American Mince and American Pinwheels

We'll Eat Again [reprinted recipes from WWII]

I am American, and I have never had anything like either of these recipes. And yet, the British Ministry of Food says it is so. I suspect these recipes are American like nachos are Mexican. But less delicious. How about you, Other Americans? Anyone?

And just sit quietly, Canadians. I have a recipe for Canadian Bake that I'll get to in the future, never fear.

Or fear. Fear is probably the more reasonable response.

That's right, Mrs. Smith. We're getting a seventh of our meat now in corned beef--twopence in the 1s. 2d. as you might say. Lord Woolton's watching his stocks--he likes to be sure he's got a bit in hand. I don't mind telling you I was rather afraid the whole ration would be cut down. It's lucky for everyone there is this corned beef to help out with. Cold or hot, you can dish it up in a dozen different ways--and very tasty, too. No, Mrs. Smith, I don't want any points coupons, it's all part of the meat ration.

American Mince

Cooking time: 30-35 minutes
Quantity: 4 helpings

6 oz. corned beef, minced or finely chopped
8 oz. cooked pearl barley
1/2 pint tomato pulp or white sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 oz cheese, grated
1 oz breadcrumbs
1/2 oz dripping or margarine
2 tomatoes (if available)

For a while during the war, 1 oz. of cheese per week was the ration for one person

Method: Place the beef, barley, tomato pulp or white sauce, seasoning, cheese, and breadcrumbs in layers in a greased pie dish. Finish with a layer of cheese and dot with the dripping or margarine. Bake in a moderate oven for 25 minutes.

Yes. That is 1/2 oz. cheese there. Do you know how hard it is to make two layers out of 1 oz. of cheese? Answer: very.

Slice the whole tomatoes and spread over the top. Return to the oven for a further 5-10 minutes.

American Pinwheels

Pastry:
8 oz. flour
pinch of salt
1/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
or 1 teaspoon baking powder
2 oz margarine
milk to mix

Chocolate mixture:
2 oz margarine
2 tablespoons sugar
1 dessertspoon Bournville cocoa
1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence

Pastry: Put flour, salt, soda and cream of tartar in a bowl. Mix together, rub in margarine and bind to a stiff paste with milk.

Chocolate mixture: Cream margarine and sugar together, stir in cocoa, add essence, and if necessary a tablespoonful of milk; do not make too soft or the mixture will run during cooking. Roll out pastry into an oblong and spread with chocolate mixture. Roll up as for jam roll and cut into 3/4 inch rounds. Pack into a baking tin and bake in a moderately hot oven 20 to 30 minutes.


Verdict:

American Mince: Okay, first of all, this is corned beef from a can:

Yes. That speaks for itself. I also had to call my mom on the phone so she could tell me how to open a can with a key. The recipe calls for only half of it, so I put the other half thriftily away to use another day. Hooray! While I was measuring and putting out ingredients, Husband came by and tried to snitch a pinch of cheese. "NOOOOOOOO!" I said. "THAT IS ALL THE CHEESE WE GET PUT IT BACK PUT IT BACK WE ONLY GET AN OUNCE UNLESS YOU WANT TO HIT THE BLACK MARKET AND HELP HITLER DO YOU WANT TO HELP HITLER AHHHHHHHH!"

He put it back.

It took some careful placement to get two layers out of that cheese. In the end, you could not taste the cheese at all, and seeing the occasional shred just felt like a mockery. I would rather have just eaten my ration straight up. At least that way I could have tasted it.

It wasn't terrible though. It was kind of fine. Were I on rations, and corned beef in a can was what I could get, I'd make this. I'd feel kind of sad while eating it, but I would indeed eat it.

My sister came over that day, and I cleverly trapped her into eating dinner with us. This is her plate after dinner.

I SEE WHAT YOU DID THERE, KRISTIN. I'm telling mom.

American Pinwheels: Holy HECK is that a tiny amount of filling! It is almost impossible to spread it over all the dough. It does look bigger when it is baked though, which is something I suppose. These are dry biscuits with "essence of chocolate" to tease your mouth. My sister had an excellent idea for improvement, though!

Much better!


Now I need some nachos.

Save That Fat!

Courtesy of Shorpy.com

June 1942. "Why greases must be saved. A soldier of the home front -- and there's one in every American kitchen -- saves all waste fats and greases so that they can be processed into ammunition for America's soldiers on the battlefronts. Pan and broiler drippings, deep fats, renderings from bacon rinds: These are some of the fats which should be put through a strainer to remove meat scraps and other solids, and poured into wide-mouthed cans such as coffee or fat cans." 4x5 safety negative by Ann Rosener for the Office of War Information.

And if you don't give your leftover fat to the government, at least make a veggie-filled pastry!

