Old-fashioned Asparagus Salad

Asparagus Salad on Plate

Spring has sprung – and I’m enjoying spring foods like asparagus. I found a hundred-old-recipe for Asparagus Salad, and decided to give it a try. Chilled asparagus stalks and red pepper rings are arranged on a bed of lettuce. The salad was tasty, and made a lovely presentation in an old-fashioned way.

Here’s the original recipe:

In order to authentically replicate the original recipe, I suppose that I could have used canned asparagus, but somehow fresh asparagus just seemed like it would taste better, so that I what is used.

And, I skipped the French dressing that was enhanced with ketchup. It probably would be wonderful, but somehow it didn’t sound good to me.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Asparagus Salad

Servings: 1 serving
Time: 10 minutes active prep time
Difficulty: easy
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For each serving:

3 – 4 stalks asparagus

2 1/3-inch wide rings of red pepper

lettuce leaves

French salad dressing, if desired

Steam asparagus for 3-5 minutes or until tender. Remove from heat and chill.

To assemble salad, arrange lettuce leaves on plate. Place the chilled asparagus in the rings, and place on the lettuce leaves. If desired, serve with French salad dressing.

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com

Old-fashioned Cherry Fritters with Maraschino Sauce

Cherry Fritter on Plate

I recently made a hundred-year-old recipe for Cherry Fritters with Maraschino Sauce. This recipe was delicious, but set aside all preconceptions about what a Cherry Fritter might taste like. These fritters are nothing like modern cake- or doughnut-like fritters. Rather they are a sweet, slightly wiggly, taste treat.

The consistency of the Cherry Fritters is a bit like the consistency of Fried Brie (but the taste is totally different, so it isn’t a good comparison). The recipe calls for a relatively large amount of cornstarch, and only a small amount of flour which results in the unique consistency.

The Cherry Fritters are served with a lovely Maraschino Sauce which contains both Maraschino cherries and the liquid from the cherry jar.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipes for Cherry Fritters and Maraschino Sauce — Source: The Boston Cooking School Cook Book (1921 Edition)

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Cherry Fritters with Maraschino Sauce

Servings: 5 - 7
Time: 45 minutes active prep time
Difficulty: moderate
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Cherry Fritters

2 cups milk + 1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup cornstarch

1/4 cup flour

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup cold milk

3 egg yolks (reserve whites)

1/4 cup cold milk

1/2 cup Maraschino cherries, cut into halves (Make sure the cherries are thoroughly drained.)

1/2 cup flour

1 egg + reserved egg whites, beaten

1 cup fine plain breadcrumbs (I put 2 bread slices, that I tore into several pieces, into the blender to make the breadcrumbs.)

shortening or vegetable oil

Mix cornstarch, 1/4 cup flour, sugar, and salt together. Slowly add 1/4 cup cold milk while stirring, then stir in egg yolks. Continue stirring until smooth. Set aside.

Put 2 cups milk in saucepan, and heat using medium heat while stirring constantly until the milk is scalded (180° F.). Slowly stir in the cornstarch mixture, and cook until very thick while stirring constantly (about 5-10 minutes). Remove from heat and stir in the Maraschino cherries. Pour into a buttered 8X8 inch pan. Chill in refrigerate until cold (at least 2 hours).

In the meantime, place flour on a plate or in a small bowl, and place the bread crumbs on another plate or small bowl. Put the beaten egg in a small bowl.

Remove the chilled cherry mixture from the refrigerator and cut into squares. Roll each square in the flour, then in the egg, and finally in the bread crumbs.

Heat about 1/2 inch of shortening or vegetable oil in a skillet, then put the breaded squares in the hot shortening or oil. Fry until lightly browned on the bottom, then gently turn to brown the other side. When browned, remove from the skillet. Drain on paper towels, then serve with Maraschino Sauce.

Maraschino Sauce

2/3 cup water

1/3 cup sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 cup Maraschino cherries, cut into halves

1/2 cup Maraschino cherry syrup

Put water in a saucepan and bring to a boil.

In the meantime, mix sugar and cornstarch; then gradually add to the boiling water while stirring constantly. Using medium heat, boil for 5 minutes while stirring constantly. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter and Maraschino cherry syrup; then stir in the Maraschino cherry halves.

Cherry Fritters with Maracshino Sauce http://www.ahundredyearsago.com

Old-fashioned Lyonnaise Potatoes

Lyonnaise Potatoes in Bowl I recently made a hundred-year-old recipe for Lyonnaise Potatoes. Diced potatoes are coated with butter, chopped onion, and parsley. This classic comfort food makes a nice side dish.

This recipe also brought back food memories of a similar dish from my childhood that we called Parsley Potatoes. I don’t think that Parsley Potatoes contained any onion, but otherwise it was the same as Lyonnaise Potatoes.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Lyonnaise Potatoes — Source: Lowney’s Cook Book (Revised Edition, 1921)

Some Lyonnaise Potato recipes call for browning the potatoes, but since this one didn’t; I didn’t brown the potatoes.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Lyonnaise Potatoes

Servings: 2 - 3
Time: 20 minutes
Difficulty: easy
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2 cups boiled potatoes, diced into 1-inch cubes

2 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon onion, finely chopped

3 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped

salt and pepper

Melt butter in a skillet; stir in the onion. Cook until the onion is transparent while stirring occasionally. Stir in parsley. Add potatoes, and season with salt and pepper; stir gently to coat with butter, onion, and parsley. When hot, remove from heat and serve,

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com

Hurry-Up Cake Recipe

piece of cake on plate Yesterday was hectic, and I hadn’t even selected a recipe to make for this post by mid-afternoon – let alone made it. So when I flipped through a hundred-year-old church cookbook, and saw a recipe for Hurry-Up Cake, I immediately knew that it was just the recipe I needed.

