Cleora Butler

Cleora Butler
Cleora Butler
Born	27 August 1901
Died	November 1985 (aged 83–84)

Cleora Butler (1901–1985) was a chef, caterer and cookbook writer based in Tulsa, Oklahoma.^[1]

She is the author of the 1985 book Cleora's Kitchens: The Memoir of a Cook and Eight Decades of Great American Food,^[2] a memoir about her life as a house cook in Tulsa.^[3]

Gourmet magazine named Cleora's Kitchens the best cookbook of the year.^[4]

Beginnings

In 1985, Cleora Butler published a memoir and cookbook entitled Cleora’s Kitchens: The Memoir of a Cook & Eight Decades of Great American Food. In her memoir, she describes her childhood experiences of visiting her grandparents during the summer to pick fresh fruits that her grandmother would turn into jams, jellies, and wines that she would enjoy tasting during the holidays. She also reflects on times when her grandfather would give her and her brothers sugar cane that he had grown to make molasses. At the age of ten, when left at home by herself, the mischievous Cleora prepared biscuits from a recipe pamphlet she had found. This was her first time attempting to cook. To her recollection, the biscuits were very tasty.^[5] It's memories like these that molded Cleora Butler's cooking career.

References

^ "Edible Tribute: Cleora Butler". Edible Tulsa. Retrieved 2022-02-01.
^ "CLEORA BUTLER'S RECIPES PAY TRIBUTE TO ARTIST WHO LOVED HER WORK". Chicago Tribune. 27 February 1986. Retrieved 2022-02-01.
^ Monaghan, Charles (1986-08-17). "Fare Fit for August". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2022-02-01.
^ Tipton-Martin, Toni (2015). The Jemima Code: Two Centuries of African American Cookbooks. Austin, TX: The University of Texas Press. pp. 178–179. ISBN 978-0-292-74548-3.
^ Butler, Cleora (2003). Cleora's kitchens : the memoir of a cook & eight decades of great American food. Council Oak Books. ISBN 1-57178-133-1. OCLC 55742726.

External links

Cleora's Kitchens: The Memoir of a Cook and Eight Decades of Great American Food at the Internet Archive
Cleora Butler at the Legacy Quilt Project – Museum of Food and Drink
Hidden Kitchens: Talking Recipes: Cleora Butler's Baked Fudge - National Public Radio

[1] "Edible Tribute: Cleora Butler". Edible Tulsa. Retrieved 2022-02-01.

[2] "CLEORA BUTLER'S RECIPES PAY TRIBUTE TO ARTIST WHO LOVED HER WORK". Chicago Tribune. 27 February 1986. Retrieved 2022-02-01.

[3] Monaghan, Charles (1986-08-17). "Fare Fit for August". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2022-02-01.

[4] Tipton-Martin, Toni (2015). The Jemima Code: Two Centuries of African American Cookbooks. Austin, TX: The University of Texas Press. pp. 178–179. ISBN 978-0-292-74548-3.

[5] Butler, Cleora (2003). Cleora's kitchens : the memoir of a cook & eight decades of great American food. Council Oak Books. ISBN 1-57178-133-1. OCLC 55742726.

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