The Country Kitchen

by Della T. Lutes

First published in 1936, Della Lutes's semi-autobiographical tale was widely acclaimed. Readers today will delight in her stories of life in the late nineteenth-century rural Michigan, complete descriptions of authentic country folks, reflections on family and community events, and especially, details of sharing meals together that recapture expressions of warmth and love and fond childhood memories. The book includes an index to recipes hidden within the humorous narrative.

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction

269 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1936

About the author

Also known as Della Lutes and Della Thompson Lutes. Best known for memoirs. Born in Michigan in the late 19th century.

Reviews

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written before WWII, about the author's childhood, this memoir still reads, to me, as if only one generation back. Farm life didn't change much until quite recently, and in some ways still hasn't. I do thank goodness I don't have to deal with the capricious, egotistical, and self-centered old man Della's mother did, though. I guess he was a good provider & loving in his own way, however. And I love Lutes' voice - she has a real ear for the people's speech, and uses plenty of local jargon, too. And some earnest purplish prose, but it's all a celebration and just charming.

The most intriguing recipe that's doable w/out salt pork, rhubarb, and/or a killer amount of cream and/or butter is Sour Cream Cookies. The closest recipe I could easily find online is http://knucklesalad.com/mccalls-old-f.... Other recipes use too much sugar or extra ingredients.

[Rosamund Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

My edition of the book was bought by my great-grandmother in 1942. It cost her three shillings, and was clearly cheap at the price, because it has been enjoyed by three subsequent generations of her family. It's set in Michigan, around 1880, when the author is six years old. It follows one year in the life of a country kitchen: the meals that are eaten, the food that is farmed, cooked, preserved and stored. Each meal is prepared with deliberation, from ingredients that come from the family's farm. The author includes recipes, though I don't believe the meals described could be made by a modern reader who does not have access to these fresh ingredients. It's a lovely book -- comforting to read, and while the stories about food and family are warm and generous, they are not sentimental. The difficulties of living on the land, and the hardships and inequalities, are also included. I read this while I was getting over flu, and it was the perfect thing.

This is not currently in print, but it must have been popular in its day -- my version is the British reprint, which includes an introduction explaining ingredients that must have been unknown in the UK of the 40s, such as dill or cornmeal.

[Carol Palmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a sweet book of the days of late 19th century rural & small-t0wn America. So many times, I could picture my own relatives (although in mid-20th century, not 19th) doing and saying the things that were described in this book. I feel such a sadness at the loss of the innocence of that time. But the events in the book were actually happy ones and reading the book was pure joy.

[Janice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very charming!

[Sues57 Schroeder]

Very evocative description of the author's childhood in late 19th. century rural Michigan, and... FOOD! Della Lutes describes her older, stubborn father and her patient mother, and both of their relationships to farming and food. There is a nice sense of innocence, without being cloying and deliberately cutesy. There is a bit of irony, and the descriptions of country cooking are excellent. Lutes was definitely a talented story-teller as well.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my top ten favorite books it tells the story of a girl growing up in the northern US and her family. There is a lot about cooking and some recipes but also the other family members. The different types of characters and their loyalty is heartwarming.
|There is a follow-up book or two - but I rarely see them. At one time I owned Cousin William and gave it away :( Heartwarming.

[Barb · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well written memoir of growing up in southeast Michigan in the late 1800's. She follows one calendar year describing social and family gatherings, each with careful descriptions of the food enjoyed and how it was made. Not to be read on an empty stomach.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a well-written, delightful autobiography of a little girl growing up on a farm in long ago Michigan.
The recipes sound delicious and could be made today. Della, or dawtie, as her father called her enjoyed
her younger years and manages to convey them to us with love.

[Priscilla King · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a very nice, wholesome, cozy Victorian memoir-novel about a little girl who wasn't even a pioneer or a tomboy, this one's surprisingly funny and insightful. The focus is always on little Della learning to cook, on recipes and techniques. If you want to learn how to cook on a wood stove, here are recipes that can survive that process. Though of course my mother would want me to mention that I liked hers better.

[Lois · Rating 3 out of 5]

In many ways "Kitchen" struck me as a resource book for what agrarian living and cooking were like around the turn of the last century. We experience farm to table living laced with stories of the community's inhabitants (both human and livestock). This was a thoroughly enjoyable, light read.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Worth taking the time to read and put your mind to a way of life that was slower. Not as in the way that there was less to do, but slower/longer work required for the reward.

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quaint & charming