The Food Almanac: Social Pantry in Conversation with Miranda York
The Food Almanac: Volume II is an annual, seasonal collection of recipes and stories celebrating the joy of food specially commissioned by Miranda York, founder and editor of At The Table. This dazzling, diverse mix of memoir, history, short stories and poems alongside recipes, cooking tips, menus and reading lists showcases some of the most unique and exciting voices in the world of food. However in this conversation, we hear from Miranda York in her own voice as she sits down in conversation with Social Pantry.
Tell us about your new book, The Food Almanac: Volume II?
The Food Almanac: Volume II continues the series with a second helping of seasonal recipes and stories to guide you through the culinary year. It’s filled with delicious contributions from my favourite food writers, chefs, bakers and novelists, beautifully illustrated by the talented Jordan Amy Lee. You’ll find memoirs, essays, short stories and poems alongside recipes, menus and monthly reading lists, presented within the framework of a seasonal food almanac.
Each month includes a seasonal menu from chefs and food writers such as Ravneet Gill, Jeremy Lee, Thomasina Miers, Emiko Davies and Calum Franklin, plus additional recipes from the likes of Mary Berry, Asma Khan, Lara Lee and Gill Meller – and there’s lots of brilliant food writing for you to tuck into, whatever the season, from Caroline Eden describing the dining car on the Trans-Siberian Railway to Yemisi Aribisala exploring her Nigerian identity through yams, from Simon Hopkinson discussing the glory of British puddings and Rachel Roddy celebrating the joy of plain cakes to Diana Henry honouring the softness of autumn.
Who is this book for and how do you see people using it?
This is a book for anyone who loves food. It’s designed to be both a companion in the kitchen and a book to curl up with, and I hope people will enjoy reading the stories, cook recipes from the monthly menus, use it as a guide to the seasons, and perhaps learn something new along the way.
This book features a fantastically diverse and eclectic mix of voices – how did you go about choosing who you wanted to include?
I’d like to say there’s an elaborate plan but really a lot of it is gut instinct. I try to read as widely as possible, and of course I’ve commissioned amazing writers in my past life as a magazine editor, but in the end it’s about what feels right. I also love to commission non-food writers to write about food – so novelists, poets, historians – as they naturally look at the subject from a different perspective.
With recipes, memoir, essays, short fiction and poetry all within a single volume, what role do you think form plays in communicating these food stories?
I wanted to create a book that people could dip into at any moment in their day and be inspired – whether you need some practical tips on how to pick and prepare seasonal ingredients or you want to curl up on the sofa and read a beautiful story.
What made you choose to structure the book according to months/seasons? Seasonality is obviously a huge buzz word, but what does it mean to you?
I feel passionately about cooking in harmony with the seasons, following the rhythms of the growing year. Of course most fruits and vegetables seem to be available all year round now, whether it’s because we’ve found clever ways of extending the seasons, or shipped produce from the other side of the world. Yet there’s something special about dipping fronds of crisp asparagus into soft yolks in spring, biting into the perfect peach in summer, gently moving wild mushrooms around a pan frothing with salted butter in autumn, and peeling a jewel-like blood orange on a dull winter’s day. Eating with the seasons brings a rich variety to our lives, and is of course more sustainable, but most important of all, it tastes better.
Is there a particular entry that surprised you or made you think differently about food?
My writers always manage to surprise me in the most wonderful ways. I like to give quite open briefs and let writers explore their subject with as much freedom as possible. Letitia Clark’s piece on Easter buns turned into a story about how she once dreamed of opening a bookshop-cum-bakery called ‘The Bun also Rises’; Gurdeep Loyal wowed me with his evocative piece about the frenzy around mango season; the novelist Deborah Levy has written a perfect little story about the alchemy of honey; and Zing Tsjeng took the topic of ‘custard’ and turned it into a beautiful piece about her mother’s savoury steamed egg custard.
How did you eat whilst writing and curating the book?
I was living close to Borough Market at the time so I spent many happy mornings wandering through the stalls, picking up seasonal ingredients that caught my eye. And of course I was testing the amazing recipes from my contributors. But like a lot of writers, when you get close to deadline, there are a lot of biscuits, tea and toast. Luckily I was living in Bermondsey, round the corner from some fantastic bakeries like Little Bread Pedlar and Flor – plus epic sandwiches from 40 Maltby Street!
Quick Fire with Social Pantry
Breakfast, lunch or dinner? I love a long, leisurely lunch.
Breakfast before writing, or writing before breakfast? Breakfast first, always.
Something you’re cooking on repeat right now: Emily Scott’s mussels with fennel and saffron, and Helen Graves’ celeriac and miso soup – both from the book!
Would you rather be a dinner party guest or the dinner party host? I love hosting but it’s much more fun (and relaxing!) to be a guest.
Favourite UK food season: Summer
Your hero vegetable: Tomatoes
Favourite condiment: White Mausu Peanut Rayu
A newsletter you subscribe to and love: Emily Nunn’s The Department of Salad – don’t be fooled by the title, it’s so much more than salad leaves.
A restaurant you return to: Rochelle Canteen. Though I’ll be celebrating publication day at Sessions Arts Club, which I love for a special occasion. Also Noble Rot Soho, 40 Maltby Street and Jose on Bermondsey Street (sorry I couldn’t stick to one!).
A restaurant you’re yet to try: Cadet in Newington Green
The Food Almanac: Volume II is published on 27 October 2022. For more conversations like this, make sure you’re subscribed to Social Pantry’s newsletter The Gathering.
