Toast! Photocopy style.

Check out this darling, yellow and yellowing paperback for kids, published by...

XEROX?

I love finding children's cookbooks because they take me back to my own childhood, and the books given to me as gifts. The ones I had contained recipes for things like handmade soft pretzels, ants on a log, and tuna boats.

This little guy came out a little later than the ones in my mom's kitchen. Look at the cuteness:

It is copyrighted 1972, and was given as a gift three years later.

Instead of handmade pretzels, ants on a log, and tuna boats, this book contains deviled eggs, pomanders, and Miracle Pie.

More importantly, it has multiple recipes for toast. Three to be exact, and none of them made in the toaster. Here are two, in case you are hungry. Something sweet, and something savory.

Now I'm off to Google why XEROX published a cookbook for kids.

Coffee 2 ways

Here are two recipes for coffee from Meals for Small Families. The second one is both fascinating and revolting.

Coffee

For 1 person:

2 tablespoonfuls ground coffee

1 cup cold water

Mix the coffee and water together, cover closely and let stand all night. In the morning bring this to a boil and serve. When poured carefully it will be as clear as amber.

For a small pot:

1 cup ground coffee

1 egg and shell

This amount will make 3 pots for 3 successive mornings, by using one third and keeping the remainder closely covered. Take one-third of the mixture (the egg and coffee mixed together) and add 1/3 cup of water, mixing well; pour into coffee pot and add 1 pint boiling water. Let the coffee boil 3 minutes. Remove from fire and keep hot on stove for 5 minutes (not boiling) and serve.

Canning as art?

Canning as art form! And I can't manage to make a batch of refrigerator pickles.

Where there's smoke, there might be cigarettes

This book was my cocktail hour reading a few weeks ago. I had to pick it up, because just look at the cover!

I love the way the graphic floats dreamily on the green background, pretending it's real grass. Peering into the scene, I can almost taste the creamy, cigarette-ash flavored cheese, and the sugary zing of the Riesling. Unfortunately the book's contents were very disappointing, so don't rush out to buy it. But it did get me thinking about the whole smoke while you eat thing. 

Or even, smoke while you cook. 

And so I went in search of books which seem to combine the two. I couldn't find many, but check this one out:

What I don't understand is if she's so busy, why is she simply standing still, holding a spoon and staring deep into the burning ember? You'd think she'd at least turn toward the stove and give a pot a stir. Makes me think there's more than just tobacco in that cigarette.

Contrast this woman:

I like her a great deal more. Unlike with the previous book, this lady doesn't bother pretending. She's going to sit down and enjoy herself, and she doesn't care who knows it. Bubbling pots be damned.

Given how common smoking was, I'm surprised I couldn't find more cookbooks with smoking women on the cover. I uncovered a handful with pipe-smoking men manning barbecue grills, but that's not what I was looking for. If you come across photos of lady smokers at the stove, please share them with us on the Cookbook Love Facebook page, and we'll be happy to feature them.

Random Acts of Cookery

It's rainy and blustery, gray and daunting outside.

I'm making guacamole, thawing a cheap steak, roasting a winter squash, and cooking down a ham bone for stock. None of these activities as yet has any connection to any of the others.

Random acts of cookery. That's what a gray day can do to a soul.

On your mark, pencils set, now WRITE!

We told you there was news afoot, and the day has come to announce it!

In honor of all of you who love to share your memories about kitchens and cooking past, we are putting together a book. Written by YOU!

100 entries will be included in the book. Winners will be based on how well you pull us into the scene as you describe it. So be as descriptive as you can, incorporate your emotions, involve the senses, and generally offer us some good writing.

Gorgeous, full color books will be available shortly after Thanksgiving. Write about a loved one and you just might be able to give them a copy of their story for Christmas!

The contest ends at 11:59pm September 30, 2015.

Now get writing, and GOOD LUCK!

Click here to submit your story.

Click here to get your basic questions answered.

Click here to read the legalese.

NOTE: A $20 submission fee helps us cover all the costs associated with producing the book. While fees like this are common in the writing contest world, we WISH we could offer it for free. Unfortunately our pockets are already inside out and threadbare, and so in order to get your memories in print we have no choice but to include the fee.

How do you want your book to look?

We are working on cover designs for the Cookbook Love Kitchen Memories book. Ideas so far have included:

• A collage of recipes, cookbook covers, and vintage appliance photos.
• Era-inspired drawings of people cooking in their vintage fripperies. 
• A simple, clean design with minimal images.

But this is really YOUR book, so we'd love to hear YOUR ideas. What do you think would make an eye catching and appropriate cover for a book of kitchen memory essays?