The Female Emigrant'S Guide And Hints On Canadian Housekeeping 1854

by Catharine Parr Traill

What did you eat for dinner today? Did you make your own cheese? Butcher your own pig? Collect your own eggs? Drink your own home-brewed beer? Shanty bread leavened with hops-yeast, venison and wild rice stew, gingerbread cake with maple sauce, and dandelion coffee this was an ordinary backwoods meal in Victorian-era Canada. Originally published in 1855, Catharine Parr Traill s classic The Female Emigrant s Guide, with its admirable recipes, candid advice, and astute observations about local food sourcing, offers an intimate glimpse into the daily domestic and seasonal routines of settler life. This toolkit for historical cookery, redesigned and annotated in an edition for use in contemporary kitchens, provides readers with the resources to actively use and experiment with recipes from the original Guide. Containing modernized recipes, a measurement conversion chart, and an extensive glossary, this volume also includes discussions of cooking conventions, terms, techniques, and ingredients that contextualize the social attitudes, expectations, and challenges of Traill s world and the emigrant experience. In a distinctive and witty voice expressing her can-do attitude, Catharine Parr Traill s The Female Emigrant s Guide unlocks a wealth of information on historical foodways and culinary exploration."

Genres: Nonfiction

Paperback

About the author

Catharine Parr Strickland Traill was an English-Canadian author and naturalist who wrote about life as a settler in Canada.

Reviews

[Sheri Hathaway · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a great source of information on pioneer life in Canada. The added comments by the editors help explain methods or equipment or the meaning of outdated words Catherine uses. I highly recommend it for any history writer. It's a very thick book. Since I borrowed it from the library, I ran out of time and had to return it because someone else had placed a hold on it. I'll take it out some other time for another look.

[Delia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was loaned this book, but as a direct descendant of Sam Strickland (Catherine Parr Traill's brother) and a secondary school Home Ec teacher, I think I will have to buy my own copy. This isn't a gripping read, but there is great information about food in the early days of Canada. As a history buff & one who loves to "put food by", I completely enjoyed this.

[Lyndsay-Marie Talon · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really interesting female perspective on European settlers living in Canada- complete with recipes and background explanations.

[Catharine Lyons-King · Rating 5 out of 5]

Utterly fascinating glimpse into what 19th-century emigrants to Canada might expect. Including some gardening tips that may well be relevant today.

[Bethany Waite · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was interesting to read all the tips and tricks suggested by a pioneer women to help the other women coming to Canada and trying to find the way for their families.