Book of the Week: An Unexpected Cookbook.

An Unexpected Cookbook: The Unofficial Book of Hobbit Cookery was one of the things I got for Christmas. It’s actually very informative! I hadn’t twigged to the fact that Tolkien avoided most New World foods when writing about the Shire*. So, no chocolate, vanilla, tomatoes: the writer worked with a lot of traditional British cooking, the kind JRR Tolkien would have grown up eating. The book also looks useful if you’re interested in working with leftovers. Definitely worth a look, I think.

Moe Lane

*Except for potatoes, because he couldn’t help himself. He also made exceptions for tobacco, and coffee (although obviously that last isn’t from the Americas originally).