The Craven Cookery Book
Elizabeth née Skipwith, wife of 2nd Baron Craven. Painted by Godfrey Kneller. This attractive portrait of a lady from the reign of Queen Anne shows Elizabeth, wife of the 2nd Baron Craven, whose claim to fame is that she wrote a cookery book that survives in manuscript and is preserved in the library of Pennsylvania State U niversity in America . Elizabeth née Skipwith was born in 1677 or 1679. Her family lived at Newbold Hall in Warwickshire, not far from Coombe Abbey. She married the 2nd Baron Craven on the 12th October 1697 and gave birth to two sons. She belonged to a generation of women who were proud to preserve traditions of household management and herbal medicine from past centuries. Being a fine lady did not mean never going into the kitchen. She also liked to experiment with new ingredients such as chocolate. Her book of recipes, meticulously written, carefully attributes each recipe to the friend or relative ...