My Community and Church Cookbooks Collection

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After adding in my whole kitchen cookbook collection, I realized I had neglected to consider how to share my odd-sized cookbooks. You know, those sometimes short, squat books written in the 1980s or the vintage magazines, spiral-bound, or coil-bound church cookbooks?

I was going to skip it.

But the first book I grabbed and looked up, Healthy Snacks for Kids by Penny Warner, was written by a woman who had written sixty books. So, I figured I had better add my community cookbooks, too.

The following section is organized by church and community cookbooks, small oddly-sized cookbooks, spiral-bound or coil-bound cookbooks, and vintage magazines. While I have many non-vintage magazines, I don’t think you are so interested in those, are you? If so, I’ll add them.

Just let me know in the comments section. If I receive enough requests, I’ll go through them and get them added in too. Press “Control” and “F” to hunt for a particular word on this page or use the Table of Contents below.

Table of Contents

1. Church Cookbooks, Community Cookbooks
2. Brand or Product Cookbooks, Pamphlets, and “Favorite Recipes of” Cookbooks
3. Spiral-Bound Cookbooks
4. Magazines
   • Betty Crocker Booklets
   • Culinary Arts Institute Small Magazines
   • Encyclopedia of Cooking by the Culinary Arts Institute
   • Good Housekeeping Small Magazines
   • Good Housekeeping Paperback Cookbook Series
   • McCall’s Cookless Cookbook
   • Southern Living
   • Taste of Home
   • Pillsbury
   • Favorite Brand Name Recipes
   • Better Homes and Gardens Hometown Cooking
   • From the Kitchens of Martha Stewart Living: Everyday Food
5. Related Resources

Church Cookbooks, Community Cookbooks

The Junior Women’s League cookbooks, school fundraising, or church cookbooks go here. So many have coil-binding it’s too tricky to store them on the kitchen shelf without some falling behind and getting lost. Been there, done that. Now, at least, we have a home library so they are all together and won’t get lost on the shelf.

100 Years of Good Cooking: First Reformed Church, DeMotte, Indiana (1993) (EBAY)
More church cookbook kind of recipes. You know, the kind we like.

1988-1989 Rensselaer Central Bomber Brigade and Friends (1989) (EBAY)
This cookbook is actually dedicated to someone I know! So, that’s pretty neat. Given that I’ve eaten at their house before too, I can only hope the recipes match the meals.

Buon Appetito Cook Book: The Mt. Carmel School Guild of St. Rocco Parish of Chicago Heights, Illinois (?) (EBAY)
Some of my Italian family member’s recipes are in this book, such as Guido Sandroni. That’s no surprise. I lived in Chicago Heights, Illinois until right before Kindergarten. I received this book as a gift.

Burr Oak Mennonite Church Cookbook (EBAY)
No date, no intro, no nothing. Well, nothing but recipes. This cookbook is in a bright red binder with tabs marking the type of recipe. I know that the cookbook is from Burr Oak in Rensselaer, Indiana, “the church in the cornfields.” Everything is cornfields around there.

Butter ‘n Love Recipes: First Christian Reformed Church in DeMotte, Indiana (Unknown) (EBAY)
There are over 300 pages of recipes in this massive church cookbook. My cover ripped off in a move and I don’t know if the year of this cookbook was listed inside or not. I should say that my cover was torn so I don’t know if I lost a beginning page or not. I tend to think “not,” since the Dedication is still inside. It’s a keeper of a cookbook.

Calling All Cooks: Telephone Pioneers of America Alabama Chapter No. 34 (2017) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
“Over 550,000 copies sold!” declares the front cover. This 1982 cookbook is terrifically popular today, with numerous reviewers proclaiming this cookbook one of the best—and containing the secret recipes family members refuse to share. This cookbook was released for the 100th anniversary of the Telephone Pioneers back in 1982. In 2017, it was on its 24th printing. You need it.

Cook Book: 1953 Cook Book Compiled by Buck Creek Ladies Aid, Buck Creek Church of the Brethren in Blountsville, Indiana (1953) (EBAY)
A black-and-white photo of a church opens this cookbook. It’s 1953. How could I pass this up? The intro shares how the church was organized in 1845, the building was constructed in 1867, and that the Ladies Aid was organized in 1914 and how there were fifteen original members. Then? They say they have all day meetings with a pitch-in dinner at noon. Wow.

