Author: Sheryl

1921 Chicago Asbestos Table Mat Co. Advertisement

Advertisement for Chicago Asbestos Table Mat Comany
Source: The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book (1921

This 1921 advertisement for asbestos table mats reminded me of how much our knowledge base has changed across the years. A hundred years ago many products contained asbestos; today we know that it is dangerous.

Yet I’m old enough to remember when asbestos products were considered safe. The dining room table in my childhood home had a mat that looked almost identical to the one in the picture – and I’m now realizing that it may have contained asbestos which is a bit scary.

Some things it’s best not to think too much about. I think that I’ll focus on memories of the wonderful family gatherings around that dining room table, rather than focusing on the table mat (which may not have actually contained asbestos).

Old-fashioned Stewed Prunes

stewed prunes

Hundred-year-old cookbooks sometimes contain very basic recipes, such as a recipe for stewed prunes. I’m a little surprised when an author puts such a simple recipe in a cookbook – though I also find it fascinating how basic foods have changed over the past hundred years. Back then (and even when I was young) prunes were very dry and needed extensive soaking and cooking to make tender stewed prunes; whereas today many supermarket prunes are very moist when taken out of the package and need to be stewed for only a few minutes.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Stewed Prunes
Source: The New Cookery (1921) by Lenna Frances Cooper

One-half pound of prunes is about 1 cup of prunes. I’m not clear why the directions refer to 1/4 cup of sugar and 1 tablespoon of lemon for each two cups of prunes. Maybe the author was referring to the volume of prunes after they are soaked. In any case, when I updated the recipe, rather than trying to estimate the volume of the prunes, I assumed that the recipe calls for adding 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon lemon (if desired).

And, here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Stewed Prunes

  • Servings: 3 - 5
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

1/2 pound prunes (approximately 1 cup prune)

1 cup water (more may be needed if the prunes are very dry.)

1/4 cup sugar, if desired

1 tablespoon lemon juice, if desired

Put prunes and water in a saucepan. If desired, stir in the sugar. Bring to a boil using high heat, then reduce heat until it simmers. Cook until the prunes are tender and the liquid is syrupy (about 15 minutes – if the prunes are moist; longer if they are very dry). Remove from heat, and, if desired stir in the lemon juice.

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com

Good Cooks Are Composers

Quote by Henry Finck
Source: The New Cookery (1921) by Lenna Frances Cooper

The foreword to a 1921 cookbook begins with this quote. Nice quote – but I was curious about who Henry T. Finck was and why I should care about what he thought.

A quick google search turned up information about Henry Finck. He was both the music editor and the epicurean editor at the New York Evening Post. According to Oregon Encyclopedia:

Music critic Henry T. Finck spent his childhood on an apple orchard near the Christian agricultural colony of Aurora in the lower Willamette Valley. The first Oregonian to graduate from Harvard, Finck was a prolific writer and critic of contemporary music. He also wrote about horticulture, romantic love, travel, food, and his Oregon boyhood.

Old-fashioned Coffee Cake

piece of coffee cake on plate

Coffee cake is a wonderful sweet treat to have with coffee (or without), so I was pleased to find a hundred-year-old recipe for Coffee Cake. The cake turned out well. It was moist and tender with a nice cinnamon and sugar topping.

Here’s the original recipe:

Coffee Cake Recipe
Source: The New Dr. Price Cook Book (1921)

And, there’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Coffee Cake

  • Servings: 7 - 9
  • Difficulty: moderate
  • Print

Cake

2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons sugar

4 teaspoons baking powder

2 tablespoons shortening, melted

1 cup milk

Topping Mixture

3 teaspoons flour + additional, if needed

1 tablespoon cinnamon

3 tablespoons sugar + additional, if needed

3 tablespoons shortening

Preheat oven to 375° F. Put all of the cake ingredients in a mixing bowl. Beat to combine. Put batter in a greased and floured 9-inch square cake pan.

In a separate bowl, place the flour cinnamon, and sugar. Stir to combine. Add the shortening, and mix together until the texture is crumbly. It may helpful to use your hands to get the shortening mixed in.  (When I made the recipe I added more flour and sugar than called for in the original recipe, to make it more crumbly).

Spread the topping mixture over the top of the cake. Bake for 30 – 35 minutes, or until a wooden pick comes out clean.

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com

1921 Table Etiquette

set table on porch or patioPhoto source: Ladies Home Journal (July, 1911)

Here’s a few table etiquette rules that appeared in a 1921 home economics textbook: 

Table Manners

  • Never go to the table unless hands and face are clean and hair is in order. 
  • Stand behind your chair until the hostess takes her seat. 
  • The napkins should be laid across the lap without being entirely opened out. Never stick the corner inside the collar. If the napkin is to be used again, fold it neatly before leaving the table. 
  • Always sit erect in the chair while eating. Keep the arms and elbows off the table. 
  • Never eat hurriedly. 
  • Do not talk when the mouth is full of food. 
  • Ask politely for dishes to be passed, rather than reach across the table. 
  • Never complain about the food. If it is not the kind desired, it need not be eaten. 
  • If it is necessary to leave the table before the others are ready, ask to be excused by the hostess. 
  • Do not talk about disagreeable things during the meal. 

Source: Elementary Home Economics (1921) by Mary Lockwood Matthews

Old-fashioned Nut Squares

 

Nut Squares on Plate

Warm weather is finally here, and I’m ready to sit on the porch with tea and a snack. So when I saw a hundred-year-old recipe for Nut Squares that said, “Very nice for afternoon tea,” I knew that I needed to try the recipe.

The Nut Squares were tasty and chock-full of nuts with a crispy crust and a chewy middle.  The one downside is that the crust had a tendency to crack and break when I cut the cookies into bars.

Here’s the original recipe:

Nut Squares on plate
Source: Ladies’ Union Cook Book (Concord Junction, MA, 1921)

I was surprised that the recipe did not call for any butter or shortening – though the cookies still had a nice texture. Perhaps the top crust may have had less tendency to break and crumble off the bars if the recipe had inclued butter or shortening.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Nut Squares

  • Servings: about 24 bars
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

3 eggs

1 1/2 cups sugar

3/4 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

2 cups chopped nuts (I used chopped walnuts.)

Preheat oven to 375° F. Put eggs in mixing bowl and beat. Add sugar, flour, and baking powder; beat until smooth. Pour mixture into a greased 9 X 13 inch baking pan. Bake until set and the top is light brown (about 25 – 30 minutes). Remove from oven. When partially cool cut into squares or 1 X 2 inch bars.

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com