Fontina Cheese & Ovengold Turkey Entree

    Hi. I'm back. I've been ill. I caught a wretched cold from my aunt. Still, I courageously forged my way into the kitchen to try a new recipe. And that recipe comes from a non-vintage booklet. I have them all mixed together so sometimes that's what I pull out. This time it is "Classic Recipes" put out by Boar's Head Brand meats and cheeses in 2004.
    The first time I came across the Boar's Head brand was when I was reading a cooking magazine's recommendations for the best bacon. Boar's head was at the top of the list. I signed up for their emails and they sent me a keychain. Maybe that's where I got the cookbook too, I'm not sure.
    Here's a little history about the Boar's Head brand:
"When Frank Brunckhorst founded Boar's Head in 1905 he had a very simple idea: to make the finest meats possible. Nothing less. There would be no compromising of quality in the name of efficiency; there would be no ingredients that would  be 'almost as good'. And if it cost more to produce meats of this caliber, then so be it."
"The world has changed since then. Manufacturers  believe that people will accept less, so they are content to offer less. But Boar's Head has not changed. To this day Boar's Head will never use extenders, will never use by-products, will never use artificial colors or artificial flavors. Though these practices may be up to government standards, they are not up to those of Boar's Head."
    Bravo, Boar's Head! That said, I am sorry to say I had to use a different brand. I asked for Boar's Head at the Giant Eagle deli, but they only carried Deitz & Watson. To be fair, the Deitz and Watson turkey was of a good quality.

        Fontina Cheese & Ovengold Turkey Entree

1 tbs. butter                       1/2 lb. Boar's Head

1 large portobello                      Ovengold Roast Breast

    mushroom, sliced into            of Turkey, sliced 1/8" thick

    1/4" slices                      2 tbs. chopped sun dried

2 tbs. Chardonnay wine              tomatoes marinated in

1/4 cup chicken broth                 olive oil

1 tbs. of all purpose flour     1/2 lb. Boar's Head Fontina

                                               Cheese

                                        dash ground nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place a lg. oven proof skillet on top of stove and melt butter over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and saute until tender. Drain the mushrooms using a slotted spoon and set aside. Add wine and chicken broth to the pan juices. Bring to simmer, then add flour to thicken sauce. Remove skillet from the stove, and place Ovengold Turkey in a layer at the bottom of the skillet. Top turkey with sun dried tomatoes, spreading evenly. Next, spread with the sauteed mushrooms, then finish with the Fontina Cheese. Sprinkle nutmeg lightly over the cheese, and place skillet into preheated oven. Cook until heated through and the cheese has become bubbly. Cut into 4 portions and serve hot.

    I used my trusty cast iron skillet and the recipe was super easy, also super quick. It took only 10 minutes to cook in the preheated oven. It was very tasty! I especially enjoyed the flavor of the sun-dried tomatoes. The strange thing was that I felt like I was serving the innards of a sandwich. My aunt thought it would be good served oven-face style on toasted bread with butter. I think it would be great on a grinder roll. It would really make a great sandwich. I enjoyed it as it was but in future I would slide it into a bun- yum!

P.S. My aunt tried it as an open-face sandwich and said it was fab! 

        

Good News!

    Hi there! I have two pieces of good news. Firstly, Book Rush is officially over at 5:30pm tonight! Yay! When I go for too long without a day off I get quite short-tempered and irritable. I am going to the supermarket tonight with a list of ingredients for my next recipe selections.     
    Secondly, I have handed over a bag of cooking pamphlets to my coworker, Drew so that he can make some digital scans of them. I will add them to my previous posts so you can delight in the visual spectacle of my vintage cookbooks! 
    Note: I have just been informed by Drew that I won't have those scans by tonight. That's okay since I cannot post from home due to my computer situation.

