The Modern Family Cookbook by Meta Given

The Modern Family Cookbook by Meta Given, her first cookbook, was first published in 1942. When the “New Revised Edition” was published in 1961, which is shown above, there were “over 1,250,000 copies in print”.  According to the biographical information in  Ms. Given’s Modern Encylopedia of Cooking, she started cooking at a young age on her family’s farm in Missouri. The appreciation for cooking and the practical farming methods she observed on the farm during her youth led her to study home economics and later teach home economics. The Modern Family Cookbook and her Encyclopedia of Modern Cooking which was published in two volumes in 1947 were all revised and reprinted during the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s.  Ms. Given’s works were influential in the lives and kitchens of many mid-century cooks and homemakers.

One can clearly see Ms. Given’s background as a Home Economist as the first seventy pages of The Modern Family Cookbook are dedicated to topics of home economics – Altitude Cookery, Meal Planning, Diet Patters, Sample Menus, Food for Children, Stretching the Food Dollar, Tin Cans and Their Contents, Freezing Foods, Care of Food in the Home, Measurements, and the Cook’s Creed. 

The Cook’s Creed

 

The health of my family is in my care; therefore – 

I will preserve as far as possible the nutritive elements in the foods which are delivered to me. 

My family’s enjoyment of food is in my care; therefore – 

I will preserve and enhance the attractive qualities of the foods with which I work.

Stretching the food dollar is part of my responsibility; therefore –

I will take such care of foods that none will spoil. I will use left-overs with thought and skill.

A well-prepared dish and an appetizing meal are a creative achievement; therefore –

I shall derive happiness from work itself.

Good food is prime importance to my family; therefore –

I shall take pride in doing an outstanding job of cooking. 

In the section in which Ms. Given makes menu suggestions, she creates for the reader a daily menu for a week, for each month.  Do the math, that is 3 meals a day – Breakfast, Luncheon, and Dinner for 7 days a week, for 12 months – that is 252 menus and a countless number of recipes which are referenced in the cookbook.  She indicates that the menu suggestion is “a week’s guide using seasonal foods in thrifty balanced menus”.  Here is a Saturday menu for the month of January:

• Breakfast 
  • Tangerines
  • Whole Wheat Muffins with Butter
  • Fried Sliced Luncheon Meat
  • Jelly
  • Coffee for Adults, Cocoa for Children
• Luncheon 
  • Macaroni with Cheese Sauce
  • Stewed Tomatoes
  • Celery Cabbage, Raw
  • Bread and Butter
  • Cupcakes
  • Tea for Adults, Milk for Children
• Dinner
  • Quick-baked Pike
  • Parsley Buttered Potatoes
  • Green Beans with Onions
  • Bread and Butter
  • Peach Salad
  • Cocoa Puff
  • Coffee for Adults and Milk for Children

The Saturday menu for June is:

• Breakfast
  • Sugared Strawberries with Cream
  • Prepared Cereal with Top Milk
  • Cinnamon Toast
  • Coffee for Adults and Milk for Children
• Luncheon
  • Green Beans
  • Toast with Welch Rarebit
  • Radishes
  • Bread and Butter
  • Stewed Rhubarb
  • Tea for Adults and Milk for Children
• Dinner 
  • Swiss Steak
  • Mashed Potatoes
  • Creamed New Cabbage
  • Lettuce with Russian Dressing
  • Whole Wheat Bread and Butter
  • Watermelon
  • Coffee for Adults and Milk for Children

An Easter Sunday Dinner Menu is also included with the March daily menu suggestions. 

• Easter Sunday Dinner
  • Roast Leg-of-Lamb with Brown Gravy
  • Oven-Baked Potatoes
  • Broccoli, Buttered
  • Mint Jelly or Currant Jelly
  • Celery Curls, Pickles
  • Cloverleaf Rolls
  • Meringue-decorated Apple Pie
  • Decorated Easter Eggs to Fancy Up the Table

The sections of the cookbooks are as follows:

• Beverages
• Breads
• Cake
• Candy
• Cereals
• Cheese
• Cookies
• Desserts
• Eggs
• Fish
• Meat
• Meat Sundries
• Pastry and Pies
• Poultry
• Preserving and Canning
• Salads
• Sandwiches
• Sauces
• Soup
• Vegetables
• Deep Fat Frying
• Leftovers
• Miscellaneous Recipes
• Glossary of Terms Used in Cooking
• Index

The cookbook has a few color photographs throughout the cookbook.  The listed ingredients of each recipe are printed in red ink and the method is printed in black ink. Below are a few selected recipes from the cookbook.