“Wild Raspberries” —The Spoof Cookbook
“A Funny Cookbook For People Who Don’t Cook.” — Suzie Frankfurt
Wild Raspberries is one of the seven illustrated promotional books that Andy Warhol produced from 1952-59 (before his Campbell Soup Can fame) and it’s a lot of fun.
He collaborated on the project with his friend Suzie Frankfurt, a respected American interior designer, who provided the text. Frankfurt first met Warhol after seeing some of his work displayed at Serendipity 3, the restaurant where Warhol was a regular and the owners promoted his early work.
The playfulness of the book starts with the title. This from TASCHEN, publisher of the Seven Illustrated Books set:
New Yorkers might also have caught on to the allusion to Ingmar Bergman’s Film Wild Strawberries (1957), which hit theaters in June that year. In the film, an old professor explores the psychological depths of his past.
Warhol and Frankfurt’s book blithely replaces this spiritual search with culinary arts and catering for guests.
Only a few dozen copies were printed and part of each edition was hand colored. Andy Warhol’s mother, Julia Warhola, did the calligraphy under the illustrations and any spelling errors were left in.
Again, from TASCHEN:
Warhol had long been interested in food—a subject that was drawing increased attention in prosperous postwar America…food spoke to nearly everyone.
Warhol and Frankfurt aimed to reach a large audience, and, if possible, a publisher.
But that was not to be. I have to keep reminding myself this was pre-fame Warhol. Most of the copies went to friends and some sold at Bloomingdale’s on 59th Street in New York City.
I’ve linked to an article from The Guardian from 2021 about a scheduled auction of one of the last remaining original copies of Wild Raspberries and followed another link to the auction house. Wild Raspberries sold for $48,000.
The Guardian, link: HERE
A boxed set of reproductions of all seven of these early illustrated books by Warhol can be found at various booksellers and sites online and at the publisher, TASCHEN.
A Few Illustrated ‘Recipes’
I really love the whimsy of these early Warhol illustrations, along with Julia Warhola’s charming calligraphy of Suzie Frankfurt’s clever words. Some of my favorites, below.
OMELET GRETA GARBO
The reclusive actress Greta Garbo’s omelet is “Always to be eaten alone in a candlelite room.”
DOROTHY KILLGALLENS GATEAU OF MARZIPAN
The columnist and celebrity panel member of the 1950’s-1970’s game show What’s My Line, Dorothy Killgallen’s dish was “For those who are able to secure a portable refrigerator from Abercrombie and Fitch…”
A & P SURPRISE
The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company grocery chain, the “A & P” (1859-2015) was celebrated with a cake that directed you to “Buy a 2 day old sponge cake at the A & P and cut in three 3/4 inch layers.”
Just three years later in 1962 the commercial illustrator who couldn’t get a cookbook deal would be showing his screen-printed Campbell’s Soup Cans at the Ferus Gallery in Los Angeles. Warhol, who was enamored of celebrity, became the most famous Pop Artist of them all. His embrace of the commonplace and pop culture in his work continues to fascinate.
A Guest Post at
Sabrina Y. Smith, who writes the wonderful
, invited me to be part of this month’s edition of her newsletter which focused on the idea of ‘Remix’ — taking two things and mixing to make another.For my assignment for a ‘Taste Remix’, I chose the love-child of the Croissant and Donut, ‘The Cronut’ ®️. The first thing I found out was that it’s a registered trademark with a secret recipe created by Chef Dominique Ansel for his acclaimed bakery in SoHo, NYC. The next thing I learned was that this culinary sensation is turning ten-years-old in May.
I was completely unqualified to talk about this since I left New York before ever trying one. But that didn’t stop me. My hero’s journey to find something that was Cronut®️—adjacent began in earnest.
And, I found it. We don’t have ‘THE’ Cronut ®️ in Chicago, but we do have the delicious and very swanky ‘Le Stan’ from the beloved Stan’s Donuts. It’s got a crisp outside, a tender dough inside and is filled with lemon pastry cream. So as an ‘idea’ of a tasty remix, I give it an enthusiastic thumbs-up. I look forward to trying the original Cronut ®️, which I’m sure will be fantastic, next time I’m home in New York. 🍩 🥐
Have a great weekend, Everyone. See you again on March 24th.
Jolene
Love this so much! Thanks Jolene!
Love the fact that Warhol showed his work at a restaurant. Just goes to show that everyone start somewhere. His mother's calligraphy fits perfectly with his illustrations. Thanks Jolene!