The American Woman’s Cook Book 1939 Berolzheimer

📖 The American Woman’s Cook Book, edited by Ruth Berolzheimer for the Culinary Arts Institute (Chicago, 1939) — a comprehensive, thumb-indexed hardcover home reference of mid-century American cooking. This copy is complete and fully intact, in Very Good- condition.

QUICK FACTS

• Title: The American Woman’s Cook Book
• Editor: Ruth Berolzheimer, Director, Culinary Arts Institute
• Publisher: Published for the Culinary Arts Institute by Consolidated Book Publishers, Inc., Chicago
• Year: 1939 (first edition, matching dates on title page and copyright verso)
• Format: Hardcover, cloth boards | Dust jacket: Not present
• Pages: 816 (vi + 816) | ISBN: None (pre-ISBN era)
• Thumb index: Yes — crisp, functional cut-out tabs by section
• Condition: Very Good- (VG-) — full report below

THE STORY

Edited by Ruth Berolzheimer, Director of the Culinary Arts Institute, this 1939 volume descended from the Delineator Cook Book and Delineator Home Institute (edited by Mildred Maddocks Bentley, with Martha Van Rensselaer and Flora Rose of Cornell University’s College of Home Economics credited among the contributors). It is a time capsule of pre-WWII American domestic life, spanning hundreds of recipes from “Roast Beef with Yorkshire Pudding” to complex pastries, together with meal planning, household tips, and hosting guidance.

ILLUSTRATIONS

The interior features numerous full-color and black-and-white photographic illustrations of finished dishes, with corporate credits such as “Courtesy of Carnation Milk Company” and “Wheat Flour Institute.” A full-page dessert spread shows an elaborate silver tray of petit fours and pastries, capturing the era’s presentation standards.

THIS EDITION

A substantial thumb-indexed hardcover (the metal edge tab cut-outs remain crisp and functional), bound in pine-green cloth with maroon lettering on the front board and spine reading “The American Woman’s Cook Book” with “Culinary Arts Institute.” This 1939 first edition carries matching dates on the title page and copyright verso.

WHY IT MATTERS

• Key pre-war American cookery reference published for the Culinary Arts Institute
• Descent from the Delineator Cook Book connects it to early 20th-century women’s magazine publishing
• Heavily illustrated with period food photography and credited industry photography
• Held in library collections including the Prelinger Library (Internet Archive digitization)

FREQUENTLY ASKED

Who edited this cookbook? Ruth Berolzheimer, Director of the Culinary Arts Institute. It descended from the Delineator Cook Book edited by Mildred Maddocks Bentley.

What condition is it in? Very Good- (VG-): strong pine-green cloth boards with minor rubbing, clean pages with light age-toning, tight binding, crisp thumb index — full report below.

Is the dust jacket included? No, the dust jacket is not present.

FOR COLLECTORS

This is the complete 1939 first edition of the Culinary Arts Institute’s flagship American cookery reference, with the distinctive thumb-indexed fore-edge intact and functional — a desirable detail on this volume.

Condition Report

Overall Grade: Very Good- (VG-)

Cover & Spine: The pine green cloth-wrapped boards are in strong condition with minor rubbing at the extremities. Lettering on the front board and spine remain distinct. Spine is rolled as is typical for this volume due to thickness and countertop use.

Dust Jacket: Not present.

Text Block & Pages: The pages are surprisingly clean, free of stains or marks, exhibiting light, uniform age-toning. The text block is robust; the thumb-indexed cutouts are crisp and functional, not worn as is often seen.

Binding: The binding is tight, hinges are strong, not split. No loose, torn or folded pages.

See accompanying images for full condition details.

Will ship promptly, carefully packaged.

HFB-SEO-v1: 2026-08-20

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