Ching Ching (c.1909) ★

My parents-in-law were kind enough to purchase a new blender for us, after I broke our last one, so now I have more tools with which to make historical recipes! The easiest way to make shaved ice is with a blender; even our crappy old one could handle that.


Original Recipe:

 The Verdict:
Ohhh the burning! I used like 3 tiiiiiny drops of clove oil and it burned my throat! Also, this smelled like some kind of gross medicine. I couldn't even drink it. Maybe if it was watered down with 4 cups of shaved ice...

Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from The Good Housekeeping Woman's Home Cook Book)

SHAVED ICE
3 - 4 tablespoons SUGAR
1 LARGE ORANGE, juiced (~ 1/2 cup)
1 drop ESSENCE OF CLOVES
1 drop ESSENCE OF PEPPERMINT

1. Juice the orange. Stir in the sugar and essences.
2. Shave the ice in a blender. Put it into a glass and pour the orange juice mix over top.


1 comments:

Cherry Pudding (c. 1900) ★★★★

Pudding (as in a boiled or steamed cake) is one of the quintessential Victorian desserts, and I see it often in old cookbooks. However, I haven't got a pudding mold so I've been passing up the recipes. BUT! Later pudding recipes can call for baking, as in this case, and with a bag of fresh cherries in my fridge, I was keen to try this simple recipe.
By the way, there was no date on this cookbook (and it was published anonymously). I did a Google search and found one website listing it as circa 1900, so I went with it. 



Original Recipe:
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup milk
1 cup cherries, pitted
1 egg

Cream together the butter and sugar and add the egg then beat well. Sift the flour and baking powder and add alternately with the milk. Blend well, flour the cherries and stir in. Pour batter into a baking dish and bake in moderate oven (350F) for 30 mins. Serve with plain or whipped cream.


The Verdict:
This pudding was okay on its own, but I think with a little something extra (ice cream, whipped cream, cherry sauce, etc.) it would be really nice. The cake itself was quite bland too, so it would benefit from some vanilla and/or spice. Mr. Man dubbed it "awesome", even on its own. Overall, it was good though, considering I scarfed down my piece so quickly that I burnt my tongue. The lack of sugar was actually almost refreshing. A tart cherry sauce (ooh, or a brandied cherry sauce!) would be my preference. Actually, puddings were often served with sauces anyway, so it would be fitting.



Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from Pennsylvania Dutch Cooking)

The original recipe is easy to follow. My suggestions are to grease the baking dish before adding the batter, to mix some vanilla in to the batter, and to place a few halved cherries on top of the batter before baking.


4 comments:

Baked Tenderloins and Baked Sweet Potatoes (1886) ★★★★★

This cookbook included the recipes for a whole meal here - tenderloin, sweet potatoes, and sausage-stuffed apples. I decided not to make the stuffed apples, because I don't like apples with savory food, but I know lots of other people do, so the recipe for those can be found by clicking on the cookbook link and then clicking to the next page.


Original Recipe:

The Verdict:
It was good! I was worried that I might have wasted an expensive chunk of meat, but this turned out really lovely. The potatoes were delicious as well, and I'm kind of iffy with sweet potatoes, so that's saying a lot. They took on the pork drippings and were very flavourful. The only thing is that they were well done after 40 minutes, while the pork took about 80, so by the end we had mashed potatoes really. Which was okay, but next time I think I would remove the potatoes after 40 minutes to keep them intact. I think I will actually save this recipe and make it again, because it was really simple with great taste.

Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from Miss Corson's Practical American Cookery)

1 PORK LOIN*
1 large SWEET POTATO, cut in chunks
2 teaspoons DRIED POWDERED SAGE
1 teaspoon SALT
1 teaspoon PEPPER
1 tablespoon OIL

1. Preheat the oven to 450F. Use a baking dish or a cast iron skillet and coat the bottom with a little bit of oil. Add in the cut sweet potato. Place the loin on top of the potatoes. Brown in the oven for about 10 - 12 minutes.
2. Remove the dish from the oven and lower the temperature to 425F. In a small bowl, mix together the sage, salt, and pepper. Rub it all over both sides of the meat and sprinkle some on the potatoes, making sure to coat them evenly (perhaps temporarily removing the pork to a plate would make this easier). When you return the pork to the dish, turn it upside-down so that the underside gets browned as well.
3. Return the dish to the oven and bake for 40 minutes. If you want potato chunks, remove them after the first 40 minutes and bake the loin another 40 minutes. If you want more of a mashed-style potato, leave them in.

