A GOOD COOKBOOK WILL COME TO YOUR RESCUE EVERY TIME... META GIVEN

{HISTORY}

Following on the heels of her first bestseller, The Modern Family Cook Book, published in 1942, Meta Given (1888-1981) embarked next on the ultimate compendium of cooking and writing adventures - The Modern Encyclopedia of Cooking. Encompassing a colossal 1500 pages, 50+ chapters, and two separately published volumes, Meta wrote about everything you would ever need to know regarding cooking.  From recipes to equipment, shopping to nutrition, table service to food presentation, egg grading to pear picking, it's all recorded in her big books of big information. 

First published in 1947, this is the 1966 edition of Volume One, revised and enlarged to ensure the most up-to-date information for home cooks. As a nutritionist, Meta's focus in writing these books was to teach people how to get the most value out of food, both financially and nutritionally. She encouraged readers to approach cooking, food gathering and caring for family with pride, appreciation, and confidence and not to take anything for granted in the way of modern cooking whether that was in regard to techniques, appliances, or health.    

Although ideally, we would have both volumes available in the shop in this edition, Volume One is a great standalone cookbook all be itself. It contains all the instructional cooking practices, shopping guides, nutrition breakdowns, and a homemaker's handbook that includes a troubleshooting, curious food questions, weights and measures, kitchen care, and suggested menus in the first 170 pages. The 550 pages of recipes following fill out the rest of the cookbook spanning appetizers through fish and all the baking chapters on cakes, breads, desserts, cookies, and candy.

In addition to housing a treasure trove of thousands of recipes, Meta Given's Modern Encyclopedia of Cooking, is also a fascinating look at what people were interested in cooking in the mid-20th century. From fine dining to provincial country food, Meta's cookbook was appropriate for all Americans regardless of socioeconomic level or topographical location. Often used as a sourcebook in home economics classes of the 20th century, Meta really raised generations of home cooks that were fluent in all areas of kitchen work from cooking to shopping to nutrition. They also showcase the vast possibility and variety within the American food landscape of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. 

Photo of Meta courtesy of the St. Louis Dispatch - January 2, 1941

{SPECIAL FEATURES}

• Volume One, 1966 Edition
• 736 pages
• Includes original dust jacket
•  Contains both color and black and white photographs throughout as well as a bevy of charts, graphs, glossaries, and illustrated instructions
• Recipes in meta's books are organized alphabetically by subject. This book includes recipes featuring Fish, Eggs, Desserts, Croquettes, Cookies, Cheese, Cereals, Candy, Cakes, Breads, Beverages, and Appetizers. 

{CONDITION}

In lovely vintage condition, this book is clean and bright throughout with no cooking spots or notations. The dust jacket bears some slight chippiness along the top and bottom edge as well as the spine. There is a small scuff mark on the bottom corner of the dust jacket that wraps between the spine and the front cover.  The corner of the coverboard on the top right corner has a small rip and there is some light staining to the top paper edge of the book. The spine is coming away slightly from the front title page and the second to last fish page but the endpapers keep both securely attached, so there is no risk that they will fall out.

Most Meta Given cookbooks are very well-loved and bear a lot of wear and tear. This book is in really good shape, but please note, if you are sensitive to certain smells, this one has a slight musty scent to it. Not moldy, but like it was stored away in an airless box, untouched for many years. It has been our experience, that in such cases, once books like this are out and about on a shelf or on the counter for a period of time, these scents dissipate altogether. 

{SIZE}

Measures 5.5" inches (width) x 8.5" inches (length) x 2" inches (depth) and weighs 1.12 lbs.