Simply the Best, 03 Jul 2008
This, like many of Marguerite Patten's other 'Basics' other books, is simply invaluable. Particularly key, now many of us are growing our own & therefore understand the seasonal 'glut' dilemma - there are, I promise you, only so many cucumbers you can eat in a week ........

Inspiring!, 04 Jul 2007
I really like this book. Although I've not had it all that long, I've refered to it countless times already and know that it will be my preserving book of choice from henceforth.
Not only are there some really interesting and different recipes and ideas, but I also find it quite inspiring. It's the sort of book that gives you the encouragement to go away and play with your own ideas without being afraid of messing up.
It tells you what you need, what to do, what not to do, and is realy quite fail-safe. It's quite old-fashioned and has no exciting, glossy pictures, but instead is filled with excellent recipes laid out simply and clearly.
Not for your coffee table but definitely one to refer to over and over again.

Does Exactly What it Says on the Tin, 25 Apr 2007
A very carefully written, easily understood & clearly presented guide to home manufacture of jams, chutneys, pickles and a few other interesting preserves.

Patten explains how to approach even the more difficult jams an conserves in a confident manner that suggests failure is an imposibility (which, if you follow the intructions, it probably is!) and I have yet to have a failure with any of her recipes.

Something I particularly like is the variations she offers to her basic recipes - when dealing with a fruit glut it is a nice thing to have some slightly different jams to put into the cupboard.

Overall an excellent choice for both a beginner (she happily assumes no previous knowledge) and for a more experienced cook looking for new ideas.

Recommended without hesitation.

It is what it is., 05 Feb 2005
Un-illustrated(for the majority of the book), however, it is, eloquently what it claims to be. And Marguerite, as usual, doesn't fail to complete her task. With literally hundreds of recipes and variations included in this book, it is a handbook, and all the basics are covered for making jams, marmalades, chutneys, pickles and much more.
'Golden Rules' for success are included, hints and tips and guides to equipment, ingredients and techniques. Ideal for the beginner to steer to accomplishment, and great as an idea book for the more advanced 'preserver'.

An Excellent Guide, 20 Jul 2004
There is nothing more satisfying than making your own jam! It's a quicker process than you might imagine and the results are well worth the effort. When you use this book you feel that the author is with you in the kitchen, guiding your jam stirring arm, and reassuring you with her clearly written instructions.

I highly recommend it (and the pleasures of jam making) to you!

Simply the Best, 03 Jul 2008
This, like many of Marguerite Patten's other 'Basics' other books, is simply invaluable. Particularly key, now many of us are growing our own & therefore understand the seasonal 'glut' dilemma - there are, I promise you, only so many cucumbers you can eat in a week ........

Inspiring!, 04 Jul 2007
I really like this book. Although I've not had it all that long, I've refered to it countless times already and know that it will be my preserving book of choice from henceforth.
Not only are there some really interesting and different recipes and ideas, but I also find it quite inspiring. It's the sort of book that gives you the encouragement to go away and play with your own ideas without being afraid of messing up.
It tells you what you need, what to do, what not to do, and is realy quite fail-safe. It's quite old-fashioned and has no exciting, glossy pictures, but instead is filled with excellent recipes laid out simply and clearly.
Not for your coffee table but definitely one to refer to over and over again.

Does Exactly What it Says on the Tin, 25 Apr 2007
A very carefully written, easily understood & clearly presented guide to home manufacture of jams, chutneys, pickles and a few other interesting preserves.

Patten explains how to approach even the more difficult jams an conserves in a confident manner that suggests failure is an imposibility (which, if you follow the intructions, it probably is!) and I have yet to have a failure with any of her recipes.

Something I particularly like is the variations she offers to her basic recipes - when dealing with a fruit glut it is a nice thing to have some slightly different jams to put into the cupboard.

Overall an excellent choice for both a beginner (she happily assumes no previous knowledge) and for a more experienced cook looking for new ideas.

Recommended without hesitation.

