Lenore Richards

Born in 1892, Lenore Richards was an American home economics teacher, writer, and business owner best known for her work on cooking for large groups. She is closely associated with Minneapolis, where she and Nola Treat operated Richards Treat Cafeteria, a well-known local business.

Richards is best remembered as the co-author of Quantity Cookery and Tea-Room Recipes, books that brought together menu planning, kitchen organization, and recipes designed for serving many people at once. Her work helped bridge the worlds of teaching, restaurant practice, and everyday food service, making it useful both in schools and in professional kitchens.

She died in 1971, but her writing continued to circulate long afterward through library collections and later reprints. That lasting presence suggests how useful her clear, practical approach remained for readers interested in home economics, institutional cooking, and the history of American food service.