Plain and Simple Amish Cookbooks

All-New Amish Cookbook (2010) by Publications, International (Amazon) (eBay)

You better know the brand as the people who produce Taste of Home. This cookbook from 2010 follows in the same vein, although it does not include images with every recipe, there are images on every two-page spread.

Chapters include: Bread Basket County, Dutch Oven Stews, Satisfying Suppers, Vegetable Variety, and Sweet Treats.

Most recipes are scratch-made, but a few use items like frozen bread dough, canned soups, or a box of fake potatoes with a lot of company product call-outs. I still see plenty of good here. Grandma’s Favorite Sugarcakes look like they’d be soft and pillowy—and I want to make them. Spiced Pork and Apple Stew, Applesauce Muffins, and Autumn Fruit Cobbler look downright delicious.

Amish Cookbook (1996) by Terrell Publishing Co. (Amazon) (eBay)

If you’re interested in all things Amish cooking, this book is a nice place to start. Take the text lightly, as much has changed in the Amish community (and from one Amish community to another). With that caveat, what a delightful 49-page book.

Chapters include: Amish Family Life, Amish Farming, Amish Food, Amish Religion, Amish Education, Amish weddings and Home Life, Amish Dress and Buggy, and Amish Children. Cheesy Creamed Brussels Sprouts, Spatula Egg Scramble, Soft Pretzels, and Chow Chow.

Each chapter includes a page about the topic, followed by recipes. Images abound, though not necessarily of the food; a farm here, a dinner table there, and so on. What I find so funny is that my mother’s (or was it grandma’s?) recipe for Barbecue Meatballs is even in this book (Page 11). They are excellent!

Amish Cooking (1989) by Mark Eric Miller (Amazon) (eBay)

Head’s up, this cookbook is a reprint of the same title, different publisher, from 1980 so make sure you don’t have it already before you add this one to your shelf. Images are with many of the recipes, but they don’t always correspond with the recipe. Cherry cookies, for example, have an image, but it’s on the page before, and the page with the actual recipe uses a different image (one of pie). It’s a 9 x 0.5 x 11.25 inch, 96-page cookbook.

Chapters…well, there aren’t chapters. I know, it makes the book a little harder to use, but it’s not necessarily a deal-breaker. The recipes are divided up into chapters, they just don’t have actual chapters. Know what I mean? All the cookie recipes are together near the end of the book. Nothing is scattered around. Besides, the index is easy to read and well-organized so you may make more use of it than you usually would.

The recipes are homemade. Will you bake the Raisin-Oatmeal Batter Bread, the Schnitz und Knepp, or the Spareribs and Sauerkraut? Do know the instructions aren’t always specific. The recipe for Cornmeal Rolls sates to fold them like Parkerhouse Rolls, but that recipe isn’t even in the book. It’s not like you can’t find the instructions elsewhere, but I know some people would be upset about such a thing, so if that describes you, now you know. The author reminds you to check ingredient amounts as many recipes are made with large families or gatherings in mind in what is, overall, a nice cookbook.

Amish Cooking (1995, 15th Printing) by Pathway Publishers (Amazon) (eBay)

This dusty blue book (not the odd blue shown in the image) caught my eye in a used bookstore. I’m so glad it did. All the recipes are from Family Life magazine and Favorite Amish Family Recipes Cookbook (covers change, plastic comb, contents stay the same, FYI) and were reader submitted. It’s (roughly) 6″ x 1″ x 9 1/2″ and a 331-page Amish everything cookbook.

The book is divided by chapters, then Home Hints, and then Poems and Inspirations. The chapters include: Bread, Doughnuts, Rolls, Muffins, Buns; Soups, Vegetable and Casserole Dishes; One-Dish Meals; Meats, Meat Sauces, Meat Canning, Sea Foods, Pizza; Salads; Cakes, Cupcakes, Gingerbread, Jelly Rolls; Icings; Cookies; Pies, Pie Crusts, Moon Pies, Tarts; Desserts; Ice Dream, Toppings; Breakfast Treats, Coffee Cake, Cereals; Candies, Marshmallow Crème, Marshmallows; Drinks; Leftovers; School Lunches; Mixes; Canning, Vegetables, Pudding, Soups, Cream; Relishes, Red Betts, Pickles; Preservers, Jellies, Jams; Cheese; Miscellaneous Recipes; and Index.

