Tag: green peppers

Baked Corn in Green Peppers

Baked Corn in Green Pepper on plate

The farmers’ market is chock full of wonderful, fresh ,local vegetables. Green peppers and corn are at their peak. So, when I came across a hundred-year-old recipe for Baked Corn in Green Peppers, I decided to give it a try.

I’ve made stuffed peppers numerous times over the years; but, until I saw this recipe, I never thought about stuffing the peppers with a creamy baked corn mixture. This recipe is a tasty stuffed pepper variation. The corn and green peppers work well together.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Baked Corn in Green Peppers
Source: Pennsylvania State Grange Cook Book (1926)

This is a nice recipe, but it needed some tweaking. I think that green peppers were generally much smaller a hundred years ago than they are today. When I made this recipe, I used some medium-sized green peppers which I found at the farmers’ market. They were much smaller than most green peppers sold in supermarkets. Even though the peppers that I used were smaller than most, the recipe only made enough of the corn mixture to fill three green peppers, not six. When I updated the recipe, I indicated that three green peppers should be used rather than six.

I think that this recipe may be missing an ingredient. Whenever I have made Baked Corn in the past, the recipe called for eggs. I don’t think that Baked Corn will properly set without eggs, so I added an egg when I made the recipe. Even with the added egg, it took more than an hour for the baked corn in the green peppers to set, so when I updated the recipe, I indicated that two eggs should be used.

I wasn’t sure how to baste the corn and pepper with water and butter while they baked. Until the baked corn was set and became firm, the top of the Baked Corn in Green Peppers was very wet and did not need any additional liquid. I ended up pouring hot water and melted butter around the green peppers in the baking dish, though I’m not sure that is what the recipe author intended (and I don’t think it was needed, so I didn’t include basting when I updated the recipe).

When I have previously made stuffed peppers, I cut the tops off them and removed the seeds and membranes prior to cooking. I then put them in boiling water, and simmered for 5 minutes or so. I’m not sure why this recipe calls for pouring boiling water over the green peppers before the top, membranes, and skin are removed. That said, it worked fine to scald the green peppers by putting boiling water on the entire peppers. After the stuffed peppers were baked, the peppers were more wrinkled that some other stuffed peppers I have made in the past, but they still had a nice texture. Perhaps this was due to the scalding process, but I’m not sure.

I’m not sure why the recipe author said to “rub off the skin” of the peppers. It sounds like a lot of work, and that it would be easy to tear the green peppers in the process. It is very important to very carefully remove the green peppers’ membranes and seeds, since the corn mixture is very juicy before it is baked, and it would be problematic if the liquid leaked from a tear in a pepper.

I used milk rather than light cream when I made this recipe.

The corn from two fairly large ears made approximately 2 cups of corn.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Baked Corn in Green Peppers

  • Servings: 3-4
  • Difficulty: moderate
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3 medium green peppers

water

2 cups fresh corn (the corn and pulp cut from 2 previously cooked large ears of corn) or use 1 16-ounce can of creamed corn

1 1/2 tablespoons butter

1 1/2 tablespoons flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup milk or light cream

2 eggs

Step 1. Preheat oven to 374° F.

Step 2. Put enough water in a saucepan to fill it about 2/3’s full. Heat water to a boil, then remove from heat and add the green peppers; cover pan, and let sit for 5 minutes.

Step 3. Remove peppers from the hot water, and dunk in cold water to cool enough to handle. Cut the tops off the scalded peppers, then carefully remove the seeds and membranes. Use care not to tear the skin of the peppers.

Step 4. In the meantime, melt the butter in a saucepan. Stir in flour and salt. Gradually stir in milk or light cream. Heat to boiling, while stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

Step 5. Put eggs in a small bowl; stir until smooth. Place a small amount (approximately 1 – 2 tablespoons) of hot milk/cream  mixture into dish with egg; stir quickly. (The egg is first combined with a little of the hot mixture to prevent it from turning into scrambled eggs when introduced into the hot combination.)  Add egg mixture to the remaining hot mixture in the saucepan; stir. Add the corn and stir.

Step 6. Set the prepared green peppers in a baking dish, and spoon the corn mixture into the green pepper cavities to fill them

Step 7. Bake in oven uncovered until the corn mixture is firm and set (approximately 30 – 40 minutes.)

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com

Old-Fashioned Shamrock Salad with French Dressing with Mustard

Shamrock Salad

Hundred-year-old magazines sometimes have holiday recipes. For St. Patrick’s Day, the March, 1925 issue of American Cookery had a recipe for Shamrock Salad with French Dressing with Mustard. I decided to give it a try.

Shamrock Salad is made by stuffing green pepper halves with a cream cheese and olive mixture. The stuffed peppers are refrigerated for several hours, then sliced. The French Dressing with Mustard is very different from modern bottled French dressings, but it was a nice oil and vinegar dressing.

The Shamrock Salad with French Dressing with Mustard was good, but had a very old-fashioned look and taste.

