Born in the UK, he came to Canada in his late 1920's and still had a slight english accent when he did his cooking show. His show, like his food, was straight forward, hardy food with an eye toward the budget. Encouraging people to cook what was in season to save money.
I purchased his cookbook James Barber The Urban Peasant Cooking for Two as a gift for my mother. Mom found it hard once she and Dad became empty nesters to scale down her cooking. Mom was used to cooking for large crowds, having come from a large family and she always cooked extra in case some stopped in for a meal. She was also a cook at the local school for years.
Mom did like trying new recipes, but mostly dessert items so I don't think she tried anything in the book and since I inherited Mom's cookbooks I must admit I probably haven't even looked at this book until now.
I remember watching James Barber's cooking show, his aim was to show that anyone can cook and what good simple ingredients can become. He was a little ahead of his time encouraging people to get back in the kitchen and to cook from scratch which did not have complicated. Thanks to the wonders of the internet we can still see clips of his show - check it out. It is good basic cooking show that actually tries to show people how to cook. Not an infotainment show like many of the cooking shows now.
The Urban Peasant Cooks for Two contains not only recipes for 2 people but the instructions assume that 2 people are preparing the recipes. Instructions are provided for each person. For example in his recipe for Sausage in Beans the instructions indicate "While you chop the onion, garlic, chili pepper and tomato, have someone slice the sausage into coins 1/2" thick"
He felt cooking together was a great way to introduce someone to the joys of food or just get the meal on the table faster!
I think I will be grabbing this recipe book a little more often for a quick meal! Stay tuned for this weeks meal.
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