{"id":95279,"date":"2023-10-16T12:22:57","date_gmt":"2023-10-16T16:22:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.genealogybank.com\/?p=95279"},"modified":"2023-10-16T12:23:22","modified_gmt":"2023-10-16T16:23:22","slug":"national-cookbook-month-the-settlement-cook-book","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/national-cookbook-month-the-settlement-cook-book.html","title":{"rendered":"National Cookbook Month: \u2018The Settlement Cook Book\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction:<\/em><\/strong> In this article \u2013 to help celebrate October being National Cookbook Month \u2013 Gena Philibert-Ortega writes about Lizzie Kander and her \u201cThe Settlement Cook Book\u201d and includes recipes. Gena is a genealogist and author of the book \u201cFrom the Family Kitchen.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Historical cookbooks are fun to look at, but cooking from them is another story. Recipes for foods that are no longer popular, unpopular ingredients, or lengthy preparations are just some of the reasons that cookbooks fall out of favor.<\/p>\n

Cookbooks can seem dated after only a few years, but there are a few cookbooks that have been around for generations that home cooks still report using for favorite recipes or giving as gifts.<\/p>\n

\"Photo:<\/a>
Photo: editions of \u201cThe Settlement Cook Book,\u201d from the author\u2019s collection. Credit: Gena Philibert-Ortega.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A Way to a Man\u2019s Stomach<\/strong><\/p>\n

Long before such well-known classics as The Joy of Cooking<\/em> and Mastering the Art of French Cooking<\/em> were published, there was The Settlement Cook Book<\/em>, whose tag line was \u201cthe way to a man\u2019s heart\u2026\u201d Despite this tag line\u2019s promise of keeping or getting a man, the initial purpose grew out of teaching immigrant women to cook in their new homeland.<\/p>\n

Written in 1901 by Lizzie Black Kander (Mrs. Simon Kander), the charity cookbook was initially financed by her when the settlement house she worked for denied her request for funding the initial printing. Her first run of 1,000 copies were given to students, with the remainder sold to the public for 50 cents. Sold out within the year, the cookbook has since gone through updates and reprintings over the last 100-plus years. The latest edition was published in 1991.<\/p>\n

What was in that first edition?<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first edition was a 174-page rough draft. No table of contents at the beginning of the volume provided organization for the book\u2019s two sections \u2013 500 heirloom recipes collected from old family cookbooks and the 24 lessons from the Settlement\u2019s cooking classes.\u201d (1)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Unlike some other cookbooks of the day, Kander\u2019s grew out of teaching cooking \u2013 so it included instruction in measuring and other \u201crules\u201d of the kitchen.<\/p>\n

\"Photo:<\/a>
Photo: weights and measures from \u201cThe Settlement Cook Book,\u201d from the author\u2019s collection. Credit: Gena Philibert-Ortega.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The 1903 second edition grew to 187 pages and included an index. The 1991 edition is over 800 pages.<\/p>\n

This charity cookbook went beyond Kander\u2019s cooking students and her local community to a wider distribution. By the 1920s it was advertised in newspapers in other states, like this 1922 ad for Michigan\u2019s H.G. Wedland & Co that proclaims the cookbook is:<\/p>\n

\u201cA large, carefully compiled, well printed and bound volume, containing tested recipes from the Settlement Cooking Classes, the Milwaukee Public School Kitchen, the School of Trades for Girls and \u2018Experienced Housewives.\u2019\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Customers could acquire the book for $2.50.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
Bay City Times Tribune (Bay City, Michigan), 3 February 1922, page 3<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A 1929 advertisement in the Chicago Daily News<\/em> offers the cookbook for $1.89.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the most reliable and popular cook books. Bound in washable oil cloth.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"An<\/a>
Chicago Daily News (Chicago, Illinois), 9 April 1929, page 17<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As mentioned above, in addition to recipes, readers were given information about setting the table, keeping things clean, and entertaining. Recipes included in the cookbook span European, Jewish, and American. Each reprinting saw Kander adding to and updating her cookbook.<\/p>\n

