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Biography · Literature & Journalism

Malinda Russell

1812–

United States

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Biography

Malinda Russell (ca. 1812 – ?) was a free African-American woman from Tennessee who earned her living as a cook and published the first known cookbook by an African-American woman. The book is historically significant, as it shows that African-American Southern cooking was not solely the domain of poverty cooking, but provides evidence of a sophisticated cosmopolitan skill with complex dishes.

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Black heritage reference ↗

Biography text · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source checked 2026-10-20

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