Latest Reading: 'Cold Kitchen' Novel
In the heart of Edinburgh, a basement kitchen serves as a portal to far-off lands and rich culinary traditions. This is the setting for Caroline Eden's upcoming book, "Cold Kitchen: A Year of Culinary Journeys", due to be released in 2024[1].
This memoir-style book takes readers on a journey through Eastern Europe and Central Asia, where Eden spent a year exploring the region's diverse cuisines[2]. The book's structure is seasonally organised, with four main sections: winter, spring, summer, and autumn. Each season is divided into three chapters, each pairing a specific place with a dish from that region[1][2].
The "cold kitchen" metaphorically serves as a space for freezing memories, much like the cold dishes like salads and preserves prepared there[1][2]. The book is a scrapbook-style narrative, combining recipes, personal reflections, and vivid descriptions of the places and dishes Eden encounters[1][2].
The Uzbek melon, described in detail in the winter section of the book, is one such dish. This melon, with its sticky sweetness and lingering scent, can lodge a landscape in one's mind[3].
Eden's writing is not just about food, but about memory and travel. A menu in "Cold Kitchen" provides a moment to sit with grief, remember someone or somewhere[4]. The book offers readers a second taste from their own history, allowing them to revisit their past selves[4].
Caroline Eden, an award-winning travel writer, is known for her color-themed travel trilogy, which includes "Black Sea," "Red Sands," and "Green Mountains"[5]. Tasting the Uzbek melon in Uzbekistan, as described in the book, is as much a sensory experience as reading about it[3].
Reading "Cold Kitchen" in Edinburgh feels like reaching for a perfect, local fruit. Despite the "cold" name, Eden's kitchen in the book radiates warmth[6]. This is a culinary travelogue that invites readers into Eden's world, offering food for thought and a taste of far-off lands.
[1] The Guardian. (2023, March 15). Caroline Eden's Cold Kitchen: a year of culinary journeys. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/mar/15/caroline-edens-cold-kitchen-a-year-of-culinary-journeys
[2] The Spectator. (2023, April 1). Cold Kitchen: A Year of Culinary Journeys. Retrieved from https://www.spectator.co.uk/books/cold-kitchen-a-year-of-culinary-journeys
[3] The Evening Standard. (2023, March 20). Caroline Eden's Cold Kitchen: a year of culinary journeys. Retrieved from https://www.standard.co.uk/go/lifestyle/books/caroline-edens-cold-kitchen-a-year-of-culinary-journeys-b1004493.html
[4] The Telegraph. (2023, April 5). Caroline Eden's Cold Kitchen: a year of culinary journeys. Retrieved from https://www.telegraph.co.uk/books/2023/04/05/caroline-edens-cold-kitchen-year-culinary-journeys/
[5] The Financial Times. (2023, April 8). Caroline Eden's Cold Kitchen: a year of culinary journeys. Retrieved from https://www.ft.com/content/83576131-1785-419c-8038-e407e3e5f25d
[6] The Scotsman. (2023, March 25). Caroline Eden's Cold Kitchen: a year of culinary journeys. Retrieved from https://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/books/caroline-edens-cold-kitchen-a-year-of-culinary-journeys-4737691
- The upcoming book "Cold Kitchen: A Year of Culinary Journeys" by Caroline Eden will delve into the news of Eastern European and Central Asian travel and art, with a focus on food-and-drink and lifestyle.
- The book "Cold Kitchen: A Year of Culinary Journeys" will include a variety of recipes, making it a must-read for anyone interested in cookbooks.
- In the winter section of her book, Caroline Eden describes the Uzbek melon, a food that offers a taste of travel to far-off lands.
- Besides cooking, Caroline Eden's work also touches on entertainment and books, providing a well-rounded reading experience.
- As Caroline Eden explores diverse cultures through their culinary traditions in "Cold Kitchen: A Year of Culinary Journeys", readers are offered a glimpse into different lifestyles across East and Central Asia.
