Brown, Virginia Lee

[HOMEMADE] COOKBOOKS

Attleboro, Massachusetts: 1950-60's. Sewn binding. 10 books of various sizes. Virginia Lee Brown (1918-1989) was a dedicated homemaker outside Boston during the mid-century. Her love of cooking is evident here in all these books she made to keep in her kitchen, reminding her "what's for dinner?" Besides the one store-bought book that she neatly recorded, in cursive, all her favorite recipes, all the other books were handmade/hand sewn out of heavy stock brown paper, most likely used paper bags or wrapping she had previously used. Homemade brown paper bags, sewn binding: "Cakes - Make fine cakes", 9 pages, recipes pasted in. "Puddings & Desserts", 13 pages, recipes pasted in. (No title), 26 pages, recipes pasted in. "Chocolate Cakes & Frostings", 8 pages, recipes pasted in. "Salads, Salad Dressing, Slaws & Dressings", 41 pages, recipes paste in. "Ice cream, Syrups for cold drinks, Sandwiches, Candy & Cough Syrups", 22 pages, recipes pasted in. "Miscellaneous", 9 pages, recipes pasted in. "Wine, Jellie, Jam, Tomato preserve", 46 pages, recipes pasted. Envelopes filled with recipes: Frostings, Orange Cake, Chocolate Cake, Spice Cake. Packets made from old envelopes filled with recipes: Sauces, Pickles, and Cookies. One handmade brown paper bag book that had not been used. Marbled ring bound book, lined, and handwritten book - 158 pages filled with recipes, with an index written on one of the first pages: Meats, Deserts, Vegetables, Salads, Candy, Cakes, Misc., Fish, Cookies, Breads & Biscuits, Heavenly Jam, and Easy & Cheap Christmas Cake. Laid in are at least 30 pages of recipes pasted on on paper, recipes written on scrap paper, and some ephemera. Also in this collection are folded pieces of paper, with recipes attached, a letter to Davis & Lawrence Co. asking about a cream that has been discontinued. Item #4253

Sold