It is what it is., 05 Feb 2005
Un-illustrated(for the majority of the book), however, it is, eloquently what it claims to be. And Marguerite, as usual, doesn't fail to complete her task. With literally hundreds of recipes and variations included in this book, it is a handbook, and all the basics are covered for making jams, marmalades, chutneys, pickles and much more.
'Golden Rules' for success are included, hints and tips and guides to equipment, ingredients and techniques. Ideal for the beginner to steer to accomplishment, and great as an idea book for the more advanced 'preserver'.

An Excellent Guide, 20 Jul 2004
There is nothing more satisfying than making your own jam! It's a quicker process than you might imagine and the results are well worth the effort. When you use this book you feel that the author is with you in the kitchen, guiding your jam stirring arm, and reassuring you with her clearly written instructions.

I highly recommend it (and the pleasures of jam making) to you!

AMAZINGLY THIS IS HELPING BETHANY SIMPSON WHEN WE WERE TOLD DIET WOULD NOT HELP!!!! , 09 Apr 2008

I have tried Bethany Simpson on this plan "Behind My Smile" A look at Juvenile Arthritis and she is having a little positive change to her health already. Bethany is finding it easier to breath and to tackle the stairs. It is a real hope for us as seeing your child in so much pyshical and emotional pain is soul destroying. The honey especially is helping and she seems a bit calmer. We have only been following for 4 days so I have high hopes. I would love her to come off the anti-tnf drugs even though they are helping we can see the side effects. Thank you for writing the book.

JULIE AND BETHANY SIMPSON

Marguerite Patten is eminently qualified to write about the last Century of British Cooking. Now in her 80s she has experienced first hand the trends and changes of British cooking and eating habits since the 1920s, while by proxy through her mother's generation she is au fait with the Edwardian era. She says in the introduction that she decided if each recipe warranted being included if it had "hit the culinary headlines" or was "outstandingly good". This means that each of the 20-odd recipes for each decade is likely to be familiar, whether the potential cook or food historian reading this volume is 20 or 80. So, the old favourites of Prawn Cocktail, Coq au Vin and Cheese Fondue are included for the 1960s, while dishes seen nowadays as typical British fare make their entrance in the first decade, such as Devilled Kidneys and Victoria Sandwich. However, Patten makes clear that the growth in different foods available, and the British public's willingness to experiment, whether from the effects of hardship in the world wars or from the influences of foreign travel and immigrant populations, results in no one food being resoundingly representative of British tastes.

For modern cooks today a large proportion of the recipes in the first half of the book may seem more an exercise in nostalgia than a useful and inspiring collection of dishes to cook for their friends or family. Some of them would be quite fun if you're hosting a decade-themed party or dinner party--perhaps serve a three-course meal of a light soup, Quail Pudding and Steamed Lemon Pudding if you want to re-live the 1920s. Or maybe remind children of how thankful they should be for the variety of "world" foods available today by giving them the inventive dishes of 1940s and 1950s rationing. Marguerite Patten's personal anecdotes, about working for the Ministry of Food in the war, and then demonstrating new kitchen devices and recipes for TV and radio from the mid-1940s onwards, make great reading for those with little sense of how quickly (or slowly) such appliances as fridges, electric ovens or ice-cream makers were adopted in the typical home. Her record also serves well as a reminder of how money has always affected how people eat; though she can remove the division in eating habits between those "with money" and the "poor" after the 1930s and 1940s, she still alludes to the industrial upheavals and unemployment that still affects us (and therefore our nutrition) nowadays.

