Old-Fashioned Cheese and Green Pepper Sandwiches (Toasted)

Cheese and Green Pepper Sandwich on plate

Grilled cheese sandwiches can get a little boring, so when I saw a recipe in a hundred-year-old cookbook for Cheese and Green Pepper Sandwiches that were toasted, I decided to give it a try.

The sandwiches were delightful. The crunchiness, slight sweetness, and subtle tanginess of the green peppers co-mingled nicely with the melted cheese.

The old recipe said to cut the toasted sandwiches into strips. I have never previously cut a sandwich into strips, but I decided to give it a try and it made a nice presentation.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Cheese and Green Pepper Sandwich — Source: Rumford Complete Cook Book (1925)

The ingredient list indicates that salt is an ingredient in this recipe, but it is not mentioned in the cooking instructions. Since cheese already contains salt, and it was not mentioned in the instructions, I did not add any salt when making this recipe.

Maybe most people had meat choppers a hundred years ago, but today I don’t think that many cooks have one. I know that I don’t. Instead, I decided to use my grater to grate the green pepper. That worked fine and there was some green pepper juice similar to what was described in the old recipe. It would also work to finely chop the green pepper, though there might be less juice, but I think that it would still work since the cheese will melt and hold everything together when the sandwich is heated.

This recipe is very specific regarding the amounts for the cheese and green papers, but very vague about the number of slices of bread to use. I decided to make three sandwiches, and adjusted the amount of green pepper and cheese to make an appropriate amount of filling. Three green peppers sound like a lot of green pepper. I think that green peppers often were much smaller a hundred years ago than what they typically are today, so I decided to use 1/2 cup of shredded or grated green pepper. I also thought that 8 ounces of cheese was more than was needed to make 3 sandwiches, so I used 4 ounces of cheese.

The original recipe says to “toast over a hot fire,” so I toasted the sandwiches using the broiler in my oven; but, it would also work well to put butter on the bread slices and grill in a skillet.

I didn’t think that there was any need to tuck the toasted sandwich strips in the folds of a napkin to keep them warm. I just served the hot sandwiches immediately.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Cheese and Green Pepper Sandwich (Toasted)

Servings: 3
Time: 15 minutes
Difficulty: moderate
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4 ounces cheese, grated or shredded (I used cheddar cheese)

1/2 cup green pepper, grated or finely chopped

6 slices bread

Put the cheese and the green pepper in a bowl; stir until the cheese and green pepper pieces are evenly distributed. Put half of the bread slices on a baking sheet, then spread with the cheese mixture. Top with the remaining slices of bread.

Set the rack 7-8 inches under the broiler. Put the baking sheet with the sandwiches under the broiler. Broil until the top slice of bread is lightly browned; gently flip the sandwiches, continue broiling until the other side is lightly browned. (Another option for browning the bread would be to lightly butter the bread slices, then grill in a skillet.) Remove from heat. If desired, cut each sandwich into three strips. Serve immediately.

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Old-Fashioned Apricot Souffle

Where I live March came in like a lion, and I wanted to make a cheery dessert. I found a hundred-year-old recipe for Apricot Souffle that fits the bill. It was light and had a lovely apricot flavor with a hint of almond.

Here’s the original recipe:

I got this recipe out of a cookbook that I bought off eBay. It had a penciled checkmark at the top which suggests that the original owner of the cookbook made it.

I used a 15-ounce can of apricots. I drained them, and then measured the apricots and had about 1 cup of them which I then pureed. I baked the apricot souffle in custard cups. I did not grease and sugar the cups because I thought it might make the top portion of the cups that was above the apricot mixture look messy. It worked fine not to grease them.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Apricot Souffle

Servings: 4 - 5
Time: 30 minutes
Difficulty: moderate
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1 can (15-16 oz.) canned apricots

1/2 cup sugar

6 drops almond extract

3 egg whites, stiffly beaten

Preheat oven to 350◦ F. Drain apricots and puree. Put pureed apricots in a saucepan and bring to a boil using medium heat. Remove from heat and stir in the sugar and almond extract. Put a small amount of the apricot mixture (1 – 2 tablespoons) in the beaten eggs whites, and fold in. (The egg white is first combined with a little of the hot mixture to prevent it from immediately cooking when introduced into the hot combination.) Fold the egg whites into the remaining apricot mixture, then put into individual custard cups. Put the custard cups in a pan containing enough hot water to come halfway up the cups. Bake until set and just beginning to brown (about 20 minutes).

