The Jewish Manual, or Practical Information in Jewish and Modern Cookery, With a Collection of Valuable Recipes & Hints Relating to the Toilette, Edited by a Lady. London: T. & W. Boone, 1846. First edition. English.
First kosher cookbook published in the English language. The present work was published anonymously ("Edited by a Lady"), who has been identified in modern scholarship as Judith Montefiore (1784-1862), wife of the famous Jewish advocate and philanthropist Sir Moses Montefiore.
The book addresses English women of a high social status, and includes selected recipes, "bequeathed only by memory or manuscript, from one generation to another of the Jewish nation", meeting the highest kosher standards (originating mainly in the Sephardic and Portuguese diaspora of Western Europe). Alongside traditional Jewish foods, the present cookbook also incorporates recipes reflecting an attempt to adapt non-kosher delicacies to the Jewish kitchen. Thus, we find recipes for beef chorizo, mock turtle soup, and fish fried in oil (fish and chips). In an amusing note, the author warns the reader of indiscriminate usage of such sauces as ketchup and soy in the dish by "inferior cooks".
The second part of the book is dedicated to practical advice in housekeeping and elegant reception, alongside tips for care and hygiene. In her introduction, the author writes: "The Cuisine of a woman of refinement, like her dress or her furniture, is distinguished, not for its costliness and profusion, but for a pervading air of graceful originality… She instinctively avoids every thing that is hackneyed, vulgar, and common place, and uniformly succeeds in pleasing by the judicious novelties she introduces". She adds her hope that the work would also be of use "even to those ladies who are not of the Hebrew persuasion, as it will serve as a sequel to the books on cookery previously in their possession".
The book reflects the socio-economic status of English Jews in the mid-19th century, offering a unique glimpse into the life, home and table of the Jewish housewife in Victorian London. It demonstrates the author's expertise in the mannerisms of the British high class; it also attests to her various travels throughout the world, including in Jerusalem, bringing unique recipes back with her.
On the endpaper is a handwritten dedication dated 2 October 1851: "A token of affection to Mrs. J. M. Isaac from her affectionate nephew E. Franklin". The writer is evidently the banker and public figure Ellis Abraham Franklin (1822-1909), a prominent figure in Victorian English Jewry, father-in-law of Chief Commissioner Herbert Samuel and great-grandfather of scientist Rosalind Franklin. The recipient of the book is his aunt Sarah Frances Isaac (née Aaron; 1799-1884), wife of John Michael Isaac.
Another handwritten inscription inside front board, dated 1953: "Given to Florence Greenberg", apparently Florence Greenberg (1882-1980), wife of Leopold Greenberg, editor of the Jewish Chronicle; author of one of the most influential Jewish cookbooks of 20th century Britain; her classic Florence Greenberg's Jewish Cookery Book (1947) served for decades as a basic work of the British Jewish kitchen.
[2], XXI, 224, 235-244 pages (mispagination; the copy is complete). 18.5 cm. Good condition. Light stains. Minor marginal tears and open tears to some leaves (without loss). Pencil notations to margins of a few leaves; pen inscriptions to endpapers. Fine original fabric binding; repairs to spine (with title printed in gilt letters); placed in high-quality slipcase.
For an overview of English Jewry during this period and the question of the book's attribution to Judith Montefiore, see: Chaim Raphael, The History and Mystery of The Jewish Manual; foreword to a facsimile edition of The Jewish Manual (New York, 1983).
Rare. Not in the NLI catalog (recorded based on a scan from the Library of Congress). Few copies in OCLC.
