Martha Washington's Booke of Cookery

Martha Washington's Booke of Cookery is a transcription and analysis of two 17th-century manuscript cookbooks that were passed down to Martha Washington. The manuscripts contain hundreds of recipes for food and medicine, along with household instructions common in colonial America. Karen Hess provides extensive historical context and detailed commentary on each recipe, explaining period cooking techniques and ingredients. Her research traces the origins of these recipes back to medieval England and follows their evolution through American colonial kitchens. The book includes the complete original text with period spelling and punctuation, accompanied by modern translations and interpretations. The recipes range from basic bread-making to complex meat preparations and medicinal remedies. This volume serves as both a culinary history text and a window into daily domestic life in colonial America. Through these collected recipes and instructions, patterns emerge about class, gender roles, and the transfer of knowledge between generations of women in early American society.

Readers describe this as both a scholarly work and a practical cookbook, with detailed annotations from food historian Karen Hess explaining 17th century cooking methods and ingredients. Readers appreciated: - Clear translations of archaic recipes into modern measurements - Historical context for each recipe - Extensive research and documentation - Insight into colonial American cooking techniques Common criticisms: - Text can be dense and academic - Many ingredients are difficult to source today - Some recipes lack precision in modern cooking terms - High price point deters casual readers Ratings: Amazon: 4.5/5 (12 reviews) Goodreads: 4.1/5 (14 ratings) Sample review quote: "The annotations are worth the price alone. Hess explains everything from what 'manchet' bread was to how colonial cooks tested oven temperatures." - Amazon reviewer "Too scholarly for practical kitchen use, but fascinating for food history research." - Goodreads reviewer

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🍽️ The cookbook is actually a family manuscript that was passed down through generations before reaching Martha Washington, containing recipes dating back to Elizabethan England. 📜 The original manuscript contains both medicinal remedies and cooking recipes, reflecting how food and medicine were closely intertwined in colonial American households. 👩‍🍳 Karen Hess spent over five years decoding and translating the archaic language, weights, measurements, and techniques to make them accessible to modern readers. 🥄 Many recipes in the book use now-extinct ingredients, such as "ambergris" (a whale product) and "verjuice" (juice from unripe grapes), showing how our food landscape has changed. 🏛️ The original manuscript is housed in the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and was handed down to Martha Washington from the Custis family when she married her first husband, Daniel Parke Custis.