Tag: recipe

Old-Fashioned Honey Tea Crackers

honey tea crackers on plate

Want a cross between a cracker and a cookie? If so, I have just the recipe for you. I recently was browsing through a hundred-year-old cooking magazine and came across a recipe for Honey Tea Crackers. The name of the recipe made me salivate, and I was ready to give the it a try. But, when I looked at the recipe a little more, I was a little confused. The recipe called for putting an almond or walnut half on top of each cracker. Crackers don’t generally have nuts on top of them. And, when I thought about it, I realized that most crackers are salty or savory, not sweet.

The more I looked at the recipe, the more I was intrigued I became – and I soon was mixing up a batch of the crackers. Since it seemed unusual to put nuts on crackers, I did not put a nut on top of some of the crackers.

The recipe turned out well, though Honey Tea Crackers are not typical of modern crackers. In addition to honey, the crackers contain allspice as well as some lemon juice and grated lemon rind. The crackers were sweet with the complex undertones of honey and lemon, and a hint of allspice. They have the texture of a cut-out cookie that had been rolled out very thin. I put almonds on some crackers and walnuts on others. Both types of nuts worked well, and I don’t have a preference, but I definitely preferred the crackers that had a nut on top over the plain ones. In hindsight, I wish that had  just followed the old recipe and put a nut on top of all of them.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Honey Tea Crackers
Source: American Cookery (May, 1925)

I did not dissolve the baking soda prior to adding to the other ingredients, and it worked fine. The mixture, however, seemed very dry, so I added a little more than the 1 teaspoon of water called for in the recipe.

The recipe calls for pricking the crackers “all over.” I was surprised how long it took to prick a lot of crackers, so be sure to allow sufficient time.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Honey Tea Crackers

  • Servings: about 90 crackers
  • Difficulty: moderate
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3 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon allspice

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

3 eggs

grated rind of 1/2 lemon

juice from 1/2 lemon

3 tablespoons honey + 2 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon water (add more if needed) + 2 tablespoons water

almonds or walnut halves (if desired)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  In a small bowl, mix together 2 tablespoons honey and 2 tablespoons water. Set aside.

Sift together flour, salt, allspice and baking soda. Add eggs, grated lemon rind, lemon juice, 3 tablespoons honey, and 1 teaspoon water; stir to mix. If the dough is too dry, add additional water. On a prepared surface, roll the dough out until it is very thin (1/4 inch or a little less). Cut into circles using a round cutter. (I used a cutter that was 2 inches in diameter.) Put the crackers on a lightly greased baking sheet. Prick all over each cracker with a fork. Brush the crackers with the honey and water mixture. If desired, press an almond or walnut half into the center of each cracker. Put into oven, and bake for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned.

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Old-Fashioned Pound Cake Waffles

Pound Cake Waffles

When browsing through hundred-year-old cookbooks, I came across a recipe for Pound Cake Waffles. The title intrigued me. The recipe called for lots of butter and sugar, and was very similar to actual Pound Cake recipes. I decided to give it a try. The recipe indicated that either lemon or vanilla flavoring could be used in the recipe. I went with lemon extract.

The waffles were lovely with a sunny lemon flavor that worked nicely with the maple syrup that I put on the waffles.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Pound Cake Waffles
Source: The Rumford Complete Cook Book (1925)

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Pound Cake Waffles

  • Servings: 4 - 6
  • Difficulty: moderate
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3/4 cup butter

1 cup sugar

4 eggs, separated

1/4 cup milk

1 1/4 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon lemon extract or vanilla (I used lemon extract.)

Beat egg whites, then set aside. Put butter and sugar in a mixing bowl, then beat until creamed. Add the egg yolks and milk, then beat. Add the flour, baking powder, salt, and lemon extract or vanilla; beat until combined. Gently fold in the beaten egg whites. Ladle batter onto a hot waffle iron and cook, following the waffle iron directions.

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Old-Fashioned Maraschino Cherry Cake

 

Slice of Maraschino Cherry Cake on PlateI recently had some friends over and wanted to serve a nice dessert (and, of course, I wanted to make a hundred-year-old recipe), so I pulled out my 1925 recipe books and found a lovely recipe for Maraschino Cherry Cake.

The cake was colorful with cherry fragments throughout that gave it a delightful sweet, yet tart, flavor.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Maraschino Cherry Cake
Source: The Home Makers’ Cooking School Cook Book (1925)

This recipe calls for 1 cup of liquid. When, I made it, I used 1/4 cup of liquid from a jar of Maraschino cherries and 3/4 cup of milk.

The stores where I shop do not carry pastry flour, so I used all-purpose flour. It worked fine.

When I updated this recipe, I reduced the amount of baking powder from 4 teaspoons to 3 teaspoons. Four teaspoons seems like a lot, and I had a little difficulty with the cake falling. A possible cause is the use of too much baking powder, so I decided to reduce the amount.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Maraschino Cherry Cake

  • Servings: 12-15
  • Difficulty: moderate
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4 egg whites

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/4 cup liquid from jar of Maraschino cherries

3/4 milk

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 teaspoons baking powder

3 cups pastry (or all-purpose) flour

1/2 cup Maraschino cherries, chopped

Preheat oven to 350◦ F. Beat egg whites until stiff, then set aside.