* I used a large pork loin, but you could also you other pork loin/tenderloin cuts (or even pork chops). In that case, the baking time should probably be reduced. I imagine that the originally given 40 minutes would work well with smaller cuts of meat.


3 comments:

Hurry Ups (1919) ★★★

This recipe was under "Cookies", but it seemed sort of breakfasty to me, so I included it under that category as well ;)
I thought the name was kind of unique, but apparently it's truthful, because these took maybe 20 minutes for prep and baking!



Original Recipe:

The Verdict:
SO SALTY. I don't know why on earth this recipe calls for 1 teaspoon of salt, but it is way too much! My cookies were totally ruined :(. I think without the salt (or with maybe a tiiiny pinch), these would have been delicious, so I was very sad. Anyway, since it's just one ingredient, I'll disregard it and give the recipe three stars, because I truely think these would have been good.

Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from The International Jewish Cook Book)

1 cup FLOUR, sifted
2 teaspoons BAKING POWDER
A pinch of SALT
1 cup ROLLED OATS
1 tablespoon SUGAR
2 tablespoons BUTTER, melted
1/2 cup MILK
RAISINS or DATES
BUTTER or HONEY or MAPLE SUGAR

1. Preheat the oven to 425F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, oats, and sugar.
3. Stir in the melted butter and the milk until well combined.
4. Using a teaspoon, your hands, or a small ice cream scoop, make small, even balls. These don't spread at all, so you can fit quite a few on one sheet. Gently flatten the tops with a fork or the back of the spoon and press in the raisins or dates. Makes about 15 small cookies.
5. Bake cookies for 5 - 7 minutes. Serve with butter, honey, or maple sugar.


0 comments:

Chocolate Layer Cake (1914) ★★★

Whenever I need fresh lemon juice, I zest the lemon first and keep the peel in the freezer for later use. It's a great way to keep zest on hand, but the result is that I have accumulated about half a cup of zest! Not wanting it to go to waste, I searched for a historical recipe to use up some of my zest and found this one. It actually calls for citron, which is citrus peel preserved in sugar, but I figured zest is pretty similar, not to mention easier to acquire.
This recipe calls for frosting the cake with chocolate frosting, but didn't include a recipe, so I took the frosting recipe from another cake recipe in the same cookbook.






The Verdict:
With the first bite I didn't like this. But after a few bites I didn't mind it. It's about average. I asked Mr. Man, "Is this better or worse than a boxed cake mix?" and he said, "Better than some; worse than others." Flavour-wise, I didn't really like the spice/walnut cake with the chocolate frosting. And I didn't like the combination of jam I used (strawberry). I think maybe orange or lemon filling would be best, but unfortunately I hate citrus + chocolate. Cherry may work well too. Oh, and the chocolate frosting didn't make nearly enough, so I had to double it. So overall, alright. I will eat the rest, but probably won't make this again, mostly because it's a bit time consuming with just an average taste. 


Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from The Neighborhood Cook Book)

Chocolate Layer Cake
1/4 cup UNSALTED BUTTER, softened
4 EGGS, separated
1 cup SUGAR
1 teaspoon VANILLA EXTRACT
1 teaspoon ALLSPICE
1 teaspoon CINNAMON
1 teaspoon CLOVES
3/4 cup CHOCOLATE (CHIPS), finely chopped
5 tablespoons BOILING WATER
1 cup FLOUR
1 1/2 teaspoons BAKING POWDER
1 tablespoon ORANGE and LEMON ZEST
1/2 cup WALNUTS, chopped
JAM or JELLY

Chocolate Frosting
1 1/2 cups POWDERED SUGAR
4 tablespoons CHOCOLATE (CHIPS), finely chopped
BOILING WATER

