Recipes from the Past
February Menu 1884. Welcome February! Still waiting for the farmers market to usher in spring vegetables. And waiting... My favorite vendor said that the farm won't have new produce crops until mid-March. Alas, we make do with dandelion greens for salads, parsley, and the ever optimistic seasonal citrus. At some point, I'm going to cover... Continue Reading →
A French Coffee Recipe. Happy Monday! From Mrs. Beeton's recipe collection c. 1861. More Fun Discoveries from Antique Cookbooks Apple Custard ~1881 Pie or Cobbler? ~1910 Lighthouse Kitchen ~1855
What Is Distillation? Distillation is a process of purifying liquids through controlled boiling and condensation. A liquid is converted into a gas/vapour through heat, and then recondensed through cooling to return the vapor to a liquid form. Distillation was used to make fragrances, medicinal cordials, and liquors.
Children's Victorian Cake Recipe. Procuring Dough. Curious ingredients. The cake recipe outsources the dough to the local baker, which, as a busy mom, I think is a brilliant solution. They didn't have biscuit tubes or box cake mixes, but this would have been the next best thing. A quartern of dough is about four pounds,... Continue Reading →
General Observations on Victorian Drinks. Beverages are innumerable in their variety... and may be divided into three classes. We will, however, forthwith treat on the most popular of our beverages beginning with the one which makes "the cup that cheers but not inebriates." Any recipe requests from the list? From Mrs. Beeton's recipe collection c. 1861.... Continue Reading →
A Very Simple Method of Making Coffee. Coffee Preparation in the 1860s All I have to say is: Thank goodness for paper filters! Which leads us to some very interesting trivia. The paper coffee filter was invented by a woman, Melitta Bentz, in 1908. No surprise that a woman would have invented the paper filter.... Continue Reading →
How To Make Cocoa. Who doesn't love a mug of hot cocoa in mid-winter? This particular recipe, I believe, is missing a key ingredient: sugar. I was out of instant hot chocolate the other weekend and was scouring the cupboard for a special breakfast treat for the kids. The Hershey's powdered baking cocoa has a... Continue Reading →
How to Mull Wine Do you mull wine? Time to ramp up the recipes for dark winter nights. As a general rule, mulled wine isn't on the top of my list: A) probably because it's bordering on hypocraphal for good wine, and B) it's a lot of work if only one or two people are... Continue Reading →
Classic Gingerbread Recipe. Another seasonal recipe from Mrs. Beeton's recipe collection c. 1861. Come to think of it, ginger 'bread' typically refers to the cookie sort of dessert, not the cake 'bread' version - at least here regionally. Why is that? Treacle is the British term for molasses, lest there be any confusion. Confession time. I... Continue Reading →
