Alice Eats Wonderland ~ A Cookbook Adventure

I received this cookbook as a gift to add to my inspired Alice in Wonderland cookbook collection. I believe it is meant to be tongue in cheek; although it is apparent that a fair bit of research and detail went into this cookbook.

Based on the Alice in Wonderland book by Lewis Carroll; each of the 12 chapters have excerpts from the original book... however there is a twist. Alice is lead by hunger... an appetite that is constant and because of this she pursues the animal and vegetable characters that appear in the story in a more culinary way. Alice learns to prepare, cook, and consume those. Transforming and turning them into edible dishes during her adventure. Conjured culinary fantasy? Why yes!  

Each chapter provides a natural and social history of the animals, food ingredients, and culture involved with the Alice in Wonderland story. Very researched! There are a few interesting and relevant recipes amongst the surprising stomach turning ones. There is a 3 paragraph disclaimer cautioning that "some recipes are not intended to be prepared and or consumed by human or other vertebrates." I think for the most part the recipes in this cookbook are intended to be entertaining and slightly educational.

I will spare sharing the unappetizing recipes... like stuffed dormouse, roasted beetle, and iguana tamales and share the more scrumptious scrambled rose omelette. After all Valentine's Day is coming.


Scrambled Rose Omelet
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3 eggs
1/8 cup of chives, chopped
dash of salt
3 tablespoons water
1/8 cup feta cheese
spring of spearmint (for garnish)
1/4 teaspoon rosewater
4 rose petals*

Rinse rose petals, dry them, and cut them into silvers with scissors; set aside

Separate yolks and whites of eggs into separate bowls.

Add water, rosewater, and salt to egg whites and whisk until blended. Fold in the egg yolks and chives and whisk again until blended. Pour into hot, buttered, small omelet pan, and watch for the edges to firm. Using a spatula, fold firm edges into centre and tip the skillet so the the liquid centre runs out to form a new edge; continue until no longer runny, but still wet inside.

Sprinkle cheese and half of the slivered rose petals on top and place in broiler until cheese is lightly melted. Remove pan from broiler and foil omelet in half; transfer to dish and garnish with remaining rose petals and the spearmint. 

*Notes: May I suggest, and I would rather prefer, to use edible rose petals. If you do not have an oven proof/broiler proof omelette pan then I suggest covering the pan with a suitable fitting lid to melt the cheese or transfer the omelette to an oven/broiler proof baking dish. 


Have a great weekend everyone! -JD 

Alice Eats ~ A Wonderland Cookbook

I received this delectable cookbook as a present at Christmas. Mixing art, literature, and cooking someone knew me all too well. Alice Eats bursts with every turn of the page. The culinary inspirations are scrumptious and the illustrations are unique. Falling down a rabbit hole never looked so acceptable. 

This cookbook brings food lovers and classic literature enthusiast together. The photography is beautiful, simple and helpful. Recipes are arranged into 12 Alice in Wonderland inspired chapters. The Ginger Carrot Sandwiches sound marvellous and the Cheshire Cats Grinny Grainy Mustard Rarebit is sure to put a smile upon ones face. And of coarse no Alice inspired cookbook could be complete without jam tarts. Excerpts from the book Alice's Adventures in Wonderland are placed throughout the book are used to connect chapters and recipes. The Tea Sandwiches: A Visual guide illustrations are simple yet charming.   

Below are photos that I have taken of the inside of the book so that you to may enjoy a glimpse, even if small one, into this unique cookbook. Enjoy! - JW 

              

The Alice In Wonderland Cookbook ~ A Culinary Diversion

This is a slight culinary companion to Carroll's Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. Fans of Carroll will be delighted with this book and fans of illustrator, Sir John Tenniel, will be even more so. This cookbook is out of print and first editions are in limited copies. There are some circling out there and that is why I cherish the copy I have even more. Therefore I highly recommend this purely for collector purposes. Not to dishearten the recipes that are showcased on the pages. One does marvel over the Ambidextrous Mushrooms, Eggs Bonne Alice, Bread-and-Butter Fly Pudding and The Cheshire Cat's Cheese Whiskers. There is plenty of wit, prose and excerpts from Carroll's work to entice even the most lacklustre chef. There also seems to be a gastronomic motif  in earlier works of Lewis Carroll. Here are a couple of recipe to share...

Hot - Tempered Mustard - 3 tablespoons mustard powder / 1 tablespoon castor sugar / 1 beaten egg /  1/2 (half) pint pure malt vinegar / 1 tablespoon olive oil / 1 pinch of salt

Mix mustard, salt and sugar together in a basin. Stir in the beaten egg until smooth. Add the vinegar, beating until smooth. Transfer to a saucepan and stir over a gentle heat for five minutes. Leave to cool before stirring in the olive oil. Serve with your savoury dishes to make their appeal "otherwise" than what it might appear to have been.

The Cheshire Cat's Cheese Whiskers - 2 ounces flour / 2 ounces butter / 3 ounces grated Cheddar cheese / 1/2 teaspoon baking powder / 2 ounces grated breadcrumbs / 1/2 saltspoon salt /  1/2 saltspoon pepper / paprika 

Sieve flour, salt and pepper into a basin. Stir in the breadcrumbs and cheese. Rub in the butter with the fingers until you get a smooth paste, adding a little milk if the texture proves difficult. Dust work surface with flour and roll out pastry into a strip about 4 inches wide. one-eighth of an inch. Cut pastry into so many thin strips. Place on a greased tin and bake in a steady oven at 375ºF, gas mark 4 until crisp and brown. Serve hot, sprinkle with paprika. Then sit back and smile contentedly at your achievement, if only to remind yourself that long ago Cheshire Cheeses were moulded into the shape of a grinning cat prior to being sent to Bristol for export. Hence, maybe, the origin of the phrase " grin like a Cheshire cat " Perhaps Alice should have asked her question of the Duchess's cook?  

Hope you enjoy the few photos of Tenniel's illustrations that I included. - JW 

                                 Apparently Lewis Carroll drew this one of himself.