Kander died in 1940 and by the time of her death, her cookbook had gone through 23 editions, raising $75,000 for what would be the Milwaukee Jewish Center. She had spent her life helping others \u2013 but in the end, it was the cookbook that she was most remembered for, as this lengthy Milwaukee Sentinel<\/em> obituary attests.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
Milwaukee Sentinel (Milwaukee, Wisconsin), 25 July 1940, page 11<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"An<\/a>
Milwaukee Sentinel (Milwaukee, Wisconsin), 25 July 1940, page 1<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Her great educational contribution was in the kitchen. From the pages of her book, brides in every state of the Union and countless foreign countries have learned to make John forget that \u201cnobody can cook like mother.\u201d<\/p>\n

One fan of Kander\u2019s cookbook commented:<\/p>\n

\u201cI have this book. My mom made the brownies all the time. I learned to bake from recipes in this book.\u201d (2)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Plans to continue publishing her cookbook were announced after Kander\u2019s death, and have continued decades after.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
Milwaukee Sentinel (Milwaukee, Wisconsin), 27 July 1940, page 12<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Though sometimes referred to as a \u201cJewish cookbook,\u201d Kander did not see her work as a Jewish cookbook. She wrote it for everyone looking for a good general cookbook that they could use throughout their lives. Genealogist Bonnie Hayosh said of the cookbook:<\/p>\n

\u201cI have the 1965 edition. It is like a text book for a cooking school. Most recipes are basic foods. Lots of charts and diagrams.\u201d (3)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

That\u2019s exactly what Kander was hoping for. Asked in 1933 why she thought her cookbook had become so popular, she replied:<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause The Settlement Cook Book is primarily a home cook book. The recipes are tested in a home kitchen. They are practical, economical, and reliable. The directions are given in simple language and are easy to follow. Because of America\u2019s cosmopolitan population, the dishes of all nationalities have been included.\u201d (4)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Try a Recipe<\/strong><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t have a copy of The Settlement Cookbook<\/em>? Historical newspapers, such as GenealogyBank\u2019s Historical Newspaper Archives<\/a>, included recipes from the cookbook. Here are a few you might be interested in.<\/p>\n

1951 Marshmallow Dessert Pie<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Milwaukee, Wisconsin), 4 July 2004, page 94<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

1965 Sweet Potato Pancakes<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
Advocate (Baton Rouge, Louisiana), 24 April 2009, page 1<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

1976 Sauerbraten<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Milwaukee, Wisconsin), 18 April 2001, page 50<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Explore over 330 years of newspapers and historical records in GenealogyBank. Discover your family story! Start a 7-Day Free Trial<\/a><\/p>\n

Note on the header image:<\/em><\/strong> photo of Lizzie Kander, \u201cThe Settlement Cook Book,\u201d from the author\u2019s collection. Credit: Gena Philibert-Ortega.<\/p>\n

____________________<\/p>\n

(1) \u201cObject Lesson: Settlement Cookbook,\u201d Wisconsin 101 (https:\/\/wi101.wisc.edu\/object-history-settlement-cook-book\/<\/a>: accessed 11 October 2023).
\n(2) Quote by Dina Killan regarding The Settlement Cookbook.
\n(3) Bonnie Hayosh in response to Facebook post to Gena Philibert-Ortega.
\n(4) Ibid.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

To help celebrate October being National Cookbook Month, Gena Philibert-Ortega writes about Lizzie Kander and her \u201cThe Settlement Cook Book.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":95311,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12427],"tags":[2192,19013,58599,58597],"class_list":["post-95279","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food-recipes","tag-cookbooks","tag-food-and-recipes","tag-lizzie-black-kander","tag-the-settlement-cook-book"],"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/photo-1016-2023-featured-graphic-lizzie-kander.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95279","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=95279"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95279\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":95309,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/95279\/revisions\/95309"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/95311"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=95279"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=95279"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=95279"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}