SOME of the recipes are more than 250 years old.
They range from Yorkshire tea cakes to green pea soup, pickles, tipples and preserves.
A new recipe book with a very historic past has been compiled following the discovery of an 18th Century cookbook and a book of recipes from the 1920s detailing the food cooked at Wentworth Castle in Stainborough, Barnsley, when it was still a stately home.
The 1920s recipe book, belonging to the former head butler of Wentworth Castle Fred Sewell, and the 18th century cook book, written by the maternal grandmother of Frederick William Thomas Vernon, provided the catalyst for the writing and publication of The Wentworth Castle Butler's Little Black Book.
Liz Smith, heritage access officer at Wentworth Castle Trust, found background material for the book during two years researching the archives and compiling an oral history of former estate workers.
Liz said: "It was hard but enjoyable work. The discovery of Fred Sewell's recipe book was a stroke of luck. It gave us a great insight into life in a big house at the turn of the last century.
"From the recipes that Fred cooked it seems that a sweet tooth was very much the order of the day, with the rich and royal Prince of Prussia's Pudding joining more simple local food such as Yorkshire Tea Cakes."
The chance discovery of the 18th century recipe book was made in the Sheffield Archives, during research on Vernon-Wentworth, one of the estate's former owners.
The book was written in 1772 by Margaret Fisher, maternal grandmother to Frederick William Thomas Vernon, who inherited the estate in 1802 and took the name Vernon-Wentworth. Her recipes contributed such delights as potted salmon and green pea soup.
- The new 24-page book, The Wentworth Castle Butler's Little Black Book, Traditional Yorkshire recipes from the archives at Wentworth Castle Gardens, is now on sale priced £3.95. Copies can be obtained from Wentworth Castle Gardens, telephone 01226 776040.
What do you think? Add your comment below.READ MOREMain news indexYour letters.
FeaturesMore Rotherham newsMore Doncaster newsMore Barnsley newsCheck out the very latest on South Yorkshire's roads - including live traffic cameras on Sheffield's commuter routes - with our Traffic sectionLatest sport. The full article contains 387 words and appears in Sheffield Star newspaper.