Cookbook by Saint Edmund Women, Illustrations are Potato Prints by Jane Shaar
Seriously, guys. There are potato prints in it. I went down the rabbit hole trying to find more about this cookbook. There isn’t an introduction, nor is there a publication date, or a location. It doesn’t even say what church compiled the cookbook but with the “Monsignor” and “Sister” sprinkled throughout the book, it’s obviously a church cookbook. Fortunately, I figured it out! I had to start a free trial at a newspaper archival site but I found it. Taken from the June 9, 1974 Chicago News Journal by Laverne Schubert (and it was a rather BIG article under “Women’s Whirl”): “The 214 page volume is attractively designed with a sturdy cover suitable for standing alone and as a bonus feature is ringed for hanging the edition, containing favorite recipes of more than 200 members (all have been tried by Liz Noonan and her committee–Liz is the “Mother” of the book) has section illustrations artfully done by Jane Shaar and a multitude of hints in italic type to ponder over with intrigue…SNIP…Oh yes, one more thing, the book is only $4 per copy (all profits from the sale will assist with parish activities sponsored by the Women’s club) available at St. Edmund’s rectory…”

Cooking on Vinegar Hill: Friends and Family of Mt. Pulaski Grade School in Mt. Pulaski, Illinois (1995) (EBAY)
Jeez, this fundraising cookbook went into a second printing! That’s pretty good! It’s easy to see why. The book is large, with 374 total pages. Red chapter inserts divide the recipes and provide a place to enter favorite recipes and the page number within each section. That’s handy. Even kids got involved, and parents shared their kids’ favorite recipes so a recipe may list a parent’s name and then the child with their grade. So cute. My book has a purple highlighter marking favorite recipes.

Cookin’ From Scratch: Kniman United Methodist Church: Kniman United Methodist Women (1982 maybe) (EBAY)
An interior image is dated 1982 so maybe the cookbook was produced the same year? I don’t know. But I do know that Kniman, Indiana is one of the tiniest towns (villages?) ever (and also home to one of my top three pizza places, Kniman Tap). Bottomline? Yep, I had to have this one too. It’s yellow with a hen in an apron on the cover.

Cooking with Love Recipes Compiled by DeMotte United Methodist Church in DeMotte, Indiana (1994) (EBAY)
I know people who submitted recipes for this cookbook. I need to spend more time looking over this one.

Cook’s Corner Composed and Edited by the Elizabeth Circle of the First Presbyterian Church of Chicago Heights, Illinois, Rev. John R. Wyngarden, Pastor (second printing, no date) (EBAY)
Yeah, another Chicago Heights, Illinois cookbook. This one is old enough to have submissions from “Mrs. William so-and-so” again but lacks a date. It’s a sizable book. I dig it.

Cooperative Cooks: A Collection of Recipes by Cooperative School Services in Rensselaer, Indiana (2006) (EBAY)
Another fundraising cookbook to benefit a scholarship fund in memory of a teacher lost in a car accident.

The Cotton Country Collection: The Junior League of Monroe, Inc., Monroe, Louisiana (1972) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
I have been avoiding any more plastic ring-bound cookbooks to my shelves just because of the way they take up space and are hard to get to sit “right.” This cookbook was an exception. Inside my sixteenth print edition, there are wonderful illustrations with bits of color. It is worth it for those alone. It’s a large, 400+ page cookbook that will actually be used. A++.

Crossroads Cookin’: Hoosier Hospitality Cookbooks for the Benefit of the American Cancer Society, Indiana Division, Inc. (1984) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
Some recipes have “Hungarian” or “Dutch” or “Paraguayan” in bold on the top right. That’s what makes this cookbook unique. Some recipes are from other divisions and are then referenced, so there are items from Virginia, Connecticut, and Minnesota too.

Cumberland Homesteads Favorites: Selected Family Favorites from a Special Place in Tennessee by Cumberland Homesteads Tower Association (1987) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
This cookbook is full of homemade recipes. There are 558 pages! My used copy includes page numbers to the owner’s favorites. That’s my starting point.

Dolton-South Holland Junior Woman’s Club Presents All Frills (Unknown) (EBAY)
What year was this book produced? Why? Who compiled these recipes? No idea. Donna Dane drew the images and that’s all the book shares before it gets into the recipes … lots of excellent recipes.

First Presbyterian Church of Rensselaer (1997) (EBAY)
I’m assuming this cookbook is from 1997 because it’s a sesquicentennial church cookbook. Good stuff.

Favorite Recipes from Our Best Cooks Compiled by Ladies Guild of St. Peter Lutheran Church in Portage, Indiana (1982) (EBAY)
It’s a 100 year celebration. This church cookbook has such nice recipes in it (especially for veggies and bread) that I can’t let go. I’ll never let go.

Favorite Recipes of Michigan: Contains 900 Recipes from Women’s Club Leaders in Michigan (1964) (EBAY)
A fundraiser book distributed by the Zonta Club of Muskegon. Quality recipes covering the range, from appetizers to breads to desserts.

Favorite Recipes of St. John’s Rosary Society (1949) (EBAY)
This cookbook is a great vintage find. From the attractive plaid cover to the recipes inside, it’s a keeper.

Feeding the Flock: A Collection of Recipes by St. Augustine in Rensselaer, IN (2006) (EBAY)
I’ve held onto this cookbook because I lived in Rensselaer and recognize some of the names. So, I figure it has to be good.

Friends of the Library Cookbook
It cost me $2 at a Rensselaer, Indiana antique shop and it was worth it. This cookbook, again, doesn’t say what library these people are friends of, where it is located, or when it was published. Fortunately, I recognize some of the names so I know it had to be the Friends of the Library in Rensselaer. That’s lucky!

