Every recipe tested in our kitchens for perfect results in yours... (from the introduction)

{HISTORY}

Better Homes and Gardens as a brand practically needs no introduction. It's been a part of our American kitchen conversations for almost a century. Since 1922, BH&G has been a trusted authority and source of inspiration on all things home-related including cooking, health and wellness, interior design, gardening, and home maintenance.  

Considered the number one most popular cookbook in America, Better Homes and Gardens' iconic red and white checkered cookbook is a beloved staple representing  American history and the evolution of recipe collecting across a one-hundred-year time frame. First published during the Great Depression in 1930, the New Cook Book introduced a binder style layout, chapter tabs, and customizable organization thanks to its innovative design. All recipes were fully tested, scrutinized, and studied in the Better Homes test kitchen before deeming them fit for inclusion so that home cooks would be guaranteed success with each and every meal that they prepared. That attention to detail continued across 11 updated and revised versions, eventually selling over 34 million copies since its original debut in 1930. 

This edition was published in 1968 as an updated revision of previous New Cook Book editions. It features all the classic favorites of past books with new recipes added in that reflect the changing landscape of the modern kitchen to include updated equipment, food trends, new ingredients/flavor pairings and more refined preparation methods. This edition also includes Test Kitchen Tips - a newly launched feature that appears on a wide range of recipes throughout, offering preparation and serving suggestions along with helpful tips. The cover was also redesigned to make it more durable and to easily wipe clean. A plastic insert was included inside the curve of the five-ring binder to help each page glide easily over the rings, and a chapter on Easy Meals (Chapter 10) helped busy cooks quickly assemble delicious meals in a jiffy. 

Specifics aside, what made The New Cook Book always so appealing no matter what the decade or the edition, was its precise approach to recipe writing,  giving all readers a solid foundation of cooking skills from which to grow and learn. Inside this cookbook are the familiar favorites that everybody grew up with.  This cookbook has informed each generation of kitchen workers in one way or another over the past 100 years. How delightful!

{SPECIAL FEATURES}

- 5 ring binder style

- 20 chapters including corresponding tabs

- 400 pages total

- Includes recipes for all meals of the day 

{CONDITION}

In lovely vintage condition. The binder itself is in great shape with working rings that open and close easily. The interior of the cookbook is in great shape and very clean with the exception of an errant cooking spot or two on a few random pages. As expected with age, there is some slight curling of the paper tabs. All pages are intact and bright in appearance. The coverboards are clean and bright. The backcoverboard contains a small amount of light foxing. Please see photos.

{SIZE}

Measures 8.5" inches (width) x 10" inches (length) x 2" inches (thickness) and weighs 2lbs. 12 oz

{FOR THE COLLECTOR}

It is super fun to collect vintage BH&G cookbooks just to marvel at their changes in cover design and their inclusion of different chapters as home cooking changed throughout the 20th century. Find more editions in the shop here.