Marguerite Patten's Century of British Cooking is not the most inspiring collection of recipes, but is wonderful as a historical culinary record. Her style is at times abrupt, so that random food and non-food facts are thrown together, giving odd overviews of each decade, but the recipes themselves are well laid out and easily executed. Probably the best way to enjoy these recipes is to remove them from their historical context and use the book as a cookery encyclopedia; few recipe books stretch from Thick Windsor Soup to Thai Green Curry.--Olivia Dickinson Who, in 1899, could have predicted Gary Rhodes or the Two Fat Ladies? As the century draws to a close, the doyenne of British cookery writing returns with a fascinating survey of the enormous changes that have taken place in British cooking and eating habits during its course. Marguerite Patten has spent more than 50 years observing the British at table and teaching us how to cook. Starting with the conservative (and on occasion frankly dispiriting) cuisine of the turn of the century, Marguerite Patten's Century of British Cooking charts, decade by decade, the wholly unpredictable course subsequently taken by the national tastebuds. The late Victorian and Edwardian eras are conjured up with dishes such as "Devilled Kidneys", "Stuffed Shoulder of Mutton" and "Pulled Rabbit". Marguerite Patten even manages to make a good case for the dreaded "Brown Windsor Soup", which, it appears, came in thick and clear versions. The twenties prove to have been less exciting, foodwise, than one might have imagined; while a strenuous plainness characterises the food of the thirties and paves the way for wartime austerity. Recognisably modern tastes in food arrive in the sixties, in recipes such as the totemic "Prawn Cocktail", "Sole Veronique", "Pavlova" and "Black Forest Gateau". From then on, things grow more familiar, until the century ends with "Thai Green Curry", "Polenta au Gratin" and "Sticky Toffee Pudding". A brisk historical introduction to each chapter puts the recipes into context (the seventies: "Bananas more and more popular"). --Robin Davidson

Simply the Best, 03 Jul 2008
This, like many of Marguerite Patten's other 'Basics' other books, is simply invaluable. Particularly key, now many of us are growing our own & therefore understand the seasonal 'glut' dilemma - there are, I promise you, only so many cucumbers you can eat in a week ........

Inspiring!, 04 Jul 2007
I really like this book. Although I've not had it all that long, I've refered to it countless times already and know that it will be my preserving book of choice from henceforth.
Not only are there some really interesting and different recipes and ideas, but I also find it quite inspiring. It's the sort of book that gives you the encouragement to go away and play with your own ideas without being afraid of messing up.
It tells you what you need, what to do, what not to do, and is realy quite fail-safe. It's quite old-fashioned and has no exciting, glossy pictures, but instead is filled with excellent recipes laid out simply and clearly.
Not for your coffee table but definitely one to refer to over and over again.

Does Exactly What it Says on the Tin, 25 Apr 2007
A very carefully written, easily understood & clearly presented guide to home manufacture of jams, chutneys, pickles and a few other interesting preserves.

Patten explains how to approach even the more difficult jams an conserves in a confident manner that suggests failure is an imposibility (which, if you follow the intructions, it probably is!) and I have yet to have a failure with any of her recipes.

Something I particularly like is the variations she offers to her basic recipes - when dealing with a fruit glut it is a nice thing to have some slightly different jams to put into the cupboard.

Overall an excellent choice for both a beginner (she happily assumes no previous knowledge) and for a more experienced cook looking for new ideas.

Recommended without hesitation.

It is what it is., 05 Feb 2005
Un-illustrated(for the majority of the book), however, it is, eloquently what it claims to be. And Marguerite, as usual, doesn't fail to complete her task. With literally hundreds of recipes and variations included in this book, it is a handbook, and all the basics are covered for making jams, marmalades, chutneys, pickles and much more.
'Golden Rules' for success are included, hints and tips and guides to equipment, ingredients and techniques. Ideal for the beginner to steer to accomplishment, and great as an idea book for the more advanced 'preserver'.

An Excellent Guide, 20 Jul 2004
There is nothing more satisfying than making your own jam! It's a quicker process than you might imagine and the results are well worth the effort. When you use this book you feel that the author is with you in the kitchen, guiding your jam stirring arm, and reassuring you with her clearly written instructions.

I highly recommend it (and the pleasures of jam making) to you!

AMAZINGLY THIS IS HELPING BETHANY SIMPSON WHEN WE WERE TOLD DIET WOULD NOT HELP!!!! , 09 Apr 2008

I have tried Bethany Simpson on this plan "Behind My Smile" A look at Juvenile Arthritis and she is having a little positive change to her health already. Bethany is finding it easier to breath and to tackle the stairs. It is a real hope for us as seeing your child in so much pyshical and emotional pain is soul destroying. The honey especially is helping and she seems a bit calmer. We have only been following for 4 days so I have high hopes. I would love her to come off the anti-tnf drugs even though they are helping we can see the side effects. Thank you for writing the book.

JULIE AND BETHANY SIMPSON

Superb , 05 Nov 2007
Marguerite Patten, the doyen of British Cookery, surpasses herself here.