Guild for Christian Service Rehoboth Reformed Church in Lucas, Michigan (1976) (EBAY)
No church service times, no intro. Just a thanks to the cookbook committee and their names. Then, the recipes begin.

Home Cooking: DeMotte Elementary School (1994) (EBAY)
My mom served as co-chairman of the cookbook committee. It’s filled with family recipes. I have my grandma’s copy so there are her checkmarks and notes on what to “try.”

Home Cookin’ Recipes from Ladies Revitalizing Camp Auxiliary Charter Members in Celebration of Lake Region Christian Assembly’s 60th Anniversary, Crown Point, Indiana (1983) (EBAY)
View the first year officers from Portage, Dyer, Hebron, Wanatah, and Tinley Park, Indiana. Then flip through pages of recipes stating where the member lives and the church attended.

Into our Second Century by the School Sisters of St. Francis (1988) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
The link will take you to the original version. A chance wandering through a northwest Indiana antique shop (it’s since closed) led me to one of my all-time favorite and most-used cookbooks. This is a collection of recipes from the 1974 Centennial Recipe Book of the School Sisters of St. Francis and many more. I love it. I used this cookbook in the days before we had a Kid #2. Our oldest helped roll out the dough for homemade baked elephant ears. I made potato soup, beef stroganoff, potato salad, and rhubarb kuchen for the first time using this cookbook. My notes are everywhere and so is the previous owner’s recipe clippings and notes.

Mary and Martha 1997 Cookbook: St. Michael Lutheran Church in Hebron, Indiana (1997) (EBAY)
This cookbook looks like the blue binder my mom used to keep her typewritten recipes in. It’s sturdy! There are handy colored recipe tabs keeping submitted recipes in order.

Mary and Martha’s Recipes: Trinity United Methodist Church in Rensselaer, Indiana (2002) (EBAY)
I know a lot of the people who submitted recipes for this book. If you find one, get it. I’ve made good things from it.

Our Cookbook: Forty-Third Avenue Presbyterian Church (1967) (EBAY)
On the inside of the red cover, right after the title, there are two stick figures wearing dresses. One has “Vivian” underneath it and the other has “Joy.” That’s it. The recipes are great though many of the recipe submission authors are listed as Mrs. John so-and-so or Mrs. Henry so-and-so. You never get to know who the woman’s name was behind the recipe. The pages are actually tinted different colors. Really, it’s an excellent book with various bits of local advertising inside.

Our Favorite Recipes Compiled by United Methodist Women of Oxford, Indiana (1972) (EBAY)
“To Margie” reads the inside. This is a cute church cookbook with a greater variety of recipes than usual. It seems a little wider than these cookbooks usually are so there is plenty of white space to make it easy to follow a recipe. My copy was used and loved.

Our Lady of Grace Parish Presents The Melting Pot Vol. II (1977) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
The librarians of Our Lady of Grace School of Highland, Indiana presented this cookbook to benefit the school library. It’s good.

Over 800 Treasured Recipes: St. John’s Lutheran Church: Elgin, Illinois (1976) (EBAY)
My copy is falling apart from use. It’s a good one! There are more than 800 recipes and almost 400 pages.

Recipes from the Heart: St. Boniface 135th Anniversary Cookbook (2003) (EBAY)
It’s a collection of recipes by St. Boniface Council of Catholic Women in Monee, Illinois. I made the potato chip cookie recipe out of here years ago when I was just getting started.

Remington Sesquicentennial Cookbook: 150 Years 1860 to 2010 (2010) (EBAY)
I attended the Remington, Indiana Sesquicentennial Celebration. It was a hot, sticky day to sit through a parade with a hot, sticky toddler and a preschooler, but we did. Who am I to pass up a community cookbook?

Sharing Recipes: A Book of Favorite Recipes Compiled by Women and Friends of Sardis Missionary Baptist Church (1989) (EBAY)
Where is this church located? No idea. They don’t say anywhere inside this book. I picked it up in an antique shop ages ago because I liked what I saw (after I ignored the awful front cover).

Sharing Recipes: A Book of Favorite Recipes Compiled by Trinity League of Trinity Lutheran Church in Crown Point, Indiana (1989) (EBAY)
Of course I would have not one but TWO cookbooks with the same cover that I just can’t stand! I don’t even know why. But I hate it. However, it’s another excellent church cookbook so I guess I’m stuck looking at the thing.

Sharing Recipes: A Book of Favorite Recipes Compiled by Guild for Christian Service of First Reformed Church in South Holland, Illinois (1978) (EBAY)
The Circulation Service fundraising program was awfully busy. This is the third cookbook that is produced by this company. I don’t know if this one had the same cover, because someone else tore it off! See? It’s just that bad. This one opens with an image of the church, times for service, and the times for circle meetings with Esther, Lydia, and Ruth, or Lois, Naomi, or Dorcus. Someone LOVED the bread section–a kindred spirit—because there are splattered pages and “GOOD!” written next to several recipes. I guess I know where to begin.