Apple Bread

Betty Crocker Recipe Card Library [1971]

I usually try out more unusual recipes, but while going through my avocado-green recipe card file, I came across... this. It looked delicious. It was under "Recipes Children Can Make." It seems to be a member of the Upside Down Cake family. It involves butter. How could it go wrong? And I had Honey Crisp apples. Have you tried those? They are delicious. New favorite apple, guys. Besides, I made cake out of beets, so there is a sort of symmetry about making bread out of apples.

Anyway.

Apple Bread
Melt in baking pan, 9x9x2 inches . . 2 tablespoons butter
Mix with fork in small bowl . . . . . . 1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Sprinkle sugar mixture on melted butter in pan.
Cut into thin slices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 apple

Arrange apple slices in rows on sugar mixture in pan.
Sprinkle over apples . . . . . . . . . . . a few raisins

Stir together with spoon in large bowl . .
1 pkg active dry yeast
3/4 cup warm water
(105-115 degrees)

Add . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup Gold Medal flour*

Beat 2 minutes or until batter drops from spoon in sheets.
Add and beat until smooth . . . . . . . . . .1 egg
1/4 cup shortening
1 1/4 cups Gold Medal flour

Drop batter by small spoonfuls over apples and raisins in pan. Cover pan and let rise in warm place until double, 50 to 60 minutes.

Heat oven to 375 degrees.

Bake 30-35 minutes or until brown. Immediately remove cake from pan by turning upside down onto serving plate.
*If using self-rising flour, omit salt.


Verdict:

It's.... DELICIOUS. Thank you, Betty Crocker! This is fabulous! It's a dang apple upside down cake! I didn't have any raisins, so I used frozen blueberries. Highly recommended, for it was tasty times indeed. It was also super easy and fast, especially for a yeast-based food, so the awesomeness is compounded.

Husband and I polished it off within about 12 hours, and that was only because we were trying to be responsible. One of those servings had vanilla ice cream. Then we ran out of ice cream. :( It was more than tasty without it, though! It is at its best warm, so take that into consideration when you make it.

Because you will.

You will.

WWII Rationing: Mock Goose, Beetroot Pudding, and Mock Whipped Cream

We'll Eat Again [reprinted recipes from 1940's]

Phew! Sorry about that break, but the kitchen of Time Travel Kitchen is now both larger, and closer to willing victims. HOORAY. I promised you goose, didn't I? I did. And you, poor things, have been waiting with bated breath. Wait no longer!

"Man-about-Kitchen"
Now that thousands of wives and mothers are helping in the factories, or evacuated to the country, many men are having to do their own cooking. No wonder they ask their women-folk for easy recipes! Here are a few suggestions. [Well, one.]

Mock Goose

Cooking time: 1 hour Quantity: 4 helpings

1 1/2 lb. potatoes
2 large cooking apples
4 oz. cheese
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
salt and pepper
3/4 pint vegetable stock
1 tablespoon flour

Method: Scrub and slice potatoes thinly, slice apples, grate cheese. Grease a fireproof dish, place a layer of potatoes in it, cover with apple and a little sage, season lightly and sprinkle with cheese, repeat layers leaving potatoes and cheese to cover. Pour in 1/2 pint of the stock, cook in a moderate oven for 3/4 of an hour. Blend flour with remainder of stock, pour into dish and cook for another 1/4 of an hour. Serve as a main dish with a green vegetable.

Dig for your dinner
When salvage is all that remains of the joint
And there isn't a tin and you haven't a 'point'
Instead of creating a dance and a ballad
Just raid the allotment and dig up a salad!

Beetroot Pudding
Here is a new notion for using the sweetness of beetroot to make a nice sweet pudding with very little sugar.

First mix 6 oz wheatmeal flour with 1/2 teaspoon baking powder. Rub in 1/2 oz fat and add 1 oz sugar and 4 oz cooked or raw beetroot very finely grated.

Now mix all the ingredients to a soft cake consistency with 3 or 4 tablespoons of milk. Add a few drops of flavouring essence if you have it. Turn the mixture into a greased pie dish or square tin and bake immediately in a moderate oven for 35-40 minutes. This pudding tastes equally good hot or cold. Enough for 4.

Reflect, whenever you indulge
It is not beautiful to bulge
A large, untidy corporation
Is far from helpful to the Nation.

Mock Whipped Cream
1/2 oz cornflour [cornstarch]
1/4 pint milk
1 1/2 oz margarine
3 teaspoons sugar
few drops vanilla essence

Method: Mix cornflour to a paste with a little milk, heat remainder and when boiling add to the blended cornflour, stirring well. Return to saucepan bring to boil and cook 3 minutes. Cream the margarine and sugar. Whisk in the cornflour mixture gradually. Add vanilla essence.