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Old-Fashioned Cocoa Raisin Muffins

Cocoa Raisin Muffins

There is a fun children’s book that contains both a story and recipes called Billy in Bunbury. It was a promotional book that was published in 1925 by the Price Baking Powder Company. I decided to make a recipe in the book for Cocoa Raisin Muffins.

The muffins were delicious. They were chocolatey with a hint of cinnamon, and had a nice texture with lots of raisins. And, the recipe does not call for any eggs – an added bonus during this time of exorbitant egg prices. Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Cocoa Raisin Muffins — Source: Billy in Bunbury (1925)

It is a little surprising that a recipe in a children’s cookbook calls for 7/8 cup of milk. I seldom see recipes that call for eights of a cup, and it seems like an especially complex measure for a child to navigate when making this recipe.

Raisins were the last ingredient I added when I made this recipe, and that worked fine.

The recipe indicates that this recipe will make 16 muffins, but when I made this recipe, it only made 12 muffins. The number of muffins is very dependent upon the size of the individual muffin cups in the muffin tin. Apparently, muffins were fairly small a hundred years ago.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Cocoa Raisin Muffins

Servings: 12 -14
Time: 30 minutes
Difficulty: easy
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1 3/4 cups flour

2 tablespoons cocoa

5 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

4 teaspoons baking powder

2/3 cup raisins

7/8 cup milk

5 tablespoons butter or shortening, melted

Preheat oven to 400◦ F. Sift together flour, cocoa, sugar, salt, cinnamon and baking powder. Slowly add milk while stirring. Continue stirring until the batter is smooth, then add butter or shortening, and stir until combined. Stir in raisins. Put batter into prepared muffin tins. Fill each muffin cup about 3/4th full. Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until lightly browned.

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Old-Fashioned Corn Souffle

Corn Souffle

I recently came across a hundred-year-old recipe for Corn Souffle, and decided to try it. The recipe called for separating the eggs and stiffly beating the egg whites, then folding them into a white sauce and corn mixture which is baked.

The Corn Souffle turned out well. It was delicious, and had a light, creamy, pudding-like texture.

Here’s the original recipe:

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Corn Souffle

Servings: 4 - 5
Time: 40 minutes
Difficulty: moderate
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2 eggs, separated

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup flour

1/3 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

2/3 cup milk

1 cup cooked corn (I used canned creamed corn.)

Heat oven to 375◦ F. Put egg whites in bowl; beat until stiff. Set aside.

Melt butter in a large saucepan. Stir in flour, salt, and pepper. Gradually stir in milk. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

Put egg yolks in a small bowl; stir until smooth. Place a small amount (approximately 1 – 2 tablespoons) of hot mixture into dish with egg yolk, 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. Fold in the beaten egg whites. Pour into an 8″X8″X2″ or similar-sized casserole dish. Bake in oven uncovered until thickens (approximately 25 – 35 minutes.)

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Old-Fashioned Deviled Cheese

Deviled Cheese on crackers

I recently came across a hundred-year-old recipe for Deviled Cheese. It basically was a recipe for hot crackers with a tangy cheese topping. In addition to cheese, the topping contained olive oil, vinegar, ground mustard, and Worcestershire sauce. The zesty topping was tasty. This recipe was easy to make and is a fun twist on more modern ways of serving crackers and cheese.

Here’s the original recipe:

Deviled Cheese Recipe — Source: The Rumford Complete Cook Book, 1925

I spread the cheese topping on the crackers, and then heated in the oven for five minutes. I did not add any salt or pepper. The cheese and Worcestershire sauce already made this a bit salty and, in my opinion, it did not need pepper.

I didn’t try the toast option, or the option of spreading the topping on hot, toasted crackers. The cheese, oil, and vinegar did not combine very well until they were heated, so I didn’t think that it would work very well without actually heating the topping.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Deviled Cheese

Servings: 5 - 8
Time: 20 minutes
Difficulty: easy
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1 1/2 cups grated cheese (I used cheddar cheese.)

