Thank you for taking the time to check out Vintage Recipes.

Several years ago, I found myself in possession of my grandmother’s “recipe box.”  This box is no ordinary recipe box that holds 3×5 index cards — this is a Tupperware box measuring 12 inches square and six inches tall.  My grandmother called this Tupperware container her “breadbox.”  Rightfully named, because I remember her always keeping a loaf of bread and a large box of Saltine crackers in the box.  I do not know what the folks at Tupperware designed the box for, but it made a great breadbox.  When she moved into an assisted living facility, her many handwritten recipes, newspaper clippings, and a notebook containing her favorite recipes were loaded into the “breadbox” for safekeeping.  

I knew that I wanted to do something with her recipes.  My grandmother was born in 1916, married and became a homemaker in rural Mississippi, and became part of The Greatest Generation.  True to her depression upbringing, I do not recall her ever owning a published cookbook, only the notes, and clippings that she accumulated over the years.  Sure she collected the occasional church publication or the homemaker’s club cookbook, but she became a fantastic cook without the help of Betty Crocker or Fanny Farmer.  You will not find a recipe for Beef Wellington or Trout Almandine among her collection, but you will find recipes for simple, down-home, comfort food. 

My first thought was to scan the images and create a family cookbook to share with my family.  I started that process several years ago, but I did not get far before I put the project to the side.  I would recall the project from time to time, but I never made the time to resume progress.  Several months ago, I had the thought that I should adjust my plan to create a family cookbook and scan the images and share them online, with my family and the entire interwebs. 

I am currently working on scanning and transposing my grandmother’s handwritten recipes first; then I will move on to the numerous newspaper clippings in the collection.   During this process, I have realized that the handwritten recipe collection is one of the simplest forms of vernacular art produced.  A creation formed out of functional needs to document and organize a cook’s favorite recipes, long before Pinterest.  I have a newfound appreciation for the “recipe collection” art form.  I have begun collecting other collections, and I plan on sharing them with you as well.  Not only will I share the recipes, but I will share any information about the original owner that I can obtain. 

If you find yourself in possession of a large recipe box and would like to share them on this site, please leave me a message here.