Eight Kiwi chefs reflect on Edmonds, one of the country’s most iconic brands

Al Brown, Nadia Lim, Monique Fiso and more reflect on the role the iconic Edmonds cookbook had in their kitchens

Words: Extracted from Sure to Rise: The Edmonds Story by Peter Alsop, Kate Parsonson and Richard Wolfe

It’s one of the best-known and most recognised brands and slogans in New Zealand: Edmonds Sure to Rise, with its radiant sun. The man behind the company, Thomas John Edmonds, came to New Zealand with his wife Jane in 1879. Young and resourceful, but not financially secure, he was determined to make a go of life in a land far from his birthplace in London’s East End. While running a modest corner grocery store in a working-class Christchurch suburb, where he and his family also lived, he expanded into making baking powder, experimenting until he got the mixture just right. His product, initially packed in bags and then in tins, took off, and before long he needed a store beside the shop, then land for a wooden factory and finally, in the 1920s, he built the Art Deco factory that became a Christchurch landmark, with its saw-tooth roof, proud rising sun symbol and nationally admired gardens.

Thomas Edmonds was also a benefactor, a man who had grown up with little and who helped others, a man interested in chemistry and plants and alternative beliefs, a man who loved music and gave his daughters every opportunity to express their talents, while his sons worked in the ever-growing business, a man who gave his city some of its best-known buildings. He embraced imaginative advertising and marketing techniques and ensured progressive working conditions for his loyal and long-serving staff.

After his death in 1932, the company continued to flourish for some time but eventually the family connections faded and takeover became inevitable. However, the Edmonds name, and that rising sun, remain on the baking powder and other essential products that thousands of New Zealanders use every day, and on the best-selling cookery book they still purchase in impressive numbers.

This is the story of a man from humble beginnings who, thanks to hard work, creativity and persistence, and with considerable support from his wife, created an iconic business.

TOP KIWI COOKS REFLECT ON THE LEGACY OF EDMONDS

I’m willing to bet that a majority of New Zealand homes have what I consider two Bibles, one reached for when they need spiritual guidance and one reached for when they need a hokey pokey recipe. Besides my mother’s handwritten notebook, filled with recipes that were shared from numerous afternoon teas and dinner parties, the only cookery book we had on the farm was Edmonds. It is still my ‘go-to’ reference for ‘Kiwicentric’ recipes that celebrate our past but also make us feel connected and nostalgic in the present. There is something wonderfully comforting and humbling about spying that spiral binding sitting among the modern collections that many home cooks have. Most of these have stunning photography and beautiful design, but the Edmonds has the unique scuffed-up feeling of a reliable old friend, always there and happy to help. – Al Brown

Timing is everything: when I was asked to contribute to this book, I’d just been talking with my partner Katie about the origin story of the Edmonds brand. I have always admired the accessibility of the cookery book and I was fascinated to learn that this has been a hallmark of the Edmonds story for so long. The Edmonds Cookery Book is a national culinary taonga. Its impact in the kitchens of Aotearoa is beyond intergenerational and it’s inspiring that it remains as loved and relevant as ever. I still use my copy – my go-to recipes are the banana cake and the one-egg chocolate cake. – Monique Fiso

Every home I’ve lived in has had a copy of the Edmonds Cookery Book. In my childhood the pages were crusted together by the splatters from the bubbling pots of tomato sauce or our sticky butter-and-sugar-coated fingers. The recipes were destined to work every time. We were always referring to the weights and measures page and oven temperature conversions for American recipes. To this day I still use the recipes for shortbread and, in the height of summer, an annual batch of tomato relish and sauce. – Sue Fleischl

London is a long way from Sāmoa and New Zealand where I grew up, but thinking about Edmonds takes me right back to the family kitchen. I remember my mum had a tattered copy of the cookery book in the kitchen drawer, and there was always the odd chance of her using it to make afghans and scones. From my memories of growing up in the 1980s and 1990s, and visiting family and friends, I’m also pretty sure every home had a copy of the book. It is lovely to think about and place Edmonds within my own journey as a chef. – Monica Galetti

For me, Edmonds is a bit like Tupperware or Glad Wrap – the brand is so well known it defines the product. The minute you think of baking powder, you think of Edmonds and visualise the tin or box; it’s the one you reach for straight away. Never once in my life have I thought about comparing baking powders; you just want it to work and do the trick. I’m not even sure I know another baking powder other than Edmonds! The cookery book has also served me well. I immediately think of my extended time working on a superyacht. You can’t of course take your library, so the Edmonds was the perfect go-to cookbook for inspiration, or to help out in some way for pretty much anything I wanted to cook. And for the crew, scones or a carrot cake would always hit the spot. I’ll be hanging on to my worn copy for a long time yet. – Simon Gault

I must have seen my first Edmonds Cookery Book when I was four. That’s when my mother tells me I made my first cookbook – cutting pages from magazines and pasting them into a scrapbook. Edmonds was as much a part of my 1960s childhood as the various cartoon magazines we read, except I can’t recall what any of them were called. I learned to make scones, sponges, cheese sauce, afghan biscuits and the like from the well-worn pages of the family Edmonds. When I moved to Melbourne aged 18, and to London in my early twenties, I took copies of the book. During the 31 years I lived in London, I gifted many copies to my non-Kiwi mates as it’s a helpful book for any nationality – for first-flatting young folk, or for those who need simple, accessible recipes. I must admit that I do miss the old chicken recipe that had Tang and cornflakes as two ingredients! – Peter Gordon

My mother was not particularly keen on cooking or baking, and so she encouraged me and my two sisters to experiment in the kitchen, hoping we would take over … We had several community cookbooks, but we always used the Edmonds Cookery Book for ginger crunch and scones. When I was asked to rework it in 2015, I discovered how much the recipes had changed through the years. Fashionably drastic reductions in butter and sugar delivered some dismal results and so in the latest version butter and sugar are fully restored. Baking should taste wonderful, not worthy, since baking a special treat is a sure way of showing someone you love them. Happily, the Edmonds Cookery Book continues to celebrate and encourage this delightful domestic tradition. – Alexa Johnston

The Edmonds Cookery Book was always close at hand for my mum. Fruit sponge pudding was one of her favourite go-to recipes, and undoubtedly shaped my early passion for all things food. We also lived in Malaysia for seven years and I loved how the Edmonds gave me a warm feeling of home. It showed me the emotional significance of Kiwiana; it helps speak to who we are. Chocolate coconut rough was our favourite recipe at that time. We’d take it to other homes where it stood out among the Asian treats – and people loved it. I still turn to the Edmonds, admittedly more for foundations than flair – like making pastry – but it still really helps me out. It’s been great to think back; Edmonds has such a special place in our cooking history. – Nadia Lim

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Text and images extracted from: Sure to Rise: The Edmonds Story by Peter Alsop, Kate Parsonson and Richard Wolfe, published by Canterbury University Press, RRP $59.99, Casebound, 250 x 210mm, full colour, 304pp + gatefolds (total 310pp), ISBN: 978-1-98-850331-8, available in bookstores and from Canterbury University Press.

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