Nigella Lawson celebrates 25 years of ‘How to Be a Domestic Goddess’

Although it is difficult to comprehend, Nigella Lawson’s cookbook How to Be a Domestic Goddess was released a quarter century ago. Nigella celebrated the anniversary with a series of throwback images on Instagram including one of her younger self next to a classic pudding. Alluding to the photos and the number of years since her book was published, Nigella noted “that’s the thing about the passage of time: it feels as if it came out both yesterday and also a lifetime ago – which of course, it was.”

Although baking books are plentiful today, in 2000 it was a risky move to publish a book dedicated to the baking arts. Nigella had to push her publisher to accept the premise: “When I mentioned the idea to my then editor, she was, initially, doubtful in the extreme,” she said, concluding that “In the UK, at any rate, baking was seen as the province of some notional rural granny, an uncool throwback that had nothing to do with The Way We Live Now.” With the popularity of GBBO and baking books in general, it can be difficult to imagine a time when baking did not rate in the national zeitgeist.

Of course, we know that How to Be a Domestic Goddess was a smashing success, followed by more wonderful cookbooks. Besides the excellent recipes and clear instructions that are a delight to read, there is another reason for Nigella’s continued success, and that is her warm and approachable persona. She responds to almost all comments on her social media accounts, replying with answers if a question is asked, or a thank you when someone compliments a particular recipe. It is easy to see why Nigella is one of the most popular authors in the EYB Library.