Advertisements in Hundred-Year-Old Church Cookbooks

I have several hundred-year-old church cookbooks. All of them contain favorite recipes of individuals affiliated with the church publishing the cookbook. These cookbooks were also created for fund-raising purposes. The published cookbooks were sold. They also all have advertising sections at the back. Then (as well as now), selling ads to local businesses increased the profits. A 1925 cookbook compiled by the Sisters of St. Joseph in St. Paul, Minnesota has a page in the book right before the advertisements calling attention to the ads. And, here’s one of the pages which contained ads:

Ads in cookbook — Source: Diamond Jubilee Recipes (1925), compiled by The Sisters of St. Joseph, St. Paul, Minnesota

The Sisters probably solicited ads from members of the church who owned businesses or from vendors who sold products to the church.

Old-Fashioned Coconut Cake

Summer is the season for picnics and reunions – and lots of good food. I have wonderful memories of lovely Coconut Cakes at family gatherings, so when I saw a Coconut Cake recipe in a hundred-year-old cookbook, I decided to give it a try. The cake was delightful, but recipe had two unique features which resulted in this cake being a little different than some Coconut Cake recipes. The recipe called for adding coconut to the cake batter (and not just sprinkling it on top of the frosting). It also called for a teaspoon of orange extract. The cake is not very large, and works well in a 9-inch square baking pan.

The Coconut Cake was light and fluffy with a bold coconut flavor, and a subtle hint of orange. I definitely plan to make this cake again.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Coconut Cake — Source: The Daily Argus-Leader Home Economics and Cook Book (Newspaper Supplement), Sioux Falls, South Dakota (1925)

When I updated this recipe, I updated the spelling of “cocoanut” to “coconut.” Cocoanut is an archaic spelling that I often see in hundred-year-old cookbooks, but that is seldom used today.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Coconut

Servings: 8 - 10
Time: 50 minutes
Difficulty: moderate
Print

2 eggs, separated

3 tablespoons butter

1 cup sugar

1 cup milk

2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon orange extract

1 cup shredded coconut

white icing (I used a buttercream icing.)

additional coconut

Preheat oven to 350° F. Put egg whites into a mixing bowl, and beat until peaks form. Set aside.

Put butter and sugar in mixing bowl, then beat to cream. Add egg yolks, milk, flour, baking powder, orange extract, and salt. Beat until well-mixed. Stir in the coconut, then gently fold in the beaten egg whites. Put the batter in a prepared 9-inch square pan. Bake for 30 – 35 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool. Frost with white icing, then sprinkle coconut on top of the frosting.

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com

When to Form an Opinion About an Egg

Source: The Daily Argus-Leader Home Economics and Cook Book, Sioux Falls, South Dakota (1925)

Old cookbooks have lots of hints and tips. A 1925 cookbook supplement in the Sioux Falls, South Dakota newspaper tells readers to wait to form an opinion of an egg until something happens with the lid. But the old newsprint is blurry and I’m not sure what the last word says. Is it “off”? . . . or “on”? . . or perhaps “of”? (which makes no sense). It may be trying to say that you can’t tell how well fried eggs are going to turn out until the pan lid is removed (assuming that a lid was put on the pan as part of the process of frying the eggs). Or maybe the egg’s lid” is the shell, and cooks can’t really judge the quality of an egg until the egg is cracked.

Bottom line, I have no idea what this tip means, but I’ve spent much more time than I should have trying to decipher it.

Dry State Punch Recipe

A hundred years ago alcohol was prohibited in the United States. The prohibition era went from 1920 to 1933. Cookbooks published during that time period seldom contain recipes that call for alcohol, but there are recipes for lots of nonalcoholic drinks. I recently came across a recipe for Dry State Punch in a 1925 cookbook. I was intrigued, and decided to give it a try.

I made this recipe on a 90° day and it was delightful. It’s a perfect summer drink. The Dry State Punch was zesty and refreshing. It contains grapefruit juice, orange juice, lemon juice, and pineapple juice.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Dry State Punch — Source: Home Makers’ Cooking School Cook Book (1925)

It is a little confusing how the list of ingredients calls for “juice of grape fruit,” but the directions call for adding “grape juice.” I decided to go with grapefruit juice, but am not absolutely certain that is what the recipe author intended. I added all the fruit juices to the sugar syrup while it was still hot, and did not wait until it cooled to add the grapefruit juice.

I used lemon-lime soda when I made this recipe. Either candied cherries or Maraschino cherries would work as a garnish. Citron is listed as a garnish in the directions, but I didn’t use it.

I didn’t fresh-squeeze either the grapefruit or orange juice, but rather used juice that I bought at the store. I did an online search and found out how much juice a typical grapefruit and orange contain, and then went with that amount. For the pineapple juice, I opened a can of pineapple chunks and poured the juice off and used it. (I did squeeze the lemon to get the lemon juice.)