1. Preheat the oven to 350F and grease and flour two 9 inch cake pans.
2. In a large bowl, beat together the butter, egg yolks, and sugar until well combined. Add in the vanilla, allspice, cinnamon, and cloves.
3. In a small bowl, mix the boiling water and chopped chocolate (or use chocolate chips) and stir until combined. Set aside to cool. Meanwhile, beat the egg whites until stiff. Set aside.
4. When the chocolate is cooled, add to the batter, along with the flour, baking powder, zest, and walnuts. Mix well. Lastly, gently fold in the stiff egg whites.
5. Separate the batter into the two prepared pans and bake for about - minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
6. Let the cakes cool and stack them on a plate or cake stand with jelly/jam in between the two layers. Top with the chocolate frosting, made from chocolate dissolved in boiling water and mixed with powdered sugar.


2 comments:

Portable Lemonade (1850) ★★★★

In our modern era where portable water flavourings are all the rage, I find this Victorian recipe to be quite ahead of its time. What I love about food history is finding unique recipes like this one and seeing how innovative people in the past really were.

Original Recipe:

The Verdict:
The second thing I love about food history is actually trying out historical recipes. Reading the recipe, I thought this would make something like lemon sugar, but it actually makes a syrup. I wouldn't have known that without actually making the recipe. Anyway, this is a tasty syrup, but the proportions given in the original recipe make for barely flavoured lemon water. I found 4 - 5 teaspoons per cup of water to be nice, but it depends on personal preference. I also didn't find I needed extra sourness form citric acid.

Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from Miss Beecher's Domestic Receipt Book)

4 large LEMONS
1 pound SUGAR
CITRIC ACID, optional*

1. Zest and juice the lemons. Mix this with the sugar. After tasting, if it is too sweet, add a little citric acid to taste. Keep in a jar.
2. To serve, use about one tablespoon per one cup of water. Shake before using, because the sugar will settle.

*Note: If you want to reduce the sweetness, but don't want to go out and buy a bunch of citric acid, a crushed vitamin C tablet or the powdered form will do in a pinch. Vitamin C is actually ascorbic acid, but it acts in much the same was as citric acid, by providing a sour taste. You could also try Fruit Fresh or a similar preserving/anti-browning agent, which usually contains both ascorbic and citric acids.


2 comments:

Tutti Frutti Ice (1920) ★★★

I love that this recipe is "naturally" gluten-free and vegan. It's also really simple to make! If you don't want to bother with making your own almond milk, you can just use plain store bought...I did ;)

Original Recipe:

Tutti Frutti Ice
3/4 pound blanched sweet almonds 
12 bitter almonds 
2 pints sugar syrup
1 teaspoonful vanilla
fruit, either fresh or preserved peaches, pineapples, plums, cherries or apricots

Pound the almonds with a little cold water very fine; pour over 1 pint water and let them stand for 1/2 hour; then press them through a hair sieve; mix this almond milk with the sugar syrup and vanilla; put this into a freezer and freeze; when frozen take the paddle of the freezer out and put in different kinds of fruit cut into small dice, either fresh or preserved peaches, pineapples, plums, cherries or apricots.

Cold Sugar Syrup for Fruit Ice
Dissolve 1 pound sugar in 1 pint cold water and use as directed. This is the ordinary syrup of 32 degrees used for fruit ice. If a thicker syrup is wanted dissolve 1 pound sugar in 1/2 pint water.


The Verdict:
This got nice and creamy in my ice cream maker, and then instantly melted into a syrupy mess when I added the warm fruit. Oops. Anyway, almond isn't my favourite flavor, but this isn't bad. Little Y liked it quite a bit. I wish I had chopped the fruit all the same size and smaller though, I think that would've been nicer and easier to eat. It was also reaaaaally sweet and sugary to the point where it was too much, so although the sugar syrup makes enough for half a batch, it's probably a better amount for a full batch. Overall, it was okay, but I won't make it again because we're not really almond lovers.

Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from Desserts and Salads)

Ice Cream
3/4 pound SWEET ALMONDS, blanched
12 BITTER ALMONDS
or
2 cups ALMOND MILK, unsweetened
4 cups SUGAR SYRUP
1 teaspoon VANILLA EXTRACT
~1 1/2 cups PEACHES, PINEAPPLES, PLUMS, CHERRIES, and APRICOTS, chopped

Cold Sugar Syrup
1 pound SUGAR
1 cup COLD WATER

1. First, make the sugar syrup by mixing together the sugar and cold water. The sugar will probably settle to the bottom, but that's okay. Stir in the almond milk and vanilla.
2. Pour the almond milk mixture into your ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer's directions, or freeze it in a pan, stirring every 30 minutes. Once frozen, but not hard, fold in the chopped fruit. Set in the freezer to harden before serving.


0 comments:

Chuck Wagon Beans (1948) ★★★

Cookbooks aren't the only sources for historical recipes - old advertisements are goldmines, too! There are tons of these sorts of images around the web, especially on Flickr. It's interesting to see what sorts of things companies came up with to advertise their product.

Original Recipe:
2 tablespoons bacon drippings or shortening
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 clove garlic (optional)
2 cans Hunt's Tomato Sauce
1 lb. ground beef
2 cups cooked or canned white or kidney beans (1 lb. 4-oz can)
1/4 cup water
3/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. chili powder

Melt shortening. Add onion, garlic, and meat. Cook until meat is lightly browned. Add Hunt's Tomato Sauce, beans, water and seasonings. Cover and simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, about 35 minutes or until mixture is thickened. Makes 4 servings.

The Verdict:
Unfortunately this was bland. So very bland. I used shortening instead of bacon fat, but I imagine that would have been quite tasty. I think I also may have added too much tomato sauce (like what the heck does "2 cans" equal anyway?!) and too much beef, comparing my finished product to the illustration. Also, I don't know what the difference between this and chili is. Because I would call this chili. Anyway, we added a bunch of spices and it was quite tasty. Without all the spice was great for Little Y, though. I gave it three stars because I would make this again, but it needs spicing up.


Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from Life, July 26, 1948)


2 tablespoons BACON DRIPPINGS or SHORTENING (this isn't really necessary unless you use extra lean beef)
1/2 cup ONION, chopped
1/2 clove GARLIC
2 cans HUNT'S TOMATO SAUCE
1 pound GROUND BEEF
2 cups (20 ounces) COOKED OR CANNED WHITE OR KIDNEY BEANS
1/4 cup WATER
3/4 teaspoon SALT
2 teaspoons CHILLI POWDER (+ extra spices for flavour)

1. In a large pot, melt the shortening. Add the onion, garlic, and meat and cook until the meat is browned. Pour off the extra fat if desired.
2. Add the remaining ingredients to the pot. If desired add extra spices to taste such as salt, pepper, paprika, cumin, oregano, and cayenne.
3. Simmer over low heat for about 35 minutes, or until thickened. Stir often, because this will stick to the bottom very quickly!


4 comments:

Milk Smoothies (1947) ★★

Did you know that Waring introduced the first blender in North America?

Original Recipe:

The Verdict:
I decided to just try three of the smoothies, because the others seem pretty obvious taste-wise, considering the small number of ingredients.

Pineapple Mint: This combination looked really weird and it tasted really weird. But not bad. The shake was really like frothy milk, and I much prefer my shakes to be icy and thick like soft serve ice cream. Also, the pineapple flavour could have been stronger. The flavour combination was actually kind of nice. To improve this, I would use more pineapple and freeze it beforehand, to make a thicker texture. Oh, and I didn't put in marshmallows, but I like sweet shakes, so I think they would have been yummy!

Marshmallow Mint: Marshmallows in a smoothie! But gross, so very gross. Because of the ice it was like watery, vaguely minty, sweet milk. Ew. If there was no ice it might have been like frothy minty milk, which I guess is okay. I think the best thing to do with this would have been to put in a bunch of ice cream, to make a marshmallow mint milkshake, rather than a smoothie.

Chocolate Mint: Annnnd, my blender broke. Sorry folks, haha. I'd wager it would have been like liquidy chocolate mint milk though. Probably would be a lot better with chocolate ice cream instead of ice.

