Here's a link to an interesting article I read in yesterday's paper about how community cookbooks can be a reflection of our ancestors' lives (click on the first link on the results page). At the bottom of the article is a descriptive list of available local cookbooks, as well as recipes. To read the story in its entirety without having to subscribe, click on the "printer friendly" link at the top of the article.
I love those old cookbooks. I've found several ones that have some of our family recipes over the years. Some community newspapers also had special issues, especially around the holidays, where they solicited all their readers' contributions. You'll find some recipes in those as well.
ReplyDeleteI've always been a big fan of church cookbooks and Junior League cookbooks, not only for the recipes but for the genealogical/family history value. If you have an old church cookbook from an ancestor, more than likely you will find names in their that may be related to you.
ReplyDeleteAnd sometimes I just have to laugh at some of the recipes that seem so old-fashioned and that you hardly see now. Example: remember the aspic craze in the 1930s? And pineapple upside down cake? What about WWII recipes affected by rationing esp. of sugar: Coca-Cola Cake, Seven-Up Cake, etc.
Miriam,
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for that link. I am a librarian and an author, and I wrote what I call an "oral history/nostaligic photos/history cookbook" (dedicated to "all of us who read cookbooks like novels". So, I loved the list and am thrilled to see this very female-memory keeping technique get recognized.
Thanks for your blog. You have some wonderful tips for reserachers.
Dorothea "Dee" Buckigham
http://deebuckingham.blogspot.com
I'm surprised at how many comments this post generated! Thank you, each of you, for dropping by and adding to this fascinating conversation!
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