The First Ladies Cook Book

Initially published in 1887, The Original White House Cook Book is a cooking compendium penned by F. L. Gillette and Hugo Ziemann. The book is comprised of recipes, cooking techniques, etiquette instruction, household care, and cleanliness tips used in the White House. This historic book includes recipes by the first ladies Martha Washington, Mary Todd Lincoln, and many others, as well as historic menus for special occasions like Grant’s Birthday and Washington’s Wedding. The book was compiled using the knowledge gained by Gillette in her years of cooking, as well as Ziemann’s term as a White House steward and caterer. It rapidly became a bestseller after its publication and an essential cookbook in kitchens across America. The Original White House Cook Book includes more than five hundred recipes for soups, meats, vegetables, pastas, desserts, sandwiches, and more. Additionally, it includes hundreds of tips and tricks as well as a foreword written by John Moeller, White House chef from 1992 to 2005.

First published in 1952 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the First Catholic Slavic Ladies Association, The Slovak-American Cookbook remains a classic collection of cultural dishes. From savory soups, sandwiches, and salads to sweet cookies, cakes, and candies, this cookbook contains the best Slovak-American recipes that the generations have to offer. Some national favorites featured are:HaluskyKlobasyStrudelFankyKolace and more!Each recipe provides a glimpse into this fascinating culinary heritage. In addition to an assortment of traditional, tried-and-true recipes, this cookbook also offers tips on entertaining, cooking, and maintaining your home. With help from The Slovak-American Cookbook, you can bring the Slovak culinary tradition to your table.

An NAACP Image Award Finalist for Outstanding Literary Work—Non Fiction James Beard award–winning author Adrian Miller vividly tells the stories of the African Americans who worked in the presidential food service as chefs, personal cooks, butlers, stewards, and servers for every First Family since George and Martha Washington. Miller brings together the names and words of more than 150 black men and women who played remarkable roles in unforgettable events in the nation's history. Daisy McAfee Bonner, for example, FDR's cook at his Warm Springs retreat, described the president's final day on earth in 1945, when he was struck down just as his lunchtime cheese souffle emerged from the oven. Sorrowfully, but with a cook's pride, she recalled, "He never ate that souffle, but it never fell until the minute he died." A treasury of information about cooking techniques and equipment, the book includes twenty recipes for which black chefs were celebrated. From Samuel Fraunces's "onions done in the Brazilian way" for George Washington to Zephyr Wright's popovers, beloved by LBJ's family, Miller highlights African Americans' contributions to our shared American foodways. Surveying the labor of enslaved people during the antebellum period and the gradual opening of employment after Emancipation, Miller highlights how food-related work slowly became professionalized and the important part African Americans played in that process. His chronicle of the daily table in the White House proclaims a fascinating new American story.