The recipe of the notary’s wife comes from a cookbook written by József Váncza, a pharmacist, who was the inventor of the first Hungarian baking powder. He discovered the recipe of the famous Váncza baking powder while he was experimenting with a medicinal preparation. Although he started working as a pharmacist in his father’s pharmacy, he soon saw a bigger business opportunity in the production and distribution of confectionery products.

In 1924, he started his own business, initially producing vanilla sugar and then cream powders from his own recipes, alongside baking powder. Later, the range of products was extended to include biscuits, chocolate and other confectionery products, and the number of employees soon reached 300. In 1931, the company was the first in Hungary to launch the production of bouillon cubes, which were offered to consumers in more than 20 different flavours. József Váncza always placed great emphasis on the company’s image, providing considerable marketing support for the distribution of its products, which was far ahead of its time.

His best-selling recipe book containing simple, economical recipes – compiled and illustrated by József Váncza himself – has been published again and again, and has survived more than 30 reprints to date. His recipes were famous for the fact that they could all be made from relatively cheap ingredients, and of course they all required Váncza baking powder or Váncza vanillin sugar. It is no coincidence that his business acumen and entrepreneurial spirit, which were also outstanding for his age, enabled him to become the market leader in many of his products against strong foreign brands. After the Second World War, the gradual nationalisation of the company led to its liquidation in 1948.