***

Verdict:

Mock Goose: In... in what manner is this a goose? The duck, the duck I could see. It looks sort of ducky, and there's meat. This? This is a DANG POTATO CASSEROLE. It wasn't cooked for long enough, so it was still kind of crunchy, and the vegetable broth did not thicken in any way. It was more like wet potato discs with oddly flavored apples and surprising tiny globlets of soggy cheese. Were it cooked for longer, the vegetable broth thickened, and more herbs added, this would probably be fine. Troll your vegetarian friends. Invite them over for dinner. When they arrive, tell them you made goose. Hilarity cannot fail to ensue.

Beetroot Pudding: Gahhh. I am undecided on this one. A list must happen.

Good:
*Beets are pretty sweet, so this actually sort of worked as far as sweetness goes.
*It's pink!
*It's really good for you

Bad:
*It was gritty. Like sand. And I like whole wheat.
*A shred of beet got stuck in my teeth.
*It's density is similar to that of brick.
*It's really good for you.

I will have to revisit this one, and see if it can be improved on. What made it quite palatable was the-

Mock Whipped Cream: Mmmmm. If you think about it, this recipe actually makes mathematical sense.

Given that:
Cream = Milk + Butterfat
Butter ≈ Margarine

Therefore:
Margarine + Milk ≈ Cream

Ta da! With the addition of some cornstarch, sugar, and vanilla, a reasonable approximation of whipped cream can be made. It's more like a pastry cream than whipped cream, but let us not quibble. A sweet, creamy topping can be made. Let he who is without Kool Whip among you cast the first stone. Besides, it helps the sandy pink beet grit slide down much easier.

***

Bonus propaganda! Have you wondered how much soy flour is needed to make a loaf big enough to fill Red Square? Wonder no longer.

Please Hold

The kitchen of Time Travel Kitchen is being moved to a new house. Please hold. If you wish, you may play the relaxing music of your choice in the interim.

WWII Rationing: Golden Barley Soup and Mock Duck

We'll Eat Again [1990, reprinted recipes from WWII]

Darn rationing. Darn war! Oh well. Onwards to victory!

It is once again my patriotic duty to try and make my family think they are eating tasty food, when they really aren't!

Can you give me a new soup recipe?
Here's a delicious one: Golden Barley Soup. Grate or mince 2 lb. of carrots, put with 1 small teacup of barley into 1 quart of water and simmer for 2 1/2 hours. Roll a piece of margarine the size of a walnut in 1 tablespoonful of flour and stir it into the soup. Cook fast for 8 minutes, season. Serves 4 or 5 helpings.

"I made duck for dinner, sweetie!"

"Neat! Where did you find duck??"

"No no, it is WWII duck."

"Wait. Wait, no! WHAT IS IT REALLY."

"...meat."

"WHAT IS IT MADE OF"

"Shhhhhh."

Mock Duck

Cooking time: 45 minutes Quantity: 4 helpings

1 lb. sausagemeat
8 oz cooking apples, peeled and grated
8 oz onions, grated
1 teaspoon chopped sage or 1/2 teaspoon dried sage

Method: Spread half the sausagemeat into a flat layer in a well greased baking tin or shallow casserole. Top with the apples, onions, and sage. Add the rest of the sausagemeat and shape this top layer to look as much like a duck as possible. Cover with well greased paper and bake in the center of a moderately hot oven.


Verdict:

Golden Barley Soup: Have you noticed that this is made of massive amounts of carrot, with water and barley? Guess what it tastes like? Massive amounts of carrot. With a little bit of water and some chewy bits of barley. Just... a great big pile o' carrot. Now, I like carrot, but really. Really?

I crammed down a few bites, then dumped a duck head in the middle of it to help it go down easier. It did not help. Even the tastiness of sausage did nothing. Besides the attractive goldeny color, this is a very depressing soup.

Mock Duck: Ha HA! You thought it was a real duck when you looked at the picture, did you not? Of course you did, no doubt due in no small part to my cunning carrot duck bill. Well it isn't! What it is, though, is... really really good.

WHAT.

Yes. A "mock" whatever from WWII is delicious. I could hardly believe it my own self. The oniony appley interior sounds a little strange (although not, of course, to fans of apples n' onions), but it is great! All parties in attendance agreed that this was so. I will even, contrary to all expectations, recommend this. It's about time those living under WWII rationing restrictions had a bit of cheer.

Tune in next week for the results of this conversation:

"I'm making goose for dinner!"

"Cool! Where'd you find a g... WAIT. IS THE GOOSE MADE OF GOOSE."

"Nope!"

"Well, at least it's made of meat."

"Nope!"

"..."

"...Chuck Testa?"

Bacon Strip Pancakes and Apple Butter Sourdoughs

Some time ago, a reader requested I make these bacon strip pancakes, as seen on Mr. Breakfast (whom I adore). How could I possibly refuse? It is pancakes plus bacon. Hooray! Pancakes! Plus bacon! Hooray! What day is it?

