Cookbooks have been used for hundreds of years to pass recipes from one person to another. They’ve been a way to preserve recipes that would ordinarily be lost to time. They’ve been so important that October was turned into National Cookbook Month.

Sure, most people can find recipes online, but that doesn’t mean that this month can’t be enjoyed. There’s something inherently special about cracking open an old cookbook and following the recipe. It’s a way for people to not only enjoy dishes that they might not otherwise cook but also gives them a connection to the past.

The History of National Cookbook Month

National Cookbook Month was invented sometime during the past few years, but we’re unsure exactly when it was created. This month hasn’t been around as long as cookbooks have, however. The first recorded book of recipes dates back to 1750 B.C. to ancient Babylon.

Since then, cookbooks have been written throughout the years to inform people about various recipes. At the end of the 18th century, the first cookbook ever written by an American was written by Amelia Simmons. This book was called “American Cookery” and it’s still available on the Internet.

Some Incredible Facts About Cookbooks

We find the whole subject of cookbooks and antiquated recipes fascinating, so we decided to do some of our own research and find out more about them. The following facts are what we uncovered and would like to now share with everyone.

• Over 5,000 publishers have created over 200,000 cookbooks over the past dozen years.
• Food and wine companies often commission writers to create new cookbooks.
• The “American Cookery” cookbook can be found in Project Gutenberg — an online library of free books.
• Some of the recipes found in “American Cookery” include Syllabub, Potato Cakes, American Citron, and French Beans.
• The Betty Crocker Cookbook was published in 1950.
• The earliest Arabic cookbooks are those of al-Warraq.
• Chinese cookbooks have survived from the Tang Dynasty.
• “The Forme of Cury” is one of the earliest English cookbooks still around. It was written in the 12th century.

Observing National Cookbook Month

National Cookbook Month can be observed simply by obtaining some cookbooks and following the recipes from them. This cookbook can be the latest celebrity cookbook or one that was written many years ago.

No matter what cookbook a person uses, they should be sure to use the hashtag #NationalCookbookMonth with a picture of their dish to let everyone know what they cooked.