Recipes of the Deep South Compiled by the Fellowship Club in Hattiesburg and Petal, Mississippi (1960s–Exact Date Not Included) (EBAY)
My copy states, “We are sending you this Cookbook POST PAID and FREE OF CHARGE. All we ask in return is that you read this and the next few pages carefully and the very next time your organization needs to make some money—send in the coupon on the pink sheet, which follows this one, for complete information on how your organization can make a lot of money. <snip> Your books pay for themselves.” Then there is another paragraph or so before this: “This cookbook is one of our older books which was rejected because of obvious defects and does not have multi-color covers, color divider pages and many other features of our new and improved books.” That’s some good advertising right there. It was also a cookbook someone used a great deal.

St. Cecilia’s Ladies Solidarity Cook Book, DeMotte, Indiana (1982) (EBAY)
Some church cookbooks are a little hokey but this one is well done. Spiral-bound and rather large, it also features colorful pages.

Winners: Winnings Recipes from the Junior League of Indianapolis (2007) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
The Junior League combed through 3,500 recipes, choosing the best of the best, to be included in this cookbook. First printed in 1985, it sold so well, thousands of copies have been printed since, with 55,000 copies total!

Wonderful Good Cooking From Amish Country Kitchens: Amish Pictures and Story: Authentic Amish Recipes by (Story and Images) by Fred J. Wilson (1974) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
Many pages are dedicated to sharing Amish life and lore. The recipes appear to have been whittled down to accommodate smaller “English” families. It’s a neat book and another handy reference when baking or cooking Amish-style.

Brand or Product Cookbooks, Pamphlets, and “Favorite Recipes of” Cookbooks

Collect cookbooks for awhile and eventually you will have cookbooks that are the favorite recipes of teachers or butchers or insurance agents in addition to the church and community cookbooks super popular in the 1980s and 1990s. They are so fun to flip through and read.

Favorite Recipes of Home Economics Teachers – Blue Ribbon Poultry Book (1973) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
Teacher-submitted recipes for the 1973 Blue Ribbon Food Fair. Five home economic teacher finalists were flown to Chicago “with their husbands” as the text reads, for an all-expenses paid weekend. They would have to make their dish and present it for judging. Judges included Jeanne Volte, the Food Editor for Women’s Day Magazine, Sue Spitler, the Food Editor for Sphere Magazine (I’m unfamiliar with that one), and Ruth Stovall, with a huge confusing title with the Alabama Department of Education. The winner, Margaret Bruce, won $2,500 bucks and received a hug from her minister-husband. Get this one. It’s neat! And who doesn’t have fond memories of home econ (even if I will swear to my dying day that teaching how to make clothing in sewing is outdated (maybe sewing a button and a patch, fine) but the focus should be on food)?

Favorite Recipes of Home Economics Teachers – Salads including Appetizers (1964) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
Well, when you enjoy one book in a series, you have to have the rest, right? Right? Riiiiiight? If there is one thing I have learned, it’s this: when you don’t know someone well, and there’s some sort of shared dinner thing happening, they will always ask you to bring a salad. In my younger days, I brought the stupid salad but I didn’t enjoy bringing the stupid salad. That’s when I learned to bake stuff and share it at the start so I wouldn’t end up with salad duty ever again. Still, this cookbook holds up (even if my copy keeps losing its cover).

Favorite Recipes of Home Economics Teachers – Meats edition including Seafood and Poultry: 384 Pages Containing 2000 Favorite Recipes (1962) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
Ruby H. signed her name in March of 1964. Here is what I want to know. Does she have a recipe in this book? Was she a home economics teacher? Or did she receive this copy as a gift or pick it up for herself? So many questions! It doesn’t look like she used it or, if she did, then she was a much tidier cook than I. That’s too bad. It’s a great cookbook. The teacher’s names, city, and school where they teach are all listed under each submitted recipe. Cool stuff.

The Favorite Recipes of Home Economics Teachers Cookbook: A Colorfully Illustrated Cookbook of 900 Favorite Recipes from America’s Leading Home Economists (1970) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
The whole “home economics teachers” recipes format must have been ridiculously popular “back in the day.” I own several different kinds from different publishers. They are so great! I love that you can see who submitted the recipe, what school they taught, and in what town or city. Occasional images add to the fun. My copy has a giant paperclip on the page of turkey items. A person after my own heart. Turkey is my favorite!

Metropolitan Cook Book: Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, Home Office: New York (1943) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
Get the kids in your life started on antique shops while they are young. Our boys are fans. They search for old toys, those old plastic army men or ninja to add to the backyard battlefield, in addition to Legos, board games, and books. I sometimes use their help to find either specific titles to keep an eye out for when they browse or to watch for something that looks like I might like it. They do a good job. The youngest and I found this one. The former owner scrawled her name across the back of it: Mrs. L. (something) Wainscott.

Old-Fashioned Zucchini Recipes (1979) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
Ha! This was published by Bear Wallow Books in Nashville, Indiana. Interesting! Zucchini everything is up in here. Flip to the back of the book to see the other “Old-Fashioned” titles available. You will laugh and be surprised!

