The White House Cookbook has been found in kitchens for more than 100 years, making it a piece of Americana. It was revised and updated in 1996 with the Centennial Edition, with the latest reprint being in 2008.
Contributions
Healthy recipe updates and alternatives for the 1996 revision were developed by registered dieticians Patti Bazel Geil and Tami Ross. First Ladies Barbara Bush and Hillary Clinton in 1996 contributed recipes to the book, joining other First Ladies including Mary Todd Lincoln and Martha Washington. Writers of the original White House Cookbook are Fanny Lemira Gillette and Hugo Ziemann, who was the White House Steward Chef of President Grover Cleveland.
Contents
The White House Cookbook includes illustrations with more than 125 recipes. Other items are menus--such as from a Washington family wedding--as well as household tips and table etiquette. Some recipe topics are soups, shell fish, lamb, vegetables, desserts and beverages. Low-fat recipes are along side the original recipes in the revision. The updates include modern measurement guidelines and ingredients, such as replacing or omitting heavy cream.
History
This cookbook was first printed in 1887 and sold in the Sears Roebuck Catalog. The first historical edition was 522 pages with the subtitle "The Whole Comprising A Comprehensive Cyclopedia of Information for the Home."
