Meet the Author
According to Elizabeth Driver’s comprehensive novel, Culinary Landmarks: A Bibliography of Canadian Cookbooks, 1825-1949, the only version that gives credit to an author for the recipes is in the 1926 version of Canadian Grown Apples in which the recipes under category Practical Apple Recipes are credited to Ethel A. Preston, who is noted as an assistant demonstrator and lecturer of Fruit Branch, Ottawa. Preston is also attributed as the author for another cookbook called Fruit and Vegetables: Canning, Drying, Storing published by the Department of Agriculture, Fruit Branch in 1924. The Department of Agriculture in Ottawa was created in 1867-1868 and was responsible for federal policies relating to agriculture and food later changing its name to the Department of Agriculture and Agri-Food in 1994. The federal minister of Agriculture during this time period, 1930-1935 was Robert Weir in R.B Bennett's Conservative government. Weir oversaw the economic and social conditions of Agriculture across Canada and was in charge of implementing policies and strategies to improve Canadian agriculture.