Interview by Kasey Luber

Isabella Beeton was Victorian England's version of Martha Stewart: the foremost authority on dealing with everything from puddings to scullery maids. She was the first domestic diva, once described as "the Confucius of the kitchen, the benefactress of a million homes." Even today, Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management, published in 1861, remains a classic text (and highly influential as well, especially upon the Fanny Farmer and Betty Crocker books).