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"Opening the pages and diving into the contents was a true delight. The recipes are masterfully curated, the historical context is vividly brought to life, and the storytelling is captivating."
-- Chef Walter Staib, Host/Executive Producer, A Taste of History; President, Concepts by Staib, Ltd. and Former Proprietor, City Tavern Restaurant
THE GILDED AGE COOKBOOK
The American Gilded Age (1868 to 1900) and its extreme extravagance continue to be a source of wonder and fascination, particularly for foodies. The style and excessiveness of this era has ties to modern popular culture through books, films, and television shows, including The Alienist and the Julian Fellowes TV series The Gilded Age, on HBO.
The excessive opulence and novel inventions of the Gilded Age spawned new opportunities for cooking-related endeavors. The restaurant and hotel industries experienced explosive growth in order to keep up with the steady stream of people flowing into large cities such as New York. Lavish banquet dinners and debutante balls hosted by high society magnates such as Ward McAllister, Caroline Astor, and Mamie Fish flourished as a way to flaunt wealth and define who was “in.” In the warmer months, social activities moved outside, including picnics, ice cream socials, strawberry fetes and festivals, and beach excursions. The holiday season was another reason for celebratory gatherings, with both Thanksgiving and Christmas typically the most carefully planned meals of the year for many families. All of these factors helped define the Gilded Age and its significance to America’s culinary history.
The Gilded Age Cookbook transports the reader back in time to elegant dinner tables set with snow-white linen tablecloths, delicate china, and sparkling crystal glasses. Cuisine featuring rich soups, juicy roasts, and luscious desserts come to life through historic images and artistic photography. Gilded Age details and entertaining stories of celebrities from the era—the Vanderbilts, Astors, Goelets, and Rockefellers—are melded with historic menus and recipes updated for modern kitchens. Enjoy traveling back in time to the Gilded Age!
Praise for The Gilded Age Cookbook
"A beautifully designed and photographed cookbook, filled with intriguing stories. The parties and events may have been excessive, but the classic recipes here look simple and doable to make." — Dianne Jacob, author of Will Write for Food
"Becky Libourel Diamond provides a delicious behind-the-scenes glimpse of Gilded Age dining in her meticulously researched cookbook and social history. Photographs of the ballroom at Sherry's (where one spectacular dinner in 1903 enabled guests to dine while on horseback), or images like a ball at the Waldorf Astoria show us a world of luxe personified. Favorite mini-segments are `Gilded Age Heiresses Go to Cooking School' and `Mrs. Vanderbilt's Decorated Dishes,' which invite their own Downton Abbey spinoffs. Lest you feel intimidated, the recipes are easy to follow and enticing." — Cordelia Frances Biddle, author of the Victorian-era Martha Beale novels.
“Although it is possible to devour this book without spreading sprinkles of flour, splashes of liquid, and smears of butter on its pages, this book also functions within the kitchen. … I appreciate Diamond's decision to include historical information while providing a recipe that readers are more likely to make; this choice means that I have the information to readily look up the original recipe while knowing that Diamond already did the hard work of translating it for the present time. … If you are looking for a beautiful book, an informative read, and a new collection of recipes, I highly recommend that you check out The Gilded Age Cookbook: Recipes and Stories From America's Golden Era (2023).” – Dr. Alex Ketchum, Faculty Lecturer of the Institute for Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies, McGill University and Editor, The Historical Cooking Project.
IACP AWARD WINNER!!
So thrilled and proud of my friend Dan Macey of Dantasticfood, who recently won the 2024 IACP: The International Association of Culinary Professionals COOKBOOK AWARDS in the Food Styling in Photography- Editorial category for his stunning food styling on the Crown Roast of Lamb recipe in The Gilded Age Cookbook! (pictured above) He also did the recipe development! It is truly a work of art! Heather Raub of FrontRoom Images made the photo come together exquisitely. Kudos!!!