With the blockade of Southern ports and the lack of trading between the North and South during the Civil War, the Confederacy found itself in great deprivation, lacking its customary supplies. Showing great resourcefulness, southerners developed new ways to feed and clothe themselves and these adaptations and recipes were pulled together in 1863 by Richmond publishers West & Johnson, to share throughout the region in Confederate Receipt Book. The recipes were assembled from newspapers, staff, and other sources and were “designed to supply useful and economical directions and suggestions of cookery, housewifery, and for the camp.” Examples of resourceful recipes in Confederate Receipt Book include apple pie without apples, artificial oysters, and coffee substitutes as well as medicinal remedies for headaches, croup, and sore throats and making household items like candles and soap. The nature and extent of the items highlight the degree of difficulty that the Confederates faced and their ability to acclimate to the supplies at hand. Other examples include recipes for making ink, wicks for lamps, fire balls for fuel, and bread from numerous types of flours. The Confederate Receipt Book has as much quaint and amusing charm to present-day readers as it had practical significance to the beleaguered South fighting for its independence. This edition of Confederate Receipt Book was reproduced by permission from the volume in the collection of the American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Massachusetts. Founded in 1812 by Isaiah Thomas, a Revolutionary War patriot and successful printer and publisher, the Society is a research library documenting the life of Americans from the colonial era through 1876. The Society collects, preserves, and makes available as complete a record as possible of the printed materials from the early American experience. The cookbook collection includes approximately 1,100 volumes.

With the blockade of Southern ports and the lack of trading between the North and South during the Civil War, the Confederacy found itself in great deprivation, lacking its customary supplies. Showing great resourcefulness, southerners developed new ways to feed and clothe themselves and these adaptations and recipes were pulled together in 1863 by Richmond publishers West & Johnson, to share throughout the region in Confederate Receipt Book. The recipes were assembled from newspapers, staff, and other sources and were “designed to supply useful and economical directions and suggestions of cookery, housewifery, and for the camp.” Examples of resourceful recipes in Confederate Receipt Book include apple pie without apples, artificial oysters, and coffee substitutes as well as medicinal remedies for headaches, croup, and sore throats and making household items like candles and soap. The nature and extent of the items highlight the degree of difficulty that the Confederates faced and their ability to acclimate to the supplies at hand. Other examples include recipes for making ink, wicks for lamps, fire balls for fuel, and bread from numerous types of flours. The Confederate Receipt Book has as much quaint and amusing charm to present-day readers as it had practical significance to the beleaguered South fighting for its independence. This edition of Confederate Receipt Book was reproduced by permission from the volume in the collection of the American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Massachusetts. Founded in 1812 by Isaiah Thomas, a Revolutionary War patriot and successful printer and publisher, the Society is a research library documenting the life of Americans from the colonial era through 1876. The Society collects, preserves, and makes available as complete a record as possible of the printed materials from the early American experience. The cookbook collection includes approximately 1,100 volumes.

Initially published in 1887, The Original White House Cook Book is a cooking compendium penned by F. L. Gillette and Hugo Ziemann. The book is comprised of recipes, cooking techniques, etiquette instruction, household care, and cleanliness tips used in the White House. This historic book includes recipes by the first ladies Martha Washington, Mary Todd Lincoln, and many others, as well as historic menus for special occasions like Grant’s Birthday and Washington’s Wedding. The book was compiled using the knowledge gained by Gillette in her years of cooking, as well as Ziemann’s term as a White House steward and caterer. It rapidly became a bestseller after its publication and an essential cookbook in kitchens across America. The Original White House Cook Book includes more than five hundred recipes for soups, meats, vegetables, pastas, desserts, sandwiches, and more. Additionally, it includes hundreds of tips and tricks as well as a foreword written by John Moeller, White House chef from 1992 to 2005.

The Original White House Cook Book 1887 Edition Reprinted - Cooking, Toilet and Household Recipes, Menus, Dinner-Giving, Table Etiquette, Care of the Sick, Health Suggestions, Facts Worth Knowing Etc. Etc. - The Whole Comprising A Comprehensive Cyclopedia of Information for the Home. By Mrs. F. L. Gillette