My favorite Indian cookbook begins, "This book has been written as a gradual maneuver in self-defense."
It's a vintage First Edition copy of Madhur Jaffrey's An Invitation to Indian Cooking, printed in 1973, at which time it retailed for $7.95. I bought my copy for a dollar at a used book sale.
Posted by Jaelithe
I collect vintage cookbooks. Betty Crocker's Dinner for Two Cook Book, published in 1958, is one of my favorites. I don't believe in buying cookbooks just to keep them on the shelf, and you can tell I've actually used this one a lot, because it's falling apart.
I acquired it while I was in college, cooking small meals on a budget, and although many of its recipes are quite old-fashioned, it contains a lot of random good advice that is still applicable today.
Of course, it also displays some rather antiquated attitudes about a woman's role as cook and housekeeper:
Whatever its notions about my life as a "business girl," this book taught me how to make pie crusts from scratch, for which I will be eternally grateful.
