This is a comprehensive look at country cooking before recipe the era of box mixes and most kitchen appliances. It starts off with cooking equipment including cooking over an open fire place, a hearth, and a wood stove. It also details how to create a root cellar or a spring cellar. Then it goes into different ways to prepare foods that may be unfamiliar to people today. If you want to know how your country grandmother cooked or try to replicate her recipes, this is the book for you.

I received a free electronic copy of this e-book from Netgalley, Linda Garland Page, and University of North Carolina Press. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have read this novel of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work.

I was not able to read all of this protected e-book as my Apple Products won't convert them into something I can save. I was able to read enough to add this book to my list of must-buys however and to know that I would treasure the old recipes and stories found in this work. Like the old Justin Wilson cookbooks, Linda Garland Page brings us much more than a recipe - she brings to life a way of life left behind in our 'modern' age. It is a mirage, perhaps, but one I am glad to visit again.

Most foodies love everything about food, and want to learn as much as possible. And almost everyone, it seems, has wondered about the hillbillies who live in Appalachia – a lifestyle extremely foreign to most, especially in this modern day. The Foxfire Book of Appalachian Cooking “ began as a project that was started in 1980 by Margie Bennett (a Foxfire Magazine advisor) and three students: Rosanne Chastain, Kim Hamilton, and Dana Holcomb.” The “project” grew, and this fascinating cookbook is the result. This is not your everyday cookbook with colored photos of mouthwatering dishes, rather, this is a cookbook and history book with pictures (all in black and white) of the actual cooks with vignettes of their memories and traditions handed down from family to family. The fact that there aren’t beautiful colored photos doesn’t, however, diminish the charm of this cookbook. Rather, it adds, and makes for a cookbook that everyone who has an interest in how cooking was done in years gone by should own.

This is a cookbook that you’ll want to snuggle up in a corner and read cover to cover, getting out of your comfortable position occasionally to whip up one of the simple, but intriguing recipes. It seems to contain all of the old southern recipes, some made on a woodstove and others cooked in a fireplace. Anyone wanting to try old fashioned cooking can learn in this book, as it has illustrations and help in setting up your own old fashioned stove if there happens to be an old one sitting in your garage or storage shed, as well as making your own “springhouse,” something like a root cellar, and also a smokehouse. There are recipes for wild greens, and wild animals – from possum to squirrel, to rabbit and even groundhogs. Of course there are recipes for staple meat and potato dishes such as meatloaf, soups and stews, Swiss steak, chicken pie, and chicken and dumplings. There is a nice variety of breads, including several authentic cornbread recipes and flaky delicious biscuit recipes. Desserts are also included, from pies, cakes, puddings, to cookies – all simple, but very good. The recipes are easy-to-follow and turn out just like they should. The Cry-Baby Cookies are wonderful, and the Pumpkin Bread is excellent, too.

Although this is not your standard-type cookbook, and you may not want to make every recipe in the book (groundhog won’t be on the menu anytime soon), there are dozens of recipes that make this cookbook a must-have for foodies, history buffs, and southern food aficionados.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

I remember visiting my family in Kentucky when I was little and seeing the bookshelves full of the Foxfire books. They intrigued me so and I could tell they were well read and well-loved. I love learning about our family’s history and Appalachian heritage runs in my veins. I was really excited to have a look at The Foxfire Book of Appalachian Cookery.





One of the beautiful aspects of this book are the many photographs, stories, vignettes, and recipes straight from the Appalachian region. This series is doing a wonderful job of preserving the ways and history of the people of Appalachia. There is a wealth of natural wisdom and this book captures the resources beautifully.



We often go there to take our family pictures and I just love how they turn out!



I particularly enjoyed The Grist Mill chapter. We have a beautiful, working grist mill just a couple of miles from our home. It is no longer the primary way people have their grains processed, but it once was the primary means of grinding. The same stone still grinds cornmeal a few times each month during the warm seasons.

My children are learning a bit about their Appalachian heritage through traditional clogging. I am enjoying sharing even more through this wonderful series! I hope to one day visit the Foxfire Museum and Heritage Center with the girls. It would be a bit of a drive from North Carolina to its location in Georgia, but it would be more than worth it!

(What follows is the text from my baking blog, JennyBakes. The link at the end will actually post September 16, release date for the cookbook.)

I came across the up and coming revised edition of The Foxfire Book of Appalachian Cookery in NetGalley and knew I'd want to look through it. It is a pretty standard primary source in this region, and I've seen chefs mention it on shows like Mind of a Chef and in their own cookbooks.

More from the publisher:

From springhouse to smokehouse, from hearth to garden, Southern Appalachian foodways are celebrated afresh in this newly revised edition of The Foxfire Book of Appalachian Cookery. First published in 1984—one of the wildly popular Foxfire books drawn from a wealth of material gathered by Foxfire students in Rabun Gap, Georgia—the volume combines hundreds of unpretentious, delectable recipes with the practical knowledge, wisdom, and riveting stories of those who have cooked this way for generations. A tremendous resource for all interested in the region’s culinary culture, it is now reimagined with today’s heightened interest in cultural-specific cooking and food-lovers culture in mind. This edition features new documentation, photographs, and recipes drawn from Foxfire’s extensive archives while maintaining all the reminiscences and sharp humor of the amazing people originally interviewed.

