Chef and Storyteller Erin Brindley lulls you into dreamland reading from old cookbooks. This one, Quick Cooking, A Book of Culinary Heresies from 1891 is a series of perfect little recipe gems, the ones that read like little poems. The is part three of the larger series that started with Episode 31.    You can find the original text here.

This is Recipe for Sleep, a podcast where we dust off very old cookbooks and let them lull us into dreamland. I'm Erin Brindley, a chef and storyteller, and I'm going to read recipes to yo softly and sweetly, as you drift off to sleep. Last episode we began 1891's “Quick Cooking: A Book of Culinary Heresies written by one of the heretics,” a very straightforward guide to simple cooking from the wonderful Flora Haines Loughead. If you didn’t catch episode 31, you might want to go back and listen to that just to hear about wonderful Flora, also known as the Opal Queen. But tonight we’ll just sail right back into the middle of her lovely cookbook that savors simplicity over all other things. (Including in the way it is structured, you’ll notice this is all alphabetical and we’re starting with Cracked Wheat and Apricot Pudding and going right on through to the Lemon section. In between we’ll find Devilled Meat, Eggs, Scrambled, Fairy Butter, Graham Gems, Hash Puffs, Icing, Jelly Roll and Kidneys.

This is Recipe for Sleep, a podcast where we dust off very old cookbooks and let them lull us into dreamland. I’m Erin Brindley, a chef and storyteller. I was combing the shelves for an old cookbook that seemed appropriate for spooky season, and I came across “Quick Cooking: A Book of Culinary Heresies Written by One of the Heretics.” The concept of the cookbook is simple enough…it’s a precurser to Rachel Ray’s genre of quick meals for a busy Mom. But I love how the author, Flora Haines Loughead, frames simplifying complicated recipes as "Heresy" against the purveying idea that the more complicated the dish the more worthy a housewife. Then she goes on to suggest that, with the time you save by not making dinner complicated, you should rest. AMEN FLORA! Rest is resistance.

This is Recipe for Sleep, a podcast where we dust off very old cookbooks and let them lull us into dreamland. I’m Erin Brindley, a chef and storyteller. Tonight, I’m going to read to you, softly and sweetly, from Aunt Betty’s Cookbook by Betty Lippman published in 1918. What each of these books have in common, (besides a recipe for something called Tutti Fruitti,) is the recipes are simply a cozy place to put your busy brain while sleep finds you. So snuggle deep into your sweet covers, and let me read recipes to you until you drift off to sleep. 

This is Recipe for Sleep, a podcast where we dust off very old cookbooks and let them lull us into dreamland. Your host, chef and storyteller Erin Brindley, will read to you, softly and sweetly, from A Book of Beverages from 1904. Compiled by the Daughters of the American Revolution, you'll hear recipes for switchels, fruit vinegars, punches, and flips until you drift off to sleep. You can find the original text here. To read Erin's own recipes and writings, visit her Substack here.

A cooling balm for late summer, we've remixed our third episode to include the soothing sounds of summer rain, along with recipes from 365 Desserts. Reading from the first section of 365 Desserts, published in 1900, you will drift to sleep to dream of tartlets, parfaits, pies and puddings. So many puddings. Chicago Pudding, Paradise Pudding, and Little Princess Pudding. But it was February’s Chocolate Soufflé recipe that inspired the recipe we’ve published at Thank Salt, a light as air and deeply rich dessert. Published in 1900, the full text is available here: 365 Desserts  

This is Recipe for Sleep, a podcast where we dust off very old cookbooks and let them lull us into dreamland. I’m Erin Brindley, a chef and storyteller. I’m going to read to you from an old cookbook full of recipes and stories, and hopefully it’s just interesting enough to keep your mind from ruminating, but just light enough that you can let it go when sleep arrives. Tonight, we are still deep in the pages of 1894’s The American Pastry Cook, a massive instructional tome written for hotel and steamboat cooks, and this section is as sweet as can be. Like our own Great British Baking Show coach, Jessup Whitehead breaks down the basics on meringues and sponges, and we’ll dip our toe into Blanc Mange at the end. Now it’s time to put away anything you were doing, and snuggle deep into your sweet covers. You made it. To this cozy, quiet time of day, where there’s nothing to do but listen to me read old  recipes to you until you drift off to sleep.

