A DELIUS COOKBOOK

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MIKE WHEELER reports on unusual rumours from Grez-sur-Loing in France

 

Rumours that Delius was, at one time, busy compiling a cookbook have created something of a stir in the Delius Society. The composer's papers are said to include hand-written notes which suggest that he intended to publish a collection of recipes for traditional dishes local to the area around his home in the French village of Grez-sur-Loing.

One recipe, in particular, seems to have attracted considerable attention. Tourte au coucou appears to have been an especially popular local delicacy, usually eaten in spring. Several households took part each year in the race to be the first to produce one, and the whole village joined in the celebrations on hearing the winner's name announced.

Fritz 'Fritters' Delius (1862-1934) in 1907
Fritz 'Fritters' Delius (1862-1934) in 1907

Some Delius scholars, however, are treating the rumours with considerable scepticism, one going so far as to dismiss the book as 'just another Delius myth'.

Delia Smith's 'Book of Cakes'
Delia Smith's Book of Cakes

Copyright © 1 April 2021 Mike Wheeler,
Derby UK

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FREDERICK DELIUS

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The background image on this page has been derived from an illustration from the Handbook for the lover of domestic birds and all birds worth taming by F W J Baedeker, L Brehm, Th Götz, Felix Gourcy-Droitaumont and Wilhelm Müller.

 

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