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"Endlessly informative and leaning hard into the British Isles’ reputation for the off-beat, this is a delight." — Publisher's Weekly
Folklorist Ben Gazur guides you through the dark alleys of British history to uncover how our food habits have been passed down through generations of folklore.Who was the first person to throw salt over their shoulder? Why do we think carrots can help us see in the dark? When did we start holding village fairs to honour gigantic apple pies? Or start hurling ourselves down hills in pursuit of a wheel of cheese? Gazur investigates the origins of famous food superstitions as well as much more bizarre and lesser-known tales too, from what day the devil urinates on blackberries to how to stop witches using eggshells as escape boats.
Hilarious and fascinating,
A Feast of Folklore will introduce you to the gloriously eccentric folk who aren’t often noticed by historians. Here lies a smorgasbord of their dark remedies and deadly delicacies, waiting to be discovered.
List of contents
Introduction - xi
Vegetable Lore - 1
Onions and Garlic - 2
Leeks - 5
Potatoes - 6
Beans - 8
Peas - 10
Cabbages and Sprouts - 12
Carrots - 13
Turnips, Swedes and Mangelwurzels - 14
Parsley - 16
Fruit Lore - 18
Apples - 19
Pears - 27
Oranges and Lemons - 29
Cherries - 32
Plums - 35
Berries - 36
Raisins - 40
Nuts - 42
Meat and Animal Lore - 46
Beef - 47
Pork - 49
Sheep - 56
Fowls - 60
Rabbits and Hares - 67
Fish Lore - 74
Dairy Lore - 81
Milk - 84
Cream - 89
Butter - 90
Cheese - 95
Egg Lore - 99
Bread Lore - 110
Baking Bread - 112
Magical Loaves - 117
Bread Cures - 123
Good Friday, Good Bread - 125
Bannocks - 127
Pie Lore - 130
Cake Lore - 134
King Alfred’s Baking Mishap - 137
Witch Cakes - 139
Pancakes - 141
Easter Cakes - 145
Wedding Cakes - 151
Groaning Cakes - 155
Farm Cakes - 157
Christmas Cakes - 158
Soul Cakes - 160
Funeral Cakes - 161
Hot Cross Buns - 162
Magic Buns - 166
Love Magic - 170
The Dumb Cake - 170
Finding Love - 174
Fairy Food Lore - 178
Drink Lore - 183
Water - 184
Beer - 188
Wine - 191
Tea - 193
Free Food and Doles - 198
Conclusion - 205
Acknowledgements - 209
Picture Credits - 211
Notes - 215
Supporter’s Names - 245
About the author
Ben Gazur has a PhD in Biochemistry but has given up the glitz and glamour of life in the laboratory for a career as a writer. He has written about everything from Mudlarking for Mental Floss to terrible TV for the Guardian. His work has also appeared in
All About History, i-D, the BBC, and
Fortean Times. As a host for the Twitter account @FolkloreThursday he has shared his passion for folklore on social media. Based in London he can often be found in the British Library searching for folklore among a pile of dusty books before whipping up a Whirlin Cake worthy of the Devil himself.
Summary
Folklorist Ben Gazur guides you through the dark alleys of British history to uncover how our food habits have been passed down through generations of folklore.
Foreword
- Galleys and e-galleys (Edelweiss, Netgalley) widely available.
- Promotion via the Twitter account @FolkloreThursday.
- Excerpts in coverage in outlets such as Mental Floss.
