Antique French Cookbook - La Veritable Cuisine de Famille Par Tante Marie circa 1922
{HISTORY}
There is so much to love about this antique cookbook.
From its wonderful aged character to its historical significance and family-fueled provenance, it's a book that has literally traveled the world and fed an adventurous family for four generations.
Written entirely in French, La Veritable Cuisine de Famille (which translates to Real Family Cooking) was first published in the early 1900s and quickly grew to become a beloved cookbook in European kitchens. This edition was published in the early 1920s - about two decades before the first American translation, completed by Julia Child's friend, Charlotte Turgeon, was published.
Featuring 1,000 recipes and 500 menus, La Veritable Cuisine de Famille became treasured for its simple recipes - the foundational foods and techniques that make French cooking so remarkable. Fresh ingredients, minimal processing, and simple steps set the tone for this entire book making it an economical provincial feast for every man's palette regardless of economic status or culinary ability.
Aesthetically pleasing from all angles, this edition was printed around 1922 in Paris by Alphonse Taride, a well-regarded publisher especially known for his street maps. It features decorated coverboards, tanned pages, loads of illustrations, and a wonderful handworn feel that can only be achieved through time and use.
At the heart of the book, recipes aside, is a sweeping love story set in the late 1940s. Just a few years after the film Casablanca was released, Theresa, an Italian-American woman from New England took a translating job at the American Consulate in Morocco. Also in Casablanca at the same time following his WWII service in the French Army, was a young Parisian named Jean on a specialized work assignment. Theresa and Jean met, fell in love and married in Morocco. In the early 1950s, the young couple left their exciting life abroad to set up house in New England where they started their family. This cookbook originally belonged to Jean's family in Paris and was passed down to Theresa who regularly cooked from it for the rest of her life. Was this book the basis of the love affair between Jean and Theresa that carried them from Casablanca to Connecticut? Hard to say. But it certainly kept the two of them and their families feeling well-fed and well-loved for over a century.
Bearing all the hallmarks of a treasured book, this one contains a truly lovely aesthetic. Cooking splatters, a few ripped pages, worn coverboards all add character and authenticity. Over time, the book began falling apart and was repaired by Theresa and Jean with duct tape to preserve its contents. In order to return it to a more stable state, here in the Vintage Kitchen, we removed the tape and re-bound the spine with muslin cloth to preserve its structural integrity. The interior remains completely intact in its original state. Theresa's name appears on the front title page (written in pen by her daughter). A handful of pages contain small rips affecting the text. And a century's worth of cooking spots and stains can be seen on the foredge. Remarkably, for all the trans-continental adventure, joy, and kitchen use this book has seen, its interior pages are in very clean condition.
So romantic, this cookbook is a rare treasure of a recipe collection adored by lovers of food, language, friendship, and travel.
{SPECIAL FEATURES}
- Nouvelle Edition, pre-1923. Published by Librairie A. Taride, Paris
- 480 pages including additional advertisements in back for Taride maps
- Written entirely in French
- Contains 1,000 recipes and 500 seasonal menus broken down by month
- Illustrated throughout
{CONDITION}
In lovely antique condition. Please see notes above and all photos. The entire book is strong and sturdy and all pages are intact.
{SIZE}
Measures 7.25" inches (length) x 4.5" inches (width) x 2.25" inches (thickness) and weighs 1.7 lbs.
{FOR THE FRENCH READER}
Find more books written in French here.