OP: Venus in the Kitchen (1953)
The Viking Press, 1953. Hardcover. Very Good.
Written under the pseudonym Pilaff Bey by longtime friends—Florentine bookseller Giuseppe Orioli (1884–1942) and Austrian novelist Norman Douglas (1868–1952)—Venus in the Kitchen (1952) is a posthumously published book of aphrodisiac recipes collected throughout Douglas’ lifetime.
Douglas’ friend, esteemed food writer Elizabeth David, described the book thusly: “What Norman Douglas did know about, and better than most, was the importance of the relationship between the enjoyment of food and wine and the conduct of love affairs, and for that matter of most other aspects of life…The book had originated as an exposition of the absurdities, the lengths ‘to which humanity will go in its search for the lost vigour of youth.’”
The recipes—both ancient and modern—all allegedly aid in the vitality department. They are presented in brief with an occasional, quippy remark and no more. The authors give us a subtle wink so that we know that they know the whole thing can be taken with a grain of salt.
You’ll have to try them to decide for yourself the potency of the likes of suckling pig stuffed with eel; black risotto, or risotto nero, darkened with squid ink; baked white truffle; chicken gumbo; sparrow’s brains stewed with root vegetables, goat milk, and clover seeds; or the old fail-safe, oysters, for which there are many preparations.
Ours is an early US printing by Viking, published in 1953, in Very Good condition. The case shows light shelfwear and discoloration at the edges. The jacket is sun faded at the spine and bears some chipping and tears.