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Dry State Punch

Servings: 5 - 7
Time: 10 minutes active prep time
Difficulty: easy
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1 cup water

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup pineapple juice

juice of 1 grapefruit (about 3/4 cup)

juice of 1 orange (about 1/3 cup)

juice of 1 lemon (about 3 tablespoons)

2 cups lemon-lime soda (Sprite, 7-up, etc.)

candied or Maraschino cherries

Put the sugar and water in a saucepan, bring to a boil using medium heat. Remove sugar syrup from the heat, and add the grapefruit juice, orange juice, and lemon juice. Chill. Just before serving, add lemon lime soda. Garnish with cherries.

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com

Hundred-Year-Old Tips for Making Croquettes

A hundred-years-ago croquettes were considered a great way to use up left-overs. The texture and taste of croquette was very different from the original food, and “the crisp crust make these little bits acceptable.”

Here are some tips in a 1925 cookbook for making croquettes:

The shape of a croquette adds to its attractiveness or takes away from it. It should never look like a meat cake. If they are meant to be balls, they should be perfectly shaped, or if they are meant to be cone shaped, they should be so carefully handled that they will hold up. It takes considerable practice to make really good looking croquettes.

To make good croquettes, the meat or fish must be minced quite fine and all the ingredients so well combined that the flavors are thoroughly blended. The mixture must be as moist as it is possible to handle without spoiling the shape of the croquette. The cork shaped ones are the easiest to handle. The mixture should be dipped in egg and breaded carefully and then chilled. They are easier to handle in the frying basket if taken out of the refrigerator and will hold together in the fat better.

The sweet croquette is often served as a dessert. After a luncheon of a simple salad, the sweet croquette is just heavy enough to round out the meal.

Home Makers’ Cooking School Cook Book (1925)

I looked through my old croquette posts to find a photo for this post, and realized that none of the croquettes in my pictures are perfectly shaped. Sigh . . .I have only made croquette recipes a few times for this blog because I think that they might not be very healthy since they generally are fried in fat, and because I worry that they will fall apart while cooking. Maybe I’ll have to try making a croquette recipe again sometime and follow the tips in the old cookbook.

In case you are interested, here are the croquette recipes that I have previously made:

Salmon Croquettes

Mushroom Croquettes

Rice and Celery Croquettes

Potato Croquettes

Old-Fashioned Creamed Celery with Almonds

A hundred years ago, cooked celery was a commonly served vegetable. Today, not so much. But, when I saw I hundred year old recipe for Creamed Celery with Almonds, I decided to give it a try. The subtle sweetness of the celery was lovely, and sliced almonds added a bit of crunch. I feel certain that I’ll make this recipe again. Making this side dish reminded me how much I enjoy this tasty and nutritious vegetable.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

I used half milk and half celery stock when I made this recipe. This made the sauce lighter and more flavorful.

Creamed Celery with Almonds

Servings: 2 - 3
Time: 20 minutes
Difficulty: moderate
Print

2 cups celery, sliced into 1-inch pieces

water

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup flour

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1 cup milk

1 cup celery stock (Reserve 1 cup of the liquid that the celery was boiled in.)

1/3 cup almonds, sliced

Put the sliced celery in a saucepan; barely cover with water. Bring to a boil using high heat, then reduce heat and simmer until the celery is tender (about 10 minutes). Remove from heat and drain, reserving 1 cup of the liquid.

In the meantime, melt butter in another saucepan, then stir in the flour, salt, and pepper. Gradually, add the milk and celery stock while stirring constantly. Continue stirring until the white sauce begins to thicken. Stir in the cooked celery and the almonds.

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com

Do You Have Too Many Kitchen Utensils?

Kitchen utensils on rack I have way too many kitchen utensils with a disorganized drawer filled with soup ladles, spatulas, a pizza cutter, a can opener, plastic and wooden mixing spoons, knives, vegetables peelers, a nutcracker with nut picks, a meat thermometer, and much more. And, that’s just the beginning. I also have a plastic container on a shelf in a bottom cupboard filled with less used kitchen utensils, while my least used utensils are stashed in a box in the basement. A hundred-year-old cookbook stressed the importance of having a few good utensils (and not having a plethora of seldom used ones):

Adequate equipment does not mean having a large number of utensils for every process; it does mean, however, having enough so that the business of cooking does not become too irksome. Beating egg whites with a fork is a long process. It takes so long that as a rule the woman usually becomes tired long before the eggs are beaten enough and the result is an inferior product. An egg beater should be among her kitchen utensils. Hundreds of examples could be given to illustrate just that one point. The other extreme of course is just as bad, and burdening yourself with useless utensils is something to be guarded against. Good housekeeping does not consist of a well-stocked utensil closet. It is better to have a few good utensils and then make each one do as many tasks as possible. It isn’t the number of utensils that counts, but the number of uses to which each can be put that determines the wise choice.

The Home Makers’ Cooking School Cook Book (1925)