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The Food Journal of Lewis & Clark: Recipes for an Expedition

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The Food Journal of
LEWIS & CLARK FOOD:
Recipes for an Expedition

By Mary Gunderson

If you're a history buff and into food, this book's a "gotta have."

This Journal is not simply a cookbook. It's a chance to learn more about the people these explorers encountered, how they dealt with hardships, get to take a look at their provisioning and read actual quotes from Lewis and Clark, themselves.

Perhaps Gunderson's chapter titles tell the most about her careful research:

Jefferson's Vision, Washington, D.C.
Lewis Receives Instructions and Buys Provisions
Anticipation and Preparation, Down the Ohio to Camp Dubois
High Spirits, Up the Missouri
Buffalo! Diplomacy with the Yankton and Teton Sioux
Sacagawea, Charbonneau and Jean Baptiste Join the Expedition
Another Beginning, the Upper Missouri & Great Falls
The Journey Hangs in the Balance, Over the Mountains
Wild Roots, Elk and a Whale, Ft. Clatsop & the Pacific Coast
Down the Yellowstone - The Nez Perce Help Again

Return to St. Louis & The Long Welcome

The book is detailed account of their careful preparations, tools necessary, foods hunted, foods gathered and foods they traded for. A partial list of Philadelphia provisions spread the course from 32 tins, or 193 pounds of portable soup, assorted fish hooks, kettles, a corn mill, hatchets, a whetstone, gun powder and castile soap.

Thomas Jefferson, widely known for his food and agricultural expertise, not only wanted detailed maps and topographical reports about the Louisiana Purchase, he asked that the explorers extend every courtesy to people they met but to record how they grew crops, fishes and hunted. He asked them to observe their "food and domestic accommodations."

"As they made their way west, the pair and their trailmates sampled everything from Indian corn and buffalo tongues to camas roots and dried salmon," noted an author and filmmaker, Dayton Duncan. There is a good deal of information on Portable Soup or Pocket Soup, the fine at of making Hoe Cakes, building a special fire to cook a bear, making hominy with corn, lime and wood ashes and the making
of William Clark's Birthday Fruit Salad. Other crafts of the trail included Spoonbread, dishes like Roasted Buffalo, Turnip and Berry Ragout also Pemikan made with Juneberries and buffalo berries. Other hearty meals were Hazelnut Cornmeal Pancakes, Roasted Parsnips with Pine Nuts and Fort Clatsop Salmon Chowder with fennel and sourdough biscuits.

Named the Official Cookbook for the National Council of Lewis & Clark Bicentennial, the author states, "History is as close as a bite of buffalo jerky or a taste of hominy." This attractive, well-indexed book with deckle-edged pages, helpful maps and pleasing sketches, contains over 80 authentic recipes faithfully tested and re-created for today's kitchens. Gunderson includes a generous bibliography, suggested further reading suggestions and a handy, educational website list. In her Mail-Order Sources section, she lists mail order sources for preparing her updated recipes...

Compiled and written by food historian Mary Gunderson, The Food Journal Of Lewis & Clark offers more than eighty authentic, full-flavored recipes that reflect the culture and times of an expanding early 19th century American frontier. Gunderson brings the famous exploratory journey of Lewis and Clark to life through their own words about satisfying daily hungers, provides glimpses into Thomas Jefferson's sophisticated table at the time Meriwether Lewis served as the president's secretary; shows how Captain Meriwether Lewis and Captain William Clark each understood the role of food and spirits in maintaining morale among their colleagues; and the explorer's encounters and experiences with Native American tribal foods and customs. The Food Journal Of Lewis & Clark is a unique and enthusiastically recommended addition to personal cookbook shelves and community library Food History collections.

A very interesting historical book, "The Food Journal of Lewis & Clark" has a lot to offer. The recipes are based on the way things were prepared during the early 1800s and include some very good dishes like lemon meringue pie and pan-fried potatoes and some much less common recipes that might include ingredients like a pound of buffalo meat.

Along with these recipes the book contains various pieces of information from the trip journals. The additional information includes provisions lists such as the one from Philadelphia where they purchased 176 lbs of gunpowder and 193 lbs of "P. Soup". A "P. Soup" follows and it takes only a cursory reading to figure out that this is basically the precursor to bouillon cubes. Throughout the book there are small quotes from the journals that indicate what they were doing at the time and also several passages that give general information about the trip.

This is a book that will prove interesting to anyone interested in the Lewis & Clark Expedition or recipes of the time. "The Food Journals of Lewis & Clark" is a recommended read for any audience interested in American History and covers an area generally overlooked in other Lewis & Clark works.

This book is fasinating in how it humanize the Corps of Discovery and brings to life the daily trials of living on the trail. I was suprised at the variety and creativity in the food- as the Corps incorportated new foods from the various Indian tribes as they moved across the country. It really provides you with a snapshot of the resources and the resourcefullness of the land and the people. From roasted buffalo to blueberry rolled pudding the Corps enjoyed a pretty impress fair-- much better than any backcountry trip I've ever been on.

The use of recipes gives a delightful perspective on the Lewis and Clark expedition. The book is beautifully written and produced-it has the look and feel of a 19th century journal. The recipes I tried were delicious.

The Food Journal of Lewis & Clark is one of the BEST!! Gunderson integrates the authentic journals of Lewis & Clark with 'You're right there' vignettes and interesting facts and fun! As a teacher, I will certainly share this with my colleagues, as well as integrate the historical authenticity and creative story-telling in my writing courses.

This book's a gem, both history-wise and food-wise (I have another Lewis & Clark cookbook, it pales in comparison on both counts). The history is woven throughout the book in easy-to-swallow bits and bites. The recipes are very do-able, easy even, in home kitchens. I expected some 'weird' ingredients but there are none. Definitely a recommendation for cooks along the Expedition route but interesting for lots of folks, I think.

As a teacher of U.S. history with a special emphasis on the Lewis and Clark Expedition, I would highly recommend Mary Gunderson's "The Food Journal of Lewis & Clark". One of the most interesting aspects of U.S. history is the type of food eaten by our ancestors. This wonderful book not only shows us what the Corps of Discovery ate, but also how they prepared and enjoyed their meals. Two hundred years later American students are making these meals and learning that this expedition wouldn't have made it without this great food.

More than a cookbook, The Food Journal of Lewis & Clark: Recipes for an Expedition by Mary Gunderson, brings the famous trek across our great nation magically back to life. Gunderson celebrates its history and early 1800s food legacy. After reading the book, I felt the author really knows (and respects) her craft. This fascinating book seems to be well documented and researchedÑand best of allÑit's a lively read. She's used authentic recipes to capture the best of early American cuisine. With intriguing tidbits and trivia, I enjoyed being served a delicious lesson in culinary history.

On the 4th of July, while the rest of the nation grilled hot dogs, I sat down to finally read my copy of The Food Journal of Lewis and Clark. The saliva started to flow, from page after page of Ms. Gunderson's creative, while authentic, recipes for foods served during the expedition. The author has thoroughly researched the history of the expedition, the ingredients available in the 1800's in the regions of the journey,and the taste preferences of those who travelled together. I found the historical tidbits delightful enough to read out loud to my husband. Now I know why my niece, who homeschools in North Carolina, likes to use Ms. Gunderson's books to teach history to her children!

While reading the cookbook cover to cover (I couln't put it down!),I found a recipe for New Potatoes with Hazelnuts and Fennel. The simplicity and possibility of good taste in that dish compelled me off to the kitchen, on a holiday, to test it. It bailed out my 4th of July menu!