The first Ottoman cookbook written by a woman

Fahriye, Ayşe. Housewife. Istanbul: Mahmud Bey Matbaasi, 1310 [1894]. 

8vo.; 398 pp.; browned throughout due to paper quality; light staining and foxing, particularly to beginning and end of book; five pages of black-and-white line drawings at rear; pomegranate-colored endpapers; expert repairs to free endpapers; light staining and fading to pastedown endpapers, especially gutters; black cloth, blind and gilt-stamped on front and rear boards; spine stamped in gilt. Printed in Turkish, Ottoman script.  

Second edition.  

The very rare second edition of what may be the first Ottoman cookbook to have been written by a woman, for women. In the introduction, the author Ayşe Fahriye dedicates this work to her fellow Turkish women and expresses her wish that it will be helpful in teaching them Ottoman cooking techniques and kitchen organization and be an introduction to Western dining culture.  

Included are nearly 900 Turkish recipes, among them those for traditional lamb kebabs, pilaki, moussaka (an eggplant- or potato-based dish), kaymak (a form of clotted cream), and böreks, as well as detailed directions for soups, stews, meatballs, stuffed vegetables, meat and fish dishes, pickles, salads, ice creams, and pâtés; regional variations are also present, as are many of the “olive oil dishes” which are an essential part of Turkish cuisine.  

In a fascinating addendum, the book introduces Western dining culture to the Ottoman world, including information on servant etiquette and table manners. The five pages of black-and-white line drawings depict a variety of potential table setting arrangements, as well as a very unusual illustration which depicts a table and chairs in side view, positioned in a room within a larger floor plan.  

Although the paper is of very low quality, it is remarkably in good overall condition. OCLC: University of Chicago, and one location outside the United States.