Cookbooks Through the Ages

 By Bruce Shawkey

So many cookbooks have been published since the beginning of time that it's impossible to even estimate the number. However, we can estimate the number of cookbooks based on available historical data and the ongoing production of new cookbooks. Thirty-seven thousands cookbook titles were published in 2022 in the United States alone.

Here's a breakdown of what's known and how to estimate:

1. Early Cookbooks:

The earliest known written recipes date back to ancient Mesopotamia, around 1700 BCE, in the form of clay tablets. These were likely for religious rites. 

2. Printed Cookbooks:

The first printed cookbook, Bartolomeo Platina's "De honesta voluptate et valetudine," appeared in 1474. This was just 19 years after the Gutenberg Bible, the first mechanically printed book. 

Here's just one example from a recipe book published in 1911, emphasizing what do with leftovers. The section on leftover fruit that can be repurposed for sauces, topping, jellies and jam. It can be mixed in with cakes, muffins, and quick breads, and mixed in the pudding.