The Art of Cookery Made Plain & Easy

A Lady [Glasse, Hannah]. The Art of Cookery Made Plain & Easy. (7th Ed) A Millar, J & R Tonson, W Strahan, P Davey & B Law: London, 1760. 8vo (200x130mm) rebacked contemporary calf, [2],vi[24],384,[24]pp. VG/- bds cnrs rubbed, printed signature to p1;

A LADY [GLASSE (née Allgood), Hannah (1708-1770)]

The Art of Cookery, Made Plain and Easy; which far exceeds anything of the kind yet published. Containing, I. How to roast and boil to perfection every thing necessary to be sent up to table. II. Of made-dishes. III. How expensive a French cook's sauces is. IV. To make a number of pretty little dishes for a supper or side-dish, and little corner-dishes for a great table. V .To dress fish. VI. Of soops and broths. VII. Of puddings. VIII. Of pies. IX. For a Lent dinner; a number of good dishes, which you make make use of , at any other time. X. Directions to prepare proper food for the sick. XI. For Captains of Ships; how to make all useful things for a voyage; and setting out a table on board a ship. XII. Of hogs puddings, sausages, &c. XIII. To pot and make hams, &c. XIV. Of pickling. XV. Of making cakes &c. XVI. Of cheesecakes, creams, jellies, whip-syllabubs, &c. XVII. Of made wines, brewing French bread, muffins, &c. XVIII. Jarring cherries and preserves &c. XIX. To make anchovies, vermicella, catchup, vinegar, and to keep artichokes, French beans, &c. XX. Of distilling. XXI How to market; the seasons of the year for butchers, meat, poultry, fish, herbs, roots and fruit. XXII. A certain cure for the bite of a mad dog. By Dr Mead. XXIII. A receipt to keep clear from Buggs.  To which are added, by way of appendix, one hundred and fifty new and useful receipts, and a copious index.

London : Printed for A. Millar, J. & R. Tonson, W. Strahan, P. Davey and B Law, 1760. Seventh Edition.

Octavo (205x125mm) contemporary calf boards, recently re-backed diced spine, five raised bands, [2],vi,[24],384,[24]pp collated as A⁸ a⁸ B-Cc⁸ Dd⁴.  Printed signature " H. Glasse" to p.1.


Boards edges worn and rounded, some edge-wear; 3mm hole to p.139 not affecting the text; occasional faint foxing; a few small signs of kitchen use.  This edition published with no illustration.

First published anonymously, in 1747, The Art of Cookery is perhaps best known for a phrase attributed to it, that it does not contain, "First Catch Your Hare" although it does contain an excellent recipe for roast hare.  Glasse's authorship, revealed in the fourth edition, was disputed until 1937.  Enlarged and enhanced by Glasse up to the sixth edition, The Art of Cookery is noteworthy not only for very early recipes for ice-cream and curry, but also a marked emphasis on precision of  cooking times and directions, and clarity and simplicity of language.  It went on to become the most successful and popular cookery book of the later half of the Eighteenth century (at least twenty-one editions up to 1852); much admired, much pirated,  and much plagiarised (although Glasse had also borrowed liberally from her predecessors).

In 1754, Glasse became bankrupt, owing more than £10,000.  As part of the resolution of her bankruptcy, the copy[right] in her best selling book and the printed sheets of the fifth edition were sold to Andrew Millar and his 'conger' of bookseller partners.  In 1758 Millar printed the 'copious index' (recording his copy in the Stationers Register) and the 6th edition 'for' Glasse.  This seventh edition published in 1760 was the first to be published without Glasse's involvement.  Glasse did go on to write two other cookery books about this time.  Millar and his conger were responsible for ongoing editions of The Art of Cookery for the next fifty years.

An excellent solid, clean and complete example of an important Georgian cookery book.


§  OCLC records 7 holdings this edition in North America and the UK; COPAC suggests 6 holdings this edition in the UK.
§  Maclean, p59; Oxford p.77 in a note; Cagle 700.