Mine has an inscription, “For Mary, One of the dearest people in my life. Love you! In Jesus, Judy Store (Psalms 104) Purchased October 26, 1997 in Liberty, Kentucky at an Amish store.” Then purchased by me in an Indiana used bookstore. At first, I thought Mary didn’t bother to read the book—let alone use it, which would have been a cryin’ shame because this book is incredible. BUT, I found a handwritten note concerning the Macaroni and Cheese recipe on page 47, “Very Good! 10-3-2007. Dan likes it.” Mary also liked the Tomato Casserole on Page 40 (she used celery salt in there and pronounced it “very good,” It is almost ALL homemade (I saw one mention of a biscuit mix). No images. Illustrations are found on the chapter pages but, save for one illustration on how to slice cinnamon rolls, that’s it. Consider it another great cookbook for anyone interested in Amish cooking.

Amish Cooks Across America: Recipes and Traditions from Maine to Montana (2013) by Kevin Williams and Lovina Eicher (Amazon) (eBay)

Wanna know what’s cool about this cookbook? Amish co-author Lovina (daughter of Elizabeth Coblentz mentioned in this article) said how travel by Amish buggy is hard, so she hasn’t been to many of these communities. Lovina learned about the differences between them too.

Kevin made the trip, collecting the recipes as he went. Lovina remembers a conversation with an Indiana Amish woman who had never made shoofly pie, while Lovina’s own mother had never made Amish Friendship Bread, recipes supposedly a universal part of Amish cuisine. Chapters include: Amish Cooks Across the Easy, Amish Cooks Across the Midwest, Amish Cooks Across the South, and Amish Cooks Across the West.

Images accompany many a recipe, but not all (and not necessarily of the dish here either). Learn how to make Lye Soap, and Nothings (I want to make those just to tell my family, “It’s Nothing.”), Maple-Cinnamon Sticky Buns, Frosted Rhubarb Cookies It’s 176 pages of Amish stories and over 100 recipes with a Christian slant in a 10.3 x 0.9 x 9.3 inch book.

The Amish Cook’s Anniversary Book: 20 Years of Food, Family, and Faith (2010) by Lovina Eicher with Kevin Williams (Amazon) (eBay)

At first, I wasn’t going to add this book to the list. It’s really mostly memoir, with not as many recipes as you would think of a food memoir having, if that makes any sense at all. But, I cracked it open, started reading, and BAM! Page 78-79 were so sad that I did what any other human would do: Shared it with all of you. But it’s not all sad. It’s a life, that of Elizabeth and (now) Lovina, the “Amish Cook” column writers. It combines the late years of Elizabeth’s life with the early years of daughter Lovina’s.

Chapters include: 1991: A Journey Begins, 1992: Seeing the Sea, 1993: Lovina Gets married, 1994: “Those Worthless Columns!”, 1995: Writers Conference, 1996: Secret Pals, 1997: Triumph (Paul Shetler Jr.) and Tragedy (Mary Shetler), 1998: A Very Typical Year, 1999: Corn Husking Bees and Other Occasions, 200: Good-Bye, Ben, 2001: Mourning and Peace, 2002: Good-bye Elizabeth, 20003: A New Amish Cook: Lovina Eicher, 2004: Estate Sale, 2005: A Fresh Start: Moving to Michigan, 2006: Settling In, 2007: A Houseful of Children, 2008: Growing Up, 2009: Much to Be Thankful For, 2020: Twenty Years of “The Amish Cook” Columns. Flip to Page 290 for the list of recipes. It’s much easier to go about it that way, than by rooting around for them, as some are mixed in with the text in the bulk of the book, while those that were going to be in a future cookbook (until Lovina’s unexpected death), shelved that project.

