Leftovers ‘couldn’t be timelier than right now… a very readable deep dive into everything from pickles and canning to what we did during Covid-19 and what we should do in the future’

‘We talked about many things including the history of food waste used in agriculture and industry, food preservation in wartime, and Hannah Glasse’s dubious method for preserving very rank potted birds’

Listen to my interview all about Leftovers: A History of Food Waste and Preservation from 2.22 onwards!

Tudor Jumbles! These simple, delicious, and elegant biscuits are the feature of my History Cookbook column in this month’s BBC History Magazine. And, as always, the recipe video will be up soon for History Extra members too

‘A thought-provoking and entertaining examination of our relationship with food from Tudor times right up to the food banks and Covid lockdowns of more recent times’

It was an absolute honour to be invited to speak at Corriere’s televised event, which brings together women who work in the food industry!

Featured in the Caterer about the history of the cheese course in Rosie Conroy’s article on savoury desserts

Leftovers ‘shows us what the past can teach us about the future of food waste’!

‘After all those delicious meals, it’s only appropriate that we should consider the leftovers. A scholarly history of food waste and preservation, Eleanor Barnett’s Leftovers explores the inventive ways our ancestors sought to make the most of their food, how we do so today, and how we might go about it in the future’

I explore the history of hot cross buns in an English Heritage article ‘Holy or Heretical? A History of Hot Cross buns’.

It was wonderful to talk in Bristol - my home-town and a leader in food waste issues - to a great crowd! Thanks to those for coming and for all your comments and questions!

Listen to me talking all things Leftovers on the BBC History Extra podcast - from the Tudor almoner to the Victorian rag-and-bone-man!

‘She’s an indefatigable researcher. And she keeps the reader’s spirits up with some splendid stories’

‘Studying past habits is a reminder to keep up pressure on how we manage surplus food, but it also highlights successes, such as inventing products from waste streams - Golden Syrup and Marmite are industrial byproducts - and the impact of a state-run thriftiness campaign in the 40s’

My column in this month’s BBC History Magazine is a special one: ‘A Sustainable Historical Three-Course Feast’, sharing some of the historical recipes found in Leftovers!

‘Wasting food means wasting life, but also the huge amounts of energy and resources that go into making it.’

‘What better way to connect to the lives of people in the past than through their food – Leftovers recreates the tastes, smells, and sights of Victorian London, for example, where poor rag-and-bone men scavenged for crumbs and flecks of meat on discarded bones; the striking bursts of sweetness provided as a reward for many sweaty hours spent preserving oranges in the Tudor still-room; and what it was like to taste banana for the first time, as the invention of artificial refrigeration made it possible to transport them to Britain in 1901 all the way from the Canary Islands.’

‘Leftovers is more than a historical retrospective; it is book for our time’!

How the Tudors dealt with food waste?

‘Eleanor Barnett [is] one of the UK’s leading food historians, as well as one of the most accomplished communicators of academic research to a wide popular audience’!

I explore how Bristol features in my new book Leftovers: A History of Food Waste and Preservation’, and ask ‘in our quest to create a more sustainable food system, can we learn from the wasteful mistakes and thrifty triumphs of the past?’

‘If mum’s a foodie, I’d recommend a fascinating newly published book: Leftovers. It’s an informative and entertaining history of food preservation and waste in Britain, from the 16th Century to today.’

'Barnett excels at choosing specific, often funny examples that demystify the past, a skill she’s honed from running her popular Instagram account, @historyeats. Her nimble, confident writing makes Leftovers bingeable (as it were), without coming at the expense of rigour or depth. It’s clear that she loves her subject material, and her enthusiasm is contagious'. The Telegraph

Accepted as a member of the Guild of Food Writers March 24

'As timely as it is fascinating... informative and entertaining' Delicious Magazine

Some of the best its of my new book Leftovers: A History of Food Waste and Preservation!

‘A fascinating…informative and entertaining history’ !

Quoted in Ashleigh Arnott’s article ‘Marvellous Marmalade’ 🍊

Hear about the history of our favourite Christmas food, from mince pies to turkey, plus a sneak insight into my book Leftovers: A History of Food Waste and Preservation!

I try the much tastier (IMHO) and 18th-century mushroom version of ketchup!

Learn 5 fun facts about the history of Christmas food! Published in print and online.

Find the recipe for Potato Pete’s Potato Piglets in this month’s BBC History Magazine column along with a bonus WW2 potato soup recipe to make sure there’s no food waste! 🥔

I also wrote the food history quiz for their 300th issue quiz! 🥝

I’ve published two articles in January’s issue: ‘What is the world’s oldest surviving recipe?’ and ‘Sugar-free Tudor biscuits’ with recipe!

I explore the history behind three festive treats and share how to make them in this series of recipes videos commissioned for BBC History Extra members.