CLARISSA F. DILLON; DEBORAH J. PETERSON
A fascinating insight into 18th-century cook Ann Cook's vitriolic lambasting of a bestselling cookbook ?The Art of Cookery? by Hannah Glasse. Ann Cook was an 18th-century cook and cookbook author. Her cookbook was printed in three editions and contained more than just receipts. For some reason, she had a real problem with Hannah Glasse?s cookbook, The Art of Cookery: Made Plain and Easy, which had been republished many times during the 18th century and would have been the first port of call for a puzzled cook or housekeeper. Cook?s book included vitriolic comments about a number of Glasse?s recipes. Historic cooks Clarissa F. Dillon and Deborah J. Peterson use their skills to investigate whether Cook?s remarks were valid. They prepared a number of recipes, both from Glasse and from Cook, and commented on the results. Although a number of people have written about these two women, their emphasis was on the comments, not on the validity of the criticisms. This approach makes this book unique.