World’s Best Sugar Cookies, Christmas Holly Candy, and Whole Wheat Batter Bread jumped out at me. It’s been years since I’ve had that treat and I forgot all about it until now. If you find Amish life captivating, then this one is for you. I would highly suggest you snag all the books by Lovina (referenced above) since they are all different and yet the same, in a way.

Amish-Country Cookbook, Vol. 4: Favorite Recipes Gathered by Das Dutchman Essenhaus (2003) by Anita Yoder with Bob and Sue Miller (Amazon) (eBay)

Das Dutchman Essenhaus is a large tourist destination in the Elkhart-Middlebury, Indiana area, known for holding the largest Amish population in the state. This 5.25 x 0.5 x 8 inch, 320-page cookbook contains the shared recipes of Das Dutchman Essenhaus staff (often Amish and Mennonite), stating their name and position. Some packaged stuff, since it is a compilation. You can also find Volume 1, 2, and 3.

Chapters include: Who are the Amish; Breads, Pastries, Pancakes, and Other Breakfasts; Soups, Salads, and Dressings; Meats, Poultry, and Main Dishes; Cakes and Frostings; Cookies, Bars, and Cupcakes; Pies and Candies; Desserts and Ice Cream; Snacks, Dips, Appetizers, and Beverages; and Canning and Miscellaneous.

What to make first…Chocolate Cheese Layered Bars or Chocolate Chip Marshmallow Bars? Brown Sugar Cookies, Butter Bright Pastries, Apple Danish, or…wait. I’m doing it again; flipping through the desserts without sharing much of the actual food. Sausage gravy, Sweet Potato Casserole, and Stromboli Sandwiches. Oh my!

Amish Home Cooking with Elsa: A Collection of Over 500 Tasty Recipes from Elsa (1999) by Elsa (Miller) Kline (Amazon) (eBay)

What do you do when people who tour Yoder’s Amish Home in Millersburg, Ohio have asked for recipes? You make a 191-page cookbook. Elsa did a lot of baking and canning during summer’s at Yoder’s (and in general), so expect plenty of baking recipes to keep you flour-coated and kitchen-happy.

Chapters include: Amish Wedding Menu and Recipes, Breakfasts, Appetizers and Beverages, Breads and Spreads, Soups and Salads, Main Dishes, Pies, Cakes and Frostings, Cookies and Bars, Desserts, Snacks and Candies, Canning and Freezing, Miscellaneous, and Recipes from Co-Workers. Pineapple Cake, Granny’s Sugar Cookies, Breakfast Burritos, or Pumpkin Spice Cake are a teensy, tiny sample of what you’ll find in here. Mmm…just saw Orange Buttermilk Cookies. Now, doesn’t that sound good?

The opening chapter is a hoot. It begins with “Help Needed at Wedding: 22 Cooks, 4 Dishwashers, 4 Coffee Servers, 20 Table Waiters, 4 Bridal Table Waiters, 2 Guest Girls, 2 Candy Girls, 2 Bridesmaids, 2 Groomsmen, 2 Water Servers, and 4 Ushers.” My husband and I married at Isle of Palms, SC. A mom and her two daughters happened to be there, so they took our cameras and snapped the pics. Funny, right? I wonder if they ever talk about the day they went to the beach and participated in a wedding. Anyway, this cookbook has tip call-outs, random quotations (“Housework is something you do that nobody notices unless you don’t do it.”), and over 500 recipes (homemade to semi-homemade) of varying degree of difficulty.

The Beverly Lewis Amish Heritage Cookbook: Over 200 Time-Tested Recipes (2004) by Beverly Lewis (Amazon) (eBay)

Each chapter opens with text taken from one of Beverly’s fictional Amish stories. No images, but a “Note from Bev” offers up personal commentary or a tip (and it’s nice), as are the different quotes (some Christian-based) scattered throughout. If you are new to Amish cookbooks, the one thing you MUST DO before you begin a recipe is to double-check how much of a thing the recipe will make. Amish have more mouths to feed than the typical non-Amish (English) family. Take, for example, the recipe for Snitz pie. It’s just the thing if you have 3 gallons of apple butter and 3 gallons of apple sauce to use up—because this recipe makes 20-24 pies!

