GEORGIAN WIFE'S RECIPE FOR 'TURTLE' SOUP FEATURES IN COOK BOOK

An 18th century cook book containing a stomach-churning recipe for mock turtle soup has been discovered in a cardboard box.

A Mrs Casters meticulously jotted down 160 recipes in the 229-year-old book as well as the details of her extensive list of suppliers.

Turtle soup was a favourite at civic dinners from the 1750s onwards and was eaten by crews on shipping expeditions.

However, since it was a hard-to-acquire delicacy, only the wealthy could afford the real thing.

So Mrs Casters made an ersatz version using beef, veal and calf's head to try to emulate the aquatic creature's flavour and texture.

To give it extra pizazz, she added a range of ingredients including truffles, Cayenne pepper and a bottle of booze.

The recipe reads: 'Mock Turtle - Mrs Caster.

'Take 6 pounds Beef, & a knuckle of Veal, to draw a strong Gracy, take a Calf's Head, Boil it three quarters of an Hour, add force meat Balls, Egg Balls, Truffles, Morrells, a few Mushrooms, & a Bottle of Lisbon, Sherry or Madeira, a little Cayenne Pepper, Lemon Lime juices, Marjoram, & Winter Savory cut very fine.

'Let the whole boil five minutes, then serve it up.'

Turtles were overfished in the late 18th and 19th centuries, drastically reducing their population.

Heinz stopped selling turtle soup in the 1970s, when sea turtles were included in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.

Mrs Casters also wrote down recipes for onion gravy, oysters, macaroni and 'omelette the French way'.

The book, dated 1796, which has food stains on some pages, would have been used for many years in her kitchen.

Mrs Casters also scribbled down the details of London suppliers including bacon and olive merchants.

The cook book was at the bottom of a 'box of random books' recently brought into Keys Auctioneers, of Aylsham, Norfolk.

The Norfolk-based vendor said she inherited the books from her mother but did not know their earlier provenance.

The book, which boasts its well worn original leather binding, is tipped to sell for £700.

Keys Auctioneers specialist Oscar Crocker said: 'The book was in a box of books which was brought in to us by the client on a valuation day.

'She inherited it from her mother but knew nothing about it.

'It is a fascinating late 18th century cook book comprising a huge number of recipes and other bits of advice on things like a cure for a cold.

'There is also an interesting recipe for mock turtle soup, although thankfully not the real thing, perhaps because actual turtle was too expensive.

'The book appears to have had a lot of use in the kitchen as there are what looks like food stains on the pages.'

The sale takes place tomorrow.

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2025-03-27T08:18:46Z