(Click image for larger view.)
Getting this recipe booklet as a “freebie” at the Hartville Marketplace, I became curious about this young woman on the cover. She is none other than “La Belle Chocolatiere”, The Chocolate Girl, whose story is briefly told in this Walter Baker & Co. Inc., booklet titled Famous Recipes for Baker’s Chocolate and Breakfast Cocoa, published in 1928. Her portrait was painted in 1760 by the Swiss artist, Jean-Etienne Liotard (1702-1789) and was adopted in the early 1880s as the trademark for the Walter Baker & Co. soon after Henry L. Pierce saw it hanging in the Dresden Art Gallery.
Thanks to The Bostonian Society we can take a tour titled Sweet History: Dorcester and the Chocolate Factory. Let’s jump into the tour in the La Belle section here. Walter Baker & Company archives are housed at The Milton Historical Society located in Milton, MA.
La Belle Chocolatiere items are quite collectible. A fantastic array is presented by Margie who was passionate about presenting info about these items. EBay usually has at least a few La Belle items up for bid – see them here.
The 100+ recipes in this booklet are attributed to four women cooks: Fannie Farmer, author of The Boston Cooking-School Cookbook, Maria Parloa, often credited with the first tomato soup recipe, Janet McKenzie Hill, author of The Up-to-Date Waitress along with many cookbooks and A. Louise Andrea, a big proponent of dehydration for food storage and author of Home Canning, Drying and Preserving.
A choco-holics delight. Free to a good home.
13 responses so far ↓
1 Leo // Aug 11, 2009 at 5:39 pm
The French Company LU produces a cookie (actually, a “butter biscuit topped with pure dark chocolate”) named “Le Petit Ecolier”. The name was taken from the poster titled “The Little School Boy” by the French graphic artist Firmin Brouisset, which depicts a basket-toting boy eating a cookie. The illustration is molded into the chocolate top of each cookie. Here is an excerpt from a recent LU press release: “For more than 150 years, the LU brand (http://www.lubiscuits.com) has been
synonymous with some of the world’s most delicious cookies. Founded in 1850, LU is one of the greatest success stories in the French food
industry. Each LU biscuit is a work of art, capturing the elegant design and rich European taste people have come to expect from LU. LU biscuits’ devotion to art and design began in 1850 when a French baker named Monsieur
LeFevre married Mademoiselle Utile, and their blossoming love became a shared passion for baking exquisite biscuits. Each biscuit was considered a work of art, and like all great artists, they proudly placed their initials, “LU,” on each and every biscuit. The design of the brand’s signature cookie, Le Petit Ecolier, was molded in chocolate from the image of “The Little School Boy” by renowned illustrator Firman Bouisset, furthering the brand’s history of style and design.”
2 Dave Dubé // Sep 28, 2009 at 3:21 pm
I’ve sent an email as well since I don’t know if you’re notified of comment submissions, but I also noticed the words FREE – to a good home. I have ulterior motives and don’t necessarily want to get my hands on this recipe book, but I would like a high-res scan of the cover if you don’t mind. Please. And you get a nice Thank you via snail mail if you provide me with a mailing address. If you haven’t given it away and that’s your intention, I’d also reimburse for postage.
3 Susan E // Sep 30, 2009 at 11:52 pm
Sure, Dave – the scan has been sent for your creative enjoyment!
4 Leo // Oct 26, 2009 at 2:58 am
Baker’s had a pavilion at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World’s Fair):
“Near by is Baker’s Cocoa and Chocolate Pavilion (K 22), a small but carefully planned and beautiful structure, with two main entrances leading to a central hall used as a cafe, where the celebrated breakfast cocoa is served by young maidens dressed in the costume of Liotard’s ‘La Belle Chocolatiere.’”
The above quote is from pages 130 and 131 of the book “RAND, McNALLY & CO.’S A WEEK AT THE FAIR: ILLUSTRATING THE EXHIBITS AND WONDERS: World’s Columbian Exposition”. The salient pages are available at
http://www.archive.org/stream/randmcnallycoswe00chic#page/130/mode/2up
and include an illustration of the pavilion (sans maidens). The text of the whole book is here:
http://www.archive.org/stream/randmcnallycoswe00chic/randmcnallycoswe00chic_djvu.txt
5 Susan E // Dec 13, 2009 at 7:32 pm
Dave, “La Belle” is on her way . . . enjoy!
6 Lynne Spiva // Mar 21, 2010 at 11:57 pm
I have been wondering about my La Belle self
framed tin that my aunt gave me several years
ago. It is 28 inches long and 22 1/4 inches wide.
I found her hanging on the back of a door at my
aunts house. It has the Walter Baker & Co. Ltd.
plate attached at the bottom of the frame. She
has hung in full display at my house for over 20
years and I have always admired her. Do you know when these type of tins were produced? It
was really nice to read about her.
7 Susan E // Mar 23, 2010 at 1:51 am
Hi, Lynne –
I found a framed La Belle pictured on Showcase Antique Center: http://www.maineantiquedigest.com/pages/page.php?id=4888
There is a slightly larger framed tin pictured at PBA Galleries, with an estimated age c. 1900: http://www.pbagalleries.com/search/item180212.php?&PHPSESSID=eeb941
Perhaps you can find out more about your framed tin by contacting these sites? Good luck in your search – feel free to keep us updated!
Susan
8 Lynne Spiva // Apr 15, 2010 at 5:03 am
Susan,
Thank you so much for the information! I will go to those websites tonight. I’ll keep in touch
and let you know what I find out.
Lynne
9 Lynne Spiva // Apr 15, 2010 at 5:59 am
Susan,
I got on the two web sites and sure enough the
Showcase Antique Center one had my La Belle
pictured and described just like the one in my
bedroom. Amazing! I have looked numerous times and had never found her. You are a really good researcher! Is there a trick to this? I just got my own computer for Christmas from my children so the computer age on researching is kind of new to me. I use one at work all the time but not in this manner. I have over 100 different pieces my aunts left me from glassware to statues that I have been trying to find out about.
Any suggestions would be welcome. You can contact me at lrspiva@gmail.com. Hope to hear from you.
Thank you so much!!
Lynne
10 Susan E // Apr 15, 2010 at 1:49 pm
Lynne – So glad to be of help! The history of items such as ‘La Belle’ are always fascinating. You have a real treasure, if only for the family connection – and ‘connections’ are what it is all about!
11 G. Smith // Apr 17, 2010 at 11:07 pm
The portrait of LA BELLE CHOCOLATIÈRE hung in my family home for as long as I can remember, 45+ years. After my mother passed away, three years ago we noticed it had a small rip in it from her last move to an apartment. My sister had the portrait repaired and restored at a cost of almost two thousand dollars. I would love to know what the portrait is worth, it is an amazing piece of art.
12 Norma // May 7, 2010 at 11:51 pm
I am trying to get the price on some plates I had for yrs. La Belle Chocolatiere First Edition 1940
Vernon Kilns
13 Susan E // May 8, 2010 at 10:17 pm
Hi, Norma -
There is a plate on sale on eBay for $19.99: http://cgi.ebay.com/VERNON-KILNS-China-BELLE-CHOCALATIERE-Dorchester-MA-/300338833978?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item45ed96ea3a
For further info you might contact The Milton Historical Society, where Walter Baker & Co. information and items are archived: http://www.miltonhistoricalsociety.org/
Hope this helps!
Susan
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