<p>In 'American Cookery,' Amelia Simmons presents a compendium that has the distinctive honor of being the inaugural cookbook composed by an American, dating from the late 18th century. With attention to the preparation of various staple ingredients such as fish, poultry, and vegetables, Simmons' work bridges ancestral British culinary practices with burgeoning American gastronomy, reflecting a novel culinary identity with the incorporation of na...