Listen to co-curator Juliette Wells describe a handwritten cookbook from Jane Austen’s kitchen.
IN THE KITCHEN
Battered and stained from use, this manuscript book of recipes and remedies was compiled from around 1796 to 1830 by Martha, who lived at Chawton Cottage with the Austen women. Martha Lloyd attributed many entries to their source, as can be seen here. At the lower left is a recipe for Scotch orange marmalade jointly contributed by Henry Austen’s second wife, Eleanor, and Miss Debary, a friend, while the right-hand page includes two more recipes from Jane Austen’s mother: “Brised Crust” (pâte brisée, or piecrust pastry) and “Short Crust.” In 1828 Martha married Jane’s brother Francis, who had recently been widowed.
Martha Lloyd (1765–1843)
Household book
Autograph manuscript, ca. 1796–1830
Jane Austen’s House, Chawton; CHWJA:JAHB34
This humble volume offers a glimpse into daily life at Chawton Cottage: the household of creative women that provided Jane Austen with the time, space, and encouragement to write and publish. The recipes and remedies included in Martha Lloyd’s handwriting, and in the handwriting of other contributors, involve many fewer explicit measurements and instructions than we’re used to in cookbooks today. Women of Austen’s social class would typically have been familiar with cookery, even if they, like Mrs. Bennet of Pride and Prejudice, ultimately supervised a paid cook instead of doing the work themselves.
The story of how Martha Lloyd’s Household Book was added to the collection at Jane Austen’s House is telling. The volume descended in the family of Francis Austen, whom Martha had married in 1828. In the 1950s, a great-granddaughter of Francis offered the book to the museum, but it was initially refused because it contains no entry in Jane Austen’s handwriting. In recent years, scholars and fans alike have developed considerable appreciation for the quotidian household work performed by Martha and especially by Cassandra Austen, which allowed Jane the freedom to concentrate on her writing.