Overall, I would recommend adjusting the amounts for the ice/milk/fruit, because these recipes really just make up liquidy flavoured milk. I have transcribed the original recipes below, so just be aware and don't follow it as written.

Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from 340 Recipes for the new Waring Blender)

Apricot
1 cup MILK
1 cup CANNED APRICOTS
or
1/2 cup DRIED APRICOTS, soaked
3 tablespoons SUGAR
2 tablespoons SHERRY

Chocolate Mint
1 cup MILK
3/4 cup BITTERSWEET CHOCOLATE SYRUP
4 drops PEPPERMINT EXTRACT

Banana
1 cup MILK
1 medium RIPE BANANA

Marshmallow Mint
1 cup MILK
4 MARSHMALLOWS
4 drops PEPPERMINT EXTRACT

Peach
1 cup MILK
1 cup PEACHES, sliced
or
1/2 cup FROZEN PEACHES, diced
2 tablespoons SHERRY

Plum
1 cup MILK
1 cup RED PLUMS, pitted
1/4 cup SHERRY or PORT
A dash of ANGOSTURA BITTERS

Pineapple Mint
1 cup MILK
1 cup PINEAPPLE, diced or crushed
2 drops PEPPERMINT EXTRACT

Pineapple
1 cup MILK
1 cup PINEAPPLE, diced or crushed

Peanut
1 cup MILK
1/4 cup PEANUT BUTTER
or
1/2 cup PEANUTS, roasted and hulled

Prune
1 cup MILK
1/2 cup PRUNES, pitted and soaked
1 tablespoon MOLASSES

Strawberry
1 cup MILK
1 pint STRAWBERRIES
4 tablespoons SUGAR
or
1 cup STRAWBERRIES, frozen

Melon
1 cup MILK
1 cup HONEYDEW or CANTALOUPE, diced

1. Place all ingredients in the blender, starting with the milk. Add one cup of ice.
2. Blend until combined, up to 2 minutes.
3. If desired, add 1 cup of ice cream or 2 marshmallows.


2 comments:

Apple Time Applesauce Parfait (1968) ★★★

I was interested to try this recipe because I love both yogurt and applesauce, but I've never eaten them together. After all, who has ever heard of apple flavored yogurt? The recipe comes from a 1968 advertisement. Clicking the link under "modernized recipe" will bring up the original image.

Original Recipe:
APPLE TIME APPLESAUCE PARFAIT Light right dessert to follow every entree in this booklet. Combine equal parts Apple Time Applesauce with vanilla or plain yogurt and pile in dessert glasses. Sprinkle lightly with graham cracker crumbs.

The Verdict:
This had such a strange texture. The taste was so-so, but I couldn't finish the whole thing. I also tried blending the last half of it all together and that made it taste even worse (at least it looks pretty?). I would eat it if I had to, but I won't make this again. Diced fresh apples would have tasted way better. This might be nice for kids, though.

Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from Inside the Wonderful World of Cooking and Homemaking (Favorites))

APPLESAUCE
PLAIN or VANILLA YOGURT
GRAHAM CRACKER CRUMBS

1. Layer equal amounts of applesauce and yogurt in a tall glass, finishing with yogurt. Sprinkle with graham cracker crumbs.


1 comments:

Chinese "Spare-Ribs" (1982) ★★★★



The recipe calls for cooking this in a "large saucepan or deep fryer", but I decided to break out my wok in favour of authenticity.


The Verdict:
Soooo, this is basically a review of V-H's medium garlic rib cooking sauce, but I was curious to see how frying the ribs would make them taste. In the end, they were pretty good. I liked the V-H sauce a lot. They were a bit tough to rip off the bone, though, because they weren't cooked as long as barbeque or oven ribs. I probably wouldn't use this as my go-to rib recipe, but it's nice when you want to whip up some ribs real quick.

Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from V-H Chinese Recipes)
2 - 3 pounds SPARE RIBS, cut into pieces
1 jar V-H MEDIUM GARLIC RIB COOKING SAUCE
OIL

1. In a large saucepan, wok, or pot, heat enough oil to cover 2 - 3 pounds of ribs.
2. When the oil is 365F (about medium-high), cook the raw ribs for 5 - 7 minutes, in batches so as not to crowd the pan. As the ribs cook, remove them to a plate lined with paper towels to drain.
3. When all the ribs are cooked, discard the oil (or save it for more frying) and use the same pan to heat the V-H sauce. Boil the sauce for 3 minutes.
4. Add the cooked ribs to the sauce and boil for another 3 - 5 minutes, stirring to coat. It will be saucy.
5. Serve hot.


2 comments:

Frozen Spiced Punch (c. 1923) ★★★★

I've had my ice cream maker (thanks to Mr. Man for that birthday gift!) sitting in the freezer for months now, and I keep forgetting to use it! So when I came across this unique frozen dessert, I knew it was time to finally pull it out and make something. I ended up messing it up a bit, so I poured the half-frozen punch into a 9x9 pan and froze it overnight. Dessert for breakfast anyone? It's got fruit, so it's healthy, right?!

Original Recipe:
Something entirely different in the way of a frozen dessert can be made by making frozen spiced punch according to the accompanying directions. A dessert of this kind is a fitting conclusion to a meal that is somewhat hearty and varied in its nature.

Sufficient to serve six.

6 cloves
2-inch stick cinnamon
1 quart water
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup pineapple juice
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup lemon juice
4 drops wintergreen oil

Put the cloves and cinnamon into the water, place over the fire, bring to the boiling point, and then add the sugar. Cook together for a few minutes, remove from the fire, and cool. Add the pineapple, orange, and lemon juice, strain, add the wintergreen oil, and freeze.

The Verdict:
Oddly...this tasted like rootbeer? Like a really fresh, fruity root beer. Totally was NOT expecting that!
(Okay, I looked up root beer and apparently some common flavours include clove, cinnamon, and wintergreen, so there you go)
I think I overdid the wintergreen juuuust a tad, though. I always second guess myself and end up adding too much of something or cooking something just a bit extra...*sigh*. It got really strong after freezing too, so don't be afraid to be a bit stingy with ingredients. But this is good! It's like a fruity, root beer-y, christmas-y granita. Yum!

Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from Woman's Institute Library of Cookery, Volume 4)

6 CLOVES (was strong, try with 3-4?)
1 2-inch CINNAMON STICK
4 cups WATER
2 cups SUGAR
1/2 cup PINEAPPLE JUICE
1/2 cup ORANGE JUICE (~ 1/2 a large orange)
1/2 cup LEMON JUICE (~ 1 medium lemon)
4 drops WINTERGREEN OIL (~ 1/8 teaspoon or less)

1. In a medium saucepan, heat the water, cloves, and cinnamon stick until boiling. Add the sugar and cook until dissolved.
2. Remove the water from the heat and let cool. Stir in the remaining ingredients.
3. Freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's directions or in a large pan in the freezer, scraping every 30 minutes until no liquid remains.


0 comments:

Macaroni Italian Style (c. 1923) ★★★★★


This recipe calls for macaroni, but the term actually refers to the ingredients in the dough rather than the shape itself. So any kind of pasta made with durum wheat works fine here, regardless of shape. The fact that the recipe calls for breaking the pasta into pieces makes me think perhaps the pasta used was something like Bucatini.
(The painting to the left is Boy with Spaghetti by Julius Moser, c. 1808. It depicts the original way of eating pasta - plain and by hand.)

Original Recipe:
If small quantities of fried or boiled ham remain after a meal, they can be used with macaroni to make a very tasty dish known as macaroni Italian style. As ham is a highly seasoned meat, it improves the flavor of the macaroni and at the same time adds nutrition to the dish.


Sufficient to serve six.


1 cupful macaroni
2 quarts boiling water
2 teaspoonfuls salt
2 tablespoonfuls butter
2 tablespoonfuls flour
1 1/2 cupfuls scalded milk
2/3 cupful grated cheese
1 teaspoonful salt
1/2 teaspoonful paprika
1/2 cupful finely chopped, cold boiled ham
1/4 cupful crumbs


Break the macaroni into inch lengths and cook it in the boiling water to which has been added 2 teaspoonfuls of salt. Drain, and then reheat it in a white sauce made of the butter, flour, and milk. Add the cheese and season with salt and paprika.