Put butter and sugar in a mixing bowl, then cream. Stir in Maraschino cherry liquid and milk. Add salt, baking powder, and flour; beat until smooth. Stir in the chopped Maraschino cherries, then fold in the beaten egg whites. Put into prepared pans. A large loaf pan, round layer cake pans, or a rectangular cake pan may be used. Bake until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean (about 35 minutes for cake pans or 45 minutes for a loaf pan).   If desired, ice. (I iced the cake with a buttercream frosting. I substitute liquid from a jar of Maraschino cherries for some of the milk when making the frosting.)

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Old-Fashioned Rhubarb Turnovers

Rhubarb Turnovers

Rhubarb is one of my favorite spring foods, so I was pleased to find a hundred-year-old recipe for Rhubarb Turnovers.  The turnovers were lovely.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Rhubarb Turnovers
Source: American Cookery (1925)

I was intrigued by the idea of using syrup from canned fruit as the topping for the Rhubarb Turnovers, so I used the syrup from a can of peaches canned in heavy syrup. A lemon sauce would also be tasty.

The instructions called for “red strawberry rhubarb.” The rhubarb I used was not particularly red, so the turnovers may not have been as attractive as they would have been if a redder rhubarb had been used, but they still looked nice.

I interpreted the instructions to roll the dough out to “less than 1/2 inch thick” to mean about 1/3 inch thick. I ended up with a few more turnovers than the 12 indicated in the recipe.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Rhubarb Turnovers

  • Servings: Approximately 12 - 15
  • Difficulty: moderate
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1 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

2 cups rhubarb (cut into 1-inch pieces)

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

5 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 cup butter

1 cup milk

water and sugar

lemon sauce or syrup from any kind of canned fruit (I used syrup from peaches canned in heavy syrup.)

Combine the sugar and 1/2 cup water in a saucepan. Using medium heat bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the sugar syrup reaches the thread stage (225◦ F.). Add rhubarb pieces and cook until the rhubarb is soft and tender. Remove from heat.

In the meantime, preheat oven to 400◦ F. Sift flour, salt, and baking powder into a mixing bowl; then cut in the butter until the pieces are small (about the size of a peas). Add milk and mix using a fork until dough starts to cling together. Roll the dough on a prepared surface to about 1/3-inch thick. Cut the rolled dough into 4-inch rounds. (I used an inverted champagne coupe glass to cut the rounds.)

Using a slotted spoon, put a tablespoon of the cooked rhubarb in the center of each round. Fold in half. Moisten edges with water and seal by pressing edges with a fork. Put on baking tray, and bake for 18 minutes or until lightly browned. Removed from oven and use a pastry brush to brush with water, and then sprinkle with sugar. Return the turnovers to the oven for an additional  two minutes. Remove from oven.

Serve hot with lemon sauce or the syrup from any kind of canned fruit.

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Walnut Grove Potatoes (Scalloped Potatoes and Hard-Boiled Eggs)

Walnut Grove Potatoes

HAPPY EASTER!

If your household is like mine, you have hard-boiled Easter eggs sitting in the refrigerator and are looking for ways to use them.  I came across a recipe in a hundred-year-old cookbook for Walnut Grove Potatoes, which is a fancy name for Scalloped Potatoes with Hard-Boiled Eggs. It was delightful, and is a great way to use those hard-boiled eggs.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Walnut Grove Potatoes
Source: Cook Book (Compiled by Women of the Country Club Christian Church, Kansas City, Missouri)

When I made this recipe, I interpreted “cream dressing” to mean white sauce. It did not work very well to put all of the white sauce on the top of the top layer of breadcrumbs, so I changed the recipe to indicate the white sauce should be one of the layers so that it is more evenly distributed.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Walnut Grove Potatoes

  • Servings: 3 - 5
  • Difficulty: moderate
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3 cups sliced, peeled potatoes (1/4-inch slices)

1 teaspoon salt + 1/2 teaspoon salt

3 hard-boiled eggs, sliced

1 cup coarsely-torn breadcrumbs (tear bread into 1-inch pieces) + 1/8 cup finely-torn breadcrumbs

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons flour

1 1/2 cups milk

approximately 1/3 green pepper, thinly sliced

Preheat oven to 400° F. Put the sliced potatoes in a saucepan and cover with water; add 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil using high heat; reduce and simmer until the potatoes are just barely tender (about 10-12 minutes). Remove from heat and drain.

In the meantime, in another pan, using medium heat, melt butter, then stir in the flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Gradually, add the milk while stirring constantly. Continue stirring until the white sauce begins to thicken. Remove from heat.

