Austin's First Cookbook

Get a taste of Texas culinary history with this quirky, diverse community cookbook from Austin's nineteenth-century residents, plus photos and informative essays.

 


Tacos and barbecue command appetites today, but early Austinites indulged in peppered mangoes, roast partridge, and cucumber catsup. Those are just a few of the fascinating historic recipes in this new edition of the first cookbook published in the city.


 


Written by the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in 1891, Our Home Cookbook aimed to "cause frowns to dispel and dimple into ripples of laughter" with myriad "receipts" from the early Austin community. From dandy pudding to home remedies "worth knowing," these are hearty helpings featuring local game and diverse heritage, including German, Czech and Mexican. With informative essays and a cookbook bibliography, city archivist Mike Miller and the Austin History Center present this curious collection that's sure to raise eyebrows, if not cravings.