Split into decades, this book gives a brief history of the times, an indication of the foods at that time, likely meals for the different classes, prevailing culinary influences and a little information about the applicances in use and methods employed at the time.

So what has this got to do with making good food now, you may ask ? Well, the answer is nothing, but it is still fascinating information nonetheless.

Then we come to the recipes.

She is no different to any other perfectionist in that she leaves no stone unturned - imperial as well as metric measures are given and fan ovens are catered for too ( this last point about fan ovens is sadly lacking in most other books ).

The actual recipes themselves are nothing other than you would expect of a Marguerite Patten book - outstanding.

The book itself is just less than A4 size and almost 1" thick. It looks and feels like a book, a 'proper book' and is awash with colour illustrations.

My only neg is it should have been hardback. That said, this is a superb publication and would still be a bargain were it not discounted.

Buy with confidence - you will not be disappointed with this.


The book I refer to when considering what new to cook....., 05 Jan 2002
I am often surprised about what can be included in the recipe for a particular dish, for example, the amount of bread crumbs in making Christmas pudding. This makes me feel comfortable about how I make stuffing by using sausage meat, sage, onion and a lot of bread crumbs..
I do perhaps refer more to this particular book than my copies of 'How to cook' by Delia and 'New British Classics' by Gary. These being never the less very informative cookery books.
I wish I could find her '1000 favourite recipes' book. My copy is getting a bit dog eared.....

This book is an indespensible guide to 20th Century cookery., 19 Sep 2000
This is Marguerite Pattern's 160 book and it is a real tour de force. The author introduces the book by illustrating the typical diet of a working class, a middle class and an upper class family at the turn of the century. The main body of the book is divided into ten sections, each one accounting for a decade. Pattern chooses to call the years 1900-1910 "the Victorian Years" even though she acknowledges the death of Victoria in 1901. The years are called "Victorian" rather because the influence of that formidable monarch was still perceivable even once the earmarks the sixties as her favorite decade. It came after the dreary fifties, when the country was still recovering from the war and rationing. The sixties was the decade of peach melba and the prawn cocktail! This book's merits come from the fact that it is not only interesting about the history of food during the last hundred years but also illustrates every point it makes by a carefully selected recipe.

Simply the Best, 03 Jul 2008
This, like many of Marguerite Patten's other 'Basics' other books, is simply invaluable. Particularly key, now many of us are growing our own & therefore understand the seasonal 'glut' dilemma - there are, I promise you, only so many cucumbers you can eat in a week ........

Inspiring!, 04 Jul 2007
I really like this book. Although I've not had it all that long, I've refered to it countless times already and know that it will be my preserving book of choice from henceforth.
Not only are there some really interesting and different recipes and ideas, but I also find it quite inspiring. It's the sort of book that gives you the encouragement to go away and play with your own ideas without being afraid of messing up.
It tells you what you need, what to do, what not to do, and is realy quite fail-safe. It's quite old-fashioned and has no exciting, glossy pictures, but instead is filled with excellent recipes laid out simply and clearly.
Not for your coffee table but definitely one to refer to over and over again.

Does Exactly What it Says on the Tin, 25 Apr 2007
A very carefully written, easily understood & clearly presented guide to home manufacture of jams, chutneys, pickles and a few other interesting preserves.

Patten explains how to approach even the more difficult jams an conserves in a confident manner that suggests failure is an imposibility (which, if you follow the intructions, it probably is!) and I have yet to have a failure with any of her recipes.

Something I particularly like is the variations she offers to her basic recipes - when dealing with a fruit glut it is a nice thing to have some slightly different jams to put into the cupboard.

Overall an excellent choice for both a beginner (she happily assumes no previous knowledge) and for a more experienced cook looking for new ideas.

Recommended without hesitation.

It is what it is., 05 Feb 2005
Un-illustrated(for the majority of the book), however, it is, eloquently what it claims to be. And Marguerite, as usual, doesn't fail to complete her task. With literally hundreds of recipes and variations included in this book, it is a handbook, and all the basics are covered for making jams, marmalades, chutneys, pickles and much more.
'Golden Rules' for success are included, hints and tips and guides to equipment, ingredients and techniques. Ideal for the beginner to steer to accomplishment, and great as an idea book for the more advanced 'preserver'.