HOORAY.

Bacon Strip Pancakes [1962, from the back of an Aunt Jemima pancake mix)
(4 servings)

12 slices of bacon
2 cups prepared pancake batter
softened butter
maple syrup

Just about the best breakfast that ever greeted a hungry family! And it's as easy as this: Shake up Aunt Jemima batter according to package directions. Place cooked bacon strips on the griddle and pour batter over each strip. Bake 'em golden brown on both sides. Couldn't be easier - couldn't taste better! How about Aunt Jemima Bacon Strip Pancakes at your house tomorrow!

Unfortunately, I was so excited by the prospect of pancake-coated pork fat (fried in pork fat), I did not read the instructions carefully.

No matter.

Mmmmmmmmmm.

Verdict: Have I mentioned that it is bacon, coated with pancake? Fantastic. One does feel a little wrong, though, with a plate of bacon pancakes fried in bacon grease that you then spread with butter and soak with syrup. So wrong, and yet... so right.

But let's not stop there.

Apple Sauce Sourdoughs [Alaska Sourdough, 1976]

On hot, well greased skillet drop Sourdough [sourdough pancake batter, but any pancake batter will work fine] making small pancakes. Dip a small teaspoonful of sauce in center of each cake. Add a few drops of Sourdough batter, covering the applesauce. Bake until bubbly. Turn carefully, cooking well on the other side. Serve hot on warmed plates. Dust Sourdoughs with powdered sugar.


Verdict: Instead of applesauce, I used apple butter. Because apple butter is delicious. HOW have I never done this before?? Is this something that everyone else knows about but me? Genius. Genius! (Hooray!) It is like the pancake version of jelly doughnuts. I'm trying this again with raspberry jam. And strawberry jam. And apricot jam. And whatever other kind of jam I can get my hands on. Husband demands that both of these recipes appear again. He will be obliged. Probably on Christmas morning. And several times before then.

Maybe Halloween?

Hooray.

Carrot Cookies

We'll Eat Again [1990, reprinted recipes from WWII]

Back to WWII rationing once more! These cookies use no eggs, little sugar, and very little fat. It also contains something which every patriotic citizen should have in abundance in their Victory garden: carrots.

Did your mother ever tell you that carrots would help you see in the dark? It was a lie. But she may not have known that she was lying! During WWII, the British invented this rumor to cover up their development of radar technology from the Germans. "Carrots!" they said. "Our pilots just eat LOTS AND LOTS OF CARROTS."

This led to a whole generation of British, American, and German children alike being forced to eat truly outrageous amounts of carrots. Thanks a lot, BRITS.*

Carrot Cookies**

Cooking time: 20 minutes Quantity: 12-15 cookies

1 tablespoon margarine
2 tablespoons sugar and a little extra for sprinkling on top of the cakes
a few drops of vanilla, almond or orange flavouring
4 tablespoons grated raw carrot
6 tablespoons self-raising flour or plain flour and 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

(To get a full tablespoon of margarine or fat, plunge the spoon first into boiling water, then cut out the fat with the hot spoon. In this way, a piece of just the right quantity will be obtained.)

Method: Cream the fat and sugar together until it is light and fluffy. Beat in the flavouring and carrot. Fold in the flour or flour and baking powder. Drop spoonfuls of this mixture into small greased patty pans. Sprinkle the tops with sugar and bake in a brisk*** oven for about 20 minutes.

Verdict: Okay, you see that spoonful of dough up there? Go ahead, scroll back and look. That is ALL the batter. That's it. This recipe only makes about 12 walnut-sized cookies. But what do you expect? There's a war on, gosh!

I didn't anticipate that these would be very good. But they are! Pleasantly crispy, pastry-like outside; tender, cakey inside. And such a beautiful color! Perfect for Halloween. They don't taste particularly of carrot, I think the carrot is just to stretch the flour and stand in for some of the sweetening. It tastes kind of like a interesting, pleasant sugar cookie.

Five minutes after they came out of the oven, I had eaten them all. Don't be a Judging McJudgerton, Husband was gone!

*I'm just foolin', I love carrots! Thanks, guys!
**Hey! Where's your insistence that cookies are called biscuits now, huh? Gotcha!
***About 375 degrees F. will do.

Yorkshire Meat Balls, Fruit Pudding Cake

The Thrifty Cook: Tasty budget recipes by the food editors of Farm Journal [1974]

Whilst perusing my collection of cookbooks, I came across these two recipes for which I just happened to have ingredients. Serendipitous! The fact that Yorkshire pudding is one of Husband's most favorite things in the whole wide world, coupled with his love of cake, seemed to indicate that this would be a good day for him.

