Th. Mayer Recipe Book
SPEC.RARE.0063
Ohio State University Libraries Special Collections
1
0.11 Cubic feet
1860-1878
Francois Pierre de la Varenne was the first French chef to write a cookbook detailing the culinary developments of the 1600s, called
Le Cuisinier Francois. He was the first to document ideas like reduction sauces, bisques, and bouquet garni, which are all staples of modern French cooking, and wrote the first comprehensive book on French pastry making,
Le Patissier Francois in 1653. French cuisine continued to be refined throughout the 18th and 19th century, particularly after the Revolution, when chef Marie-Antoine Carême introduced classifications of sauces and popularized the idea of haute cuisine. The Th. Mayer Recipe Book is a handwritten notebook, dated 1860-1878, with "Th. Mayer, confiseur patisier de Thann Haut Rhin, France, 1860," written on the front cover, indicating the author worked as a pastry chef in Thann, Haut-Rhin, France. It contains a variety of recipes for edible and non-edible items. Food recipes include mainly desserts, sweets, and pastry, with accompanying sketches and diagrams to show what they should look like when finished. The recipes are complex, likely meant for special occasions or gourmet restaurants, indicative of the
haute cuisine trend that was developing in France at the time. The book is written almost entirely in French.
(1) flat box
French, English
Mayer, Th.
Acquisitions Information
Accession No. RARE.2015.0025: Purchased, 2015 June
Preferred Citation
[identification of item], Th. Mayer Recipe Book, SPEC.RARE.0063, Rare Books and Manuscripts Library, Ohio State University
Access to Materials
Materials in this collection are available for use, but may be used in the Thompson Library Special Collections reading room only.
Use of Materials
Materials in this collection may be protected by copyright, and are made available for research and educational purposes. In general, the OSU Libraries do not own the copyright for materials from our collections and cannot grant copyright permissions for these materials. The user is responsible for making a final determination of copyright status. If copyright protection applies, permission must be obtained from the copyright holder to reuse, publish, or reproduce the work beyond the bounds of fair use or other exceptions to the law. Works in the public domain are not protected by copyright and do not require permission to use.
Processing Information
Processed by: Beth Crowner, 2019 July; Finding aid written by: Beth Crowner, 2019 July
Historical Note
Recipes are a set of instructions for preparing a particular dish, including a list of the ingredients required. They have been written for many centuries for food dishes, as well as cosmetics and medicinal cures. French cuisine was originally similar to Moorish cuisine during 800-1300, but began to be influenced by Italian cuisine from 1300-1500. Francois Pierre de la Varenne (1615-1678) was the first French chef to write a cookbook detailing the culinary developments of the 1600s, called
Le Cuisinier Francois. He was the first to document ideas like reduction sauces, bisques, and bouquet garni, which are all staples of modern French cooking, and wrote the first comprehensive book on French pastry making,
Le Patissier Francois in 1653. French cuisine continued to be refined throughout the 18th and 19th century, particularly after the Revolution, when chef Marie-Antoine Carême introduced classifications of sauces and popularized the idea of haute cuisine.
Th. (Thomas?) Mayer worked as a pastry chef in Haut Rhin, France, from 1860-1878.
Scope and Contents
The Th. Mayer Recipe Book is a handwritten notebook, dated 1860-1878, with "Th. Mayer, confiseur patisier de Thann Haut Rhin, France, 1860," written on the front cover, indicating the author worked as a pastry chef in Thann, Haut-Rhin, France. It contains a variety of recipes for edible and non-edible items. Food recipes include mainly desserts, sweets, and pastry, with accompanying sketches and diagrams to show what they should look like when finished. The recipes are complex, likely meant for special occasions or gourmet restaurants, indicative of the
haute cuisine trend that was developing in France at the time. Non-edible recipes include fireworks, eau de cologne, colored ink, absinthe, rat poison, and others. The book is written almost entirely in French with 4 pages in English, and the end of the book contains an index of recipes, as well as a design for a “percolator” and three pages of notes on French measurements. A ticket to the Tuileries, which would have been in ruins at the time, is also included in the book, dated 1878. The recipe book was owned by prominent cookbook collector, Eloise Schofield, and contains her embossed seal.
Mayer, Th.
Confectionery--France--19th century
Cooking, French--19th century
Cooks--France--Haut-Rhin--19th century
Desserts--France--19th century
Formulas, recipes, etc.--France--19th century
Pastry--France--19th century
Recipes