello by Peter J. Hatch in Back Matter (1), Back Matter (2), and Back Matter (3)
- Thomas Jefferson (American Lives: Presidents) by Rick Burke on page 89, and Back Matter
- South Carolina (It's My State!) by Debra Hess in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- The Garden Book (Mini Edition) by Editors of Phaidon Press in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
See all 23 books this book cites
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