Fannie Fun

We are having so much fun with this book! "Fannie in the Kitchen" by Deborah Hopkinson, as the back of the book says, is "The whole story from soup to nuts of how Fannie Farmer invented recipes with precise measurements." 

In the story, young Marcia is trying desperately to help out her mother, who is expecting "Baby" quite soon.  Despite her best efforts Marcia is a dismal failure, especially with the cooking, and Fannie Farmer is called in to be the "mother's helper".  The result is Fannie teaching Marcia how to cook and writing down the "precise instructions" in a "notebook" that Marcia could refer back to.

The illustrations by Nancy Carpenter are a wonderful blend of vintage engravings, her great pen & ink with watercolor and a touch of humor.  There is also a series of "helpful hints" from Fannie sprinkled throughout the book with valuable information such as, "Biscuits should always be small... Large biscuits, though equally good, never tempt one by their daintiness."

We even took out our copies of The Virginia Housewife and The American Frugal Housewife to get an idea of what "recipes" looked like before Fannie and her "precise measurements".  Wow.  What a difference!