The Land That Thyme Forgot: The Quest for Britain's Lost Food

In 2003's Al Dente: The Adventures of a Gastronome in Italy, Black travels on his stomach, examining Italian specialties from one end of the country to the other. This time, he concentrates on foods closer to his UK home, with equal success. The author, who lives in Oxford, England, sets out to discover-or rediscover, as the case might be-uniquely British foods such as haggis and mutton. Black goes to Blackpool to try Hindle Wakes, which is fowl stuffed with pig's blood (and later prunes), boiled and covered with a lemony butter sauce, a dish long since defunct. He goes to Morecambe to learn about potted shrimps, and to the Cotswolds for lessons on Double Gloucester cheese. He also includes foods that readers might not immediately associate with the British, including chicken tikka massala and Cantonese home cooking. The former, Black claims, has become ""our national dish,"" and the latter, largely introduced to the UK by Hong Kong immigrants, is available in ""takeaways"" throughout the country. He gives them and numerous other dishes thoughtful consideration, and in so doing helps to redefine exactly what those foods signify. Includes a handful of recipes-among them Kendall Mint Cake, Gooseberry Fool, and Tripe and Cowheel Stew-within the text.