Old-Fashioned King George’s Steamed Pudding

Steamed puddings, with their subtle blending of flavors, are a traditional cold weather dessert. For generations, cooks regularly made steamed puddings on their wood or coal stoves. The stoves were used for both cooking and heat, so they were hot all day, and it was easy to cook a pudding that needed to be steamed for several hours.

Hundred-year-old cookbooks contain numerous steamed pudding recipes, but as people shifted to more modern heating and cooking methods, steamed pudding become less popular because of their long cooking time (and concerns about the energy cost of steaming a food for several hours). That’s a pity. Steamed puddings make a lovely dessert.

I found a nice recipe for King George’s Pudding in a 1925 cookbook and decided to give it a try. Myth has it that King George I requested steamed pudding for a Christmas feast in the 1700’s, and that the request resulted in him being considered the “pudding king.”

The King George’s Pudding was sweet and moist with a dense texture that is characteristic of steamed puddings. The old recipe says to serve the pudding with a sweet sauce. I decided to make a lovely Lemon Sauce that I previously posted. A Vanilla Sauce or Brandy Sauce would also work well.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for King George Pudding — Source: The Rumford Complete Cookbook (1925)

Cooks regularly update recipes to adapt to changing tastes or to use new ingredients. This recipe clearly is not a replicate of the steamed pudding served at King George’s Christmas feast. It calls for both very traditional pudding ingredients such as suet and an ingredient (flaked cereal) that would have be considered “modern” in 1925. Suet has a high melting point which results in it melting slowly. This gives the pudding a lovely spongy texture. When I made the recipe, I used bran flakes for the flaked cereal.

King George's Pudding with Lemon Sauce

Servings: 7 - 9
Time: 3 hours 20 minutes
Difficulty: moderate
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1/3 cup flour

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/3 cup suet, finely chopped

1 cup flaked cereal (I used bran flakes.)

1 egg

1/2 cup dark-colored jam (e.g., plum, raspberry, blackberry, currant) (I used currant.)

1/3 cup milk

Step 1. Put flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a mixing bowl; stir to mix. Add chopped suet; stir to coat the suet with the flour mixture. Add flaked cereal; stir until evenly dispersed in the mixture. Set aside.

Step 2. Put the egg in another bowl. Beat egg, then add jam and continue beating until mixed. Add milk and stir. Add this mixture to the bowl with the other ingredients.

Step 3. Put the batter into a greased mold or bowl (1 1/2 pint or larger), cover and steam for 3 hours.

Step 4. Remove bowl or mold from pan or steamer. Let sit for 15 minutes, then unmold.

Step 4. Serve hot with a sweet sauce such as Vanilla Sauce or Lemon Sauce.

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Mignons Cookies Recipe

I recently found a hundred-year-old recipe for Mignons, and decided to give it a try. Mignons are almond cut-out cookies. The cookie dough contains ground almonds, as well as a little cinnamon; and, there are chopped almonds on the top of the cookies.

Mignons Cookies on plate The name of these cookies seemed a bit confusing to me. I wasn’t sure what “mignon” meant, but kept thinking of Filet Mignon, so looked up the definition of “mignon.” According to Dictionary.com, mignon means “small and pretty; delicately pretty.” It’s an apt description of these cookies. They are visually appealing, light, and tender cookies.

The Mignons had a lovely almond flavor, with just a hint of cinnamon. They would be perfect with a cup of coffee, or on a holiday cookie tray.

Here’s the original recipe:

Mignons Cookies on plate Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Mignons Cookies

Servings: approximately 36 cookies
Time: 1 hour
Difficulty: moderate
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½ cup butter, softened

½ cup sugar + additional sugar to sprinkle on top of cookies

3 eggs, separated

¼ cup sliced almonds, ground fine (They can be ground with a blender or food processor) + approximately 2/3 cup sliced almonds, chopped

½ teaspoon cinnamon

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon vanilla

1 ½ cups flour

milk, if needed

Step 1. Preheat oven to 400° F.

Step 2. Put butter and sugar in a mixing bowl, then cream. Stir in the egg yolks, then the ground almonds, cinnamon, baking powder, and vanilla. Add the flour, stir to make a dough that can be rolled. (If the dough is too dry add a small amount of milk).