Appalachian-born chef Sean Brock contributes a passionate foreword to this edition, witnessing to the book’s spellbinding influence on him and its continued relevance. T. J. Smith, editor of the revised edition, provides a fascinating perspective on the book’s original creation and this revision. They invite you to join Foxfire for the first time or once again for a journey into the delicious world of wild foods, traditional favorites, and tastes found only in Southern Appalachia."

The pictures they have added to the revised edition are amazing and capture the faces of an aging white population. The information is useful to some and otherwise informative from a folklore and/or historical standpoint. I may never need to store items with ice blocks or skin a rabbit, but I am always interested in traditional baked goods that are usually made with seasonal ingredients or ingredients you would otherwise have on hand.

[Picture]
[Recipe]

This cookbook should be a staple in Southern and Appalachian kitchens, and then probably should be on hand for all preppers and anyone who wants to be prepared to live through an apocalypse (let's be honest, survival is survival.)

Other baked goods I've marked to try:

Corn Cakes
Old-Fashioned Gingerbread
Arizona's Gingerbread (Arizona is a person)
Cinnamon Rolls
Honey Tea Cakes
Molasses Cookies
Vanilla Wafers

Everything by Foxfire is worth reading (or owning) and this book is no exception, especially if you love knowing about traditional ways of doing things. This large book is composed of interviews by Appalachian "old timers" about all kinds of food preparation and recipes. While it's full of recipes, it's not a traditional cookbook. It's more of a history lesson that you'd get from spending time listening to your great grandmother talk about how she cooked when she was growing up, or even how her mother or grandmother (or grandfather) did. There's lots of information on old time stoves, preservation, etc. Black and white photographs are provided (generally of the interviewees doing demonstrations or of equipment)

While some recipes have amounts and such, an example of a recipe is by Inez Taylor, who remembers her grandmother made fried sweet potatoes by slicing them into a pan and putting a cup of sugar over them, dampen that sugar with water, and put them in the oven "until they browned."

Sections (chapters) are:

The Hearth (information on cooking on and maintaining open fire stoves, fireplaces, etc.)
The Garden (drying and cooking things from the garden)
The Springhouse (using springs and root cellars, pickling and jelly recipes)
The Pasture (butchering and using eggs and livestock)
The Smokehouse (smoking and curing meat)
The Woods (hunting and foraging)
The River (fish)
The Gristmill (cornbread, rolls, bread, homemade yeast, etc.)
The Syrup Shed (desserts, old fashioned with honey or sorghum syrup, and with modern ingredients like sugar and jello)
The Table (Sunday suppers, menus, cooking for a crowd)

My rating system:

1 = hated it
2 = it was okay
3 = liked it
4 = really liked it
5 = love it, plan to purchase, and/or would buy it again if it was lost

I read a temporary digital ARC of the book for the purpose of review.

Now, this was a cookbook out of the ordinary. I liked that it was interviews, stories and such about the people, in addition to a great variety of unpretentious and easy recipes. It was also a nice touch that the book was broken town into sections like fire, wood stove, river, root cellar etc and that it included how things were done 150 years ago versus now. It's almost like reading a combined history and cookbook.

I've always read and greatly enjoyed the Foxfire books. If the title has Foxfire in the title, grab it and read. I also enjoy cooking and have many books on the history of cooking. So this book hits the "want to read" label on several different points of interest. Reading this well researched book on Appalachian cooking will give you new respect for those responsible to get a meal on the table with limited ingredients. They are the true professionals as they forage and grow to feed their families. While you might not sit down and read this whole book in one day as I did, you should definitely read it.

I found the recipes in the book were not something that I would ordinarily use. Most of the recipes included pantry items that I normally do not stock.
With the words Appalachian Cooking I was expecting different cuisine (more like hiking food).

Another fantastic addition to the beloved Foxfire series this edition located in Appalachia the recipes the people the folklore come alive.Reading any of this series makes me want to move to the location or at least cook all the recipes get the flavors aromas in my home. #netgalley #uof Northcarolinapress.

This cookbook is about the Appalachian mountain people, and their prized recipes. They are sorted into sections by fire, wood stove, river, farm animals, root cellar, etc. There's even a section on cooking for crowds. Each section contains gorgeous photos both current and old. Some of the recipes are very basic. I especially like the blackberry wine and saltwater taffy. I was surprised how easy some of the recipes are. This is a nice cookbook especially for preppers and homesteaders. It's a nice edition for anyone.

This book is an absolute DELIGHT. I come from a long line of country cooks, and this reminds me so much of weekends spent at my grandmother's, great-grandmother's, great-aunt's houses eating cornbread (the best I've ever had), playing on their farms, smelling greens on the stove. I am so grateful this information has been preserved, and I am glad we have the Sean Brocks of the nation taking the lead on keeping our traditions alive.

I loved loved loved this book. I have read all of the foxfire books and have been to Raburn Ga. This book is more than just a cookbook it is a history to the Appalachian way of life. From cooking in the fireplaces to wood stoves and on to the first electric stoves, this book describes it all. I love the interviews with the elderly and the stories they told remembering their childhood and how their parents cooked--so much of this has been lost through out the years. Their are recipes that I use from the first Foxfire book and new recipes that I want to try from this new book.. Please keep writing new books in this series and hope that one day we will not be forced to fall back to the old ways of cooking but will use these memories and recipes with love and happy memories