The Unprejudiced Palate: Classic Thoughts on Food and the Good Life

by Angelo M. Pellegrini and Brooks Hays

Book Overview

First issued in 1948, when soulless minute steaks and quick casseroles were becoming the norm, The Unprejudiced Palate inspired a seismic culinary shift in how America eats. Written by a food-loving immigrant from Tuscany, this memoir-cum-cookbook articulates the Italian American vision of the good life: a backyard garden, a well-cooked meal shared with family and friends, and a passion for ingredients and cooking that nourish the body and the soul...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0812971558
• ISBN13: 9780812971552
• Release Date: August 2005
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 0.48 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.3" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

A must own for any lover of all things culinary

This is one of the best books of its kind ever written. Originally composed nearly 60 years ago, it reads as if it'd been submitted to the publisher only recently. His culinary opinions are spot on, and his writing style is wonderful. One of my all time favorites.

Great Book

I picked it up based on the reviews from others. Excellent book. Very much of a how to enjoy a balanced life kind of a philosophy.

Unprejudiced palate?

Ms. Waters says that the book should be called "The prejudiced palate", and I agree. Angelo Pellegrini's book is both a cookbook and a gustatory memoir. It reminded me of many foods that I have not had since I was a child growing up in southern Spain, including rabbit, and odd cuts of meat, impossible to find at the local market. This book is a must for anyone interested in basic cooking, able to find and use wonderful ingredients with minimum fuss. It is also a lesson in taking advantage of the bounty available in the US and using it to full advantage. It is a great read, funny and intelligent

IF YOU LOVE MFK FISHER, READ ON...

It's hard to believe this book was written and published in the '50s, when watery pot roast and martinis were America's idea of fodder for dinner parties. I loved Pellegrini's story about searching for olive oil in a friend's medicine cabinet, so he could dress a chicken--no one used olive oil for cooking then! You can skip every fancy book out now on Tuscan cuisine, trattoria cooking, etc. once you have this book, because it has the best recipes for risotto, rabbit, chicken, polenta, greens, cardoons, and more importantly, it makes an argument for eating well but in moderation -- a more sensible way to keep weight down without spoiling one's enjoyment of food. GARDENERS should also read this book, or his book, THE FOOD LOVER'S GARDEN. He writes just as lovingly about working in his garden as he does about cooking the foods he grows in it. Forget expensive organic produce at your local grocery and follow his instructions for a home garden to eat from, especially if you live in a mild climate like Prof. Pellegrini did (Seattle, WA).

Philosophy,food,appetite for life,self-respect, all in one.

I first read this book 40 years ago in college, happily soaking up its gentle and appreciative attitude toward life, as well as an early dose of cultural relativism. I learned soup-making from Professor Pellegrini, and gratitude, and something about what's important in life. I've often repeated his stories--the one about how to serve polenta to the family when you only have one sardine to go with it, the one about the crowd of boys on market days choosing which horse to follow, the one about how as a young man he horrified a girlfriend and her parents by following his own ideas about food. The professor's recipes--e.g., for soup--are more than a list of steps; they show the reader how to _approach_ soup. Once you know how to approach it, you can invent freely within the framework provided. Although it's the soup I remember the most, he talks about preparing many kinds of food, growing fruits and vegetables, and living life in a life-preserving and life-affirming manner. In many ways, the Professor was way ahead of his time, and as I grow older and relearn from experience some of the things about life that I first learned from him, I enjoy yet again the daring of the 12-year-old who came to this country alone from Italy, ate ham and eggs across the country, became an English professor, and put so much wisdom into this small book. It's a joy to see the book being reprinted and made available to a whole new generation of readers and cooks.