Or would it. *dun dun dun* I lacked but one ingredient,one which does not fail to strike fear to Husband's heart and send chills down his spine... fake cheese.

Yorkshire Meat Balls
Topping in meat balls tastes like Yorkshire pudding--an ideal main dish for company.

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef
1/4 c. ketchup
1 envelope onion soup mix
1 tblsp. parsley flakes
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 egg, beaten
1 tblsp. water
1 1/2 c. sifted flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
4 eggs
1 1/2 cup milk
3 tblsp. melted regular margarine
Fast-fix Cheese Sauce

Thoroughly combine ground beef, ketchup, onion soup mix, parsley, pepper, 1 egg and water. Form mixture into 24 balls and place in 6 rows of 4 meat balls each in a well-greased 13x9x2" baking pan.

Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt.

Beat 4 eggs until foamy; blend in milk and margarine. Add dry ingredients all at once; beat with rotary blender just until smooth. Pour over meat balls. Bake in 350 degree oven 45 to 50 minutes. Serve with Fast-fix Cheese Sauce. Makes 8 servings.

Fast-fix Cheese Sauce: Combine 3/4 lb. process cheese spread (Velveeta), cubed, 1/3 c. milk and 1/4 tsp. Worcestershire sauce in saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until cheese is melted. Makes 1 1/2 cups.

Fruit Pudding Cake
Good inexpensive dessert. You can use leftover fruits instead of the fruit cocktail. Use 1 1/2 c. fruit and 1/2 to 2/3 c. of their juice.

1 (1 lb. 1 oz.) can fruit cocktail
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 c. sifted flour
1 c. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 c. brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 c. chopped walnuts
Whipped dessert topping

Place fruit and juice in mixing bowl; add egg and vanilla. Sift flour, white sugar, salt, and baking soda over it. Beat with spoon until smooth. Pour into greased 13x9x2" baking pan. Sprinkle on brown sugar and nuts. Bake in 325 degree oven 40 to 45 minutes, or until pudding begins to pull away from the sides of pan. Cut into squares and serve with whipped dessert topping. Makes 9 servings.

Verdict:

Yorkshire Meat Balls: YES, "Meat Balls" is two words. I love Yorkshire pudding. This is much like meatbally toad-in-the-hole. The meatballs are a little salty from the onion soup mix, but other than that, it's really nice! Especially when bites are dipped in beef broth, an activity which transports Husband into raptures. BUT WAIT. There is NO beef broth there is, in its place... cheese sauce. But not just cheese sauce. Cheese sauce is fantastic. This, this here, is fake cheese sauce, the kind that instantly forms a rubbery skin both on its own surface and on the back of your teeth.

When Husband realized that one of his favorite things had been replaced with one of his least favorite things, his sadness was pathetic to behold. He gamely ate one pudding-imprisoned meatball with "cheese" sauce before sighing and making beef broth. After a few bites with "cheese" sauce, I joined him. The cheese sauce isn't bad, it's just not... not... right.

Fruit Pudding Cake: Tasty times! And better than eating straight-up fruit cocktail. Fruit cocktail is the worst. I don't even remember buying it! How did it get in my pantry? How does it always appear at the back of the pantry? I think bad wizards must put it there.

Anyway, this was moist and delicious, with a lovely topping. The grapes were still squidgy and unnatural, but really, one can only ask so much. It's a cake, not a miracle machine.

Stuffed Burger Bundles, Hot Deviled Potatoes, Blender Pots de Creme

Jiffy Cooking [1967]



I think this may be my favorite cookbook. Such an assortment of oddities that take very little time! [Edit: Husband says, "That is not your favorite cookbook!" "What? What is my favorite cookbook then?" "I don't know, but NOT THAT ONE. PLEASE NOT THAT ONE."]

Menu
Stuffed Burger Bundles
Hot Deviled Potato or Mashed Potatoes
Green Beans
Cranberry Star Mold
Lemon Sauced Cake or Blender Potes de Creme
Coffee Milk

Stuffed Burger Bundles
1 cup herb-seasoned stuffing mix
1/3 cup evaporated milk
1 pound ground beef
1 10 1/2 ounce can condensed cream of mushroom soup
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon catsup

Prepare stuffing according to package directions. Combine evaporated milk and meat; divide in 5 patties. On waxed paper, pat each to 6-inch circle. Put 1/4 cup stuffing in center of 1 1/2 quart casserole.

Combine remaining ingredients; pour over meat. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Makes 5 servings.

Hot Deviled Potatoes
Packaged instant mashed potatoes (enough for 4 servings)
1/2 cup dairy sour cream [as opposed to...?]
2 teaspoons prepared mustard
1/2 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons chopped green onion

Prepare potatoes according to package directions. Heat sour cream (do not boil). Add mustard, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and sugar; stir to blend. Mix into hot potatoes with onion. Immediately turn into 1-quart casserole. Sprinkle with paprika, if desired. Heat in a 350 degree oven about 10 minutes. Makes 5 servings.

