Old-Fashioned Creamed Sweet Potatoes

Creamed Sweet Potatoes

I’m always looking for new ways to serve vegetables, so was intrigued by a hundred-year-old recipe for Creamed Sweet Potatoes. The recipe actually called for both diced sweet potatoes and celery. The combination worked well together, and I was pleased with how the recipe turned out.

Here’s the original recipe:

When I made this recipe, I was uncertain whether I was supposed to use left-over cold sweet potatoes that had previously been cooked, or if I was supposed to peel sweet potatoes and cut the uncooked sweet potatoes into cubes. I decided to go with the latter approach. The reason I used uncooked diced sweet potatoes is because they can easily be over-cooked and become very mushy. I wanted the sweet potatoes pieces to hold their shape.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Creamed Sweet Potatoes

Servings: 3 - 4
Time: 30 minutes
Difficulty: moderate
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1 cup half and half (light cream)

2 cups sweet potatoes, peeled and diced into 1-inch cubes

1/2 cup celery (about 1 stalk), diced

1/8 teaspoon paprika

1 tablespoon chopped parsley (or 1 tablespoon parsley flakes) – I used parsley flakes.

Put half and half in a saucepan; add diced sweet potatoes. Using medium heat, bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes or until the sweet potatoes are tender. Genty stir occasionally while cooking, being sure to stir all the way to the bottom of the pan since the cream will easily scorch. Once the sweet potatoes are tender, gently stir in the paprika and parsley, then add the celery. Heat for another minute or two (until the mixture is hot and bubbly); remove from the heat and serve.

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Old-Fashioned Mushroom Omelet

Mushroom Omelet

I enjoy the challenge of making omelets and I like mushrooms, so I decided to make a hundred-year-old recipe for Mushroom Omelet. The omelet turned out well and was tasty.

The 1924 New Butterick Cook Book had two Mushroom Omelet options. I selected the first one. Here are the original recipes:

Mushroom Omelet Recipes — The New Butterick Cook Book (1924)

I used milk instead of cream. One teaspoon of salt (and 1/2 teaspoon or pepper) seemed like a lot, so I used half that amount for each.

And, here is the original omelet recipe that I used:

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Mushroom Omelet

Servings: 3 - 4
Time: 15 minutes
Difficulty: moderate
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Omelet

4 eggs, separated

4 tablespoons milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1 tablespoon butter

Preheat oven to 350° F. Place egg whites in a bowl, and beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Set aside.

In another bowl, whisk the egg yolks, then stir in the milk, salt, and pepper. Fold in the beaten egg whites.

In the meantime, heat a large oven-proof skillet on the top of the stove using medium-low heat.(I used a 12-inch cast iron skillet.) Put butter in pan. When the butter is melted, pour the egg mixture into the skillet. Then move the skillet to the oven, and bake for about 8 – 10 minutes or until the egg mixture is set. Remove from oven, and loosen the edges of the omelet from the skillet with a knife or spatula, then turn onto a plate. Put the mushroom filling (see below) onto half of the omelet, and then fold in half and serve.

Omelet Filling

1 cup mushroom pieces (fresh or canned)

1 tablespoon butter

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 tablespoon flour

1/2 cup milk

Cut mushrooms into small pieces. Melt butter in a saucepan, then add the mushrooms. Sauté for several minutes, then stir in the flour, salt, and pepper. Gradually add the milk while stirring constantly. Heat until the mixture is hot and bubbly.

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Old-Fashioned Bacon Cream Soup

Bowl of Bacon Cream Soup

It’s cold and wintery outside, and I’m ready to cozy up and enjoy comfort foods. I came across a hundred-year-old recipe for Bacon Cream Soup that fits the bill. The soup was delicious and easy to make.

Here’s the original recipe:

It seemed odd that the old recipe called for putting sliced potatoes (and onions) in the soup. Smaller pieces seem more typical for a soup, so I cut the potatoes, onions, and celery into small pieces. The original recipe calls for whole milk. I think that skim, 1%, 2%, or whole milk would work in this recipe, so I didn’t specify the type of milk when I updated the recipe.

I used all of the fat that I got from cooking the bacon. Unless the bacon is extremely fatty, I don’t think that there is no need to measure out an exact amount of bacon fat for this recipe.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Bacon Cream Soup

Servings: 4 - 5
Time: 35 minutes
Difficulty: easy
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2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1 large onion, coarsely diced into 1/2 inch pieces

3 stalks celery, coarsely diced into 1/2 inch pieces

3 slices bacon

2 tablespoons flour

4 cups milk

Put the potato, onion, and celery pieces into a saucepan, and cover with water. Bring to a boil using high heat, then reduce heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender (about 10 minutes). Remove from heat and drain. Set aside.

Fry bacon until crisp in a Dutch oven or other large pan, then remove the cooked bacon from the pan, and break into small pieces. Set aside.

Stir the flour into the hot bacon fat. Slowly add the milk while constantly stirring and using medium heat. Stir in the cooked vegetables and bacon. Heat until hot and steamy, then serve.

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Old-Fashioned Turkey Tetrazzini

Turkey Tetrazzini

Merry Christmas!

It’s always so exciting preparing foods for the holidays (I’m currently in that mode), but I also know that I need to plan for the inevitable left-overs, so I’m sharing a lovely hundred-year-old recipe for Turkey Tetrazzini that I found. It is a great way to use some of that left-over turkey.

