A recipe is a story that ends with a good meal. Pat Conroy

{HISTORY}

Once upon a time in the South...

There is nothing that tells a more intimate cooking story then that of the handwritten recipe collection. This interesting batch of 53 recipes came from one Southern kitchen that favored Bloody Mary cocktails, cooking for a crowd and barbecue sauce.

Dating to the 1960's, the cook who wrote these notes had an interesting palette. There are a few French recipes (written in English), two recipes that feature game birds (oh the doves), five recipes for barbecue sauce, two for brown sauce, a couple family/friend recipes (Aunt Lucille!) and a variety of others that involve breakfast, dinner, vegetables, dessert and cooking for the club. One recipe in particular is for a big chicken stir-fry with large quantities of  ingredients (20 cups of celery... 10lbs. of chicken... 10 cups of onions!).

The recipes aren't signed, but we do know that this cook was into using whole ingredients, which wasn't always the case in the 1960's when canned and convenience foods were all the rage among home cooks. But here, with the exception of a canned mushroom here or there and one recipe that includes Velveeta cheese in the Chili con Carne, every recipe involves natural, fresh ingredients.

That makes it a treasure trove of good regional cooking, rescued from the brink of extinction.  Just take those sauces for example. Every Southern cook prides themselves on their barbecue sauce. To include five variations here is incredible! That's a good sign that you've stumbled on something good that has been refined and passed along and tested to the point that they became everyone's favorite and someone finally took the time to write them down. Welcome to the story of cooking in the South!

{SPECIAL FEATURES}

- 53 handwritten recipes all from the same kitchen

- loose leaf style paper with 3 hole punch

- one recipe involves a large dinner for a crowd of 20-25 people

- Included are recipes for pastry crust, cocktails, desserts, fish, beef, chicken, eggs, vegetables, soup, sauces and game birds

{CONDITION}

In wonderful vintage condition with wonderful patina. Aged paper, cooking splatters, folds and wrinkles offer a wonderful aesthetic. Please see photos. All recipes are easy to read. The paper itself has browned beautifully to a light brown 

{SIZE}

The bulk of the recipes are written on loose leaf paper sized at 5.5" inches (width) x 8.5" inches (height). Three of the recipes are written on paper of the same size but without the whole punches. Two of the recipes are written on folded 8.5" inches x 11" inches paper. And the last recipe is typed on legal size paper - 8.5" inches (width) x 14" inches (length).

{STYLE IDEA}

In addition to being a fun cooking adventure in the kitchen, these recipes would also make a lovely framed wall collage. Each piece of paper is unique in its aged state, visually captivating up close and a soothing color palette when viewed from afar.