Chapters include: Appetizers and Beverages; Breakfast Specialty Dishes; Breads; Salads and Salad Dressings; Soups and Stews; Main Dishes; Vegetables and Side Dishes; Desserts; Puddings and Custards; Cakes and Frostings; Pies; Cookies and Candies; and Jellies, Jams, Relishes, and Preserves.

I’m interested in things like Spinach Casserole, Peanut Butter Bread, Cranberry Grape Salad, Spice Cake, and Green Tomato Bread. Ha. That’s a funny list of things I’m sharing, but this 188-page, book is full of good, simple recipes from the author’s own Amish grandmother and members of the Amish community.

Cooking from Quilt Country: Hearty Recipes from Amish and Mennonite Kitchens (1989) by Marcia Adams (Amazon) (eBay)

This is a 7.75 x 0.75 x 10.25 inch, 202-page companion cookbook to the 13-part PBS series, Amish Cooking from Quilt Country. In the show, Marcia spent a year getting to know these families and learning their recipes. Marcia saw that many Amish were turning to convenience foods, incorporating English (non-Amish) recipes as their own, and didn’t always write down their own recipes. So, she did. It is a book of Indiana Amish cuisine, which is different from other states, of course, as each Amish community has their own local produce and ways.

Chapters include: The Greening of Indiana: Breakfast at Dawn, The Earth Stirs, Early Garden, Easter, Family Meals; Summer Days: The Ripening Garden, The Barn Raising, The Fruits Ripen, The Wedding Day, The Auction; Shades of Autumn: Preserving the Harvest, The Bake Sale, Thanksgiving, The Quilting Bee; Winter’s Rest: The Soup Pot, Pies, Pies, Pies, The Blizzard Pantry, The Holidays.

Cookbook readers will enjoy this one. I feel like I’m saying that a lot in this article, but it’s true. So many include marvelous stories and info and this book is no exception. Each chapter has a fantastic personal story and the nearly 200 recipes include a few sentences that may be tips, background, or a combination. What a superb book and one I’m happy to have on my shelf. If you are a fan, look for New Recipes from Quilt Country too.

Cookin’ with Maudie: Recipes from “The Budget,” The Amish Newspaper, Volume 1 (1991) by The Budget Newspaper (Amazon) (eBay)

Readers of the weekly “The Budget” newspaper sent in their recipes People send in recipes to newspapers all the time. But “The Budget” serves Amish-Mennonite folks. Here’s 176 pages full of them. Will you make Butterscotch Ice Cream Topping, Banan Oatmeal Cookies, Marshmallow Bars, or Rice and Cheese Stuffed Cabbage Roll? Or maybe all of them. I’ve cooked from this cookbook and I’m a big fan. There is a Volume 2.

Chapters include: Soup and Salad; Menu Ideas; Bread, Rolls, Doughnuts, and Such; Meats and Casserole Dishes; Vegetable Dishes; Cakes; Pies; Desserts and Ice Cream; Candy, Snacks, and Such; Cookies; Canning; Countin’ Calories; and ‘Dis & ‘Dat. Subheadings include menu ideas, ingredient substitution help, weight and measurement advice, cooking time information, and serving a crowd tips.

No images, but you were probably expecting that with this style of cookbook anyway. I’m happy to report that this cookbook includes the name and location of the recipe submitter (I do love that). While you’re probably thinking a newspaper covers a specific area, since this one was geared towards the Amish-Mennonite community, it was actually read throughout North America. See what was cooking in Amish kitchens in 1982, 1983, and 1984.

A Day in an Amish Kitchen (1995) by Reiman Publications (Amazon) (eBay)

Several years ago now, I checked this out from our local library—and didn’t want to give it back. I asked for it for Christmas that year and was so happy to get it. These recipes are sourced from Amish cooks in 22 states and Canada. Always, always, always pay attention to the ingredient amounts before you begin. Enjoy 98 pages in a larger, easy-to-read font in this 8.25 x 0.5 x 11.25 inch book.