Step 3. Put the dough on a prepared surface, and roll the dough until it is ¼ inch thick, then cut with a cookie cutter. (Relatively small cookie cutters that are basic shapes work best.) Put the cookies on a plate and brush the cookie tops lightly with egg white, then sprinkle chopped almonds and sugar on the cookies; press firmly to ensure that the almonds stay put. (It works best to put the almonds on before the sugar.)

Step 4. Put the cookies on a greased cookie sheet, then put in oven and bake for 9-11 minutes or until the cookies are lightly browned.

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Old-Fashioned Potato Griddle Scones

Potato Griddle Scones on plate

Old-fashioned, thick and fluffy Potato Griddle Scones are perfect for cozy winter breakfasts. I recently found a delightful hundred-year-old recipe for them that puts me in the mindset of cooks back then.

Cooks a hundred years ago cooked almost every day, and wanted quick and easy recipes that used inexpensive ingredients while satisfying a hungry family. Potato Griddle Scones fit the bill for those frugal cooks. The recipe calls for mashed potatoes, and are a perfect way to use left-over mashed potatoes. The mashed potatoes are mixed with flour, milk and a few other basic ingredients, and the scones take just a few minutes to make.

The old recipe called for rolling the dough into a circle that is 3/4 inch thick, cutting into triangles, and then cooking on a griddle or in a skillet. This results in lovely, thick scones. They are thicker than many modern Potato Griddle Scones. I can picture cooks a hundred years ago making these scones in a cast iron skillet with a large family clamoring in the background for breakfast. Satisfying amounts of the scones could have been quickly made and ready to eat, as compared to the slower process of cooking just a few thin pancakes at a time on a griddle or skillet with limited space on the top.

Warm Potato Griddle Scones are lovely with a little jam or butter smeared on them. They also make a nice lunch or dinner quick bread.

Here is the original recipe:

Recipe for Potato Griddle Cakes — Source: The Rumford Complete Cook Book (1925)

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Potato Griddle Scones

Servings: 4 - 6
Time: 15 minutes
Difficulty: easy
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3/4 cup mashed potatoes

2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 teaspoons baking powder

2 tablespoons shortening or butter (softened) (I used butter.)

1 egg, lightly beaten

approximately 1 cup milk

Step 1. If the mashed potatoes are refrigerated and cold, warm them slightly to soften them. (I put them in the microwave for a few seconds.) Set aside.

Step 2. Combine the flour, salt, and baking powder in a mixing bowl. Add the butter, mashed potatoes, and egg, then stir to combine. Add about 2/3 cup milk and stir to mix. If the dough is too thick, add additional milk to create a dough that is a nice consistency to roll. (If the mashed potatoes contained milk, probably less than 1 cup of milk will need to be added.)

Step 3. Divide the dough in half. Roll half of the dough on a prepared surface into a circle that this approximately 3/4 inch thick, then cut into sixths to create triangles. Roll other half of dough, and cut into triangles.

Step 4. Grease griddle or a large skillet, then heat using medium-high heat. When hot, put the triangles of dough on the griddle or skillet. Cook until lightly browned (about 3-4 minutes), then flip and cook on the other side.

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Old-Fashioned Giblet Gravy

Giblet Gravy in gravy boat

A hundred years ago when cooks were making turkey or chicken gravy, they often added chopped giblets (gizzard, liver, heart, neck) to the gravy. I always assumed that they added the giblets because they were frugal and did not want to waste anything, but after making Giblet Gravy using 1925 directions, I now realize that my assumptions were not totally accurate. Those cooks, so many years ago, may have been frugal, but they also knew that the giblets added lovely, complex flavors and textures to the gravy while making it rich and savory.

Over the years, when selecting recipes to make, I skipped over Giblet Gravy recipes. I had bad memories of the Giblet Gravy my mother and grandmother made when I was a child (though I’m not sure that I ever actually ate any of it), and I had little interest in trying a hundred-year-old recipe for Giblet Gravy. But this year, I came across a 1925 Thanksgiving menu in an old issue of Ladies Home Journal that listed Giblet Gravy as one of the foods on the menu, so I finally decided that it was time to give it a try. And, I am glad that I did. This classic gravy is a delightful comfort food that is lovely on mashed potatoes, slices of turkey, and stuffing.