1 teaspoon ground mustard

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons vinegar

crackers

Preheat oven to 400◦ F. Put the grated cheese, ground mustard and Worcestershire sauce in a bowl; stir to combine. Add the olive oil and stir. Then add vinegar and stir until all ingredients are combined. Put crackers on a baking sheet then spread the deviled cheese on top of them. (Do not go quite to the edge.). Put in oven for 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

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Old-Fashioned Valentine Wafers

In some ways it is hard to believe that it is already February, and time to start thinking about Valentine’s Day. I have warm memories of helping my children prepare valentines to distribute at school and baking heart-shaped cookies, so when I saw a hundred-year-old recipe for Valentine Wafers, I decided to give them a try.

The Wafers were delightful. Each cookie has half of a candied cherry in the center. A unique feature of the recipe is that it calls for whole wheat flour, so I guess that the cookies are marginally healthier than the typical cut-out cookie.

Here’s the original recipe:

Valentine Wafers

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Valentine Wafers

Servings: approximately 36 cookies
Time: 45 minutes
Difficulty: moderate
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1 egg white

1/3 cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup water

2 cups whole wheat flour

candied cherries, cut into halves (approximately 18 cherries needed; may be more or less depending upon size of cookie cutters)

Preheat oven to 400◦ F. Put egg white into a bowl and beat until stiff peaks form. Set aside.

In another bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Add cream of tartar, baking soda, and vanilla; stir to combine. Then add half the water and half the flour; stir. Add remaining water and flour; stir until thoroughly combined, then fold in the beaten egg white. If the dough is sticky, add additional flour to get it to a good consistency for rolling. Roll out the dough on a prepared surface to 1/4 inch thick; then cut into heart shapes. Place on greased baking sheets. Put half a candied cherry in the center of each heart, and press firmly. Bake 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned.

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Old-Fashioned Clove Cake

Slices of Clove Cake

I love Spice Cakes, so when I saw a recipe for Clove Cake in a hundred-year-old cookbook I was intrigued. Was it similar to Spice Cake or quite different? I decided to give it a try and see what it was like.

The verdict– The recipe makes a small loaf cake. I have mixed feelings about this cake. It was tasty, but not very aesthetically pleasing. The cake had an old-fashioned goodness with the warm, sweet, spiciness of cloves. The flavor is more intense than the typical spice cake, but it was good. My husband said that the worst thing about the cake was that there was not enough of it. The texture of the cake was nice, however, the cake fell when I took it out of the oven, so it did not look that great. The recipe called for a really high ratio of sugar to flour, and I think that this might be the issue.

Here’s the original recipe:

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

I am unclear why the recipe calls for adding the raisins before adding the baking soda and some of the flour. It’s difficult to get a well-mixed batter when there are chunky raisins in the mixing bowl, so I updated the recipe to add the raisins last.

When I made this recipe, the chopped raisins sank to the bottom. In hindsight I realized that I probably should have tossed them in flour prior to stirring them into the batter. This probably would have helped keep them dispersed throughout the cake. When I updated the recipe, I indicated that the raisins should be floured.

Sweet milk is just regular milk. In the days before pasteurized milk, some cake recipes called for sour milk. I’m not sure why the recipe author felt the need to clarify that milk that had not soured should be used.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Clove Cake

Servings: 5 - 7
Time: 45 minutes
Difficulty: moderate
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1/2 cup butter

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1/4 cup milk

1/2 cup flour + 2 tablespoons flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cloves

3/4 cup chopped raisins

Preheat oven to 350◦ F. Grease and flour a loaf pan (bread pan). In a small bowl, toss the raisins with two tablespoons to flour. (This will help keep them from sinking to the bottom). Set aside.

Put butter and sugar in a mixing bowl and cream. Add the eggs, milk, 1/2 cup flour, baking soda and cloves; beat until combined. Stir in the chopped raisins. Pour into prepared pan.

Bake 35 minutes, or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. If desired, glaze or frost cake after it has cooled.

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