In the unknown author's preface, she describes her purpose as to provide ladies with suggestions for what is reasonable for their tables for each day in the week, so they can easily provide an agreeable variety to their families. The menus are organized by month with seasonal considerations, and then by day of the week (to be repeated within that month as needed), and by meal: breakfast, tea or lunch (if dinner is late) and dinner with several courses from soup to dessert.

This edition of What Shall We Eat? was reproduced by permission from the volume in the collection of the American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Massachusetts. Founded in 1812 by Isaiah Thomas, a Revolutionary War patriot and successful printer and publisher, the Society is a research library documenting the life of Americans from the colonial era through 1876. The Society collects, preserves, and makes available as complete a record as possible of the printed materials from the early American experience. The cookbook collection includes approximately 1,100 volumes.