The directions for making Giblet Gravy were somewhat scattered in a 1925 cookbook that I have, but here are the original directions for cooking giblets and making the gravy:

Recipe for Giblet Gravy — Source: The Home Makers’ Cooking School Cook Book (1925)

Today, the giblets typically packaged with a turkey or chicken include the gizzard, liver, heart, and neck. The membrane with the “grist” generally has already been removed from the gizzard, so that does not need to be removed. The old recipe also mentions the bladder – but I did not include it when I updated the recipe. I also did not include the wing tips or the claws in the updated list of ingredients.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Giblet Gravy

Servings: 8 - 10
Time: 20 minutes active prep time
Difficulty: moderate
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giblets from one turkey or chicken (gizzard, heart, liver, neck)

water

liquid and drippings from pan that the turkey or chicken was cooked in

4 tablespoons flour

salt and pepper

Step 1. The giblets can be cooked while the turkey or chicken is roasting. Put the giblets in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Put on the stove and bring to a boil using high heat, then reduce heat and simmer until tender (about 1 – 2 hours). Additional water can be added during cooking if needed to keep the giblets covered during cooking. Remove from heat and take the giblets out of the broth. Reserve the giblet broth. When the giblets are cool enough to handle, remove the meat from the neck and any gristle from the gizzards, then chop the cooked giblets.

Step 2. When the turkey or chicken is removed from the oven, pour the liquid and pan drippings from the roasting pan into a bowl. Scrape the bottom of the pan to get all the drippings. Let it settle and cool a little, then skim 4 tablespoons of fat off the top of the liquid. (Any additional fat can be skimmed off the top of the broth and discarded.)

Step 3. Combine the broth and drippings from the turkey or chicken with the broth from cooking the giblets.

Step 4. Put the 4 tablespoons of fat in a saucepan. Heat using medium heat, and stir in the flour. Gradually add 2 cups of the combined turkey and chicken broth/drippings, while stirring constantly.

Step 5. Bring to a boil while continuing to stir constantly. If the gravy is too thick add additional broth. If the gravy is still too thick, and additional liquid is needed, add water until the gravy is the desired consistency. (If the gravy is lumpy, strain, then return to pan.)

Step 6. Stir in the chopped giblets, then continue heating until the gravy again boils.

Step 7. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then remove from heat and serve.

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Old-Fashioned Orange Bread and Muffins (Orange Marmalade Bread/Muffins)

It’s fun to bring treats to meetings and gatherings with friends. I enjoy making new “old” recipes, and attendees are captive audiences for testing the foods I make. One day last week I needed to make snacks for a coffee group in the morning, and for the November meeting of the garden club in the evening. I found a hundred-year-old recipe for Orange Bread that sounded very flexible. The recipe said that the bread could be baked in a round pan (and implicitly it suggested that the bread could also be baked in the typical rectangular pans), and that the bread mixture could be put in muffin pans. It called for using orange marmalade to provide the sweetness and the orange flavor.

I made this recipe three times. Once to see how Orange Bread turned out (it was excellent); and, two more times to get enough bread and muffins for the coffee group and garden club meeting. Since the recipe said it could be made in a variety of ways, I made a round loaf, small rectangular loaves, regular-sized muffins, and small muffins.

The Orange Bread and Muffins were easy to make. The muffins had a slightly denser texture than the bread. They all had a lovely, sunny citrus flavor. The bread (or in one case, muffins) went quickly at the events, and I received lots of compliments.

My husband and I are having some other friends over to the house for coffee next week. I may make the Orange Bread or Muffins again for them (or I may flip through my hundred-year-old cookbooks a little more and find a different recipe to try for them).

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Orange Bread/Muffins — Source: Diamond Jubilee Recipes compiled by The Sisters of St. Joseph, St. Paul, MN

I used butter for the fat in this recipe. The recipe calls for 4 tablespoons of melted fat. That is the equivalent of 1/4 cup, so I updated the recipe to say 1/4 cup since it is easier to measure.