Green Beans
Oops. I knew I was forgetting something.

Cranberry Star Mold [Dang it! I forgot two things. I can't think where my mind is these days.]

Blender Pots de Creme
1 1/2 tablespoons unflavored gelatin
2 teaspoons instant coffee powder
1/2 cup hot milk
1 6-ounce package semi-sweet chocolate pieces
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 egg yolks
1 1/4 cups drained finely crushed ice
1 cup whipping cream

Add 1/4 cup cold water, gelatin, and coffee to blender container. Cover; blend few seconds on low speed. Add milk; blend till gelatin is dissolved. Add chocolate, sugar, dash salt, and vanilla; cover; blend just till smooth. Add yolks and ice; blend till smooth. While blender is running, add cream. Blend 20 seconds or till it begins to thicken. Pour into 5 or 6 small sherbets. Chill 10 minutes. Serves 5 or 6.


Verdict:

Stuffed Burger Bundles: Oh, lawsie. Please check out that raw picture above. Yes. It... looks a bit grim. "But wait!" you say, "What about my heart's desire to have a close-up picture of the finished product suitable for conversion to a desktop background?" I hear you, dear readers, I hear you.

With that stunning visual, the taste was... fine. Not good, no, not good at all, but... adequate? Salty, greasy, and offensive to the eye, but not too bad. Perhaps with another sauce, this would be slightly above adequate. It does need a sauce, though, just to help conceal the ugliness. It looks like corporeal despair. Or you could just serve it under a paper bag. Or in the dark!

Hot Deviled Potatoes: Weirdly acrid. It shouldn't taste like it does, and yet it manages. I thought they were unpleasant but reasonably edible, Husband called this an abomination and looked very very sad. Maybe... maybe with real potatoes?

Cranberry Star Mold: I'll make it some other time! It looks pretty okay, it involves cranberry sauce and ginger ale. And this meal needs something colorful. Well, a color other than brown.

Blender Pots de Creme: I left out the coffee, so my opinion may not be 100% reliable. It's weird stuff though. The chocolate isn't melted at any point, so it is like mousse with teeny bits of gritty chocolate, like jello-y chocolate chip ice cream. The first bite doesn't seem quite right, but it grows on you after a few. Then after a few more, it doesn't taste quite right again. So confusing.

Sweetmeats of My Lady Windebanks

Ah, finally the payoff from this post! What has our friend Sir Kenelm Digby, Knight served up for us this time?

Sweetmeats of My Lady Windebanks
She maketh the past of Apricocks (which is both very beautiful and clear, and tasteth most quick of the fruit) thus, Take six pound of pared and sliced Apricocks, put them into a high pot, which stop close, and set it in a kettle of boiling water, till you perceive the flesh is all become an uniform pulp; then put it out into your preserving pan or possenet, and boil it gently till it be grown thick, stirring it carefully all the while. Then put two pound of pure Sugar to it, and mingle it well, and let it boil gently, till you see the matter come to such a thickness and solidity, that it will not stick to a plate. Then make it up into what form you will. The like you may do with Raspes or Currants.

Method and Verdict:

"Apricocks" here means "apricots." Since peeling apricots is for suckers, I instead scored the skin, dropped them in boiling water for a little bit, then shocked them in cold water, much as one does tomatoes. Then I put them in a double boiler, which converted them to a smooth paste. Well, okay, I got bored halfway through and used a stick blender. But it would have worked.

After adding sugar, I cooked and cooked and cooked the bejeebers out of it, until a drop of it on a greased plate stayed solid instead of being runny. I tried a few methods of making tasty bits out of it, but the thing that worked best was putting dollops on a greased jelly roll pan and letting it dry for days in the refrigerator, then folding them over and rolling in sugar, as you see.

They are tasty! Much like a combination of fruit leather and cotlets. They do taste most quick of apricots. I recommend, but only if you have lots of time to burn. Lots... and lots... and lots of time.

And patience. Massive amounts of patience. Or servants! Lots of servants.

So in conclusion, I won't be making this again!

Milk

From Advice to a Wife [1880]:

Passion is injurious to the mother's milk, and consequently to the child. Sudden joy and grief frequently disorder the infant's bowels, producing griping, looseness, &c.; hence, a mother who has a mild, placid, even temper generally makes an excellent nurse, on which account it is a fortunate circumstance that she is frequently better-tempered during suckling than at any other period of her life; indeed, she usually, at such times, experiences great joy and gladness.

