An oldie, a classic and a good one this week. Mrs Beeton’s ‘All About Cookery’ is an incredible book, which must have hundreds if not a thousand recipes, dishes and ideas of what to cook. My copy was given to me recently by my father. He has had it for years but has now passed it down to me. It is in very good condition and is absolutely fascinating in the way language was used in the late 1800s, with plenty of pages for advertising cookware, gelatine and biscuits, and showing off by using French terms and cooking methods.

It must have been a book for the middle to upper classes as I do not imagine folk living in the slums of the big cities had access to woodcock, ptarmigan, or veal to make delicious cutlets. They would have recipes handed down from mother to daughter, but very little would be written. So reading this (and it does take some time to get through it), is interesting. A September dinner for 6 to 12 persons had turbot in a cream sauce, sirloin of beef, damson tart, partridges. This food was only for those who could afford it.

Nonetheless, this is a great book for finding a dish or using an ingredient that you may never have cooked before and using a different technique. I guess many households have a Mrs Beeton tucked away. She must have made quite a few shillings from her writing. This copy is in remarkable condition. Keep your eyes peeled in the charity shops for a copy.