Chapters include: Soups, Salads, and Side Dishes; Breads and Spreads; Main Dishes; Pies; Desserts; Cookies; Condiments, and Maudie’s Kitchen. Maudie? What? Maudie and Andy Raber had eight kids (seven girls, one boy), an 80-acre farm in Holmes County, Ohio, and served up their Amish cooking to reservation-only tour groups. Theses are their recipes (also featured in Raber’s Country Kitchen cookbook).

Some recipes make a HUGE amount of food. If you are making something involving flour, especially cookies and bread, check the flour amounts. A recipe for Sorghum Cookies uses 18 cups of flour, as does the recipe for Mary Ann Raber White Cookies, while Coffee Cookies use seven to eight cups flour. You would be absolutely swimming in cookies. There are plenty of recipes without large outcomes. With its mix of story and recipe, it’s a fun cookbook to read and wonder over.

Food that Really Schmecks: Mennonite Country Cooking (1968) by Edna Staebler (Amazon, Original) (Amazon 2009 Revised, image at left) (eBay)

I love Edna Staebler. I’ll post about her life soon, so sign up for my email updates if you haven’t yet (you won’t want to miss it). In the meantime, this cookbook is a great intro to Edna. It’s her legacy. It’s a “wonderful good” cookbook, with 704 TESTED Amish recipes over 297 pages (including index, as usual) taken from handwritten cookbooks passed down from mother to daughter and Amish kitchens throughout Waterloo County, Canada. The interior reads, “Mennonite country cooking as prepared by my Amish friend, Bevvy Martin, my mother, and other fine cooks.

Chapters include: Those Mouth-Watering Mennonite Meals; The Twin Cities with Schmecks Appeal; Some Drinks, Wines, and Punches; Soups; Meats, Fowl, and Fish; Vegetables; Salads; Sweets and Sours; Brunches, Lunches, Suppers, and Leftovers; Baking with Yeast; Biscuits, Muffins, Quick Breads, and Fat Cakes; Cookies; A Cake in the House; Pies and Tarts; Desserts; Candy; A Variety of Things; and And Finally. Make Bevvy’s Bohna Supp, Deutscher Noodle Ring, and Belfasts will hopefully be enough to tell you that cookbook readers and cookbook cookers NEED this one!

Edna was a brilliant writer, sharing little bits about a recipe or longer paragraphs at the front of each chapter (LOVE IT). Her introduction: “Before you read any further I must warn you: I have absolutely no qualification for writing a cookbook except hat (a) I love to eat, (b) my mother is a good cook and (c) I was born, brought up and well fed in Waterloo County, Ontario, where the combination of Pennsylvania Dutch-Mennonite, German, and modern cooking is distinctive and “wonderful good.” You may find it intriguing that Edna had to deal with a written dialect, so she spelled Bevvy’s words as they sounded to her. A classic book for a reason.

From Amish and Mennonite Kitchens (1994) by Phyllis Pellman Good and Rachel Thomas Pellman (Amazon) (eBay)

With 420 pages of recipes and a little info, this is a hefty Amish cookbook. The authors are both Mennonite (you know Phyllis from the “Fix It” cookbook series fame now in one volume) and are sharing a multitude of excellent recipes here. I should point out that this book does not use the typical font, but something a little…swoopier. I don’t find it too hard to read, but it’s worth mentioning in case your eyes have trouble with “fancier” handwritten-looking fonts.

Chapters include: Breads; Soups; Salads; Vegetables; Meats; Casseroles; Pies; Cakes; Cookies; Desserts; Jams, Jellies, and Relishes; and Candies, Beverages, and Snacks. In the back of the book, you’ll see a slew of blank pages for note-taking. I suggest you write on your recipe page or, at the very least, reference the page number so future you can find your notes.

Aunt Carrie’s Butterscotch Ice-Box Cookies, Pumpkin Whoopie Pies (and two other flavors in here too), Shrewberry Cookies (not a typo), and Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cookies need to appear in my cookie jar. Okay, so I should probably share more than just cookies. How do Green Tomato Pie, Scrapple (which I’ve never had, but it’s supposed to be a thing here), and Apple Fritters sound? How’s that float your boat? This 8 x 1.1 x 8 inch book floats mine pretty well.

