Lady's Complete Guide; or, Cookery in all its branches, The

London: G. Kearsley, 1791. Mary Cole's Pioneering Cookery Book

COLE, Mary. The Lady's Complete Guide; or, Cookery in all its Branches. Containing The most approved Receipts, confirmed by Observation and Practice; in every reputable English Book of Cookery now extant... Also The Complete Brewer... Likewise The Family Physician; By Mrs. Mary Cole, Cook to the Right Hon. The Earl of Drogheda. The third edition very much improved. London: G. Kearsley, 1791.

Third edition "very much improved". Octavo (8 1/4 x 5 inches; 210 x 127 mm.). lvi, [1]-460 pp.

Contemporary sheep, rebacked. Spine ruled in gilt, black morocco label lettered in gilt. An excellent copy.

The Lady's Complete Guide, or, Cookery in all its Branches by Mary Cole (fl 1788-1791) is a pioneering cookery book, the first in English that systematically ascribed recipes to their authors, where known. First published in 1788 The Lady's Complete Guide ran to 564 pages. The revised second and third editions were expanded in content, but were reset to allow more lines to a page; the second edition contained 564 pages and the third ("very much improved", according to the title page).

The main part of The Lady's Complete Guide comprised 30 chapters describing techniques and giving recipes for roasting, boiling, "made-dishes" (of beef, lamb, game etc.), frying, broiling, potting, fricassees, ragouts, soups, sauces, gravies, hashes, stews, puddings, custards, cakes, tarts, pies, pasties, cheesecakes, jellies, pickling, preserving, "confectionary" and vegetables. In addition to the culinary chapters, Cole included supplementary sections on "The Art of Brewing" and "The Family Physician"

Mary Cole was the first cookery book writer in English to ascribe recipes to their authors, as she believed previous cookery book writers had not 'candidly acknowledged their obligations'.

Bitting p.94 (1788 1st edition) ; Oxford p. 118 (1789 2nd edition).