The Be-Ro Recipe Book
A number of homes locally would have had copies of the
Be-Ro Recipe Book, first published in 1923 to help promote the use of this brand of self-raising flour. The world’s first self-raising flour was produced in Thomas Bell’s Royal works just north of Newcastle in 1875. The original brand name of Bell’s Royal Flour was shortened to Be-Ro. Unlike plain flour which could be bought from millers, self-raising flour had to be bought from grocers. The illustration, below left, comes from the 15th edition of the recipe book from 1951 when cooking by gas was becoming more common. Advice on how to use a gas cooker was included in this edition: ‘When about to use a gas oven, first light the match or taper, and then turn on the gas and ignite it. The flame should be blue and about one and a quarter inches long.’ For those still using ‘an ordinary coal oven’ there was a reminder to make up the fire beforehand with the damper out. Otherwise, this edition kept the original recipes and the focus on the role of women and girls in home baking.
The 35th edition of the recipe book, right, from 1978 was twice as long and published in full colour. A significant change from the 15th edition was that five pages were devoted to children, with diagrams and cartoons showing them how to prepare various cakes. Another change was to provide metric equivalents for imperial weights and measurements (flour was now sold in metric units). It also gave Celsius and Fahrenheit equivalent temperatures. Two pages were devoted to advice on home freezing, especially packaging and recommended storage times. By 1978 Be-Ro also made a wider range of flour products such as wholewheat and brown wholemeal.
The recipe for oatmeal biscuits right, from 1951, is presented in a typical half page format with a photograph followed by ingredients and cooking instructions. It can be compared with the ingredients and cooking method for oatcakes in 1814 overleaf.
The Be-Ro Recipe Book is now in its 41st edition and has sold more than 38 million copies since 1923. These recipe books are not only a publishing success story but they also give insights into lifestyles over the last century.