Good Earth & Country Cooking (1974) by Betty Groff and José Wilson (Amazon) (eBay)

If you’re a cookbook lover like me (and you are or you wouldn’t be here, right?), then you understand how some cookbooks just make you happy when you read them. That’s this 253-page cookbook. Funny, it was published in Harrisburg, PA; a city we occasionally visit. Restaurant-owner Betty was a Lancaster County Mennonite and a descendant of the Herr Mennonites from the German part of Switzerland, which is intriguing since our local library is called “Herr Library!” I love Betty’s style: Of writing, of the photos she shared, of her menus, and recipes.

Chapters include: I Cook Because I Love People, For Every Food There is a Season, Food Makes Friends, Memory Foods, Keeping Foods, and Wine Makes the Heart Merry. Yes, that last chapter is a surprise, but includes instructions for making wine at home (Betty’s family says, “Don’t acquire a taste for it.”). The chapters are broken further into the specific recipes or menus they share (you KNOW I love menus!). She has a page where she has the handwritten recipes from the nineteenth century, showing how little their recipes had changed. Little touches like that make this cookbook memorable and appealing. Find her other titles: Betty Groff’s Pennsylvania Dutch Cookbook, Classic Pennsylvania Dutch Cooking; Country Goodness Cookbook; Betty Groff Cookbook: Pennsylvania German Recipes; and Up Home, Down Home Cookbook.

I can’t rave enough about this amazing cookbook. Where has it been all my life? Instead of sharing a selection of recipes, I’m going to share one of her menus: Two Fall Luncheons for Fall. One of the two sets feature Noodles with Chicken and Browned Butter (yes, these are homemade noodles), Mashed Potatoes, Fried Tomatoes, and Montgomery Pie. Delish!

Heritage Country Harvest Cookbook: Over 700 Favorite Recipes from the Amish in Northern Indiana (2001) by Ray and Malinda Yutzy (Amazon) (eBay)

Recipes for this cookbook was sourced from Northern Indiana Amish community, likely the Elkhart-Middlebury-Nappanee area. Author names are included, but not their location. After a brief four-page introduction to the Amish, the book kicks into recipes over 360 pages in this no-frills cookbook.

Chapters include: Amish Roots; Breakfast Foods; Breads, Rolls, Biscuits, and Muffins; Cookies, Brownies, and Bars; Cakes and Frostings; Pies, Desserts; Ice Cream and Toppings; Casseroles, Meats, and Vegetables; Soups, Salads, and Dressings; Canning and Freezing; Candies, Jams, and Jellies; Dips and Snacks; Beverages and Miscellaneous. Bavarian Cream Pudding, Chocolate Revel Bars, and basic bread recipes galore.

There and even a recipe for Homemade Baby Wipes. The index is divided by chapter, which makes it tough to look for recipes using a specific ingredient, but at least the font is clear and legible. Some use things like packaged pudding, Bisquick, and canned items; but most are homemade.

Lizzie’s Amish Cookbook: Favorite Recipes from Three Generations of Amish Cooks! (Amazon) (eBay)

With 315 pages, and over 175 recipes (including the index, but excluding a one-page ad), you’ll have plenty of Amish recipes from Amish romance author, and Amish woman, Linda Byler. The “Lizzie” in the title is a character from Linda’s three-book series: Lizzie Searches for Love.

Chapters include: Breads and Spreads, Breakfast Dishes, Chicken Dishes, Meats and Other Main Dishes, Soups and Sandwiches, Salads, Vegetables, Desserts, Beverages, Canning Recipes. Explore Cheeseburger Soup, Apple Salad, and Vanilla Cornstarch Pudding. Some recipes use things like packaged pudding and whipped topping (like the pudding recipe I mentioned). But, there are still homemade recipes to be had and one, like Cream Sticks, are now on my list. Cream Sticks sound like something akin to a long john.

Fans of Linda’s book will enjoy the book passages found throughout. I do enjoy many of the recipes. Linda’s daughter wrote the recipes down, and Linda’s granddaughter went through them, selecting the best to create this book. Not bad for a woman forbidden to go beyond an 8th grade education.