This is Recipe for Sleep, a podcast where we dust off very old cookbooks and let them lull us into dreamland. I’m Erin Brindley, a chef and storyteller. I’m going to read to you from an old cookbook full of recipes and stories, and hopefully it’s just interesting enough to keep your mind from ruminating, but just light enough that you can let it go when sleep arrives. Tonight, we are still deep in the pages of 1894’s The American Pastry Cook, a massive instructional tome written for hotel and steamboat cooks. We’ve only gotten through the first hundred recipes, and tonight we will read 36 more recipes for ice creams, sherbets, and frozen punches. It is 91 degrees today where I am, so that feels right. If you'd like to read some of my own stories and recipes, like the one for Cherry Gazpacho I just published, visit Thank Salt on Substack. Erin’s Substack The original text for tonight’s episode

For our 25th episode, cuddle up with the sounds of rain as our host Erin Brindley reads to you from The Magic Way, a cookbook published in 1924 featuring all of the ways to use Magic Baking Powder. This is a re-imagining of our fifth episode, this time with a bed of rain underneath.  Please let us know if you like the rain, or the simplicity of the recipes read softly and sweetly without the ambient noise. We'll have a little poll going at our Recipe for Sleep Instagram, @recipeforsleep.  Our rain sounds are from Zapsplat. And to read Erin's own stories and recipes, visit her Substack: Thank Salt  

Tonight on Recipe for Sleep, a podcast where we dust off very old cookbooks and let them lull us into dreamland, we once again visit The American Pastry Cook from 1894, a massive tome with hundreds of recipes and even more stories and advice for the professional hotel cook, steamboat owner, or, in tonight’s case, enterprising young person with an ice cream shop. Your host, Erin Brindley, will softly and sweetly read you delicious recipes for ice creams and frozen punches that will bring back summer memories, and inspire dreams of pinks and green scoops dripping onto the sidewalk. So put away anything you were doing, and snuggle deep into your sweet covers and listen to me read you old cookbooks until you fall asleep.   Erin’s Substack The original text for tonight’s episode

This is Recipe for Sleep, a podcast where we dust off very old cookbooks and let them lull us into dreamland. I’m Erin Brindley, a chef and storyteller. Tonight, I’ll be once again reading to you from The American Pastry Cook, published in 1894.  I’ll read Jessup Whitehead’s recipes for pies, mostly, with a few ices at the end, if you’re still awake by then. As always with our old friend Jessup, recipes are interspersed with the occasional random opinion or story, which can seem a little out of nowhere, (like the story of the new night cook not knowing to sweeten pumpkin pies and ruining a hotel’s booming pumpkin pie business.) They are what I like about this book so much.   Now it’s time to put away anything you were doing, and snuggle deep into your sweet covers and listen to me read you old cookbooks until you fall asleep.  Erin’s Substack The original text for tonight’s episode

This is Recipe for Sleep, a podcast where we dust off very old cookbooks and let them lull us into dreamland. I’m Erin Brindley, a chef and storyteller. Tonight, we’re returning to The American Pastry Cook, published in 1894, and finally, after two episodes worth of intro, we get to the meat of the book: the recipes. Our author Jessup Whitehead does not lose his salt once the recipes begin. He peppers random history and color commentary throughout the cookbook, throwing all the 1800’s shade at women who bake cakes for their church fairs, and gossiping about the inventor of angel food cake. If someone were to ask what I love about making this podcast, I’ll tell them the angel food cake story. It’s towards the beginning, so hopefully you won’t fall asleep before, but if you do, I encourage you to pick it up where you left off tomorrow night. Links: Erin’s Substack The original text for tonight’s episode

In this cozy return to a listener favorite, we’re back with Jessup Whitehead’s 1894 edition notes from The American Pastry Cook. Still lingering in the preface, we read his curious and sometimes salty responses to letters he received from readers. It’s a warm, sleepy dive into culinary history—perfect for drifting off.  If the rhythm of recipes is what normally sends you into a peaceful slumber, don’t worry—there are plenty of episodes in our back catalogue filled with them, including our last episode, Episode 20, Fall Asleep to Recipes Read Aloud Like Little Poems. But tonight, we slow things down with advice, reflection, and the gentle hum of another era. So, settle in and prepare for a soothing journey to rest. Put away all that you’ve been doing, close the cupboards of yesterday and tomorrow, and let the words of this vintage cookbook guide you into sleep. And if you'd like to read some of Chef Erin's own recipes and stories, visit her sub stack, linked below. Links: Erin’s Substack The original text for tonight’s episode

From your host Erin Brindley, a Chef & Storyteller: For our 20th episode, we return to one of the cookbooks that inspired this podcast, The A.A. Cookbook of 1895. It is the simplest version, where I simply guide you through a brief meditation to help you get your busy mind ready for sleep, and then read you dozens of short and sweet recipes. From Orange Baskets to Sweet Apple Pudding, you’ll drift off to the land of sugar-plum fairies to the rhythm of old-fashioned narrative recipes. To read the original text, visit here. The AA Cookbook. If this podcast is helping you fall asleep, consider chipping in to keep it ad free by visiting Buy Me a Coffee. And if you’re interested in reading my stories and recipes, visit my Substack.