Here’s the original recipe:

Shamrock Salad

Recipe for Shamrock Salad with French Dressing with Mustard
Source: American Cookery (March, 1925)

The old recipe indicates that the serving size is four slices. I cannot imagine eating a serving that large of this salad; 1 slice – at most 2 – makes a nice serving size. Since I thought that the serving size was very large, I halved the recipe when I updated it.

For the French Dressing with Mustard, I used olive oil for the oil.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Shamrock Salad with French Dressing with Mustard

  • Servings: 2 - 3
  • Difficulty: moderate
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1 large green pepper

1/2 tablespoon butter, softened

1 8-ounce container cream cheese (room temperature)

1/4 tablespoon cream

1/4 teaspoon salt

6 stuffed green olives, finely chopped

lettuce (optional)

Remove stem from the green pepper, then cut in half. (There will be a top half and a bottom half.) Remove pith and seeds. Set aside.

Put butter in a bowl and cream, then add the cream cheese, cream, and salt. Stir until smooth. Add the chopped olives and stir until the olives are evenly distributed in the mixture.

Use the cream cheese mixture to fill the green pepper halves. Press the mixture in firmly. Refrigerate the stuffed peppers until the cream cheese is firm (at least 4 hours)

Remove from refrigerator and with a sharp knife cut the stuffed peppers into thin slices (about 1/4 inch thick). If desired, put the slices on lettuce leaves. Serve with French Dressing with Mustard (see below).

French Dressing with Mustard

1 teaspoon brown mustard

1/8 teaspoon salt

dash of pepper

1 teaspoons onion, grated (optional)

1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

3/4 tablespoon vinegar

Put the brown mustard in a bowl, then stir in the salt and pepper. If desired, add the grated onion and stir. Gradually add the olive oil while stirring rapidly, then add the vinegar and stir to combine.

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com

Old-Fashioned Creamed Celery and Green Peppers

Creamed vegetables on toast are one of my favorite comfort foods, so I was thrilled to find a hundred-year-old recipe for a combination that was new to me. Creamed Celery and Green Pepper is delightful. The celery and the green pepper complement each other perfectly. The chunks of green pepper add flavor and reduce any bitterness in the celery.  This quick and easy recipe is a keeper.

Here’s the original recipe:

Source: Good Housekeeping (October, 1917)

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

Creamed Celery and Green Pepper

  • Servings: 3 - 4
  • Difficulty: easy
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1 1/2 cups celery, cut in 1-inch pieces

1 small green pepper (1/2 of a typical large supermarket green pepper), cut into vertical slices 3/4 inch wide, then halved

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

dash pepper

1 1/2 cups milk

toast

Put celery in a saucepan, and cover with water. Using high heat bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until tender. Remove from heat and drain.  Stir green pepper pieces into the celery.

In the meantime, in a skillet, melt butter using low heat. Stir the flour into the butter; add salt and pepper. While stirring constantly, slowly pour in milk and bring to a boil over medium heat. Add the celery and green pepper pieces, and bring back to a boil; remove from heat. Serve over toast.

Old-fashioned Green Peppers Stuffed with Fish

It’s always fun to find a “new” way of serving a classic in a hundred-year-old cookbook. I recently was browsing through an old cookbook and found a recipe for Green Peppers Stuffed with Fish. Of course, I had to give it a try.

The Green Peppers Stuffed with Fish were delightful.  The tender and flavorful peppers balanced nicely with the mild, delicate taste of the fish. (I used flounder.)

Here’s the original recipe:

Source: Larkin Housewives Cook Book (1917)

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

Green Peppers Stuffed with Fish

  • Servings: 3 - 4
  • Difficulty: moderate
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3-4 medium peppers (The number of peppers needed will vary depending upon size. Green peppers must have been very small a hundred years ago. The amount of stuffing would not come even close to stuffing  8 modern “good-sized” peppers.)

2 cups cooked halibut or other white fish, flaked (I bought 1 pound of frozen flounder, baked it, and then flaked it. It made approximately 2 cups.)

1 1/2 tablespoons butter + approximately 1 teaspoon butter for bread crumb topping

1 tablespoon flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1/8 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 cup milk

1 egg, beaten

1/4 cup bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut thin slice from stem end of each pepper. Remove all seeds and membranes. Wash inside and out. Put peppers in a large sauce pan; cover with water. Bring to a boil. Cook peppers for 5 minutes; drain.

In meantime, melt 1 1/2 tablespoons butter in a saucepan. Stir flour, salt, pepper, and Worcestershire sauce into melted butter. Slowly pour in milk and bring to a boil over medium heat while stirring constantly. Place a small amount (approximately 1 – 2 tablespoons) of the hot white sauce mixture into dish with beaten egg, stir quickly.  Then add egg mixture to the remaining white sauce, and cook for two minutes using medium heat. Stir in the flaked fish and continue cooking until the mixture is hot.

Lightly stuff each pepper with the fish mixture. Stand peppers upright in ungreased baking dish. Top the fish mixture with bread crumbs and small dabs of butter.  Cook until the bread crumbs are lightly browned and the stuffing is very hot (20-30 minutes).