We do not have specific information about how Mrs. E.J. Verstille of Georgia acquired her cookery skills, but it is likely that one of her reasons for compiling her cookbook was to preserve the traditions of southern cookery during the chaotic post-Civil War reconstruction era. Her recipes have a distinct Germanic flavor, but they also represent the classic culinary methods and ingredients of the South. Her chapters include Soups, Fish, Meats, Sauces, Vegetables, Bread, Battercakes and Waffles, Yeast, Cakes. Icing, Pastry, Puddings and Custards, Promiscuous Dishes, Preserves, Jellies, Wines and Cordials, Pickles, Dishes for the Sick, and Miscellaneous. (household advice and general techniques).