If the mother or the wet nurse be good-tempered, the milk will be more likely to be wholesome, which will of course make him more healthy, and consequently better tempered. While, on the other hand, if the mother or the nurse be of an irritable, cross temper, the milk will suffer, and will thus cause disarrangement to the system; and hence, ill-health and ill-temper will be likely to ensue.

Verdict:

Approved.

Preview

I made a recipe from our old friend Sir Kenelm Digby, Knight. It didn't work like I thought it would, so it's presently aging in my refrigerator for a few days in hopes that it will magically fix itself. Check back and see what happens!

Here's a preview.

Peach Upside Down Cake

[1963]

Peach Upside Down Cake

Company coming? Upside down cakes are always popular--and this one's so pretty, too.

1 package (12 ounces) Birds Eye Sliced Peaches, thawed
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 cup butter
1/2 to 3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar [1/2 cup is plenty.]
2 tablespoons flour
1/4 cup slivered blanched almonds
1/4 cup maraschino cherries, halved
1 1/2 cups sifted Swans Down Cake Flour
2 teaspoons Calumet Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 egg, unbeaten
1 teaspoon vanilla

Drain peaches, measuring 1/2 cup juice. Combine peaches and lemon juice and set aside. Place 1/4 cup butter in 9-inch round cake pan. Heat in moderate oven (350 degrees F.) until butter is melted. Combine brown sugar, flour, and 1/2 cup peach juice. Stir into the melted butter. Arrange peach slices, slivered almonds, and cherries in butter mixture.

Measure sifted flour, add baking powder, salt, and granulated sugar, and sift together. Cream remaining 1/4 cup butter until softened. Add dry ingredients, milk, egg, and vanilla. Stir to moisten all the flour; then beat vigorously 1 minute. Pour over fruit mixture in pan. Bake in moderate oven (350 degrees F.) about 45 minutes, or until cake springs back when pressed lightly. Cool about 5 minutes. Invert onto serving plate and let stand 1 minute before removing pan. Serve warm or cold. Top each serving with whipped cream or prepared Dream Whip Dessert Topping or ice cream, if desired. Makes about 8 servings.
Prepare-Ahead Hint. Make ahead and serve cold or reheat in slow oven just until slightly warm.


Verdict: This is what angels eat in heaven for breakfast. So good. So, so good. For those who say, "It has a whole stick of butter! Of course it is delicious!", I invite you to browse the archives of this site. While eating this cake. It's... it's just so delicious. Frozen Foods Cookbook, I don't care what other things you may do to me in the future. This recipe alone atones for any culinary crimes you may commit.

I used my own frozen peaches, so they are not as attractive as they could be. But I am okay with that. I also had to bake it 20 minutes longer, and had some trouble smooshing the cake batter over the top. It works best to put dollops over the top and them sort of smooth them together.

Seriously, guys. It's fantastic.

Rice Croquettes with Cream Beef Sauce, Buttered and Spiced Beets, Orange Shortcake

Brought to you by Runkel's All-Purpose Cocoa!

"I never grate chocolate anymore!"
I give my icings, fillings, and puddings "that chocolaty taste" of Runkel's without bothering to grate chocolate. Runkel's All-Purpose Cocoa is the finest quality chocolate, already a powder, all ready to use!

And, of course, by Mrs. Wilson's Cook Book: Numerous New Recipes Based on Present Economic Conditions by Mrs. Mary A. Wilson (Mrs. Wilson's Cooking School, Philadelphia); Formerly Queen Victoria's Cuisiniere and Instructor Domestic Science, University of Virginia Summer School, Charlotteville, Virginia; Instructor of Cooking for the U.S. Navy; Third Printing [1920]

SUPPER
Rice Croquettes with Cream Beef Sauce
Cole Slaw [replaced with Buttered and Spiced Beets]
Orange Shortcake
Tea

RICE CROQUETTES WITH CREAM BEEF

Mould well-seasoned cooked rice into croquettes; then dip and flour and brown in hot fat. Make a cream sauce as follows: Place in a saucepan

Two cups of milk,
One-half cup of flour.

Stir to dissolve the flour and then bring to a boil and cook slowly for five minutes. Add one-half pound of dried beef, prepared as for breakfast, and serve with the croquettes.

BUTTERED AND SPICED BEETS

Cook the beets until tender and then drain and cut into slices. Now place in a small saucepan

One tablespoon of butter,
Two tablespoons of vinegar,
Two tablespoons of hot water,
One teaspoon of salt,
One teaspoon of paprika,
One-eighth teaspoon of mustard,
Tiny pinch of cloves.

When boiling hot, pour over the sliced beets.

ORANGE SHORT CAKE

Place in a mixing bowl

One cup of flour,
One-half teaspoon of salt,
Two teaspoons of baking powder,
Five tablespoons of sugar,
One-half cup of water.