Baker’s Chocolate and Coconut Recipes (1965) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
Just over seventy pages make up this chocolate lover’s booklet. Nice recipes using Baker’s brand chocolate.

Nakano Unexpected Favorites: 36 Great Recipes Featuring the Unexpectedly Light and Tangy Taste of Nakano (2009) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
I had to send in a card to get this freebie cookbook. Flipping through it again, I’m definitely interested in letting it see the light of day, and trying the Tangy Pan-Fried Potatoes. It’s a nice little cookbook. I’m glad I took two seconds to order it.

Kids in the Kitchen Special Edition 3 (1992) (EBAY)

The Ball Blue Book (1943) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
“This Ball Blue Book of Canning and Preserving Recipes is dedicated to the home canners of America in admiration of the magnificent contribution they are making to the nation’s food supply.” Nice dedication! In 1943, food vouchers were being used for items like coffee, meat, and cheese, on top of the rest of the rationed items. From the History network Food Rationing in Wartime America: “…local food boards were established to offer guidance, canning demonstrations and recipes with suitable replacements for the provisions that had become so limited. As a result of these conservation efforts, food shipments to Europe were doubled within a year, while consumption in America was reduced 15 percent between 1918 and 1919. Even after the war had ended, Hoover continued to organize shipments of food to the millions of people starving in central Europe as head of the American Relief Administration, earning him the nickname the “Great Humanitarian.”” Canning was so important. I’ve seen in more than one place, and read in more than one cooking history book, that well-fed soldiers are what won the war. This full-color cookbook contains canning time tables, instructions for canning everything from meat to poultry to game to fish, AND my copy has someone’s writing inside! There is a pinned-in place recipe on page 47 as well as notes and measurement changes. I mean a literal pin. A straight pin is holding the recipe in place.

Better Homes and Gardens Treasury of Cooking America’s Best Homemade Pies, Cakes, and Breads (?) (EBAY)
Grandma’s checkmarks are in this one too—including a question mark next to the recipe for Spicy Prune Whip Cake. I don’t get it either.

Woman’s Day Cookies and Sweet Treats Volume 5, Number 2 (1995) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
I feel like I can usually bypass today’s little cooking mags by grocery store checkouts. But show me an older mini mag and I am all over it!

Kroger Klippings: From Our Kitchen to Yours (1990) (EBAY)
This plastic ring-bound cookbook’s proceeds went to each Kroger store’s favorite local charity. This book was compiled by a cookbook committee in Zone 5 (wherever that is).

The Country Cooking Recipe Collection: Prize-Winning Beef (1993) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
You know recipe clippings? That’s what this one is–a bundle of clip-able, beef-related recipes ready to be snipped and saved.

Quick ‘N Easy Snack & Treat Cookbook: FREE When You Buy Karo Corn Syrup (1983) (EBAY)
My grandma must have loved this cookbook. The first page is spattered and covered in her writing (and checkmark). Other pages are the same, though one recipe is crossed out and “too dry” is written in the margin.

Country Kitchen Cookbook by the Grayson County News-Gazette of Leitchfield KY (?) (EBAY)
This looks old and is covered in a young child’s pen drawing on the front of it. The recipes include the name and the full address of the people who submitted them.

Recipes from the Backs of Boxes, Bottles, Cans, and Jars by Ceil Dyer (1981) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
This is a paperback book of recipes copied from…well, you already read the title, so you know. Every time I go through my cookbooks to make sure they are still relevant, I think about getting rid of it–until I open it up and look at the recipes. This is a usable book. Even now!

Party Recipe Ideas by Martha Logan and Swift’s Premium (1962) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
Cute images. This short and sweet pamphlet offers fun recipes that would still work in a party setting today. It’s only a few pages long but you have to love the vintage feel of it.

Hunt’s for the Best-Tasting Recipes (1982) (EBAY)
This pamphlet features recipe clippings on the inside. Garlic pork, Florentine casserole, and shoulder lamb chops with brown and wild rice are a few of the recipes. Not too shabby.

Fifty Favorite Casseroles from Current, Inc. (1992) (EBAY)
Do you remember the Current catalog? It was where my mom bought wrapping paper. I seem to remember getting an awesome pretend school set with all kinds of paper items. This cookbook is a good walk back in time to what my family was cookin’.

Have Fun: Northern Illinois Gas Company (1960s?) (EBAY)
This little booklet includes a poem about gas stoves. Groovy. It’s maybe a dozen pages, closing with instructions on how to make “Cassie Cleanup,” a terrifying drawing showing how you can create a person-thing using oven and kitchen essentials.

Good Food February 1942 (1942) (EBAY)
A menu covers the front left page, including page numbers for the recipes inside. On the right? “A stamp a day keeps the Axis away” headlines the top of the page. It’s a small booklet featuring wartime, war-friendly recipes.

Award-Winning Cake Recipes (Favorite All Time Recipes, Apr. 1992, Sp. Ed.) (1992) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
You can never have too many cake recipes. Never, ever. So, here’s one more little cookbook-y magazine devoted to them.

Wilton Beginners Guide to Cake Decorating (1981) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
Good tips so I’m keeping it in spite of the creepy clown on the front cover.

