Art Of Cookery Made Plain And Easy

First published in 1747, Hannah Glasse's cookbook was a radical act of culinary democracy. While other recipe collections whispered in the polished language of aristocracy, Glasse wrote directly for 'the lower sort' - servants, middling housewives, anyone hungry to cook well without a retinue of kitchen staff. Her voice is immediate and sometimes tart: practical instructions delivered without apology, peppered with asides about lazy servants and the proper way to truss a goose. The recipes span the full spectrum of 18th-century British life, from simple broths to ambitious centerpieces meant to impress guests. This is more than a collection of dishes. It is an artifact from an era when cooking was essential knowledge for survival, when a well-laid table meant something, and when one woman decided the secrets of good food should belong to everyone. Cooks, historians, and anyone curious about the roots of modern British cuisine will find these pages endlessly fascinating.