Beat to a stiff dough and then spread on a well-greased and floured layer-cake pan, making the dough higher at the sides than in the middle of the pan. Cover with sliced oranges, cut into small pieces with a sharp knife. Now place in a bowl:

Six tablespoons of brown sugar,
Two tablespoons of flour,
One-half teaspoon of nutmeg.

Mix well and then spread on the shortcake and bake in a moderate oven for thirty minutes. Much of the actual preparation of the menu can be prepared on Saturday.

Use yolk of one egg for making dressing for coleslaw. For orange cake use

White of one egg,
One-half glass of jelly.

Place in a bowl and beat until mixture holds its shape. Pile on orange shortcake.

Verdict:

Rice Croquettes with Cream Beef Sauce: Oh my gosh, so salty! As salty as a sailor of suspicious character. Even Husband (who went through a period of his life where he believed that you should eat as much salt as you can choke down because it will help you "absorb water"*, and thus ate his food sheathed with what closely resembled the Bonneville Salt Flats) declared it too salty for consumption. I even rinsed the beef with warm water, as directed on the bottle!

Rice is also really hard to make into croquettes. Probably because I used long-grain white rice, but I don't think Mrs. Wilson had access to sticky rice. The experience was much like herding cats. I recommend this dried beef recipe instead. Oh, and "well-seasoned" means "with salt and pepper", so don't get cheeky and start adding herbs and whatnot, you sassy thing.

Buttered and Spiced Beets: These remind me of Harvard beets, or very lightly pickled beets. Tasty. I can recommend, especially if you just microwave the sauce.

Orange Shortcake: Husband and I had differing opinions. I think it is tasty times. I should have sliced the oranges more thinly, the bites with paper-thin orange slices were nicer. Both easy and festive. Leaving the rind on made it sort of marmaladey, and the brown sugar mixture on top combined with the juice from the orange to make a delightful crusty brown sugary crust of crusty sugar. Husband didn't like the moisture from the oranges that soaked into the cake below, and also felt there was way too much sugar on top.

You will notice that although the recipe calls for whipping an egg white and mixing it with jelly for piling on top, I did not do so. This is mostly because I am a wimp about raw eggs, unless concealed in cookie dough or cornbread batter. Raw eggs really are pretty safe though, unless you are a very small child, pregnant, elderly, or have immune problems. So if you are not one of those things, try it out why not.


*Lesson: Do not trust the medical advice of drill sergeants.

Dear Readers

Dear Readers,

You may notice a slow-down in posting frequency and complicatedness for the near future here at Time Travel Kitchen. This is because I am currently busy making a super-cool thing that will be done in a few weeks. Namely, a person. In my tummy.

Be not alarmed.

Boy's Coffee

Mrs. Beecher's Domestic Receipt Book [1850]

I am sure that, like me, you are fascinated by temperance beverages and children's drinks, as you do not drink alcohol, tea, or coffee. No? Well tough cookies to you! It is time for some Boy's Coffee.

Green tea and coffee, as ordinarily used, are very injurious to very many constitutions. They contain but very little nourishment, except what is added by the milk and sugar, and training a family of children to love them (for no child loves them till trained to do it) is making it probable that all of them will be less healthful and comfortable, and certain that some will be great sufferers. Training children to drink tea and coffee is as unreasonable and unchristian, as training them to drink foxglove and opium would be--the only difference is, that in one case it is customary, and the other it is not; and custom makes a practice appear less foolish and sinful.

There is no need, at this period of the world, to point out the wickedness and folly of training children to love alcoholic drinks.

Boy's Coffee.

Crumb bread, or dry toast, into a bowl. Put on a plenty of sugar, or molasses. Put in one half milk and one half boiling water. To be eaten with a spoon, or drank if preferred. Molasses for sweetening is preferred by most children.


Verdict: Meh. It's basically cambric tea, but with molasses (sorghum, of course) and bits of bread. Not bad, really, but not very good, either. Much like a bland breakfast cereal. It reminds me of that (very) old breakfast classic, warm milk poured over bread. I'm fairly certain that most modern children would just look at you incredulously if you served this to them, but that theory remains to be tested.*

*on unsuspecting nieces and nephews. Ah ha ha ha ha ha.

Effervescing Jelly Drink

Mrs. Beecher's Domestic Receipt Book [1850]

I am on a roll! Let us try again at effervescing beverages.



Effervescing Jelly Drinks.
When jams or jellies are too old to be good for table use, mix them with good vinegar, and then use them with soda, or saleratus*, as directed above.


Verdict: While better than the Effervescing Fruit Drink, still not great. The sugar in the strawberry jam helped somewhat, as did my adding of much, much less vinegar. It does fizz entertainingly, though. I shall experiment sometime with some sort of fruity syrup in a last attempt to make this tasty.


*The naturally occurring form of baking soda.