Latin American Cookies Pt. 2

    "The Perils of Vintage Cooking"
    There, I did it! Caption not wasted. As I mentioned yesterday I made cookies when I got home from work Tuesday night. This recipe comes from the "Nestle's Chocolate Kitchen Recipes" cookbook by Jane Fulton, published in 1951. This 33 page booklet includes recipes for cookies, cakes and breads, desserts, and candies. Also, if you care to know a thing or two about the history of The Toll House cookie or Nestle's Quik, this is the book for you. As a side note I would like to state my displeasure at the bastardization of Nestle's Quik to Nesquik. What's next? Are we going to call Armour Hot Dogs "Armdogs"? Geez!
    From the book: "Tucked away in historic Oswego Valley, in the heart of New York State's beautiful dairyland, is Fulton- home of The Nestle Company's chocolate plant- locally known as the "Chocolate Works." How idyllic-sounding. I wonder if it's still there.  
    Do you know the history of the Toll House cookie? Would you like to? Here it is...
        "A cookie is born and a dream comes true"
    "Just as the introduction of pressure cookers and frozen food made radical changes in our cooking techniques, so did the creation of a cookie- the Toll House Cookie.
    It all started as an ingenious experiment on the part of Ruth Wakefield of the Toll House Inn when she chopped up Nestle's Semi-Sweet Chocolate for use in her favorite cookie recipe. To her surprise, her favorite crispy cookie not only became more delicious in flavor but had, in addition, a delightful surprise element- whole pieces of chocolate that did not melt during baking. Almost overnight Toll House Cookies became a sensational success."
    Hmm, that wasn't a very exciting tale. I expected a bit more. Possibly some political intrigue, a smidgen of spy involvement, rabid squirrels, parachuting milkmaids, anything! Oh well.

        Latin American Cookies

Sift together and set aside

    1 1/2 c. sifted flour

    1/2 tsp. salt

    1 tsp. baking powder

    1/2 tsp. soda

    1 tsp. cinnamon

    1/2 tsp. nutmeg

    1/4 tsp. ginger

Blend

    1/3 c. butter

    1/4 c. sugar

Combine

    1/3 c. light molasses

    1/3 c. double strength coffee (cold)

Add alternately to butter-sugar

        mixture, sifted dry in-

        gredients and molasses

Add

    1 pkg. Nestle's Semi-Sweet

        Chocolate Morsels

Drop by teaspoonfuls on greased

cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 degrees  Time: 15 min.

        Yield: 3 dozen

If desired, frost with powdered

sugar frosting.

    It was as i was mixing in the chocolate chips that I realized something was wrong. There were so many chocolate chips you could barely see the batter. Oh no! Just then it occurred to me: perhaps the package sizing was different back in the 1950s! There wasn't anything I could do about it at this juncture, so I just measured out the batter onto the cookie sheets and set the timer.
    While the cookies were baking I hopped on the internet and did some investigating. I found several references to a six ounce package. Well, that was it! I had just put double the amount of chocolate chips into the cookies! Oh man! I don't even particularly care for chocolate! 
    The cookies turned out even with the extra chips. I brought them into work and they disappeared. My friend, Jackie said they were "Awsome!". It's hard to beat awesome, so even if they weren't my favorites this is apparently a fine recipe.
    Oh, by the way, I didn't label them "Latin American Cookies" I called them "molasses double chocolate chip cookies". People are too frightened by the unknown where food is concerned.

Latin American Cookies pt. 1

    I made the cookies last night! I was all ready to tell you about them when I realized I had forgotten to bring the cookbook with me. I even had the "headline" picked out..."The Perils of Vintage Cooking". It's not that the cookies didn't turn out;  they're just a bit different than originally intended. I'll give you a hint... today's package sizing is frequently not the same as it was mid-20th century. That's all I can say for now. I'll get back to you tomorrow

Brief Hiatus?

    Hi Guys. I may or may not do any cooking tonight. As you know, it is Fall Rush time and we are working long hours. I have a cookie recipe picked out, but cookies can be quite time consuming, so we'll see. I may just take a short break until we have decent hours again. I won't wait for a day off though; 3 weeks is too long to wait between recipes. Okay, that last sentence was steeped in self-pity. Forgive me.

