Pot Shots From a Grosse Ile Kitchen (1947)

I can't tell you much about Sidney Corbett that isn't mentioned in this book. He grew up in the Detroit area at the turn of the (last) century, went off to fight in World War I, became an executive at General Motors, then spent five years in the hospital with some sort of paralysis after which he was confined to a wheelchair. He took to writing - at least two novels and three books on cooking, the food books all co-authored with his wife, Lucy.

The novels came before World War II, the food books after. At some point in between, Sidney/the Corbetts began a Sunday feature column in the Detroit News Women's section, unsurprisingly titled "Pot Shots From a Grosse Ile Kitchen". That is where much of the material from this book originated.

The book itself is pleasant, anecdotal, and to my mind is written more for reading than for cooking from. Each chapter has a bit of a story about picnicking, guests, the season, or whatever strikes his fancy and inspires a recipe. The recipe is not set out in the text, it is included in his narrative. His wife Lucy will occasionally "take over" to tell her side of things, or just narrate her story for a chapter. If you like a food book at bedside, this is a good one for it. If you'd like more, they followed this in 1948 with Long Windows: Being More Pot Shots From a Grosse Ile Kitchen.

The illustrations are in a woodcut style by an artist named William Thomas Woodward. I liked them, so I looked him up. He was not a well-known artist, but I now have immense respect for him. The one thing I could find about him is (holocaust trigger warning) here.

On a lighter note here is a recipe from the book, one they felt was so important that they put it on the rear flap of the book (the author photo and text being on the back cover).

Lucy Corbett's French Creme Renversee

"Queen of all custards"

In a double boiler, scald three cups of rich milk. In a bowl put five whole eggs, a third of a cup of sugar, a pinch of salt, and mix thoroughly but don't beat. Now slowly pour in the scalded milk and stir in lightly. Set this aside. Next, butter generously a pottery casserole or pyrex baking dish and keep it handy-by.

Now for the caramel! Put four tablespoons of granulated sugar into a bright, clean frying pan. Shake the pan so the sugar is levelled off. Put the pan over a medium flame and let the sugar start to melt. Rock the pan gently to keep the melting sugar moving, but don't stir. This is very important. Remove from fire when sugar has become a golden brown.

Pour this into the buttered casserole or baking dish and let it cool slightly. Then add a half teaspoon of vanilla to the custard mix and stir in. Pout the custard through a wire sieve into the casserole atop the caramelized sugar and do not stir! Put the pudding dish into a pan of water and bake in a slow over (325 degrees) about 40 minutes. The water in the pan must not boil during the cooking so, from time to time, add a half cup of cold water.

When a small silver knife is stuck into the middle of the custard and comes out clean, the custard is done. Chill it thoroughly and turn it out on a flat plate to serve. The glazed brown cap of caramel atop the delicate cream of the custard is festive to regard and delicious to eat.