Hilda Leyel

'If I had been given a standard Mrs Beeton instead of Mrs Leyel's wonderful recipes, I would probably never have learned to cook'

Take a warm summer's day, a secluded spot in the dappled shade, a blanket and a bottle of wine, friends and family, and a spread of delicious homemade food, and you have that timeless rustic idyll - the Great British picnic. 
 
Perfect picnic food is simple, elegant and delicious, based around much-loved classics. Hilda Leyel, who wrote this book in 1936, was extraordinarily before her time. She influenced generations of foodies with her wonderfully inventive recipes , where retro meets modern, such as: 
 
Egg mayonnaise on crusty bread 
Watercress, beetroot and nasturtium salad 
Chicken and leek pie 
Spiced plum cake and salted almonds 
 
She championed local, seasonal ingredients like watercress and asparagus; she promoted traditional recipes from raised pies to strawberries and cream; and she set a benchmark of refinement with crab soufflé and spaghetti and truffles.

The Perfect Picnic

About us

About Us (Header 4)

Kate-Atkinson

James-Baldwin

Marian-Keyes

haruki-murakami-320×320-1

Richard-Osman

Malorie Blackman

Lisa-Jewell

Charlie-Mackesy

Authors (Header 3)

Children&#039;s

Company

Discover

Fiction

Non-fiction

Penguin Classics

Penguin Shop (Header 5)

Useful links

Work with us

prhuk-authors

Penguin Shop: 3 Clothbound Classics for £33

Hilda Leyel

Praise for The Perfect Picnic

'If I had been given a standard Mrs Beeton instead of Mrs Leyel's wonderful recipes, I would probably never have learned to cook'

Follow penguin

Follow ladybird

Follow puffin

Sign up to the Penguin newsletter