I was honored to talk to Dr. Sorensen who is an American chef, and culinary historian. Sorensen will be featured during the Natchez Literary & Cinema Celebration, underwritten by Copiah-Lincoln Community College. She will present “Keeping a Fine Table in the Federal Era: from the Urban East to the Mississippi Territory”. The 11:30 Brunch from the Southern Kitchen at Gloucester, will be held at the Gloucester House the 1803 home of the first Territorial Governor of Mississippi.
After talking to Dr Leni (as I will refer to her for the duration of this article), I left our conversation with a new perspective and appreciation for all cooks. I was made more aware of the endurance planation cooks had to have in order to present fine dining experiences for the elite, especially during the Federal era. We talked about her early life and how she came to be such a of culinary historian. Please, enjoy as I attempt to convey the energy of the conversation held by the multifaceted Dr. Leni Ashmore Sorensen and me.
As with any interview, I did my homework on Dr. Leni so I could get “some” sense of knowing her. I was pleasantly surprised as the seeming endless article list went on and on. There were interviews from The Ed Sullivan Show, Time Magazine, to being featured on the Netflix series High on the Hog: How African American Cuisine Transformed America. I thought sarcastically to myself, “OK, no pressure” as I jumped from one article to another.
The date arrived and Dr. Leni eased all tension with her humorous salutation “I have a call from Natchez, MS”, I laughed as we began to talk about food and history. Dr. Leni recalled growing up in southern California, outside of San Diego, where family members were not all out farmers but did raise hogs, corn and did some gardening. Her love for reading is where she developed an interest in farms and the act of farming itself.
Later in life Dr. Leni married a farmer from South Dakota, where they farmed for eight years. During that time, she became more thoughtful how Black people in the past had to work a farm, seldom for themselves but for their owners. She began to speak about how much work had to go into being a cook on a plantation or for the elite. Often, we see the mouthwatering cuisines and tasty desserts that filled the Colonial and Federal Periods tables, but how often do we consider the journey from the kitchen to the table. Cooks delivered multiple meals a day considering what event the house was hosting, they did this under the harsh conditions of slavery and without all the useful kitchen-aid amenities we have today.
I am excited for the people of Natchez and all others who attend the brunch with Dr Leni, she is vast in her knowledge of culinary history and has a way of storytelling that paints a picture. It is my wish that listeners will be as intrigued as I was by Dr. Leni’s talk. She described dishes like, hot water cornbread, greens, cast iron fried fish and other meals that calls an appetite out from hiding. I found it challenging not get off topic because of all interesting articles I read, I wanted to ask about so many questions outside of culinary history, but of course I couldn’t sway too much.
Dr Leni probably won’t be discussing the folk music group she was a part of and how they had a single on the Billboard 100 for three weeks in the early 70’s, but you can google her to learn more about the interesting life of the charismatic historian. Dr Leni Sorensen is also the author of Through the Seasons: A Bakers Dozen of Breads and Sweets from The Virginia House-Wife.
For more information on the ticketed event “Brunch from the Summer Kitchen at Gloucester”, visit www.colin.edu/community/natchez You can learn more about Dr Leni on her own website www.indigohouse.us where Sorensen teaches students who want to learn about caring for small livestock, vegetable gardening, harvesting, storing and canning, and baking.
Words by Akachi
