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Food History Books PDF – Culinary Books PDF

Food History Books PDF - Culinary Books PDF

Hundreds of free food history books pdf and culinary books. Subject collections, suggested titles, and vintage books.


Collections of Culinary Books

More Collections of Free Books on Food Topics


Suggested Culinary, Nutrition, and Food History Books

The China Study: The Most Comprehensive Study of Nutrition Ever Conducted & the Startling Implications for Diet, Weight Loss & Long-term Health – Culinary Books PDF

Campbell, T. Colin and Campbell, Thomas M.
Benbella 2006

Dr. T. Colin Campbell details the connection between nutrition and heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. The report also examines the source of nutritional confusion produced by powerful lobbies, government entities, and opportunistic scientists. Dr. Campbell cuts through the haze of misinformation and delivers an insightful message to anyone living with cancer, diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and those concerned with the effects of aging.

See the Menu at the top of every page for Directories of Free Online Fiction and NonFiction Books, Magazines, and more, on 400 pages like this at Century Past

Menus from History: Historic Meals and Recipes for Every Day of the Year (Vol 1)

Vol 2

Clarkson, Janet
Greenwood Press/ABC-CLIO 2009

A year’s worth of fascinating menus from significant occasions in history around the world offer a thoroughly delightful way to learn more about noteworthy events and people, social classes, and morés.

Fat Land: How Americans Became the Fattest People in the World

Critser, Greg
Houghton Mifflin 2004

Low carb, high protein, raw foods . . . despite our seemingly endless obsession with fad diets, the startling truth is that six out of ten Americans are overweight or obese. In Fat Land, award-winning nutrition and health journalist Greg Critser examines the facts and societal factors behind the sensational headlines, taking on everything from supersize to Super Mario, high-fructose corn syrup to the high costs of physical education.

Near a Thousand Tables: A History of Food

Fernandez-Armesto, Felipe
Free Press 2002

Acclaimed food historian Felipe Fernández-Armesto tells the fascinating story of food as cultural as well as culinary history. He guides readers through the eight great revolutions in the world history of food: the origins of cooking, which set humankind on a course apart from other species; the ritualization of eating, which brought magic and meaning into people’s relationship with what they ate; the inception of herding and the invention of agriculture, and several more.

Critical Perspectives on Genetically Modified Crops and Food – Culinary Books PDF

Gordon, Susan, ed.
Rosen 2006

“Presents a collection of essays and newspaper articles on the genetic modification of food, discussing how the process began, its effect on plant diversity, the role of government and regulation, and the future of agricultural biotechnology.” -Publisher.

Appetite City: A Culinary History of New York – Food History Books PDF

Grimes, William
North Point 2009

“This lively, profusely illustrated history veers in one fascinating direction after another, from the proliferation of oyster houses in the 1800s to the original recipe for chop suey … Grimes gets personal in the final chapter, describing the scene of the late 1990s and early 200s from his frontline perspective as the restaurant critic for the New York Times.” -Publishers Weekly. Food and beverage industry.

The Food of a Younger Land

Kurlansky, Mark
Riverhead Trade 2010

In the throes of the Great Depression, a make-work initiative for authors-called “America Eats”-was created by the WPA to chronicle the eating habits, traditions, and struggles of local Americans. Mark Kurlansky unearths this forgotten literary treasure, chronicling a bygone era when Americans had never heard of fast food or grocery superstores. A portrait of American food–before the national highway system, before chain restaurants, and before frozen food, when the nation’s food was seasonal, regional, and traditional.

Just Food: Where Locavores Get It Wrong and How We Can Truly Eat Responsibly

McWilliams, James E.
Back Bay 2010

We suffer today from food anxiety, bombarded as we are with confusing messages about how to eat an ethical diet. Should we eat locally? Is organic really better for the environment? Can genetically modified foods be good for you? Just Food does for fresh food what Fast Food Nation did for fast food, challenging conventional views, and cutting through layers of myth and misinformation. For instance, an imported tomato is more energy-efficient than a local greenhouse-grown tomato. And farm-raised freshwater fish may soon be the most sustainable source of protein. Informative and surprising, Just Food tells us how to decide what to eat, and how our choices can help save the planet and feed the world.

Safe Food: Bacteria, Biotechnology, and Bioterrorism

Nestle, Marion
Univ. of California 2003

“The author argues that ensuring safe food involves more than washing hands or cooking food to higher temperatures. It involves politics. When it comes to food safety, billions of dollars are at stake, and industry, government, and consumers collide over issues of values, economics, and political power – and not always in the public interest.” -Publisher.

The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals – Food History Books PDF

Pollan, Michael
Large Print 2007

The author “defines the Omnivore’s Dilemma as the confusing maze of choices facing Americans trying to eat healthfully in a society that he calls ‘notably unhealthy.’ He seeks answers to this dilemma by taking readers through the industrial, organic, and hunter-gatherer stages of the food chain. . . . This folksy narrative provides a wealth of information about agriculture, the natural world, and human desires.” -Library Journal.

Human Nutrition

Revilla, Marie K. F. and others
Independent 2018

“Serves as an introduction to nutrition for undergraduate students. The book covers basic concepts in human nutrition, key information about essential nutrients, basic nutritional assessment, and nutrition across the lifespan.” -Open Textbook Library Website.

Chemistry of Cooking

Rodriguez-Velazquez, Sorangel
Independent 2016

“The chemistry of cooking course seeks to understand the science behind our most popular meals by studying the behavior of atoms and molecules present in food. This book is intended to give students a basic understanding of the chemistry involved in cooking such as caramelization, Maillard reaction, acid-base reactions, catalysis, and fermentation. Students will be able to use chemistry language to describe the process of cooking, apply chemistry knowledge to solve questions related to food, and ultimately create their own recipes.” -Open Textbook Library Website.

Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal – Culinary Books PDF

Schlosser, Eric
Houghton Mifflin 2001

“Schlosser documents the effects of fast food on America’s economy, its youth culture, and allied industries. . . .Starting with a young woman who makes minimum wage working at a Colorado fast-food restaurant, Schlosser relates the oft-told story of Ray Kroc’s founding of McDonald’s. The author also tells about the development of the franchise method of business ownership and the health and nutrition implications of fast-food consumption.” -Booklist. Food supply books, food industry, food and beverage industry.

History of American Cooking – Food History Books PDF

Smith, Meril D.
ABC-CLIO 2013

Examines the history and practice of cooking in what is now the United States from approximately the 15th century to the present day, covering everything from the hot-stone cooking techniques of the Nootka people of the Pacific Northwest to the influence of Crisco–a shortening product intended as a substitute for lard–upon American cooking in the 20th century. Learning how American cooking has evolved throughout the centuries provides valuable insights into life in the past and offers hints to our future.

An Edible History of Humanity

Standage, Tom
Thorndike 2009

A riveting history of humanity told through the foods we eat. Throughout history, food has done more than simply provide sustenance; it has acted as a tool of social transformation, political organization, geopolitical competition, industrial development, military conflict and economic expansion. And today, in the culmination of a process that has been going on for thousands of years, the foods we choose in the supermarket connect us to global debates about trade, development, and the adoption of new technologies.

Waste: Uncovering the Global Food Scandal – Food History Books PDF

Norton 2009

With shortages, volatile prices and nearly one billion people hungry, the world has a food problem—or thinks it does. Farmers, manufacturers, supermarkets and consumers in North America and Europe discard up to half of their food—enough to feed all the world’s hungry at least three times over. Forests are destroyed and nearly one tenth of the West’s greenhouse gas emissions are released growing food that will never be eaten. While affluent nations throw away food through neglect, in the developing world crops rot because farmers lack the means to process, store and transport them to market.

Food, Inc.: How Industrial Food is Making us Sicker, Fatter and Poorer — And What You Can Do About It – Culinary Books PDF

Weber, Karl
Public Affairs 2009

A companion book to the documentary film of the same name. Contains 13 essays by experts on topics including the industrialization of our food supply; the benefits of locally-sourced, organic eating; and how the U.S. food system promotes global warming.

Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy: The Harvard Medical School Guide to Healthy Eating

Willett, Walter et al
Free Press 2005

Dr. Walter Willett’s research is rooted in studies that tracked the health of dieters over twenty years, and in this groundbreaking book, he critiques the carbohydrate-laden diet proposed by the USDA. Exposing the problems of popular diets such as the Zone, South Beach, and Atkins, Dr. Willett offers eye-opening research on the optimum ratio of carbohydrates, fats, and proteins, and the relative importance of various food groups and supplements. Find out how to choose wisely between different types of fats, which fruits and vegetables provide the best health insurance, and the proportions of each to integrate into their daily diet.

An Introduction to Nutrition: A Functional Approach!

Zimmerman, Maureen; Snow, Beth
Independent 2012

“Written for students who are not majoring in nutrition, but want to learn about the fundamental aspects of nutrition and how it applies to their own lives.” -Open Textbook Library Website.

Vintage Culinary Books

VINTAGE BOOKS – US Food History

Practical Sanitary and Economic Cooking, Adapted to Persons of Moderate and Small Means – Culinary Books PDF

Abel, Mrs M. W. (Hinman)
American Public Health Association 1890

States clearly food values and proper methods of preparation; gives recipes, bills of fare and prices. – American Library Association Catalog 1904.


The Young House-Keeper, or Thoughts on Food and Cookery – Food History Books PDF

Alcott, William A.
Boston: Light 1838


The Professed Cook: or, the Modern Art of Cookery, Pastry, and Confectionary …

made plain and easy, consisting of the most approved methods in the French as well as English Cookery, in which the French names of all the different dishes are given and explained, whereby every Bill of Fare becomes intelligible and familiar.

Clermont, B.
London: Davis 1776

18th Century Cookbook, one of the earliest available.


Art of Cookery. A Manual for Homes and Schools

Ewing, Mrs Emma (Pike)
Merrill 1899

The Author is an experienced teacher of cooking. Manual of principles: marketing; food materials; methods of cooking: mixing; seasoning; serving and garnishing. – American Library Association Catalog 1904.


The Hostess of To-day – Culinary Books PDF

Larned, Mrs Linda (Hull)
Scribner 1899

Suggestions as to table service, formal and informal dinners, luncheons, teas, etc. Many compact recipes with approximate prices. – American Library Association Catalog 1904.


The Epicurean – Food History Books PDF

Ranhofer, Charles
Chicago: 1894

“If you wanted the epitome of fine dining in the United States, for over a century Delmonico’s Restaurant in New York City was where you went. During the late Victorian period, Delmonico’s hosted dinners for presidents like Ulysses S. Grant, and writers like Charles Dickens. Known for their unique and ornate presentations, the most elaborate of dishes was prepared under the masterful eye of chef Charles Ranhofer. This massive, heavily-illustrated tome, contains mostly classic French recipes, reflecting the impact of French cuisine among the upper class at the turn of the century.” – Eric Colleary, “The American Table” website.


Feeding the Family

Rose, Mary Swartz
Macmillan 1921

Chapter headings are: 1. The Significance of Food, 2. Care of the Digestive Mechanism, Food for: the adult man, the adult woman, the baby, the two-year-old child, children 3 and 4 years old, children 5 to 7, children 8 to 12, adolescence and youth, after 50, the family group: menus, family group: cost of food, family group: fool plans and dietaries, the sick and convalescent.

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