IACP and James Beard Award-winning food writer Jonathan Kauffman journeys back more than half a century in time to tell the story of how a coterie of unusual men and women embraced an alternative lifestyle that would ultimately change how modern Americans eat. A fusion of Tom Wolfe and Michael Pollan—and impeccably researched—HIPPIE FOOD: How Back-to-the-Landers, Longhairs, and Revolutionaries Changed the Way We Eat chronicles how the counterculture rejected the square establishment of President Richard Nixon’s America and turned to a more idealistic, communal way of life and food.
From the mystical rock-and-roll cult known as the Source Family and its legendary vegetarian restaurant in Hollywood to the brown bread the Diggers baked in the Summer of Love to the rise of the co-op and the origins of organic food, Kauffman reveals how today’s quotidian wholefoods staples—including sprouts, tofu, yogurt, brown rice, and whole grain bread—became part of our diets. Visiting Oregon, Texas, Tennessee, Minnesota, Michigan, Massachusetts, Washington, and Vermont, Kauffman tracks hippie food’s journey from niche oddity to a cuisine eaten in every corner of this country.
A slick mix of gonzo playfulness, evocative detail, skillful pacing, and elegant writing—HIPPIE FOOD is a lively, engaging, and informative read that deepens our understanding of our culture and our lives today.