'If the spring was marked by a national obsession with baking sourdough or banana bread, it seems that autumn is set to inspire a craze for cake-making' writes the Observer in its article entitled ' Let us eat cake: Britain turns to baking to banish the blues'.

Professor Rebecca Earle, Head of the Department of History and a food historian at the University of Warwick contributes in a belief that [as nights draw in and months of uncertainty loom] “Baking a family recipe makes us feel closer to our absent grandmothers, mothers, aunts. Preparing their recipes is a form of conjuring, of summoning them up, of remembering them. [It is] an active process of remembrance that takes place not only in our heads but also in the sweet batter in a mixing bowl.

“Classicists employ the term ‘ekphrasis’ to describe creative practices that bring to life the nature or essence of a work of art from a different genre, such as a poem describing a painting, or a piece of music inspired by a novel. I think that preparing family recipes is an ekphrastic act. Cooking, perhaps humanity’s oldest form of art, momentarily connects us to our families.”

An innovative way to increase plant yield naturally, reducing the need for expensive fertilisers is being explored by Dr Miriam Gifford, Dr Isabelle Carré and colleagues, thanks to a £492,343 grant from the BBSRC.

More information

Consuming a plant-based diet can lower blood pressure even if small amounts of meat and dairy are consumed too, according to new research from the University of Warwick.

Press Release (27 July 2020)