OP: Cooking for Profit

American School of Home Economics, Chicago, 1922. Hardcover. Very Good.

This 1922 book, published by the American School of Home Economics as a correspondence course text book, takes an uncommon perspective on the business of food. Rather than framing professional cooking for restaurant or cafe ownership, Cooking for Profit is aimed at women home cooks interested in leveraging their skills into a business venture.

While some recipes are included, the primary focus is on establishing good business sense without prior experience beyond cooking for a family. Beginning with equipping and arranging a home kitchen for efficient and heavy usage then launching into merchandising advice, author Alice Bradley is encouraging but firmly grounded in the realities of business ownership.

Whether readers intend to sell individual cakes, canned goods, or full catering services, Bradley’s direction is thorough and thoughtful. While some of the specifics are outdated, the overarching philosophy is still relevant. 

Our copy is in Very Good condition, clean and unmarked with the exception of faint dampstaining to the upper edge, affecting only the first dozen pages or so and the green cloth case. Lacking the scarce jacket.