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Elizabeth David
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===Post-war England=== [[File:Britain Queues For Food- Rationing and Food Shortages in Wartime, London, England, UK, 1945 D24983.jpg|thumb|alt=Street scene of people queueing outside a shop|left|The reality of [[rationing]] and austerity: queuing for fish in London, 1945]] Returning after her years of Mediterranean warmth and access to a profusion of fresh ingredients, David found her native country in the post-war period grey and daunting, with [[Rationing in the United Kingdom#Post-Second World War 1945–1954|food rationing]] still in force.<ref>Cooper, p. 126</ref>{{#tag:ref|When David arrived back in Britain, bacon, fat, wheat, sugar, cheese, bread, milk and eggs were all rationed. Most foodstuff did not come off the ration until the early 1950s; meat, the last rationed foodstuff, came off in 1954.<ref>[http://www.iwm.org.uk/history/what-you-need-to-know-about-rationing-in-the-second-world-war "What you need to know about rationing in the Second World War"], Imperial War Museums. Retrieved 16 October 2017</ref><ref>Zweiniger-Bargielowska, p. 86</ref>|group=n}} She encountered terrible food: "There was flour and water soup seasoned solely with pepper; bread and [[Hyaline cartilage|gristle]] [[Rissole#Australia, Britain and New Zealand|rissoles]]; dehydrated onions and carrots; corned beef [[toad in the hole]]. I need not go on."<ref name=ogw21>David (1986), p. 21</ref> In London, she met George Lassalle, a former lover of hers from Cairo days, and their affair was rekindled. The couple went to [[Ross-on-Wye]] in November 1946 for a week's break, but were stranded in the town by the [[Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom|season's inclement weather]]. Frustrated by the poor food provided by the hotel, she was encouraged by Lassalle to put her thoughts on paper.<ref>Cooper, pp. 129–131; and Chaney, pp. 215–217</ref> <blockquote>Hardly knowing what I was doing ... I sat down and started to work out an agonized craving for the sun and a furious revolt against that terrible cheerless, heartless food by writing down descriptions of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cooking. Even to write words like apricot, olives and butter, rice and lemons, oil and almonds, produced assuagement. Later I came to realize that in the England of 1947, those were dirty words I was putting down.<ref name=ogw21/></blockquote> [[File:ELIZABETH DAVID - 24 Halsey Street Chelsea London SW3 2PT.jpg|thumb|upright|alt=exterior of large terrace house|24 Halsey Street, Chelsea, David's home from 1947 until her death. A blue memorial plaque commemorates her.]] When her husband returned from India in 1947, David immediately separated from Lassalle and resumed the role of wife. With the aid of Stella Gwynne, David and her husband bought a house in [[Chelsea, London|Chelsea]], which remained her home for the rest of her life.<ref>Cooper, p. 134</ref> Tony David proved ineffectual in civilian life, unable to find a suitable job; he ran up debts, partly from a failed business venture.<ref>Cooper, p. 137</ref> What remained of the spark in the relationship soon died, and they were living separately by 1948.<ref>Chaney, p. 229</ref> Veronica Nicholson, a friend with connections in the publishing trade, persuaded David to continue writing, with the aim that she write a book.<ref>Cooper, p. 139</ref> She showed some of David's work to [[Anne Scott-James]], the editor of the British edition of ''[[Harper's Bazaar]]'', who thought the writing showed a widely travelled person with an independent mind. She offered David a contract, and David's work began appearing in the publication from March 1949.<ref>Cooper, pp. 139–140; and Chaney, pp. 235–236</ref>{{#tag:ref|The first article was "Rice Again", about how the increased availability of rice meant dishes such as [[risotto]]s, [[curries]] and [[pilaf]]s could be enjoyed again.<ref>Chaney, p. 236; and David (1986), p. 9</ref>|group=n}} David told Scott-James that she planned to publish the articles as a book, and was allowed to retain the copyright by the magazine. Even before all the articles had been published, she had assembled them into a typescript volume called ''[[A Book of Mediterranean Food]]''; many of the recipes ignored the restrictions of rationing in favour of authenticity, and in several cases the ingredients were not available in British shops. David submitted her manuscript to a series of publishers, all of whom turned it down. One of them explained that a collection of unconnected recipes needed linking text. David took this advice, but conscious of her inexperience as a writer she kept her own prose short and quoted extensively from established authors whose views on the Mediterranean might carry more weight.<ref>Cooper, pp. 140–141; and Williams, M., pp. 57–58</ref> She submitted the revised typescript to [[John Lehmann]], a publisher more associated with poetry than cookery; he accepted it and agreed to an advance payment of £100. ''A Book of Mediterranean Food'' was published in June 1950.<ref>Cooper, pp. 143–144</ref> [[File:A Book of Mediterranean Food cover.jpg|thumb|upright|left|alt=book jacket with bright coloured exterior scene of Mediterranean seafront |''[[A Book of Mediterranean Food]]'', with [[John Minton (artist)|John Minton]]'s design on the cover, which David thought "stunning"<ref name=c152>Cooper, p. 152</ref>]] ''A Book of Mediterranean Food'' was illustrated by [[John Minton (artist)|John Minton]]; writers including [[Cyril Ray]] and [[John Arlott]] commented that the drawings added to the attractions of the book.