February 2025
In I969 the Australian Hostess Cookbook was published, edited by Hanna Pan. The Cookbook is in the form of a contributary cookbook of dinners from 40 winners of the 1968 ‘Hostess of the Year’ competition conducted by the Australian magazine Women’s Day and sponsored by Holbrook’s Division of Reckitt & Colman Pty. Among the winners seven were from cattle or sheep stations or other rural property. There are 202 recipes in the Cookbook.
In Part 1 of this article, I look at what the Cookbook tell us of the culinary landscape in1969 in which these hostesses held their dinners?
In Part 2 I look at what the Cookbook tells us of the role of the hostess and host at these dinners.