Wilton Candy Baking for Beginners: New and Revised Edition (1982) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
I love good chocolates…and this book is full of how to make them by myself, step-by-step.

Crockpot Cookery (1998) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
This is the first slow cooker cookbook I used. Yeah, that’s pretty obvious from all the spills in this one. These are the classic recipes your mom and grandma made in the 1990s. Most are fast to prep. Once you know what you are doing, it’s easy to improve upon the original to make a dish less reliant on canned foods and dry soup mixes.

Spiral-Bound Cookbooks

Cookin’ with Maudie, Volume I (1): Recipes From “The Budget” – The Amish Newspaper (1993) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
“It’s a “collection of recipes that have appeared in the “Cookin’ with Maudie” column in The Sugarcreek Budget during 1982, 1983, and 1984.” The Budget paper served Amish-Mennonite folks.

Amish Home Cooking with Elsa by Elsa Miller Kline: A Collection of Over 500 Tasty Recipes from Elsa (2002) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
Elsa’s introduction begins with the recipe requests she has received during her years working at Yoder’s Amish Home. She decided to make a cookbook with the recipes and to share what her grandmother and mother have taught her too. A cup & saucer illustration denotes the item featured on the front cover, while a teapot refers to her favorite recipes.

Healthy Snacks for Kids by Penny Warner (1983) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
This isn’t the cover of my book but it is the same book, from what I can tell, just re-released. Some of the recipes are…dated. But there are a few interesting ones.

Harvey Collins’ Drink Guide: A Leading Liquor Authority’s Definitive, Comprehensive Handbook” With Recipes for over 200 New and Traditional Mixed Drinks (1985) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
When you don’t have a clue how to mix drinks, you reach for a book like this. There are so many drinks in this book that I don’t even know. I like the way the author leaves space for recipes of your own too.

Beth Merriman’s Cookbook: From Soup to Nuts: Over 200 Easy, Family-Pleasing Recipes (1968) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
These are recipes received from Parade Magazine readers.

Tastes & Tales From Texas…With Love by Peg Hein (1984) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
All kinds of Illinois and Indiana cookbooks and then BAM! Texas pops up in there. Well, that’s what happens when you shop garage sales, antique shops, flea markets, and library book sales for cookbooks. You find things you may not have been able to find otherwise. Many recipes include stories (which I love). I’m not alone. My copy proclaims “over 100,000 sold.”

Magazines

Pies & Pastries House of White Birches Home Guides (1993) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
The cover shows an “Exquisitely Rich French Silk Pie!” image. You would think it’s a cooking mag devoted to dessert pies but there are main dish pies here too.

Cookbook Digest September/October 1993 Kids in the Kitchen (1993) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
What’s cool about this cookbook? It features recipes from new cookbooks. Well, the new cookbooks of 1993 anyway. Rediscover something you missed before.

Betty Crocker Booklets

Okay, so some of these also list Gold Medal Flour. I’m not dividing them up so…here they are in order of year of publication.

• Betty Crocker’s Picture Cooky Book: 128 of the Most Popular Tested Recipes from Her Collection…with 70 “How to Do” Tips, 50 Success Pointers, and 175 Illustrations (1948) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
  Do you love those vintage illustrations? If you love them as I love them, get this book.
• Betty Crocker’s Frankly Fancy Foods Recipe Book (1959) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
  Ah, this cover! Pink and aqua and orange. Shrimp and some sort of pie. It’s so good–just like the vintage recipes inside. It is a small one–26 pages including the index. But, oh, I think it’s adorable.
• Gold Medal Holiday: Gifts Desserts Breads Cookies No. 45 (2003?) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Gold Medal New Recipes for Your Bread Machine No. 17 (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Gold Medal Holiday Cookies No. 28 (2000) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Betty Crocker Fall Baking #257 (October/November 2010) (EBAY)

Culinary Arts Institute Small Magazines

Those 1950s magazines are the best! These are no exception. With full-color cover images, color interiors with plenty of illustrations, and the occasional black-and-white image thrown in for good measure, these items are a wonderful walk back in time. Yet, surprisingly, still useful today. One of the titles below cracks me up! Can you guess which one?

• Brunch Breakfast and Morning Coffee: 262 Exciting Breakfast and Brunch Recipes (1955) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• 500 Tasty Snacks Ideas for Entertaining (1955) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• The Casserole Cookbook: 175 Main Dish and Dessert Casseroles (1956) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• 500 Delicious Dishes from Leftovers (1955) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• The Lunch Box Cookbook: 336 Taste-Tempting Lunch Box Foods (1955) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Sunday Night Suppers: 161 Chafing Dish and Other Specialties (1956) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Quick Dishes for the Woman in a Hurry: 332 Recipes in 30 Minutes or Less #101 (1955) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• 250 Breads Biscuits and Rolls (1955) (AMAZON) (EBAY)

