The Compleat Housewife: Or, Accomplish'd Gentlewoman's CompanionFirst published in England, this kitchen reference became available to colonial American housewives when it was printed in Williamsburg, Virginia is 1742. Originally published in London in 1727, The Compleat Housewife was the first cookbook printed in the United States. William Parks, a Virginia printer, printed and sold the cookbook believing there would be a strong market for it among Virginia housewives who wanted to keep up with the latest London fashions—the book was a best-seller there. Parks did make some attempt to Americanize it, deleting certain recipes "the ingredients or material for which are not to be had in this country," but for the most part, the book was not adjusted to American kitchens. Even so, it became the first cookery best seller in the New World, and Parks's major book publication. Author Eliza Smith described her book on the title page as "Being a collection of several hundred approved receipts, in cookery, pastry, confectionery, preserving, pickles, cakes, creams, jellies, made wines, cordials. And also bills of fare for every month of the year. To which is added, a collection of nearly two hundred family receipts of medicines; viz. drinks, syrups, salves, ointments, and many other things of sovereign and approved efficacy in most distempers, pains, aches, wounds, sores, etc. never before made publick in these parts; fit either for private families, or such public-spirited gentlewomen as would be beneficent to their poor neighbours." The recipes are easy to understand and cover everything from 50 recipes for pickling everything from nasturtium buds to pigeons to "lifting a swan, breaking a deer, and splating a pike," indicating the importance of understanding how to prepare English game. The book also includes diagrams for positioning serving dishes to create an attractive table display. |
Contents
Section 17 | |
Section 18 | |
Section 19 | |
Section 20 | |
Section 21 | |
Section 22 | |
Section 23 | |
Section 24 | |
Section 9 | |
Section 10 | |
Section 11 | |
Section 12 | |
Section 13 | |
Section 14 | |
Section 15 | |
Section 16 | |
Section 25 | |
Section 26 | |
Section 27 | |
Section 28 | |
Section 29 | |
Section 30 | |
Other editions - View all
The Compleat Housewife: Or, Accomplish'd Gentlewoman's Companion . . Eliza Smith No preview available - 1968 |
Common terms and phrases
AKE a Quart AKE half Almonds Anchovies Apricocks bake beat Bottle Brandy bruise Butter Cake Camphire candy Cinamon Cloves Cream cure Currants Decoction Dish Distemper double-refin'd Sugar Drachm drink Eggs Electuary fair Water Flour fresh Butter Gallon Glass Gooseberries half a Pint half a Pound half an Ounce Handful Hour Jelly Juice keep Lemon let it boil let it stand let them boil Liquor little Salt Mace Meat melted Milk Morning Nutmeg Orange Ounce Oven Oysters Parsley peel Pepper Pickle Pint Pippins Plaister Pound of Butter Pound of Sugar Powder powder'd Pudding Puff paste purge Quantity Quart Quince Raisins Sack scalded scum season shred sliced Spice Spoonfuls Spring-water stew stir Stone strain strew Sweet herbs sweeten Syllabubs Syrup thick thin three Pounds tis cold Veal Venison Verjuice Vinegar warm wash White-wine Wine Yolks