To assemble: Put 1/3 of the white sauce in the bottom of a casserole dish, add 1/2 of the cooked sliced potatoes, then add a layer composed of 1/2 of the hard-boiled egg slices, and a layer of 1/2 of the coarsely-torn breadcrumbs. Pour a third of the white sauce over the layers. Repeat the layers with the remaining sliced potatoes, hard-boiled egg slices, and coarsely-torn breadcrumbs. Pour the remaining white sauce over the top. Garnish with the green pepper slices and finely torn breadcrumbs. Put in oven and bake until hot and bubbly (about 30 minutes).

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Old-Fashioned Stuffed Baked Onions

Stuffed Baked Onion

Onions are seldom the main attraction when making a vegetable side dish. I use lots of onions, but I generally use them as an ingredient in other dishes. That’s too bad. There are some lovely onion recipes, including a 1925 recipe for Stuffed Baked Onions that I recently came across.

The Stuffed Baked Onions were tasty. They are stuffed with a delightful savory bread crumb and cheese filling.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Stuffed Baked Onions
Source – Home Economics and Cook Book: The Daily Argus-Leader (Sioux Falls, South Dakota), Supplement – March 13, 1925

I found it somewhat difficult to remove the inside of the onions after they were boiled. I have seen other Stuffed Onion recipes that call for removing the inside prior to boiling with a spoon or melon ball scoop. I think that the inside probably could be removed either before or after boiling. 

Only a small amount of stuffing is needed to fill 3 medium onions. This recipe makes a lot more stuffing than is needed. I divided the stuffing ingredients by half when I updated the recipe (except for the paprika which I reduced from 1/6 teaspoon to 1/8 teaspoon.)

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Stuffed Baked Onions

  • Servings: 3
  • Difficulty: moderate
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3 medium onions (They should be fairly flat so they sit evenly when stuffed.)

3/4 cup bread crumbs

1/4 cup grated cheese + 1 tablespoon grated cheese (I used cheddar cheese.)

1/3 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon paprika

1 tablespoon ketchup

1/4 teaspoon grated lemon peel

water

Preheat oven to 350◦ F.  Trim the onions and remove the outer peels. Put the onions in a saucepan, cover with water, and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and drain. Remove the insides of the onions using a knife, spoon, or melon ball scoop. Leave 2-3 outer layers. If the bottom of the onions are inadvertently removed, take an inner onion piece and lay it in the onion across the bottom. Reserve the onion scraps. Set aside.

Chop half of the onion scraps. (The other half of the scraps could be refrigerated and saved for use in another recipe.) In a bowl mix the chopped onion scraps, bread crumbs, 1/4 cup grated cheese, salt, paprika, ketchup and lemon peel.  Then stuff the onions with the mixture. Garnish with the 1 tablespoons of grated cheese. Pour a little water into the baking dish (about 1/8 inch). Cover the baking dish and put into the oven. Bake for 35 minutes. Remove the cover from the baking dish, and bake for 10 additional minutes to lightly brown the tops of the stuffed onions. Remove from oven.

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Old-Fashioned Chicken Pie with Asparagus Tips

Chicken Pie with Asparagus Tips

Now that winter is over, and April has finally arrived, I find that I crave both comfort foods and spring vegetables. I think that I’ve found the perfect hundred-year-old recipe: Chicken Pie with Asparagus Tips.

The Chicken Pie had an old-fashioned goodness, and the asparagus tips made a lovely garnish.

Here’s the original recipe:Chicken Pie with Asparagus Tips

Recipe for Chicken Pie with Asparagus Tips
Source: American Cookery (March, 1925)

The recipe does not specify whether green asparagus or white asparagus should be used, but the picture in the old magazine looks like the recipe author used white asparagus. I seldom see white asparagus at the store (and when I do it is very expensive), so I used green asparagus. I actually think that green asparagus looks better than white when used in this dish.

I think that “rich milk” refers to light cream, so I used half and half, though milk would work fine in this recipe. I added mushrooms, carrots, and peas.

Chicken Pie with Asparagus Tips

  • Servings: 4 - 6
  • Difficulty: moderate
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1/4 cup butter + 1 tablespoon butter, melted

1/3 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon paprika

1/2  teaspoon salt

1 cup chicken broth

1 cup half and half (or use milk)

2 1/2 cups cooked chicken, diced

1 4-ounce can mushrooms, stems and pieces (drained)

1/2 cup sliced carrots, cooked

1/2 cup green peas (I used frozen peas.)

asparagus tips to garnish (I used the tips from approximately 1/3 pound of asparagus.)

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Preheat oven to 425◦ F. Melt 1/4 cup butter in a saucepan, then stir in the flour, paprika, and salt. Gradually, add the chicken broth and half and half while stirring constantly. Continue stirring until the sauce begins to thicken. Remove 1/2 cup of the sauce from the pan, set aside.  Stir the cooked chicken, mushrooms, carrots, and peas; continue heating until hot and bubbly. Put the mixture into a baking dish, then pour the reserved sauce over the mixture. Spoon the 1 tablespoon of melted butter on top. Put in oven and bake until it is just beginning to brown (about 15- 20 minutes).

In the meantime, cook the asparagus tips. (I lightly steamed them.)

Remove the Chicken Pie from the oven and garnish with the asparagus tips.