Encyclopedia of Cooking by the Culinary Arts Institute

• 250 Ways to Prepare Poultry and Game Birds #4 (1952) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• 250 Superb Pies and Pastries #5 (1949) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• 500 Delicious Salad Recipes: 500 Tempting Salads and Dressings #7 (1955) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• 250 Ways to Prepare Meat #8 (1955) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• 250 Different Fish and Seafood Recipes #9 (1955) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• 300 Ways to Serve Eggs: 300 Ways to Prepare Eggs #10 (1954) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• 250 Ways to Serve Fresh Vegetables #11 (1953) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• 250 Delectable Dessert Recipes #12 (1954) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• 250 Ways of Serving Potatoes #13 (1955) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• 500 Tasty Sandwich Recipes: 500 Ways to Make Tasty Sandwiches #14 (1954) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• 250 Luscious Refrigerator Desserts #16 (1954) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• The Cookie Book: 250 Cookie and Small Cake Recipes #17 (1958) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• 250 Sauces Gravies and Dressings #20 (1952) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Meals for Two Cookbook #21 (1958) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Body Building Dishes for Children #22 (1954) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• 2000 Useful Facts about Food #23 (1954) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Menus for Every Day of the Year #24 (1954) (AMAZON) (EBAY)

Good Housekeeping Small Magazines

If you have never seen these mini mags before, and you love vintage things, check them out. From the fantastic illustrations to the use of color, and even the recipes themselves, these little booklets are excellent.

• Good Housekeeping’s Appetizer Book: Irresistible Canapés, Hors d’oeuvres, and Nibblers (1958) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Book of Vegetables: to Tempt the Most Reluctant Appetites (1958) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Book of Bread and Sandwiches: Dainty or Hardy for Picnic or Party (1958) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Casserole Book: Oven Dishes–Easy to Prepare and Serve (1958) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Quick ‘N’ Easy Cook Book: Time-Saver Dishes for Today’s Busy Woman (1958) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Hamburger and Hot Dog Book: Novel Uses for America’s Favorite Meats (1958) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Egg and Cheese Spaghetti and Rice Dishes: Tempting, Satisfying, and Flavor-Filled (1958) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Company Meals and Buffets: with Menus to Make Entertaining Easy (1958) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Book of Delectable Desserts: Some Quickies–Some for Weight-Watchers (1958) (AMAZON) (EBAY)

Good Housekeeping Paperback Cookbook Series

What’s not to love about a 15-cookbook series offering color pics and illustrations, plus plenty of great recipes that each revolve around their own theme? These are amazing. My only regret is that the antique shop didn’t have all of them, so my set is incomplete.

I would love to have the rest of these. I can’t stop reading them. My copies were used and, in The Guide to Good Cooking, there is a place to jot down favorite recipes from these books. The former owner of my copy did just that.

• Good Housekeeping’s Guide to Good Cooking: Cooking Hints and Tips to Make Even Good Cooks Better Ones Plus the Index to all of Good Housekeeping’s Fabulous “15.” (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Cooking with Susan: Our Famous Young Cook Takes you on a Step-by-Step Tour through a Culinary Wonderland of Simply Fabulous Recipes 1 (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Meat and Other Main Dishes: Ever-Popular Meat Moves Over to Share the Limelight with Poultry, Fish, Shellfish, Rice, and Pastas You Will Love 6 (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Soups/Salads/Sandwiches: These No-Chore, No-Bore Recipes are our S-S-S-solution for These Trying Times: Brunch-Time, Lunch-Time, Snack-Time 7 (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Cooking for the Family: Budget-Conscious Menus and Recipes with an Eye on Flavor—Adaptable to Any Size Family with Any Family-Size Appetite 8 (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Cooking for Company: No-Panic, No-Fail Menus and Recipes to Make Entertaining Easy—Certain to Impress even the Most Discriminating Guests 9 (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Perfect Parties: Birthday Parties, Holiday Parties, 5 PM Parties, 10 PM Parties, No-Reason Parties, More-Perfect Parties 10 (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Clock-Watcher’s Cookbook: Recipes to Help Cut Down on Your Kitchen-Time by Cooking with Convenience Foods/How to Make the Most of Your Freezer 11 (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Suppertime Cookbook: Suppers for all the seasons—Some from the Skillet, Some from the Oven, Some so Simple that they need no Cooking 12 (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Keep Cool Cookbook: Worry-Free, Light-Hearted Recipes to Beat the Heat in the Kitchen, on the Porch, or Right in Your Own Backyard 13 (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Foods with Foreign Flavor: Recipes from ‘Round the World Adapted to American Kitchens and American Tastes 0151 But with Authentic, Foreign Flavor 14 (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Good Housekeeping’s Complete Christmas Cookbook: Tis the Season to Be Jolly about our Great Collection of Menus, Recipes, and Gifts to Make Your Holidays Happier 15 (AMAZON) (EBAY)

McCall’s Cookless Cookbook

• McCall’s Practically Cookless Cookbook, Vol. 3 (1978) (AMAZON) (EBAY)

Southern Living

• America’s Best Baking Recipes (October 1996) (AMAZON) (EBAY)

• Women’s Circle Home Cooking (AMAZON) (EBAY)

