Fruit, Escaloped meat, Dropped eggs, Raised muffins

Ah, my lovelies! As you may know, husband is out of town and I felt disinclined to cook. However, three of my nieces were in town for me to inflict dinner on. Well, breakfast in this case.



They ate pretty good breakfasts in Ye Oldeny Tymes, yes? Miss Parloa is the author of the cookbook from which this meal comes, entitled Miss Parloa's New Cook Book [1890's at best guess]. This meal is supposed to have corn cakes with it as well, as there is no such thing in the 1800's as too much bread. Unfortunately that recipe takes overnight, and I did not plan ahead. Maybe some other time.




Escaloped Meat
Chop the meat rather coarse. Season with salt and pepper. For one pint
of meat use half a cupful of gravy and a heaping cupful of bread
crumbs. Put a layer of the meat in an escalop dish, then gravy, then a
thin layer of crumbs; and continue this until the dish is full. The
last layer should be a thick one of crumbs. Cook in a hot oven from
fifteen to twenty minutes. All kinds of cold meat can be escaloped,
but beef is so dry that it is not so good as mutton, veal, etc,




Dropped Eggs
Have one quart of boiling water and one table-spoonful of salt in a
frying-pan. Break the eggs, one by one, into a saucer, and slide
carefully into the salted water. Cook until the white is firm, and
lift out with a griddle-cake turner and place on toasted bread. Serve
immediately.



Raised Muffins.

One pint of warm milk, half a cake [I used abt. 1.5 t.] of compressed yeast, or half a
cupful of liquid yeast [sourdough starter]; one quart of flour, one table-spoonful of
butter. Beat two eggs well, and add them and the salt, butter and
yeast to the milk. Stir gradually into the flour. Beat until the
batter is light and smooth. Let it rise four hours in a warm place.
Fill buttered muffin pans two-thirds to the top with the batter, and
let them stand until the batter has risen to the brim. Bake half an
hour.


Verdict:

Fruit: Watermelon. Mmmmmm. Nice change of color from brown and white.

Escaloped meat: Really good! I plan on making it again. I used discount $.59/lb pork chops for the meat and used the drippings for gravy. I didn't actually measure the bread crumbs and gravy. I think it was about 2 cups of meat and a cup of gravy, then Italian bread crumbs on the top until it looked good. This was everyone's favorite. My mom had second helpings, and the kids finished it off piece by piece after they finished their ice cream. They deserved a reward for putting up with their aunt's abnormal hobbies. ;)

Dropped eggs: The picture above was an egg made by my mother. This is mine.



I maintain it is the direction's fault. I did not look up modern directions for poached eggs beforehand, and apparently the water is supposed to be at a gentle bare simmer, not a full rolling boil. This will tear the egg white to shreds, as you see. I fished out the shreds with a slotted spoon and said, "The heck with it. It will taste the same anyway."

Those who liked eggs liked this. I prefer my eggs with crispy edges from frying in butter, but I don't think you can justly compare these. They are just different. This is a smooth, silky egg that is also tasty.

For those who do not like eggs, I can see how this would be an application that would be near the bottom of their list of egg dishes to try. One niece is such a person.



This is her caught in the moment of being nice and polite, but filled with inner turmoil at the thought of having to either gag the egg down or hurt my feelings. Upon being told that time travel dinners are free game not to like because sometimes people in Ye Oldeny Tymes were nuts, she gamely tried a bite just to say she'd done it. What a good sport!

She is still not a fan. ;)

Raised muffins: They were okay. A little heavy, but that may have been my fault. I didn't let them rise for 4 hours, just half an hour. I bet they'd be really good with sourdough starter. They were an excellent conveyance for peach nutmeg freezer jam. One of the nieces helped me, and she did a great job. They were really easy and quick to make, as the dough is thin enough not to require kneading. I think this one is worth trying if you are in need of yeast rolls but do not want to mess up many dishes or spend a lot of time on them.

