Jane Austen & Food: A Visit with Julienne Gehrer

From roast mutton to white soup, pickled melon to Bath buns, Jane Austen and her characters enjoyed a variety of fascinating foods. To learn more about Georgian-era cuisine and culinary practices, we invited food historian Julienne Gehrer to the table to guide us on a gastronomical journey through Austen's world. Julienne, who has spoken and written on Jane Austen and food for more than a decade, provides glimpses into the daily life of our favorite author you won’t want to miss.

Julienne Gehrer is an author, journalist, and food historian who has presented at numerous JASNA AGMs and regional events. Her speaking engagements include several with Jane Austen’s House, and collaborations with chefs for “A Jane Austen Literary Dinner” and “A Cheese Tour of Jane Austen’s England.” Her articles have appeared in Persuasions, Texas Studies in Literature and Language, and LitHub. Recent books include Dining with Jane Austen and Martha Lloyd’s Household Book: The Original Manuscript from Jane Austen’s Kitchen (Bodleian Library, University of Oxford). The latter brings the historic Martha Lloyd’s Household Book out from Jane’s kitchen and into our hands as an annotated facsimile version.

Many thanks to Julienne for appearing as a guest on Austen Chat!

Listen to Episode 8

Listen to the interview or read the transcript and show notes on our Episode 8 webpage, or stream the episode on your favorite podcast app. Austen Chat is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and other streaming platforms. 

Credits: Photo © Julienne Gehrer