Welcome to Recipe for Sleep, the cozy podcast where old cookbooks are your lullaby. I’m your host, Erin Brindley, chef and storyteller, guiding you to dreamland with the comforting rhythm of culinary history. Tonight, we’r e straying from the sweet world of 365 desserts and diving into something a bit more unique. In this episode, we’re exploring the seventh edition of The American Pastry Cook from 1894, a delightful and dense cookbook written by Jessup Whitehead, a chef with a passion for large-scale cooking. While we won’t be delving into any recipes tonight, we’ll be savoring the charming and sometimes hilarious annotations, including Whitehead's passionate defense of the word "receipt" over "recipe" (the "aristocratic trisyllable," as he calls it), and his gentle wisdom for the home cook—like this gem: “An attempt to do too much is very apt to end in weariness.” If the rhythm of recipes is what normally sends you into a peaceful slumber, don’t worry—there are plenty of episodes in our back catalogue filled with them. But tonight, we slow things down with advice, reflection, and the gentle hum of another era. So, settle in and prepare for a soothing journey to rest. Put away all that you’ve been doing, close the cupboards of yesterday and tomorrow, and let the words of this vintage cookbook guide you into sleep. Links: Erin’s Substack The original text for tonight’s episode

Recipe for Sleep is a sleep and meditation podcast for those who love a warm and cozy kitchen. Put away anything you were doing, and snuggle deep into your sweet covers. It’s time once again to open up the butter-stained pages of 365 Desserts, and let Erin Brindley read each recipe to you, softly and sweetly, until you fall asleep. This cookbook from 1900 is full of whipped meringues and sherry-soaked sultanas, a perfect place to gently rest your mind if you find baking, or just thinking about baking, soothing.   If this podcast is helping you fall asleep, consider chipping in to keep it ad free by visiting Buy Me a Coffee.   And if you’re interested in reading Erin’s stories and recipes, visit her Substack.

Recipe for Sleep – A Sleepcast is a cozy place to put your thoughts when it’s time for your mind to rest. We’ve got a library full of very old cookbooks, 1850-1925, at our fingertips and we’re going to read each one to you, sweetly and slowly, one recipe at a time. Recipes are simultaneously full of beautiful imagery, (particularly for those of us who thrill in delicious food,) and soothingly dull. Host Erin Brindley’s gentle narration and the nostalgic allure of Victorian simplicity create a calming atmosphere that eases you into a restful sleep. A perfect way to quiet down your busy mind as sleep rises. Please use this podcast as a sleep podcast, or meditation podcast.   This week we read from the May and June Chapters of 365 Desserts: A Dessert for Every Day of the Year. The original text is here: 365 Desserts   If this podcast is helping you fall asleep, consider chipping in to keep it ad free by visiting Buy Me a Coffee.   And if you’re interested in reading Erin’s stories and recipes, visit her Substack.

Tonight, Host Erin Brindley continues reading, softly and sweetly, from “365 Desserts: A Dessert for Every Day of the Year” from 1900. Each of these little narrative recipes reads like a little poem. Snuggle deep into your sweet covers. You’ve made it. To the cozy, quiet time of day, where all you have to do is listen to Erin read you old recipes until you fall asleep.   To read Erin’s own recipes and stories, (or listen to her read them in an audio version,) visit her Substack.   To support this sleepy podcast in staying ad-free, visit Erin’s Buy Me a Coffee.   You can find the original text here: 365 Desserts  

You’ve made it. To that cozy, quiet time of day, where there’s nothing to do but listen to Chef Erin Brindley read you old cookbooks until you fall asleep. Tonight, we jump back into 1887’s A Book of Cooking and Pastry. All you have to do is snuggle deep into your sweet covers, and listen to Erin read about Macroni in Crust Cups, Croquettes of Potatoes, and Fondus until you drift off to dreamland. To read Erin’s own recipes and stories, (or listen to her read them in an audio version,) visit her Substack. To support this sleepy podcast in staying ad-free, visit Buy Me a Coffee. To find the original text of this cookbook, visit here.

This is Recipe for Sleep, a podcast where we dust off very old cookbooks and let them lull us into dreamland. I’m Erin Brindley, a chef and storyteller. Tonight I’ll read from A Book of Cooking and Pastry from 1887. This is my favorite kind of old cookbook where the recipes are barely recipes at all, just tiny little narratives. It is written by C.F. Fau, a caterer and cooking teacher. It is a deeply practical, simple tome. I find this kind to be the most comforting. The book is almost a hundred dense pages, so tonight we’ll get through his sections on butters, dumplings, sauces, and soups, as well as some general cooking advice. Next episode we’ll pick up where we left off, because I find this particular book so easy and delightful, and my motto for 2025 is the easy way is the way. (Which is certainly helping me sleep.) So I’ll read about half of A Book of Cooking and Pastry to you tonight, slowly and sweetly, with the hopes that your mind will have a place to settle and you can slip into dreamland.You can find the original text here. You can find original recipes by Chef Erin Brindley here.