And a good time was had by all. They knew it was so, for Jana's blog said so.

Bachelors and postmen love Spry.

Husband is out of town for a while, and consequently I am unmotivated to make full meals. Or food. Food that isn't sandwiches and ice cream. As an apology, here are two Spry pictures!

Part II: Sugar girl and her Anthropomorphic Zoo Animals

Sugar Girl is not much in evidence today, but some of her odd pals are. Once again, feel free to add captions and tell me your thoughts on these odd, odd pictures.

Are the fish and chicken also anthropomorphic? Unsettling.

The devil, he is a moose.

Stewed prunes, shirred eggs Mornay, bread

Good morning, you bright-eyed and bushy-tailed thing you! It is breakfast time once again. This time, with the Hotel St. Francis Cookbook [1919]. Glorious. Breakfast is all you're getting from me from this book, and even that is iffy.

Most of the menus involve things like truffles and lobsters and cow brains and lamb kidneys. In short: either expensive, organ-related, or both. Seriously, I was only able to find a handful of menus I was willing to do. This is more impressive than it sounds at first, because this book includes a different breakfast, lunch, and dinner recipe for every day of the year. Except February 29. I guess the kitchen staff got a vacation once every four years.



Shirred Eggs Mornay
Put on a buttered shirred egg dish one spoonful of cream sauce, break two fresh eggs on top, season with salt and pepper, cover the eggs with sauce Mornay, sprinkle with grated cheese and bake in oven. [about 10-12 minutes at 325 degrees F.]



Mornay Sauce [not from the book, from the internet]

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 cup whole or 2% reduced-fat milk
1/8 teaspoon salt
Pinch of freshly ground pepper
Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
1/4 cup each coarsely grated Gruyère and Parmesan cheese [I used Monterey Jack instead of Gruyere. Do not judge me.]

Melt butter in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in flour, and cook, stirring constantly, about 1 minute. (Do not let mixture brown.) Add milk, whisking constantly. Bring to a low boil, and cook, stirring constantly, about 2 minutes more. Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Remove from heat, and stir in cheese. Use immediately.




Stewed prunes.
Wash well one pound of prunes, and soak in cold water for two hours. Put on fire in same water, add a small piece of cinnamon stick, the peel of a quarter of a lemon, and two ounces of sugar, and cook on slow fire until soft. It will require about one hour. If an earthern pot with cover is used, put in bake oven for about two hours. The flavor will be better.


Verdict:

Shirred eggs Mornay: Oh my golly. Eggs baked in cheese sauce with cheese on top. Really good. It would have been better if the yolk was runny, but that is my own fault. Yum. Really, yum. It was pretty rich to handle on its own, but spoonfuls of this on sourdough toast were fantastic. Smooth, creamy, cheesy goodness. I ate two because I made more sauce than I needed and I felt I had to use it up, but one egg like this is enough for anybody.

Stewed prunes: Yeahhhhhh not so much. I tried to overcome my foolish modern prejudices against prunes, and it worked pretty well on the one I tried straight up. But stewed and mushified... no. The flavor was actually really good, the cinnamon stick and lemon really added something. I just couldn't get over the texture. With the super mushy inside and the skin holding it together, they were like little sacks of goosh. On the other hand, this is a meal for travelers. I think we'd all be happier if we ate meals like this on vacation instead of Taco Bell, ifyouknowwhatImeanandIthinkyoudo.

Lemon Vinegar

I mentioned lemon vinegar once before, but the more I think about it, the more I think it deserves its own page. There are a ton of recipes in historical cookbooks for vinegars flavored with berries, but I really really love this citrus variation.



Here is my baseline recipe (from recipezaar.com), but the one pictured above uses one lemon, 4 limes, 3 bay leaves, and 4 cups of vinegar. The bay is really unnecessary, it just adds the tiniest bit of depth to the flavor. Not enough that most people can notice, but enough to be delicious without them knowing why.

