Michigan State University has a collection of digitized historical cookbooks! Lafcadio Hearn's La Cuisine Creole (yes, that Lafcadio Hearn) and Frank Hamilton Cushing's Zuni Breadstuff immediately caught my eye, but the real find for this blog is Ardashes Hagop Keoleian's The Oriental Cook Book, New York, Sully & Kleinteich, 1913. 'Oriental' here means Middle Eastern, and really, Armenian. (A lot of fish dishes, which I'd guess aren't often made any more.) You can download the scanned texts in PDF, or read transcriptions on the site.
As long as you're downloading massive PDFs, you might as well get some music as well! The Rub has an ongoing history of hip-hop in mp3 form. They're up to Volume 21: 1999. "No Rubber, No Backstage Pass" with Biz Markie? I thought I imagined that.
Fascinating.
Some comments: The Lafcadio Hearn is, of course, a lyrical and somewhat untrustworthy-in-details source on Creole cuisine (pace John Thorne). It is a song to Creole food, not a guide.
The Florence Greenbaum kosher cookbook is very, very German.
The 1896 Army cookery manual is extremely good - there are recipes in there that disappear for decades thereafter because of the Anglo-cookery bias of the post-Spanish American War officer corps. The chili recipe is excellent.
The Ranhofer will give you a notion of Diamond Jim Brady's breakfasts, midmorning snacks, lunches, afternoon teas, early dinners, late suppers. How wonderful.
Finally, I have *got* to look at the Carnegie Institution survey of ethnic food. That must be - surreal.
Posted by: The New York City Math Teacher | March 25, 2008 at 09:07 PM
I'd use the Celestine Eustis compendium for actual Creole recipes. Eustis got them from acquaintances and relatives and cooks with names recorded as "Uncle John", which makes my teeth grind a little. There's a recipe for pickled peaches, mm.
It's odd how little impression Hearn made on New Orleans historiography -- a NOLA cottage industry -- while in Japan, he's regarded as one of the great English language writers of the period, and not only because he lived there as a native.
I will have to try the 1896 Army chili. But after the tomato okra gumbo, I think.
(Didn't download the hip-hop? dude, you can catch up this way!)
Posted by: Carlos | March 26, 2008 at 05:10 AM
I would like to read this collection. I've heard of his work. Always open to new cooking tips.
Posted by: Jim DeRosa | September 12, 2011 at 06:40 AM
Çok güzel bi site elinize sağlık güzel bir ürün elektrikli ısıtıcı tüm modeller çok kullanışlı ve ekonomik
Posted by: elektrikli ısıtıcı | October 09, 2011 at 12:08 AM