BOOKS Rizzoli’s Etertaining in Style is no ordinary cookbook. by hilary geary ross

ENTERTAINING IN STYLE

This spread, clockwise from left: A tablescape photographed at Nancy Astor’s country house; a weekend houseparty at Cliveden in 1928 (from left: Amy Johson, the international aviator, Charlie Chaplin, Nancy Astor, and George Bernard Shaw); Jane Churchill; the cover of Entertaining in Style.

ENTERTAINING IN STYLE, the Nancy Astor and Nancy Lancaster cookbook by Jane Churchill and Emily Astor, is no ordinary cookbook. Oh my, it is so much more than that as this luscious coffee table book combines recipes, along with photos of historic gardens, decorating, place settings, architecture, and more. What a delight it is to comb through big glorious photos of tables set with exquisite china, crystal, and flowers in such legendary houses as the impossibly grand Cliveden in England and Mirador outside of Charlottesville, Virginia. To add to the fun, the pages are laced with bon mots by Nancy Lancaster. For example, “Southern hospitality started because people lived deep in the country, separated from each other by miles of impassable roads. They were so lonely that when they saw people going by they’d say ‘damn it stranger, stop and have a drink or I’ll shoot you,’” said Lancaster. Plus, the book also

From above: Game Pie; drinks on the terrace at Haseley Court (from left: Nancy Lancaster, Nancy Astor, and Cecil Beaton). Opposite page, from above: Recipe for the Bosom Caresser cocktail; the Bosom Caresser cocktail; the book features quotes between Nancy Astor and Winston Churchill.

features chatter between Winston Churchill and Nancy Astor: “Winston, if I was your wife I’d put poison in your tea.” Churchill replied, ”Nancy, if I were your husband I’d drink it.” Don’t get me wrong as this really is a practical cookbook loaded with superb recipes, beautifully presented for breakfast, lunch, tea, and dinner inspired by the “two Nancys” and their Virginia roots combined with their time in England, which makes it fresh and inventive. I cannot wait to try their scallops a la meunière or chicken hash or Lady Astor’s apricot brown betty...or perhaps the marmalade soufflé at my next dinner party! I am dying to eat the popovers or perhaps the Waldorf salad served with Mrs. Gibson’s ice tea for lunch. If you are in the mood for a potent cocktail, who could resist a drink called Bosom Caresser or The Maiden’s Undoing? This enchanting and practical book was scribed by two descendants of the American born “Nancys” and have clearly inherited their exquisite taste. Jane Churchill is a walking international design legend and has been decorating for decades all over the world. Emily Astor, who grew up at Cliveden, is an expert photographer. Run—don’t walk—to this wonderfully entertaining cookbook! ◆