• Creative Cooking: Item 604
• April 1976 Vol. 4, No. 4
• 1976 Christmas Special: Special Holiday Issue
• February 1979 Vol. 7, No. 2
• March 1980 Vol. 8, No. 3
• April 1980 Vol. 8, No. 4
• December 1982 Vol. 10, No. 12
• 1982 Christmas Special
• November 1983 Vol. 11, No. 11
• December 1986 Vol. 14, No. 12
• December 1988 Vol.
• Christmas Feasts 1988
• June 1989 Vol. 17, No. 6
• July 1989 Vol. 17, No. 7
• September 1991 Vol. 19, No. 9
• February 1992 Vol. 20, No. 2
• December 1992 Vol. 20, No. 12
• August 1994 Vol. 22, No. 8
• March 1998 Vol. 26, No.3
• April 1998 Vol. 26, No. 4
• June 1999 Vol 27, No. 6
• January 2000 Vol. 28, No. 1
• September 2000 Vol. 28, No. 9
• February 2002 Vol. 30, No. 2
• September/October 2003 Vol. 31, No. 5
• March/April 2004 Vol. 32, No. 2

• The Good Food Magazine November 1987 (AMAZON) (EBAY)

Taste of Home

• Cookies for Christmas from Taste of Home Books (2001) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Classic Casseroles (2003) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Holiday Entertaining (2004) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Christmas Classics (2006) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Homestyle Classics (2008) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Simple & Delicious Dinner in 30! 82 Must Try Recipes ( April/May 2016) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Simple & Delicious Ready in 30! 92 Must-Try Recipes (June/July 2016) (AMAZON) (EBAY)

Pillsbury

• Pillsbury 7th Grand National Cookbook: Here are the $25,000 Rolls Recipe Inside: 100 Easy-to-Follow Prize-Winning Recipes (1956) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
  Ah, these are such excellent magazines. Ninety-seven women, one man, and two teenage boys participated in the big Grand National contest. Contest winners images included.

• Fun-Filled Butter Cookbook Cookbook: 50 Recipes from Ann Pillsbury’s Recipe Exchange including Favorite Grnd National Prize Winners (1956) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
  I’m assuming 1956 is the correct year for this little mag. It’s cute! The recipes share who made them, what contest the recipe ranked in, and what the recipe won. Very cool.

• 100 New Bake-Off Recipes from Pillsbury’s 16th Grand National (1965) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
  A teenager from Florida won the $25,000 prize. Can you imagine? I hope it changed her life for the better. She was only 17. This cookbook is great. I love the way its arranged and the images here and there throughout. The names and locations of the recipe authors are included (and I especially enjoy reading those). The best part? The recipes are actually homemade.

• Bake-Off Cook Book: From the 19th Annual Bake Off…100 Prize Winning Recipes…Short-Cutted and Up-to-Dated by Pillsbury (1968) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
  I adore these bake-off cookbooks. I want them all! My copy still includes a coupon in the front for a “Free Beautiful New Herb & Spice Chart.” Awesome. In the back of the book, is an entry form for the 1969 Pillsbury Bake Off. The contest closed October 25, 1968, so I guess I missed it by a little.

• Pillsbury America’s Bake-Off Cookbook: 100 Winning Recipes From Pillsbury’s 29th Annual Bake-Off (1977) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Fresh Fruits and Vegetables Cookbook, Pillsbury Classics #28 (1983) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Chocolate Lovers: Our Most Irresistible and Requested Recipes (Pillsbury Classic Cookbooks #84 (1988) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Real Home Baking: Pillsbury Classic Cookbooks #165 (November 1994) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• The Million Dollar Bake Off: Pillsbury Classic Cookbooks #182 (April 1996) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Best of the Holidays: Appetizers, Cookies, and More: Pillsbury Classics #285 November 2004 (2004) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Appetizers Desserts and Meals: Classic Cookbooks #298 (2005) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Holiday Baking: Classic Cookbooks #309 (November 2006) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Pillsbury Slow Cooker (Pillsbury Classics #339) (January 2010) (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Simply from Scratch Recipes: More than 90 Delightful Down-Home Flour Recipes with Traditional Home-Baked Quality (1977) (AMAZON) (EBAY)

Favorite Brand Name Recipes

• Holiday Desserts No. 26 (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Church Recipes Vol. 8, No. 43 (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• All New Bread Machine Recipes No. 55 (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Hearty Soups and Stews No. 68 (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Best Recipes Treasury of Christmas Recipes No. 68 (AMAZON) (EBAY)
• Treasury of Christmas Recipes (1993) (AMAZON) (EBAY)

Better Homes and Gardens Hometown Cooking

Find magazines here: (AMAZON) (EBAY)

• April 2000
• February 2000
• October 2000

From the Kitchens of Martha Stewart Living: Everyday Food

I find this style of magazine irresistible. I just love the small size and, since it’s Martha, what’s inside is “a good thing.” (AMAZON) (EBAY)

• October 2008 Issue 56
• March 2012 Issue 90
• July/August 2012 Issue 94

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