The bread and muffins are tasty when they are made following the original recipe directions, but are a little less sweet than many modern quick breads. When I updated the recipe, I included an option of adding 1/4 cup sugar. With added sugar, the degree of sweetness is similar to many modern quick bread recipes.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Orange Bread/Muffins (Orange Marmalade Bread/Muffins

Time: 35 - 50 minutes
Difficulty: moderate
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This recipe makes 1 large loaf, 3 small loaves, approximately 12 regular muffins, or approximately 36 mini-muffins.

3 cups bread flour

4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 egg

1 1/2 cups milk

1/4 cup sugar (optional)

1/4 cup melted butter

3/4 cup orange marmalade

Step 1. Preheat oven to 350° F.

Step 2. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into a mixing bowl.

Step 3. In another bowl, beat the egg and stir in the milk.

Step 4. Slowly add the milk and egg mixture to the flour mixture. Add about a quarter of the liquid at a time, and stir between each addition of liquid.

Step 5. If desired, stir in the sugar. Then stir in the melted butter, and finally stir in the orange marmalade.

Step 6. Put into prepared bread pans or muffin tins. Bake a large bread loaf for approximately 40 minutes, small loaves for approximately 30 minutes, and muffins for 15 – 20 minutes, or until lightly browned and a wooden pick comes out clean.

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Old-Fashioned Sweet Potatoes with Pineapple

Whew, the year is flying by. It is already November and it will soon be Thanksgiving. I’m starting to plan my Thanksgiving meal, which, of course, will include sweet potatoes. This year, I don’t want to make Candied Sweet Potatoes (boring) or Sweet Potatoes with Marshmallows on top (too sweet); yet, to give a nod to tradition (and to keep my guests happy), a little brown sugar on the sweet potatoes would be good. With all these thoughts swirling through my head, my next step was to flip through hundred-year-old cookbooks to look for a promising sweet potato recipe.

And, I found a winner. Sweet Potatoes with Pineapple is easy to make, tasty, and makes a lovely presentation. Sweet potatoes are halved lengthwise, topped with half of a pineapple slice, and then smothered with a brown sugar and cinnamon sauce.

The Sweet Potatoes with Pineapple have the familiar rich caramel of brown sugar with an additional hint of cinnamon. The warm cinnamon notes balance nicely with the sunny pineapple and the earthy sweet potato.

This recipe made the cut and goes on my Thanksgiving menu.

Here is the original recipe:

Recipe for Sweet Potatos with Pineapple — Source: Cookbook compiled by the Women of the Country Club Christian Church, Kansas City, Missouri (1925)

Here is the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Sweet Potatoes with Pineapple

Servings: 6 - 12
Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Difficulty: moderate
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Note: The number of sweet potatoes used in this recipe is somewhat flexible. The size of the sweet potatoes and how many fit in the dish should be considered. Relatively small, uniform sweet potatoes that are not particularly long work well with this recipe.

4 – 6 medium sweet potatoes

4 – 6 slices of canned pineapple

1 teaspoon salt

Water

Sauce

2 tablespoons butter

2 cups brown sugar

¾ cup water

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon salt

Step 1. Peel the sweet potatoes, then cut lengthwise. Put the cut sweet potatoes in a Dutch oven or large saucepan; cover with water and add 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil using high heat, then reduce heat and simmer until the sweet potatoes have just softened (about 30 minutes). Remove from heat and drain. (Do not overcook. The sweet potatoes should still maintain their shape and not be extremely soft.)

Step 2. Preheat oven to 350° F. Arrange the cooked sweet potato halves in a flat baking dish. (I used a 7 X 11 inch baking dish, though there is sufficient sauce to use a 9 X 13 inch dish, if desired). The sweet potato halves should be placed close to each other in the baking dish with the rounded side down. If the sweet potatoes are not level (or if some are higher than others), use a knife to trim off a small portion of the rounded side.

Step 3. Put half of a pineapple slice on top of each sweet potato half.

Step 4. In the meantime, make the sauce. Put the butter in a saucepan, then melt using low heat. Add the brown sugar, ¾ cup water, cinnamon, and 1/8 teaspoon salt; stir to combine. Increase heat to medium and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and gently simmer for 10 minutes (or until the sauce begins to thicken); stir occasionally.

Step 5. Pour the sauce over the sweet potatoes and pineapple. Put in the oven, and cook until hot and bubbly (20 – 30 minutes). If the top of the sweet potatoes and pineapple looks dry midway through the cooking time, baste using a spoon to put a little of the syrup over them.

