Food writing always seems so glamorous, but editor Rebecca Seal lifts the lid on the less steamy side of cookbooks in a piece for the Guardian.
While editing A Year in the Kitchen with Britain’s Favourite Chefs, it sounds like she did hard labour remembering that she “washed up more than 500 times” over the course of the book’s many photo shoots and sample cooking experiences.
Seal worked with her partner photographer in the high pressure kitchen photo shoots with mixed results - “We took a romantic picture of a chocolate-covered panettone one midnight while barely speaking to each other.” Rather than feeling free to enjoy food, Seal felt the constant stress of “preparing a perpetual dinner party for terrifyingly exacting foodie visitors”.
It seems the stress might be addictive though as after the book went to press, Seal found herself “already plotting another – but this time I am insisting on a dishwasher”. She may be recruiting another photographer.