Here’s the original recipe:

Turkey Tetrazzini Recipe — Source: The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book (1923)

The recipe calls for a lot of salt – one teaspoon salt plus 1/2 teaspoon celery salt, so I reduced the amount of salt to 1/2 teaspoon when I updated the recipe. I used a 4-ounce can of mushroom (stems and pieces) instead of fresh mushrooms.

The original recipe calls for putting the Turkey Tetrazzini in individual-serving ramekins (which would look very elegant), but I just put it all in one casserole dish. I used a 750-ml casserole dish and it was very full. A 1-quart dish would work well.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Turkey Tetrazzini

Servings: 3-4
Time: 40 minutes
Difficulty: moderate
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2 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons flour

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoons celery salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1/2 cup cooked spaghetti, cut into 1/2 inch pieces (about 1 ounce of uncooked spaghetti)

1 cup cold turkey, cut into thin strips

1 8-ounce can stems and pieces mushrooms

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

3/4 cup cracker crumbs (Use saltine crackers or other similar plain cracker; put in a plastic bag and roll with a rolling pin to get the crumbs)

butter

Preheat oven to 375° F. Put butter in a skillet or saucepan. Melt using medium heat, then stir in the flour, salt, celery salt, and pepper. Gradually, add the cream while stirring constantly. Continue stirring until the white sauce begins to thicken. Stir in the cooked spaghetti pieces, then gently stir in the turkey strips and mushrooms. Put in a 750 ml or 1-quart casserole dish. Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese and cracker crumbs on top. Dot with small pieces of butter. Bake in oven until the top is lightly browned (about 20 minutes).

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Old-Fashioned Mulled Cider

mug of mulled cider Hot mulled cider makes a delightful holiday drink. I found an easy and tasty mulled cider recipe in a hundred-year-old cookbook.

Here’s the original recipe:

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Mulled Cider

Servings: 3 - 4
Time: 15 minutes
Difficulty: easy
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1 quart cider

4 tablespoons sugar

1 cinnamon stick

1 tablespoon whole cloves

Put cider and sugar in a large saucepan. Add cinnamon stick and cloves tied into a cheesecloth bag. Bring to a boil using medium heat; reduce heat to low. Remove cinnamon and cloves before serving. Serve hot.

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Old-fashioned Nut Cookies

Nut Cookies on Plate

It’s the time of year to make cookies, so I was excited to try a hundred-year-old recipe for Nut Cookies. The cookies are made using egg whites that are stiffly beaten, which results in crispy, light cookies. They have a delightful texture and taste, however, I found them a bit challenging to make. When I made this recipe I used nonstick baking sheets, and had trouble with the cookies sticking to them. I am not sure why.

Here’s the original recipe:

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Nut Cookies

Servings: approximately 48 cookies
Time: 45 minutes
Difficulty: difficult
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2 eggs, separated

1 cup brown sugar

6 tablespoons flour

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 cup chopped nuts (I used walnuts.)

Preheat oven to 325° F. Put beat egg whites until stiff. Set aside.

Beat egg yolks until thick and lemon colored. Gradually add sugar, beaten egg whites, and flour mixed with salt. Gently stir in the nut meats. Drop from the tip of teaspoon onto a greased baking sheet to make circles about 3/4 inch in diameter. Bake 8-10 minutes or until the cookies are set and lightly browned.

Note: These cookies may have a tendency to stick to baking sheet.

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Alphonso Potatoes Recipe

Alphonso Potatoes

Now that the weather’s getting cold and wintery, potatoes hit the spot. I recently made a hundred-year-old recipe for Alphonso Potatoes which are diced potatoes and green pepper are in a milk sauce, and topped with Parmesan cheese. This dish is very attractive and makes a nice presentation. The green of the pepper and the white of the potatoes made a visually appealing combination. The Parmesan cheese topping added flavor to the dish, and it was very nice.

Here’s the original recipe:

When I made the recipe, I cut the potatoes into 1/4 inch cubes prior to cooking. Perhaps cooks a hundred-years-ago often had left-over boiled potatoes that could be diced and used in this recipe, but since I didn’t have any left-over potatoes it seemed easier to just dice them into small pieces prior to cooking. I boiled the diced potatoes for a few minutes and then added the green pepper pieces to the simmering potatoes. It didn’t seem like a separate pan was needed. After the cubed potatoes were soft, I drained them, and then added the milk. I salted the water when cooking the potatoes, but did not add additional salt when I added the milk. I cooked for a few minutes more minutes, while occasionally gently stirring (but it was substantively less than 15 minutes). Some of the milk evaporated, and it began to thicken. I then removed from the heat and put into the casserole dish.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Alphonso Potatoes Recipe

Servings: 4 - 5
Time: 40 minutes
Difficulty: moderate
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5 medium potatoes, peeled and diced into 1/4 inch cubes

water

1 teaspoon salt + 1/2 teaspoon salt (if desired)

1 medium green pepper, diced into 1/8 inch pieces

3/4 cup milk

1 1/2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 375° F. Put the diced potatoes into a saucepan; cover with water and add 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil using high heat, then reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the diced green pepper and simmer for an additional 6 minutes. Remove from the heat, and drain. Pour milk and 1/2 teaspoon salt (if desired) on the drained potatoes and green pepper in the saucepan. Heat using medium heat while stirring gently occasionally (do not cover). Simmer for a few minutes until some of the milk evaporates and the liquid thickens a little. (Use care that the milk and potatoes don’t burn.) Remove from the heat and put into a casserole dish. Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese. Put in the oven and bake for 10 minutes or until the Parmesan cheese is lightly browned.

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