Thursday, October 1, 2026
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Lower Makefield resident Becky Libourel Diamond has found a unique way to bring the warmth and wonder of the holidays to life, by reaching back into the past. Her newly released book, “The Gilded Age Christmas Cookbook: Cookies and Treats from America’s Golden Era”, invites readers to rediscover the festive flavors and traditions of the late 19th century while exploring the stories behind them.
A food writer, librarian, and historian, Diamond has made a name for herself by blending culinary exploration with deep historical research. Her previous works, including “Mrs. Goodfellow: The Story of America’s Cooking School” and “The Thousand Dollar Dinner”, focused on 19th-century Philadelphia food culture. Her 2023 release, “The Gilded Age Cookbook”, transported readers to opulent dinner tables of the country’s wealthiest families, the Vanderbilts, Astors, and Goulds, showcasing elegant menus adapted for today’s kitchens.
Her latest book, “The Gilded Age Christmas Cookbook”, published this fall by Globe Pequot, feels perfectly timed for the holiday season. Richly illustrated and brimming with stories, it’s both a cookbook and a history book, offering a nostalgic window into how America celebrated Christmas during a time of transformation and innovation.
The idea for the new book emerged naturally from Diamond’s earlier research. “When I created the recipes for “The Gilded Age Cookbook”, so many of them were baked goods, cookies, cakes, and other sweets, and a lot of them had ties to Christmas,” she explained.
It seemed only fitting that her next project would focus on the holiday season. The result is a beautifully designed coffee table book filled with recipes, historical sidebars, and photographs that evoke the warmth of a bygone era. Each recipe, from spice cookies to plum puddings, is one Diamond has personally tested and adapted for the modern home cook.
“Every recipe in this cookbook is something I took from the Gilded Age, but I recreated it in my own kitchen with current ingredients,” she said. “My goal was to make them accessible to people today.”
While “The Gilded Age Christmas Cookbook” certainly celebrates sweets, it also tells a deeper story about how food, technology, and culture evolved during America’s Gilded Age. “One of the biggest takeaways from that time is that it was an era of innovation—including in the kitchen,” Diamond said.
She explains that rising agents like baking powder and baking soda were invented in the 19th century, revolutionizing baking. “Before that, if you wanted to make a cake rise, you had to whip eggs by hand to create air bubbles; it took forever,” she said. “Then the rotary egg beater came along, and suddenly women could make layer cakes much more easily.”
Another innovation that changed holiday traditions was the expansion of the railroad system, which made it possible to transport ingredients like citrus fruit across the country. “That’s why oranges became a Christmas treat,” Diamond said. “If you had an orange in your stocking, it meant your family could afford a little luxury.”
Diamond’s research also sheds light on how tastes have changed over time. “Chocolate really eclipsed so many other flavors,” she noted. “Back then, chocolate wasn’t as common because processing cocoa was difficult. Most desserts featured dried fruits, nuts, and spices, or even a splash of brandy or wine, which also acted as a preservative.”
This shift in flavor preferences explains why many traditional holiday treats, like sugarplums, faded from American tables. “Sugarplums started out as hard candies and evolved into fruit-and-nut confections bound with sugar and brandy,” Diamond said. “People today might prefer a truffle or a bonbon, but it’s fascinating to rediscover these old recipes and see how good they still taste.”
The book also touches on the origins of many holiday customs that became widespread during the Gilded Age. “That’s when hanging stockings, decorating Christmas trees, and sending cards really took off,” she explained. “I include sidebars throughout the book about those traditions and how they became part of our celebrations.”
“I worked with photographer Heather Raub of FrontRoom Images in Ewing to set up each shot and along with guidance from my friend food historian and culinary stylist Dan Macey for some of the pictures (who also contributed some sidebars for the book) to capture it,” she said. “It takes a lot of time to get everything just right, but it’s worth it when you see the finished product.”
For Diamond, who works as a business librarian at Rutgers University, the research and storytelling are just as important as the recipes themselves. She spent countless hours combing through Google Books, Archive.org, and historic newspaper databases to ensure accuracy. “I want people to learn how food ties into history and how things have evolved over time,” she said. “While some flavors have fallen out of favor, they can be rediscovered and enjoyed again.”
“The Gilded Age Christmas Cookbook: Cookies and Treats from America’s Golden Era” is available now through major booksellers, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Bookshop.org. To learn more about Becky Libourel Diamond or to view her upcoming events and signings, visit www.beckyldiamond.com.
