Vintage Southern Cookbook

Vintage Southern Cookbook
By Lochlainn Seabrook
588 pages - Illustrated Hardcover - Signed by request

In his ongoing personal campaign to preserve authentic Southern history, Col. Seabrook has compiled, as his subtitle states, thousands of scrumptious old timey recipes from America's Southland. Spanning the years 1838 to 1924, the book's recipes provide detailed instructions on how to prepare a wide variety of Southern victuals - most endemic to Dixie, but many borrowed from places as diverse as New England, the West Coast, Europe, and Russia. The recipes - some forgotten, all venerable and time-tested - are conveniently divided into 28 chapters covering all of the primary food types, incorporating such popular items as beverages, breads, soups, meats, seafoods, fruits, and vegetables, as well as many others. (Those with a sweet tooth will be happy to learn that the desserts section is the largest.)

From its earliest history the American South has been a multicultural and multiracial region, and these characteristics are reflected in the book. Thus within its covers one will find not only European American recipes, but African American recipes, Asian American recipes, Jewish American recipes, and Latin American recipes as well, all carefully hand-picked by the author-editor from a wide assortment of early American sources. In addition, Col. Seabrook has not only generously illustrated his volume with some 600 images of old-fashioned dishes, retro cooking paraphernalia, and pleasing domestic-flavored scenes from the 1800s and early 1900s, he also includes a massive 50-page index, nearly 2,000 endnotes, a detailed bibliography, and seven appendices, the latter which include fascinating practical cooking, serving, and dining tips by some of the South's most talented Victorian kitchen authorities.

Col. Seabrook's compact and informative introduction and his special brand of traditional artistry give this encyclopedic work a comfortable down-home feel that country cooks, suburban gourmets, hard-working farmers, nature-loving campers, and hardcore back-to-earthers will readily appreciate. One will find old favorites as well as obscure foods and recipes, many with unusual names that will delight children of all ages. From rural carnivores to urban vegans, from everyday culinarians to cordon bleu chefs, epicureans of every proficiency level will find the book indispensable, while historians and Civil War reenactors will appreciate his effort to save an important part of America's past: Old South gastronomy. One of the longest and most comprehensive compendiums of recipes ever collected.