Mennonite Country-Style Recipes and Kitchen Secrets: More than 1000 Recipes (1987) by Esther H. Shank (Amazon) (eBay)

The author used her recipes and, when others caught wind of her project, sent in recipes of their own. I enjoy this book immensely. Recipes include the author name, but lack images and personal notes (too bad), though there are occasional illustrations to offer some help. Still, it’s another Amish cookbook that ranks high on my list (and at 679 pages, it’s a whopper!).

Chapters include: Beverages; Breads, Coffee Cakes, and Cereals; Cakes, Frostings, and Cookies; Desserts, Fruits, Snacks, and Candy; Eggs, Milk, and Cheese; Main Dishes and Vegetables; Meats, Poultry, and Seafood; Microwave Cooking; Pastry and Pies; Salads, Sandwiches, and Soups; Entertaining, Quantity Cooking, and Party Foods; Quick-Fix Section; Canning, Freezing, and Preserving; and Non-Food Recipes and Miscellaneous Tips.

The chapters are further broken down into subcategories, so much so that the chapters span four pages! It is easy to find just what you need (but not easy to include all those things here, so I did not). Cinnamon Swirl Bread, Chipped Beef Cheeseball, and Homemade Corn Dogs sound great (and I know our sons would agree on that last one). The recipes are written in paragraph style, with steps separated by dotted lines. It’s a little different, but easy to follow.

Mennonite Girls Can Cook (2011) by Lovella Schellenberg, Anneliese Friesen, Judy Wiebe, Betty Reimer, Bev Klassen, Charlotte Penner, Ellen Bayles, Julie Klassen, Kathy McLellan, and Marg Bartel (Amazon) (eBay)

I spent a quiet bit of time at an AirBNB reading this cookbook. The preface lays it out pretty well: This is a cookbook and more featuring family, food, and friendship (with 10 authors, you kind of expect such a thing). Measures are in both weight and volume, so that’s handy.

Chapters include: Breakfast and Coffee Break; Soups, Salads, and Sides; Suppers; Breads; Desserts and Sweets; Gluten-Free Cooking, and Glossary of Terms.

Each recipe in the 208-page book has an image, the one for Blintzes offers step-by-step image instruction, and special pages may include more detail about an author or a Christian verse. I’m diggin’ Apple Pancakes with Hot Apple Cinnamon Sauce, Rhubarb Orange Sticky Muffins, and Rolled-Up Kielke (Noodles) with Schmaundt Fat (Cream Gravy).

The Pennsylvania Dutch Cookbook: Authentic Amish Recipes and Folklore (1970) by Gerald S. Lestz (Amazon) (eBay)

The Preface shares how the author used recipes from the Pennsylvania Dutch, provided attribution unless it was an anonymous contribution, a local cookbook, and reviewed by an authority on the Penn Dutch. Ninety pages (including the index).

Chapters include: An Informal History of the Pennsylvania Dutch, The Amish Today, and Recipes. Grandma’s Cinnamon Flop, Aunt Ida’s Sponge Cake, and prize-winning recipe Krummel Kuchen. There are more. So many more. Like a 200-year-old recipe for Hard Ginger Cookies or Bauer Knepp, a pioneer recipe.

I love everything about this cookbook. Yes, there are plenty of pages of history and such in the beginning that may prove a bit outdated with modern mentions, however, the recipes in here are the real deal. No packaged junk. Just solid family recipes I know I’ll make again and again.

Pennsylvania Dutch Cook Book of Fine Old Recipes: Compiled from Tried and Tested Recipes Made Famous and Handed Down by the Early Dutch Settlers in Pennsylvania (1966) by Culinary Arts Institute (Amazon) (eBay)

What a neat book! You almost wouldn’t know it was a 64-page book of Amish recipes, except that the introduction mentions “plain people” shares a few images, and one remark on how the Amish love Raisin Pie. There’s even a mention of my beloved fry pies. Yum!