Hash Skillet Pie

    Today's recipe comes to us from "Betty Crocker's Pie Parade"! A parade of pies! Oh my! Dateline: 1957, Our lovely Betty sends us this message: "Everybody loves pie, especially the men of the family." (I didn't know that!). She also tells us that, "every one of these recipes has been thoroughly tested". Well, that's a relief, after the whole eggless cake debacle!
    "Dependable Gold Medal is what we call the 'flower of the wheat' which means that it is the finest and best part of the wheat. That's why it really does help you bake a 'flower of a pie', all golden, flaky, tender, and good." "Do try these recipes, won't you?" Yes, Betty, yes I will.
    Some pie history: 
    "Pie is as American as the Fourth of July.Through those first lean and hungry years in New England and Virginia, courageous pioneer mothers contrived 'pyes' out of the few simple foods at hand. They sliced the top off pumpkins, scooped out fiber and seeds, filled the pumpkins with milk, and set them to bake on the open hearth. Later, a greased pan sprinkled with rye meal was filled with pumpkin diluted with milk and spices. Still later, they added the pastry crust."
    "The 'pyes' of old England were baked in a long deep dish called a coffin, and 'pye receipts' up to Martha Washington's day directed colonial cooks to 'first make your coffin.' The first American pie pans were designed round to cut the corners, flat and shallow so pies would 'go a long way.' As orchards were planted and food became plentiful, pies gradually took on the 'new world' look- large and richly crusted, lush with fruit and abundant fillings. Pies had become distinctively American, as glamorous and exciting as this thrilling new nation!"
    Well, with that said, let's move on to the recipe:

        Hash Skillet Pie

Make Stir-N-Roll pastry for Two-crust 

Pie (below). Roll between 2 squares of

waxed paper into a 12" square. Ease into

heavy 10" skillet; let pastry hang over

edge.

Mix...

    1-lb. can corned beef hash, broken up

    1/4 cup milk or tomato juice

    2 tbsp. chopped onion

Spread in pastry-lined skillet. Fold pastry

over filling. Bake. Cut in wedges and

serve with hot chili sauce or catsup.

Temperature: 425 degrees (hot oven)

Time: Bake 30 to 40 min.

Amount: 4 to 6 servings.

        Stir-N-Roll Pastry for Two-Crust Pie

Mix 2 cups sifted Gold Medal flour and 1 1/2 tsp. salt.

Pour into measuring cup (but don't stir together):

1/2 cup cooking (salad) oil and 1/4 cup cold milk.

Then pour oil and milk all at the same time into the flour.

Stir with fork until mixed. Dough looks moist, but isn't

sticky. Press into smooth ball.

    This is an incredibly easy recipe. The hardest part 
was trying to remember what I did with my cast iron
skillet. I used the milk rather than the tomato juice
because that's what I had on hand. Also, I knew I would
be putting catsup on it when it was done baking. 
When you make this recipe "hash becomes a
conversation piece". Well that's what Betty said! 
I'm not sure if we conversed about it all that much but
this was good and tasty.

Zesty Hamburgers

    I have another not-so-vintage recipe here. This hamburger recipe comes from "Chili & Hamburger" This is one of those "Popular Brands Cookbooks". It's square though, instead of the usual rectangle shape. It is dated 1995 and has a picture of a fabulous, juicy cheeseburger on the front.
    It's hard to go wrong with a burger. This is a very simple recipe and I only needed three things: hamburger, buns, and Old Bay Seasoning (which I already had on hand). My main concern was what to serve with it because I hadn't been to the grocery store. Then I remembered some Ranch Beans I had bought a few months back. I bought them strictly because I liked the look of the can. What do you think?

    I felt like a regular cowpoke just putting them in my cart.

Here's the recipe! (For the burgers, not the beans!)

