The many influences of the past on our diet make the concept of 'British
food' very hard to define. The Celts, Romans, Saxons, Vikings and
Normans each brought ingredients to the table, and the country was
introduced to all manner of spices following the Crusades. The Georgians
enjoyed a new level of excess and then, of course, the world wars forced
us into the challenge of making meals from very little. The history of
cooking in Britain is as tumultuous as the times its people have lived
through.Tasting the Past: Recipes from George III to Victoria documents
the rich history of our food, its fads and its fashions, combined with a
practical cookbook of over eighty recipes from the reigns of George III
and Queen Victoria.Jacqui Wood introduces the meals that made up the
bread-and-butter of Victorian and Georgian cuisine, their seasonal
specialities in the form of Christmas recipes, and the curious take on
'Indian' cooking that the imperial endeavours of the Victorians brought
back home.