Lemon Vinegar
35 oz. white vinegar
2 lemons
4 bay leaves

1. Pour the vinegar into a stainless steel pan.
2. Wash the lemons and pare the rind from them with a potato peeler.
3. Add the peel to the pan with the bay leaves and boil for 5 minutes.
4. Cover and leave to go cold.
5. Bottle, including the peel and the bay.
6. Leave for 4 weeks.
7. The vinegar can then either be strained and bottled or used as it is, depending on the strength you require.


I find it is ready to use almost immediately. It gets stronger over time, sure, but it's also darn good right away. I highly recommend the limes, too. They are FAB.


But what do I do with this?

1. Make a shrub. Splash about a tablespoon in a glass, add a couple spoonfuls of the sweetener of your choice, and fill up with ice water. I know, the vinegar sounds weird, but it is really really good. It sparkles in your mouth like a mild soda, and the taste is really similar to lemonade or limeade. It's like having lemonade infinitely on tap in the fridge! I have told you before and I will tell you again: try it. Just try it.

2. Mix it half-and-half with water, pour in a spray bottle, and use as cleanser. You can use it on pretty much everything, and you'll be amazed how well it works. The citrusy scent is just a delightful bonus. Real citrus, too, not lemon-flavored Pledge.

3. Wash your hair. I'm trying the no-poo thing.

4. Salad dressing.

5. Fresh cucumber pickles

5. Marinades

6. Make your kitchen smell fabulous. Boiling vinegar or vinegar and water will take nasty cooking smells out of the air. Try making a batch of this next time your kitchen smells awful. Claim you let it get awful on purpose, FOR SCIENCE.

7. Unclog your nose. Stick your head over this while it is boiling. Man.

8. Try a historical recipe using vinegar. Report back.

9. Finally, attach this list and some lovely decorative dried lemon slices and give as gifts! I know what my neighbors will be getting for Christmas this year....


Which of these are you most tempted by? Can you think of any other good ideas?

Sugar girl and her anthropomorphic zoo animals

These guys are from a children's cookbook put out by a sugar company. For the moment, I can't find it. :( They're cool though, huh? If you've got any captions for me, share!

"TEXAS." "TEXAS."

Cracker-ball Soup, Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding, Creamed Potatoes, Celery, Mince Pie, Apricot Ice Cream, Cheese

The Presbyterian ladies of Recipes Tried and True, [1894], they certainly knew how to put on a spread. Lands! This is the second meal outline of theirs that I have followed, and I am again over-full and satisfied.

I felt like Husband deserved a cracking good meal for putting up with some of the things I have put on the table recently *cough*chicken Jello*cough*, and every time we pass the meat bins in the grocery store, he tries to get roast beef and Yorkshire pudding on the menu. I felt like a super virtuous wife when he came home and exclaimed, "Wow! It smells great in here! Like... like..." "Beef?" "YES." "I'm making Yorkshire pudding." "Really? Sweet! But it also smells like something else... something desserty..." "I also made a pie." "....!!!!"

Then I nudged the laptop upon which I had been watching Hulu.com for the last three hours under the couch with my foot. Shhhh.



A Ms. Ozella Seffner gives us a list of "Plain Family Dinners for a Week in Winter", one of which is as follows:

Cracker-ball Soup
Roast Beef
Yorkshire Pudding
Creamed Potatoes
Celery [didn't have any, used a green apple instead]
Mince Pie
Apricot Ice Cream
Cheese
Coffee or chocolate [We don't drink coffee, drew the line at hot chocolate today. You know. In July.]

Please keep the word "plain" at the forefront of your mind while you peruse the rest of this post.



A FINE SOUP. MRS. W. H. ECKHART. [Cracker-ball soup, presumably]

Take good soup stock and strain it. When it boils add cracker balls, made thus: To one pint of cracker crumbs [I used saltines] add a pinch of salt [omitted because of the SALTines] and pepper, one teaspoonful parsley, cut fine, one teaspoonful baking powder, mixed with the crumbs, one small dessert spoon of butter, one egg; stir all together;

make into balls size of a marble; place on platter to dry for about two hours; when ready to serve your soup put them into the stock; boil five minutes.







Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding
The cookbook with the menu did not provide recipes for all the foods listed, so here is one from my family. For the rest, I used The Boston Cooking School Cook Book [1896].

4 eggs
3 C. milk
1 1/2 t. salt
2 C. flour

Partially cook roast in large dripper pan. A 9x13 also works fine. Standing rib roast is traditional, but other roasts are good too. Beat eggs really well. They should be lemon-colored and foamy. Pour in milk and salt and mix together. Add in flour gradually until it is a smooth batter. Refrigerate until the roast is as partially cooked as you want it to be. Pour pudding mixture over roast. Right over, not around the sides. Bake 10 minutes at 400 degrees F. and then 50 minutes at 350 degrees F. Serve with beef broth. You can either pour the broth over the pudding and beef, or put it in a little cup and dip bites in for maximum broth absorption.




Creamed Potatoes.
Reheat two cups cold boiled potatoes, cut in dice, in one and one-fourth cups White Sauce I.

White Sauce I.
2 tablespoons butter.
2 tablespoons flour.
1 cup milk.
1/4 teaspoon salt.
Few grains pepper.

Put butter in saucepan, stir until melted and bubbling; add flour mixed with seasonings, and stir until thoroughly blended. Pour on gradually the milk, adding about one-third at a time, stirring until well mixed, then beating until smooth and glossy. If a wire whisk is used, all the milk may be added at once; and although more quickly made if milk is scalded, it is not necessary.




Mock Mince Pie.
4 common crackers rolled. [I used 8 saltines]
1 1/2 cups sugar.
1 cup molasses.
1/3 cup lemon juice or vinegar.
1 cup raisins seeded and chopped.
1/2 cup butter.
2 eggs well beaten.
Spices. [cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger. A little clove would be nice.]

Mix ingredients in order given, adding spices to taste. Bake between crusts. This quantity will make two pies. [Wrong, it will make one. Unless you have one of those really petite antique pie pans that actually hold exactly one can of pie filling.]

Lattice-top leaf-wreathed sparkle-top pie crust close up!

I like making pie crusts.


Verdict:

Cracker-ball soup: Really nice! Like a lovely dumpling/noodle type thing, with good flavor and texture. I liked these a lot.

Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding: Not my best Yorkshire pudding, but I have picky standards regarding Yorkshire pudding. Maybe by the time I'm 80, I'll have accomplished Yorkshire pudding as crusty and delicious as my grandma's. Still tasty though! Yorkshire pudding is, for most people in my experience, much like bagpipes or cats. They either love it or hate it. Most imports to my family think it is nasty. When Husband and I were dating, I was worried the first time it appeared at a family dinner. I was pretty sure he'd hate it. He ate about half of a pan of it in one go, claiming it was the perfect combination of two of his favorite foods: beef and bread. And I knew it was meant to be.

Creamed Potatoes: A darn sight better than the Spry ones! Mainly because they were a.) made with butter and b.) did not involve the curious addition of horseradish. They begged for some shredded cheddar added to the sauce, but I resisted. I did eat them with the pieces of Monterey Jack that filled the "cheese" slot in the menu though.

Mince Pie: Surprisingly good! I was worried it would be overwhelming, but the lemon juice cut the sweetness pretty well. I also used sorghum molasses, which is much smoother than sugar cane molasses. I talked about sorghum back here. I liked it better than any mince pie I've ever had. It was kind of like a liquid melty gooey gingersnap.

Apricot Ice Cream: I used leftover Apricot Ice.


Note about mincemeat pie: Some people will tell you that mincemeat does not have meat in it, despite the name. Traditional mincemeat pies really do have meat and/or suet chopped up alongside the dried fruit. And it is fine. Honestly.