Many years ago I was given a book (see photo) 'Carrington: letters and extracts from her diaries.' Thus my love affair with all things Bloomsbury began. The Bloomsberries were a London literary and artistic group whom comprised of great names such as Virginia Woolf, Vanessa Bell, Lytton Strachey, E. M. Forster and Dora Carrington, to name but a few. The group were one of the most celebrated cultural movements of the twentieth century, these extraordinary individuals broke free from the shackles of their Victorian male - dominated society with its false values and petty conventions and lived as bohemians. Their relationships were totally unconventional, even by todays standards, their lifestyles were governed by watchwords such as ' good states of mind' 'truth' and 'happiness', their philosophy and rebellious natures of course totally appealed to me!
Carrington was one of the most tragic figures in the story of Bloomsbury, she was in love with Lytton Strachey and her primary concern in life was living with him and caring for him. Lytton was homosexual and fell in love with Ralph Partridge and by way of keeping Lytton, Carrington married Ralph and thus their curious three - sided relationship began, with all three of them going on honeymoon together and living together. Lytton died of stomach cancer in 1932, Carrington shot herself in the chest and died a few hours later.
Recently my friend Carron and I visited Charleston house, the former home of Vanessa Bell and the country gathering place for the Bloomsbury group. I was there to write a piece for Shorelines newspaper.
Whilst there Carron spotted a book: 'The Bloomsbury Cookbook' which she bought for me. This wonderful book combines two of my greatest passions, cooking and stories about the Bloomsbury group, it's full of life, love and art and invites the reader to dine with the Bloomsberries. Food and dining was central to these individuals, gathered around the table they discussed art, literature, politics and economics, they argued, debated, laughed and loved.
'Theirs was an England largely lost. Of breakfasts to linger over, painting lunches, tea at four and dinners to dress for. Fresh vegetables sent from country gardens in baskets to town by rail, excellent boiled puddings and steak and kidney pies.'
- Pamela Todd, Bloomsbury at home.
Never more than at Charleston did the group engage in lengthy meals around Vanessa's dining table.
Charleston is where the Bloomsbury pulse beats strongest. Virginia Nicholson, the granddaughter of Vanessa, poignantly sums it up by saying, 'It is as if its inhabitants have simply gone out for a walk and will shortly return.' I would certainly recommend visiting Charleston which is a time capsule in which the public can examine a world which has vanished!
Naturally, being a writer myself, the love of sharing stories around the dining table as the Bloomsberries did, excites me. We live in a society today where food has become about convenience, we no longer treasure the 'dining experience'. Nor do we value food in the same way, good meals were important to the Bloomsbury circle, their gatherings were about fun where food and drink were taken seriously and much enjoyed.
Many of the recipes in the Bloomsbury cookbook were written when food supplies were limited, but even at times of austerity, meals were conjured up with whatever their vegetable gardens were able to provide and some of the recipes are quite ingenious. One such recipe is Grace's Algerian omelette, this consists of a spoonful of rice cooked with fried onions and simmered in a cup of stock which is spread over the surface of a 4 egg omelette, warmed through and folded in half. I assume this was an economical way of making a filling dish, the eggs would have come from the neighbouring farm and the rice would have been an excellent filler.
A traditional British breakfast from colonial India, often eaten after a party or heavy night before, was kedgeree. I don't know anyone who has kedgeree for breakfast anymore but it certainly makes for a delicious meal, whatever time of the day you eat it!
Kedgeree
Recipe
680g smoked haddock
170g long grain rice
4 free range eggs
1 onion, peeled and sliced
2 mugs of full fat milk
Salt
Large knob of butter
2 heaped tablespoons curry powder
Cook rice according to instructions, drain and rinse in cold water, set to one side
Boil eggs, peel and set to one side
Fry onion in butter
Add curry powder and stir
Place fish in pan and add milk
When fish is cooked - 10 minutes - add rice and combine ingredients well
Allow rice to warm through and add chopped eggs
Season with salt and serve in warm bowls
This is really delicious, true comfort food, I can understand why people with hangovers enjoyed it!
Carron has just sent me a new publication of Vanessa and her sister which no doubt will kidnap me for a day, I'm off to have a leisurely read........
By a strange twist of fate, my editor, Martin Shelley looks like Lytton!
'I don't know what the world has come into: women in love with buggers and buggers in love with womanizers....'
- Lytton Strachey
Love Donna
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