Beige cloth binding with navy title on the spine and front board.

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For conditions, please view our photographs. An original book from the library gathered by the famous Cambridge Don, computer scientist, food and wine connoisseur, Jack Arnold LANG.

Jack founded the Michelin Guide ‘Midsummer House’- Cambridge’s paramount restaurant. This dining experience is hidden amongst the grassy pastures and grazing cattle of Midsummer Common and perched on the banks of the River Cam.

This book offers a groundbreaking approach to understanding the science behind food preparation, revealing the hidden world of colloid chemistry at work in the kitchen. The author, recognizing that traditional cookery often relies on trial and error, sets out to demystify the processes by which ingredients interact at a molecular level. By delving into the fascinating field of colloid chemistry, the book unveils the intricate relationship between the size of particles and the properties of food mixtures. You’ll learn about the importance of dispersion, how heat, acids, and alkalies affect the behavior of ingredients, and how the principles of surface tension and adsorption play a vital role in everything from creating emulsions to forming foams. A central theme explored in the book is the nature of proteins and how their coagulation, or denaturation, can be manipulated through various techniques. The author provides a clear explanation of the isoelectric point, a crucial concept for understanding how acids and alkalies interact with proteins, and explores the complex interplay of forces that govern their behavior. By revealing the fundamental chemical and physical principles that underpin cookery, this book equips readers with a deeper understanding of the science that makes food preparation both an art and a science. missing page, may be replicated in the book. print-on-demand item.

Belle Lowe (1886-1961) was an American food scientist, chemist, and author known for her significant contributions to the field of experimental cookery and for her academic career at Iowa State College (now Iowa State University).

Career and Contributions

• Academic Career: Lowe was a professor of food and nutrition at Iowa State College in Ames, Iowa. She conducted extensive research on the physical and chemical properties of various food products, particularly fats and meats.

• Author: She is best known for her authoritative textbook, Experimental Cookery, from the Chemical and Physical Standpoint, first published in the 1930s and revised multiple times. This book became a standard reference in university home economics and food science programs and was influential in establishing a scientific approach to cooking.

• Published Research: Her work included publications such as “The physical and chemical characteristics of lards and other fats in relation to their culinary value”.

Her work helped to bridge the gap between traditional culinary arts and the scientific principles underlying food preparation, making her a prominent figure in 20th-century food science.