<ref>"Cookery", ''[[The Times Literary Supplement]]'', 9 June 1950, p. 362; Arlott, John. "From Time to Time", ''[[The Guardian]]'', 18 July 1986, p. 15; and "First Bites", ''The Guardian'', 15 March 1994, p. B5</ref> Martin Salisbury, the professor of illustration at the [[Cambridge School of Art]], writes that Minton's "brilliant, neo-romantic designs perfectly complement the writing".<ref>"[https://www.theguardian.com/books/gallery/2017/oct/21/cover-stories-beautiful-book-jacket-designs-in-pictures Cover stories: beautiful book-jacket designs—in pictures]", ''[[The Guardian]]'', 21 October 2017. Retrieved 22 November 2017</ref> David placed great importance on the illustration of books,{{#tag:ref|David's views on inappropriate illustrations were expressed in her essay "South Wind in the Kitchen".<ref>David (1986), pp. 124–131</ref>|group=n}} and described Minton's jacket design as "stunning". She was especially taken with "his beautiful Mediterranean bay, his tables spread with white cloths and bright fruit" and the way that "pitchers and jugs and bottles of wine could be seen far down the street"; she considered the cover design aided the success of the book, but was less convinced by his black and white drawings.<ref name=c152>Cooper, p. 152</ref> The book was well received by reviewers.<ref name=c152/> Elizabeth Nicholas, writing for ''[[The Sunday Times]]'', thought David a "gastronome of rare integrity" who "refuses ... to make any ignoble compromises with expediency".<ref>Nicholas, Elizabeth. "Southern Fare", ''[[The Sunday Times]]'', 4 June 1950, p. 3.</ref> Although John Chandos, writing in ''[[The Observer]]'', pointed out that "Let no one eating in London—with whatever abandon—imagine that he is eating Mediterranean food in the absence of Mediterranean earth and air", he finished his review by saying that the book "deserves to become the familiar companion of all who seek uninhibited excitement in the kitchen".<ref>Chandos, John. "Southern Spells", ''[[The Observer]]'', 18 June 1950, p. 7.</ref> The success of the book led to offers of work from ''The Sunday Times''—for which she was paid an advance of 60 [[Guinea (coin)#Replacement by the pound|guineas]]—''Go'', a travel magazine owned by the newspaper, and ''Wine and Food'', the journal of the [[Wine and Food Society]].<ref>Cooper, p. 153; and Chaney, p. 259</ref> In August 1950 David and her husband went on their final holiday together with the money from the new contracts, although they had trouble with the car they were using for touring and the holiday was unsuccessful.<ref>Cooper, p. 154</ref> On her return she invited Felicité, her youngest sister, to move into the top flat in her house. David was a reluctant and unskilful typist—she preferred the feel of writing with a pen—and in exchange for a low rent, Felicité expertly typed her articles and books, and later acted as her principal researcher.<ref>Cooper, pp. 154 and 156; Chaney, p. 255; and David (1977), p. xi</ref> [[File:Ménerbes 2013 11.jpg|thumb|alt=exterior view of picturesque French town|[[Ménerbes]], [[Provence]], where David spent three months in 1951]] ''A Book of Mediterranean Food'' was successful enough for Lehmann to commission David to write a sequel, to show the [[French cuisine|dishes of rural France]]. This was ''[[Elizabeth David bibliography#French Country Cooking (1951)|French Country Cooking]]'', which David finished writing in October 1950. Minton was employed to illustrate the work, and David gave him detailed instructions about the type of drawings; she was more pleased with them than those for her first work.<ref>David (2001), p. 13; and Cooper, p. 156</ref> Despite their difficult relationship, David dedicated the book to her mother.<ref>David (1999), p. 200</ref> Before the book was published, David left England to live for a short time in France. She was motivated by a desire to gain a wider knowledge of life in the French countryside, and to put distance between her and her husband. She left London in March 1951 for [[Ménerbes]], [[Provence]].<ref>Cooper, pp. 156–157</ref> She spent three months in Provence; although the weather was initially cold and wet, it soon turned warmer and she enjoyed herself so much that she considered buying a house there. In June 1951 she left Ménerbes and travelled to the island of [[Capri]] to visit Norman Douglas. When she left in late August, she toured briefly around the [[Italian Riviera]] researching for an article for ''Go'', before returning to London.<ref>Cooper, pp. 158–161</ref> In September, shortly after her return, ''French Country Cooking'' was published. It was warmly reviewed by critics,<ref>Cooper, p. 163</ref> although Lucie Marion, writing in ''[[The Manchester Guardian]]'', considered that "I cannot think that Mrs David has tried actually to make many of the dishes for which she gives recipes".<ref>Marion, Lucie. "Wine in the Kitchen", ''The Manchester Guardian'', 11 October 1951, p. 4.</ref> David wrote to the paper to set the record straight, saying that it would have been "irresponsible and mischievous" if she had not tested them all.<ref>David, Elizabeth. "When the Cooks Disagree", ''The Manchester Guardian'', 1 November 1951, p. 4.</ref>
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