{"id":4969,"date":"2021-07-09T14:11:33","date_gmt":"2021-07-09T14:11:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.rutgers.edu\/books-we-read\/?p=4969"},"modified":"2022-03-18T15:23:08","modified_gmt":"2022-03-18T15:23:08","slug":"poetry-and-recipes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.rutgers.edu\/books-we-read\/poetry-and-recipes\/","title":{"rendered":"Poetry and Recipes"},"content":{"rendered":"

In addition to my position at Rutgers as a part-time business librarian, I am also a food writer and historian<\/a>. While the vocations might not seem connected, they really do work well in tandem. The database-searching proficiency I gleaned through my M.L.S. (Rutgers, 1997) combined with many years working in corporate libraries allows me to assist and instruct the Rutgers community in finding business information. These research skills along with my writing experience (my undergraduate degree was in journalism) and a deep interest in culinary history helps me gather the information I need to write about food.<\/p>\n

\"\"Which is why I was pleasantly surprised to recently discover more writing synergies\u2013\u2013the links between recipes and poetry. My current book project is a combination cookbook and history of Delmonico\u2019s restaurant, which includes editing and rewriting recipes. Some of these are classic Delmonico recipes (e.g., Eggs Benedict, Delmonico Steak and Baked Alaska), but others have been contributed by modern chefs, giving the original Delmonico\u2019s recipes a contemporary spin, such as Tara Cox\u2019s Baby Benedicts or Carla Hall\u2019s Mini Baked Alaskas. The difficulty here is maintaining a sense of consistency throughout the book while preserving the voice of the chef contributors.<\/p>\n

At the same time, I\u2019ve also been assisting with the Rutgers New Brunswick Summer Tales program. As we started delving into the second session focusing on poetry, it made me think of the similarities between recipes and poems. A well-written recipe flows in a way that is both lyrical and descriptive, with each step moving the cook through the process, qualities I also appreciate in a poem. A poem\u2019s various verses and stanzas also move the reader through the story or message.<\/p>\n

I haven\u2019t written much poetry in my life, but I can imagine it is probably easier to conceive and write poetry that comes from one\u2019s own thoughts, experiences, and emotions, like the second poem in the Summer Tales series, Persimmons<\/a> by Li-Young Lee. Lee is obviously writing about events from his childhood, vividly dredging up memories and imagery in the way he strings her words together. I love the way he describes how to choose and eat persimmons in colorful detail. This not unlike how I approach writing a recipe. Those I have created on my own or reconstructed from a historic dish are easier to write as I have a point of reference, and know exactly how to describe the sights, textures, and tastes of the various ingredients, techniques, and final products.<\/p>\n

I have so enjoyed participating in Summer Tales, as it has given me much \u201cfood for thought\u201d in my understanding of poetry and short stories. This has allowed me to see these types of writing in a different way and relate them to my own work, boosting my research and writing skills. Accessing and conveying information is key in my role as a librarian and writer\u2013\u2013invoking all the senses casts the widest net.<\/p>\n

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\"lemonHere\u2019s a recipe to try. This is my grandmother\u2019s lemon sherbet, so simple and refreshing for the summer\u2013\u2013and perfect for July, which is Ice Cream Month! I tried to add some poetic and descriptive cues to the instructions \u2026 see if you can spot them.<\/p>\n

Grandmother Lawrence\u2019s Lemon Sherbet<\/strong><\/a>
\nServes 6-8<\/p>\n