Arrange in layers in a baking dish, placing the cold ham between each two layers of macaroni and having the top layer of macaroni, sprinkle the crumbs on top of the upper layer, and bake the food until the crumbs are brown. Garnish with parsley and serve.


The Verdict:
I think I like this better than the other macaroni and cheese on this blog! It was sooo good and had the perfect amount of creamy sauce. There aren't a lot of herbs or spices, but it doesn't taste plain at all. It was rich and tasty, but not so much that I didn't take another scoop ;)
The ham was a nice touch too, and I'm not going to complain about bumping up the protein. The only thing I'm going to mention is that the bread crumbs were not really crusty, so if you like a baked macaroni and cheese with that thick, crispy crust on top, this is not the one. Also, it doesn't make very much. Definitely a side dish. Nevertheless, an amazing recipe! Definitely remembering this one. It didn't take very long to make either!

Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from Woman's Institute Library of Cookery, Volume 1)

The original recipe is easy to follow. When making the white sauce, just set the cooked pasta aside and use the same pot. Melt the butter and whisk in the flour. Whisk in the milk and cheese. Cook until thickened, whisking constantly. When the sauce is thickened and thoroughly mixed, add the pasta back in to coat.


0 comments:

Blackberry Gingerbread Upside-Down Cake (1938) ★★★★★

I usually post during the week, but since it's Canada Day today I thought I would make an exception. You also may have noticed I updated the blog's look. I like to experiment, so don't be surprised if this kind of thing happens often. Anyway, I think this looks a lot sleeker than the previous layout!

We were lucky enough to inherit some black raspberry bushes with our house when we moved in two years ago. At that time most of the bushes were actually on our neighbour's side of the house and just a few were on our side. Since then they have completely overgrown the whole right side of our house. We have picked about 4 cups of berries just in the last two days! Today's recipe is a harvest recipe - one which is great for using up leftover fruit in the summer and fall months. I decided to use our black raspberry harvest instead of buying blackberries for economical reasons, but I imagine the ladies of 1938 would have done the same. Plus the taste is quite similar, I think.

Original Recipe:

2 c. flour
1/2 c. sugar
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. allspice
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 egg
3/4 c. molasses
1/2 c. melted butter
3/4 c. hot water.

Sift dry ingredients together; then mix together egg, molasses, butter, and hot water; add dry ingredients. Beat till well blended. For the topping:

4 tbsp. butter
3/4 c. berry juice
3/4 c. brown sugar
2 c. blackberries, washed and drained

In a 9-inch cast-iron skillet, bring butter, juice, and sugar to a boil and boil 2 minutes. Add berries, then pour in batter carefully to cover all fruit. Bake at 350F for 35 minutes. Let stand in pan 15 minutes before turning out, inverted, onto a plate or cake stand.



The Verdict:
I was really worried about how this would turn out, because the berry topping was very liquidy and some of it cooked over top of the cake. In the end, it was a very moist and tender cake...to the point where it pretty much broke apart when I cut a piece, as you can see in the photos (edit: After leaving it in the fridge overnight it stayed together in a very pretty triangle after cutting. It was also a lot denser). Nevertheless, it was delicious! I'm pretty sure I kept repeating "That cake is SOOOOO GOOOOOOD" for like 5 minutes after I tried it. Mr. Man was slightly less impressed and just said, "It was mushy." I didn't mind the moistness, actually. And parts around the edges where the berry topping cooked were crispy, too. I would definitely make this again. The only change I would make is to cook the berry topping just a bit longer so that it's not quite so liquidy. Because this was very borderline deliciously moist cake to mushy mess.


Modernized Recipe:
(Adapted from The Farmer's Wife: The Magazine for Farm Women)

The original can be easily followed. For the "berry juice", I just used currant juice, because I had it on hand, but I imagine any berry juice would work, or even the juice squeezed out of some fresh blackberries. Also, just be careful when mixing the egg with the hot water and melted butter - you don't want it to curdle.


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