This recipe book is the culmination of many years of cooking and baking by the author. She is passionate about food quality and believes that home cooked is best. She has inherited a recipe book from her mother's eldest sister and a small one from her grandmother that contains recipes from the turn of the 19th century. She has also included many recipes from other family and friends from many places and times. It is an interesting look at how our diets have changed over the years as well as our cooking methods. Many of the older recipes are done by long steaming. There are also some interesting 'Hints and Tips' from long ago.