A big thank you to Penguin Random House, Netgalley and Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed Press for allowing me to review Cooking and the Crown by Tom Parker Bowles. The book will be published in Australia by Hachette Australia.
I was not expecting to do a full review over here on Book Haven, but I decided to do so because I know many of Project Fangirl’s readers don’t have Goodreads. Also, it’s something different from the other reviews I have been writing. It also adds to the royal book lists that I’ve been doing as of late.
We’ve done lists of books on Catherine, the Princess of Wales, King Charles III, Queen Elizabeth II, Princes William and Harry, Princess Diana, Meghan Markle and more, including the Tudors.
Inside The Palace Kitchens With Cooking And The Crown
So, what must it be like to be a fly on the wall of the royal kitchens? Well, Tom Parker Bowles, the son of Queen Camilla has an idea. With the blessing of his mother and stepfather (and godfather), King Charles III, Tom has put together a cookbook to give the reader an idea of the royal family’s favourite meals.
There are 100+ recipes including one for the Queen Mother’s mayonnaise that can all be made at home. Some are as simple as afternoon sandwiches (and no, they’re not cucumber sandwiches) to more complex dishes that include fish.
The recipes in Cooking and the Crown are divided into sections, depending on the meal type. There is also a section of foods that were served during the late Queen’s coronation and King Charles III’s coronation.
As someone who reports on the royals frequently, it is nice to see that they are portrayed as being very normal when it comes to their dietary choices. Tom isn’t a royal. But he understands what it is like inside the palace walls as his mother is The Queen now.
The reason I rated this book (see below) what I did, is because the section descriptors are very wordy. Also, I don’t read a ton of cookbooks. I had trouble reading it on the Netgalley app on my phone because it is so small. I might have given it a higher rating if I had been able to access it via Kindle. When the book comes out, I’ll buy a copy and see if my rating changes.
