DINNER WITH MR DARCY

Enter Jane Austen s world through the kitchens and dining rooms of her characters and her own family It s a great idea a book that you can read as well as cook from and one that uniquely sends you straight back to the novels themselves Telegraph Online In this charming bit of historical reconstruction Pen Vogler takes authentic recipes from Austen s time and updates them for today You ll find everything you need to recreate Netherfield Ball in your front room Kathryn Hughes The best books on food The Guardian Food is an important theme in Austen s novels used as a commodity for showing off as a way of showing kindliness among neighbours as part of the dynamics of family life and for comic effect Dinner with Mr Darcy takes authentic recipes from the period inspired by the food that features in Austen s novels and letters and adapts them for contemporary cooks The text is interwoven throughout with quotes from the novels and feature spreads cover some of the key themes of food and eating in Austen s time including table arrangements kitchens and gardens and servants and service Whether you are hoping to beguile a single gentleman in possession of a substantial fortune or you just want to have your own version of the picnic on Box Hill