An Excellent Guide, 20 Jul 2004
There is nothing more satisfying than making your own jam! It's a quicker process than you might imagine and the results are well worth the effort. When you use this book you feel that the author is with you in the kitchen, guiding your jam stirring arm, and reassuring you with her clearly written instructions.

I highly recommend it (and the pleasures of jam making) to you!

AMAZINGLY THIS IS HELPING BETHANY SIMPSON WHEN WE WERE TOLD DIET WOULD NOT HELP!!!! , 09 Apr 2008

I have tried Bethany Simpson on this plan "Behind My Smile" A look at Juvenile Arthritis and she is having a little positive change to her health already. Bethany is finding it easier to breath and to tackle the stairs. It is a real hope for us as seeing your child in so much pyshical and emotional pain is soul destroying. The honey especially is helping and she seems a bit calmer. We have only been following for 4 days so I have high hopes. I would love her to come off the anti-tnf drugs even though they are helping we can see the side effects. Thank you for writing the book.

JULIE AND BETHANY SIMPSON

Superb , 05 Nov 2007
Marguerite Patten, the doyen of British Cookery, surpasses herself here.

Split into decades, this book gives a brief history of the times, an indication of the foods at that time, likely meals for the different classes, prevailing culinary influences and a little information about the applicances in use and methods employed at the time.

So what has this got to do with making good food now, you may ask ? Well, the answer is nothing, but it is still fascinating information nonetheless.

Then we come to the recipes.

She is no different to any other perfectionist in that she leaves no stone unturned - imperial as well as metric measures are given and fan ovens are catered for too ( this last point about fan ovens is sadly lacking in most other books ).

The actual recipes themselves are nothing other than you would expect of a Marguerite Patten book - outstanding.

The book itself is just less than A4 size and almost 1" thick. It looks and feels like a book, a 'proper book' and is awash with colour illustrations.

My only neg is it should have been hardback. That said, this is a superb publication and would still be a bargain were it not discounted.

Buy with confidence - you will not be disappointed with this.


The book I refer to when considering what new to cook....., 05 Jan 2002
I am often surprised about what can be included in the recipe for a particular dish, for example, the amount of bread crumbs in making Christmas pudding. This makes me feel comfortable about how I make stuffing by using sausage meat, sage, onion and a lot of bread crumbs..
I do perhaps refer more to this particular book than my copies of 'How to cook' by Delia and 'New British Classics' by Gary. These being never the less very informative cookery books.
I wish I could find her '1000 favourite recipes' book. My copy is getting a bit dog eared.....

This book is an indespensible guide to 20th Century cookery., 19 Sep 2000
This is Marguerite Pattern's 160 book and it is a real tour de force. The author introduces the book by illustrating the typical diet of a working class, a middle class and an upper class family at the turn of the century. The main body of the book is divided into ten sections, each one accounting for a decade. Pattern chooses to call the years 1900-1910 "the Victorian Years" even though she acknowledges the death of Victoria in 1901. The years are called "Victorian" rather because the influence of that formidable monarch was still perceivable even once the earmarks the sixties as her favorite decade. It came after the dreary fifties, when the country was still recovering from the war and rationing. The sixties was the decade of peach melba and the prawn cocktail! This book's merits come from the fact that it is not only interesting about the history of food during the last hundred years but also illustrates every point it makes by a carefully selected recipe.

Entertaining and informative, 01 May 2003
This is a great book, detailing the introduction of a new technology into the lives of millions of consumers.
Easily applicable to other recent developments, such as digital TV or the internet, 'Look! It Cooks' is an entertaining read about the development & life so far of microwaves in the UK, with amusing stories and anecdotes from one of the hotel & catering industry's experts - including a funny meeting with Baroness Thatcher!

It's also an excellent case study in marketing - including the importance of understanding customer needs & concerns, distribution channel issues, promotion tools used and the overall management of an innovative new technology. The author Lewis Napleton has a passionate, articulate and humourous writing style which I really enjoyed!