I’d like to share my latest project with you, a new blog named Recovered Recipes where old and historic recipes can be shared. I find myself growing increasingly interested in rescuing old handwritten recipes from certain extinction in our digital age.
The blog started with the 13 surviving recipes from my great-grandmother and will be added to as I grow my recipe collection. I’ve set it up so that anyone sharing my interest can also submit their recipe cards for display on the site too. I’m hoping that I’m not the only recipe geek …?
I used to spend hours sitting in front of my mother’s cookbook cupboard reading through cookbooks as well as family recipe cards. The handwritten recipes have always resonated with me the most as the recipe cards are personal snapshots of a particular cook or baker. The written recipes express a meal or dessert which were cherished enough to be filed away and kept over time.
I find it interesting to also see how the recipes are captured. Although many are written on traditional recipe cards, many are scribbled on scraps of paper. My favorite find so far is what appears to be some sort of souffle recipe written on the back of an ice delivery receipt dated July 27th, 1931.
Sadly, these recipes are not always passed on from one generation to the next and a piece of history is instantly lost. Whether it’s a disinterest in the types of recipes, dislike of the recipe format (i.e. paper) or decline in home cooking, entire recipe collections are thrown away or sold at estate sales today. Just last week, I purchased a recipe collection via eBay that was originally purchased at an estate sale in Rhode Island. You can read more about this collection of 200+ recipes on Recovered Recipes.
While I’m still in the early stages of discovering ‘what to do’ with all these old recipes, my general inclination is to rescue as many as I can and share them with anyone who is interested. I think of it as my own catch and release program :-)
In addition to Eating Out Loud, you’ll find me writing several times each week at Recovered Recipes, so check out the new site often or subscribe to its feed so you don’t miss a single post. I welcome your thoughts on my blog’s concept and would like to know if anyone else shares in my interest. If you like it, please help spread the word by sharing it with your friends and/or blog readers.
{ 18 comments… read them below or add one }
I think this is a great idea Allen!…I’ll def be checking it out.
I will definitely be checking it out! Sounds very interesting.
Your post is very timely because my mother just scanned a long, lost recipe from my grandmother the other day and emailed it to me! It’s so fun to see the old stuff.
Good luck with the new venture!
Neat project :) Look forward to tracking.
Yay! I’ll “check it out”! ;) (Good find on the recipes, by the way!)
Great idea! I’ve been wanting to make a recipe book with old recipes (scanned in and printed on archival paper of course)because I think the hand written cards have SO much more character! And I especially enjoy the cards that are splattered with spots and drops of water – you know those were used and loved most!
That’s such a great idea! Would surely look forward to your project.
Allen- that is a really great idea. I remember years ago going through a handwritten cookbook that my grandma had inherited from her mother and trying a few of the recipes. You’ve inspired me to see if I can find the book again.
What a great idea. Just looking at those priceless, handwritten recipes is touching. There’s so much history in those written words. Have fun Allen!
We’ll be visiting often too.
Dynamite idea. Now you’ve got me excited about sourcing out recipe collections for other sources. I’ve always loved finding old cookbooks and trying to recreate some of the recipes, even the ones where they refer to a pinch, dash or good amount of something. Best of luck, and I’ll definitely be checking out your site.
“Doc”
Cool idea! I wish you the best of luck with your new project. Who knew recipes used to be handwritten.
Hi Allen,
I know how exciting finding old recipes can be. Back in the 1980’s when my great uncle passed away, I was the one in the family who wanted the recipe box that had been my great aunt’s. It’s now mine. Many recipes are similar to today, many are not. Especially the one that calls for lard the size of a turkey egg.
LOVE IT~thought I was the only one obsessed. After getting my great grandmothers recipe box, I decided that old recipe books were my new hobby. I find them at garage sales, old used book stores and my fave is one published in 1941 called the Joy of Cooking.
This is a great idea Allen!
Thanks for stopping by my blog and leading me to yours.
Allen, what a fantastic project/hobby! I absolutely LOVE this sort of thing. I can’t wait to go through your finds. Really, really great—I’m so excited! :D
Kudos to you — a big part of my blog is trying to preserve the family recipes that have never been written down. This is a lovely project.
What a great idea. I’ll be sure to check out your new project.
I appreciate everyone’s feedback and support! I am having so much fun going through this recent recipe box purchase. There are so many interesting bits aside from the recipes themselves.
I kept noticing recipes calling for ’spry’ and had no clue what it was. I researched it and discovered it was a brand of shortening during the mid-20th century.
Some of the recipes are written on letterhead or other interesting scraps of paper, so it’s interesting to see these as well.
I love these old recipes. When my elderly aunt had to move to a nursing home I grabbed her cookbooks and recipes. The best part was finding the ones from her mother – and all the notes that she tucked into her cookbooks!