This is another cookbook without chapters, however, if you flip to the index, it is divided up by types—so that sort of counts, right? Recipes are very minimally grouped inside by their type, even if they aren’t labeled in such a way. Dutch Stewed Potatoes, Chocolate Marble Cake, Mojhy Apples (not a typo), and Spiced Pickles are a couple eye-catchers. There are so many. Meat Pasty “Pocketbooks,” Snapper Soup, and Cinnamon Buns compete for my attention too. “Too much, too much!” as my grandpa would say.

This is a “real deal” Amish cookbook. You won’t find convenience foods here at all. You will find a variety, including game recipes and a section on how to cure meats (plus recipes for things like liver and tongue). There are photos that don’t relate to recipes and illustrations. Cover images vary by edition. It is the kind of cookbook vintage fans will appreciate and love.

Treasured Mennonite Recipes: All-Time Favorite Recipes from the Mennonite Community Relief Sales: Volume One (1992) by Mennonite Central Committee (Amazon) (eBay)

Multiple volumes serve different purposes. Volume One, as we’ll investigate in a minute, “focuses on the more traditional cooking of the Swiss-German Mennonites,” shares the book’s foreword. Volume Two centers on the history and recipes of the different Amish relief sales.

Amish relief sales are big day-long events with auction, food, and to raise money to help pay for their medical bills (too much “keeping it in the family” has resulted in numerous illness and disease). We haven’t made it to a sale yet, but neighbor Lucy tells me they are wonderful. So, too, is this cookbook.

Chapters include: Who are the Mennonites?; History of the Relief Sales; Breads: Yeast and Quick; Cakes and Frostings; Candies; Cookies Squares, and Bar Cookies; Casseroles and Supper Dishes: Main Dishes; Desserts; Pies and Tarts; Pickles and Relishes; Punches and Drinks; Salads and Salad Dressings; Soups; Special European Mennonite Dishes; Traditional Classics—Recipes and Menus; Grandma’s Remedies; Directory of Relief Sales/ USA and Canada. Queen Elizabeth Cake, Relief Sale Doughnuts, and Orange Candy make me wanna step into the kitchen and get to it. It’s straight recipes, no contributor names or images (save for some about the sale), but it’s 215 pages (including the index, but not the ads), and all good.

Wanda E. Brunstetter’s Amish Friends Cookbook: Desserts (2011) by Wanda E. Brunstetter (Amazon) (eBay)

Amish quotes, famous person quotes, and Biblical quotes dot the pages of the 9 x 0.68 x 6-inch, 160-page cookbook. It is an attractive layout and of the sort that screams, “Giftable!” to me. There are images, just not with most recipes. The recipes are crowd-sourced, I’m assuming by Amish, and include the name, city, and state of the submitter. I do love that. It’s fun to see if I recognize the town.

Chapters include: Cakes; Candy; Cookies and Bars; Ice Cream, Toppings, and Frozen Desserts; Pies; Puddings and Cobblers, and Other Desserts. Peanut Butter Fingers looks especially good. Coconut Blueberry Cake, Lemon Pudding Cake, and Raspberry Tapioca Pudding make my mouth water.

Whereas some Amish cookbooks turn to many convenience foods that we don’t use, this one use very few (whipped topping and packaged pudding—minimally) but it does include items like carob chips, ClearJel as a pudding thickener, and goat’s milk in a recipe or two. You can sub out, of course, but I figured I should point it out. She has many books including Farmhouse Favorites, Christmas, Harvest, and Gatherings. The majority are pantry-ready type recipes and a total win in my book.

Wonderful Good Cooking: From Amish Country Kitchens (1974) by Fred J. Wilson (Amazon) (eBay)

The front cover reads, “Amish Pictures and Story, Authentic Amish Recipes,” so you know what you are getting into. Yes, there are 136 pages (including index, as always), but 40 pages include interesting history, reading recommendations, and color images of the Amish and Amish life (maple syrup tapping and a barn raising, pretty cool).

Chapters aren’t laid out in the front, however, there are full-page headings throughout the book. The back of these pages list out the recipes in the section (and page numbers because they are alphabetized). These include: Meats and Main Dishes; Breads; Cakes and Cookies; Pies and Desserts; Salads and Relishes; and Candy, Ice Cream, and Miscellaneous.