Publisher's Synopsis
ince its completion in 1825, this handbook has appeared in so many different guises - from 1889's Gastronomy as a Fine Art to The Philosopher in the Kitchen in 1970 - that much of its wisdom has become idiomatic. Brillat-Savarin was, for example, the first to coin the phrase: -You are what you eat- - item four in a long list of -Aphorisms of the Professor- intended as -a lasting foundation for the science of gastronomy-. In fact, Brillat was no professor, but a judge who often worked on his magnum opus while presiding in court. His life (1755-1826) spanned perhaps the most turbulent period of France's history. It would be hard to place this book, which meanders from ruminations on the -inconveniences of obesity- to the philosophical history of cooking, in any one genre; it is perhaps best characterised as an intimate account of a man's passionate relationship with food. -The discovery of a new dish does more for human happiness than the discovery of a star, - Brillat insists and furthermore: -The destiny of nations depends on how they nourish themselves.-