Step 6. Remove from oven and serve.

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Old-Fashioned Pink Chiffon Pie (Cranberry Chiffon Pie)

Many fruits are available year round, but some fruits are available only for a few weeks each year. Cranberries are one of those fruits. I crave them for months, and am excited when they finally begin to appear in the produce aisle at the store. This fall, I saw them for the first time last week. I immediately began searching through my hundred-year-old cookbooks for cranberry recipes.

I found a recipe for Pink Chiffon Pie which is made using cranberries, and decided to give it a try.

The Pink Chiffon Pie was smooth and silky with the sweetness of the sugar in the filling nicely balancing the tart cranberries. It was tasty and looked lovely; however, if you decide to make this pie, be sure to set aside sufficient time. It is a relatively complicated recipe.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Pink Chiffon Pie (Cranberry Chiffon Pie) — Source: Diamond Jubilee Recipes (1925) compiled by the Sisters of Saint Joseph, St. Paul, MN

When I selected this recipe, it looked easy – not very many ingredients and directions that, based on a quick scan, sounded straight forward. Then I started making the recipe and discovered that it was more challenging than I anticipated.

I had lots of questions. How large is the pie shell/pan? The amounts called for in the recipe seemed fairly small – so it probably was for a 7 or 8-inch pie. I decided to make a 9-inch pie, so I doubled all ingredients. The recipe called for a baked pie shell – so I needed to make and pre-bake a pie shell prior to beginning this recipe.

I was also was not sure whether the recipe called for 1 cup of raw cranberries or for 1 cup of cranberries that had previously been cooked. I decided to assume that it meant raw cranberries. That decision led to my next question. How much water should be added to the cranberries prior to cooking? I decided to go with 1/3 cup of water.

Once the cranberries were cooked, I tried to strain them, I was able to press relatively little liquid through the strainer, so I used a Foley mill to more thoroughly strain and mash the cooked cranberries. A food processor could also be used to puree the cranberries.

It was tricky cooking the egg-rich chiffon so that the pie filling was smooth, and the egg did not separate out while cooking. It is important to cook the filling until it barely begins to bubble. And, it is vital to not rush cooking the filling, and to stir it vigorously and constantly to prevent the filling on the bottom of the pan from scorching.

I skipped garnishing the pie with confectioners’ sugar, and instead served it with whipped cream.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Pink Chiffon Pie (Cranberry Chiffon Pie)

Servings: 6 - 8
Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Difficulty: somewhat challenging
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1 baked 9-inch pie shell

2 cups cranberries

1/3 cup water

8 egg yolks + 4 egg whites

4 tablespoons butter

1 cup sugar + 1 cup sugar

confections’ sugar, if desired

whipped cream, if desired

Wash cranberries, then put them in a saucepan and add the water. Bring to a boil using medium heat, then reduce heat and simmer until all of the cranberries have softened and burst (about 8-10 minutes). Remove from the heat and press through a strainer. (I used a Foley mill.)

Put the egg yolks in a mixing bowl and beat until smooth, then add 1 cup of sugar and beat. Add the pureed cranberries and continue beating. Put mixture in a saucepan; add butter. Heat, using medium heat, until the cranberry mixture gets very thick; stir constantly. Remove from heat when the mixture is barely beginning to bubble.

In a mixing bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Then add a small amount of the hot cranberry mixture, while beating continuously. (Be sure to add only a small amount of the cranberry mixture and beat it in immediately to prevent the egg whites from cooking.) Continue adding small amounts of the cranberry mixture while continuing to beat.

After all the cranberry mixture has been incorporated into the egg whites, return the mixture to the saucepan. Using medium heat, cook until the mixture barely begins to boil; stir constantly and vigorously. (This mixture will easily scorch on the bottom of the pan. It is vital to stir continuously and vigorously with the spoon while regularly scraping the bottom of the pan. A double boiler could be used to reduce the possibility of scorching the mixture.) Remove from heat and spoon the cranberry chiffon filling into the previously baked pie shell.

If desired, lightly sprinkle confections’ sugar on the pie to garnish. Refrigerate until the pie is cold (at least 2 hours).

If desired, serve pie with whipped cream.

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