Hurry-up Cake is a moist and tender spice cake – and it’s easy to make (of course). It contains a delightful mixture of cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. It’s the perfect cake to make when you’re in a hurry – or when you’re not.

Here’s the original recipe:

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Hurry-Up Cake

Servings: 8 -10
Time: 1 hour
Difficulty: easy
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1 1/3 cups brown sugar

1/3 cup butter, melted

1/2 cup milk

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 eggs

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

Pre-heat oven to 350° F. Put all ingredients in a mixing bowl; beat for 3 minutes. Put in a greased and floured 8-inch square pan. Bake until a wooden pick comes out clean (approximately 45 minutes). Frost if desired.

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com

Dressed Celery Recipe

Dressed Celery in Dish Some vegetables are often featured in salads and side dishes – others, such as celery, not so much. A hundred years ago celery was more popular than it is today, and I see old recipes for celery dishes from time to time.

I recently came across a 1921 recipe for an easy-to-make salad called Dressed Celery, and decided to give it a try. Thinly sliced celery is served with a lovely egg-based cream dressing. The Dressed Celery made a nice side salad.

Here’s the original recipe:

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Dressed Celery

Servings: 2-3
Time: 15 minutes active prep time
Difficulty: easy
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2 cups thinly sliced celery

Cream Dressing (see below)

Mix celery with desired amount of Cream Dressing. (Any extra dressing can be reserved and used with another salad.)

Cream Dressing

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard

3/4 tablespoon sugar

1 egg, beaten

2 1/2 tablespoons butter

3/4 cup cream

1/4 cup vinegar

Mix the ingredients in the order given. Slowly stir in the cream and vinegar while stirring to make a smooth liquid. Put in a sauce pan, and heat using medium heat while stirring constantly. Cook until the mixture thickens, then strain, and cool before using.

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com

Onion Souffle (Recipe 2)

Onion Souffle in Casserole Dish It fascinating how much variation there can be from one recipe to the next. Three years ago I posted a recipe for Onion Souffle which called for chopped onions, bread crumbs, and egg. The mixture was cooked in individual ramekins. That recipe was good (at least that’s what I wrote at the time), but not memorable. I recently came across another hundred-year-old Onion Souffle recipe that was very different from the other one, so I decided to compare the two recipes. The second recipe called for pureed onion, and was a savory custard.

I can’t tell a lie-

I somehow forgot that I’d previously made an Onion Souffle recipe for this blog until I got ready to write this post. I’d already made the 1921 recipe, and had taken photos of it. When I loaded the photo into my computer and attempted to save it, my computer indicated that I had another photo with the same name. I did a search of A Hundred Years Ago posts for Onion Souffle, and a 2018 post immediately popped up.

Oops! I’d previously done an Onion Souffle post – though I have no memory of it. (It clearly was not a memorable dish).

Who would have guessed that the food I’m inadvertently make twice would be a quirky food like Onion Souffle? Apparently, at some subliminal level, Onion Souffle recipes appeal to me. Strange . . .

In any case, the “new” Onion Souffle recipe turned out well. The savory custard was light and smooth – and had a delightful onion flavor that was just right (and not too strong). I think that this Onion Souffle recipe will be a bit more memorable that the last one.

Here’s the original recipe:

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Onion Souffle

Servings: 3 - 4
Time: 1 hour
Difficulty: moderate
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6 medium onions

2 tablespoons butter, melted

3 tablespoons flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 eggs beaten

1/2 cup hot milk (I heated the milk in the microwave.)

Preheat oven to 350° F. Peel and quarter onions. Put onions in a saucepan, cover with water. Put on stove and bring to a boil Reduce heat and simmer until onions are tender (about 15 minutes). Remove from heat and drain. Puree onions. (I used a Foley mill to puree the onions; though a food processor or blender could also be used.) There should be approximately 1 cup of pureed onion.

In the meantime, combine butter, flour, and salt in a mixing bowl. Add, eggs and beat until smooth. While beating, slowly add the milk. Then add the onion puree and stir quickly to combine. Put in a 1-quart casserole dish. Set the dish in a pan of hot water and place in the oven. Bake 30-45 minutes or until the souffle is set.

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com

Old-fashioned Macaroni and Green Peas

Macaroni with Green Peas in Bowl

I recently came across a nice vegetarian recipe in a hundred-year-old cookbook. Macaroni and Green Peas can be served as either an entree or a side dish. The dish is vegetarian (not vegan, since cream coats the macaroni and peas). The cream adds flavor and richness to the dish.

recipe for macaroni with green — Source: The New Cookery (1921) by Lenna Frances Cooper

The source of this recipe, The New Cookery cookbook, contains nutrition information for each recipe. This is the only hundred-year-old cookbook that I’ve ever seen with this much information.

This recipe didn’t make very much- and according to the nutrition information – the entire recipe only contains 604 calories. The old cookbook indicated that the serving size was 4 ounces which seems small for this type of dish. In my opinion, if this recipe was made as the main dish, there would be enough for 1 generous serving. If it was served as a side dish, it would make enough for 2 servings.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Macaroni with Green Peas

Servings: 1 - 2
Time: 15 minutes
Difficulty: easy
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1/2 cup macaroni

1/2 cup green peas (fresh, frozen, or canned) – I used frozen peas. I put them in boiling water until they were hot, then removed from heat and drained.

1/2 cup light cream

1/2 teaspoon salt

Heat water in a saucepan to boiling; add the macaroni and cook 7-9 minutes until al dente. Remove from the heat and drain. Add a little cold water, then drain again. Add cream, peas, and salt; return to stove. Using medium heat, bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer 5-10 minutes until the cream thickens into a sauce while stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and serve.

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com