         Zesty Hamburgers

    1 lb. ground beef (or ground turkey)

    1 1/2 tsp Old Bay Seasoning

    In a medium bowl, mix together ground beef and Old Bay Seasoning. Shape into patties. Fry or broil as usual. Serves 6.

    Yep! It's just that easy! Yum yum yum! By the way, the beans were good too, and they went well together! Giddyup! 

Graham Cracker Cake

    Happy Friday! I am going to take a look at the new camera this weekend and see if I can get it all set up. In the meantime, how about a recipe?
    There are so many to choose from and I know what you're thinking, "Why don't you ever bake a cake?" Well, okay, you've twisted my arm. A cake it is!
    The cake: Graham Cracker Cake. The cookbook: 15 pages of typed recipes that I suspect somebody took from one of those community cookbooks and stapled together. That's what it looks like anyway. I would date it from sometime in the 1970's. The sections include: Breads, Cakes and Frostings, Candies, and Cookies. Why these were removed from the original book I cannot guess. Nevertheless, it intrigued me so last night I gave it a whirl.
        

        Graham Cracker Cake

1/2 cup shortening

1 cup sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla

3 beaten egg yolks

1/2 cup flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

24 graham crackers (2 1/4 cups crushed)

3/4 cup milk

1/2 cup walnuts

3 stiffly beaten egg whites

    Soften shortening, add sugar, cream together

until fluffy. Add vanilla and egg yolks, beat well.

Add dry ingredients and cream. Add alternately

crushed graham crackers and milk. Beat after each

is added until smooth. Add nuts, then fold in egg

whites. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes.

        Frosting for Graham Cracker Cake

1 cup milk

4 Tbs. flour

Cook until pasty; let set until cool. Mix the

following in bowl:

1/2 cup butter

pinch of salt

1/2 cup shortening

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup sugar

Add milk sauce and beat until fluffy.

    I know, I know, the frosting sounds kind of gross. In fact I found that it really didn't suit me at all. I am pretty much a die-hard buttercream frosting gal. The cake on the other hand, I loved. It had a great flavor. I almost left out the nuts because Auntie doesn't like them but when trying out a recipe for the first time I generally like to have it as it is meant to be. I'm glad I did, because the combination of the graham cracker batter and the nuts was so good, especially near the edges. Mmmm. 

    Now, the problem with the frosting for me was the consistancy. It uses granulated sugar and is whipped up into a light airy spread. I am not a fan of whippy airy frostings. Auntie preferred the frosting to the cake (sacrilege!). She doesn't care for nuts in things, as I mentioned previously, and she said the frosting reminded her of the "Dream Whip" her grandmother used to make.
    Oh, by the way, this recipe comes from a lady named Donna Mayo and a quote on the bottom of the page tells us that "Manners are the happy way of doing things." That's all for now; enjoy your Friday!       

Photos

    I got my camera! As soon as I figure out how to use it I will be able to add pictures to my posts. Sorry, I'm just a newbie!

Biscuitburgers

    Hi! Did you miss me? As promised, I have made another Bisquick recipe! This one comes from "Betty Crocker's Bisquick Party Book: 97 gay new ideas and recipes...for coffee time through late T.V....from appetizers to desserts!" published in 1957 by General Mills.
    This little booklet includes both recipes and suggested menus. I love the menus! They seem to be from a kinder simpler time, with titles like, "Luncheon For The Girls", "Party Brunch", "Company's Comin' For Dinner", and "Snacks For The Young At Heart". (No old fogies need apply). Was there really a time when you would "invite your neighbors in for coffee" and a "quick-to-whip-up hot bread"? I barely know my neighbors names! 
    I picked the recipe for "Biscuitburgers". It is featured in the "After-The-Game Supper" along with French Fries and either Apple Short Pie Cobbler or Strawberry Shortcake. I went a different direction with it and served it as an evening "breakfast" along with a mushroom, onion, and monterey jack omelet.
        

        Biscuitburgers

Heat oven to 400 degrees (mod. hot).

Season 1/2 lb. hamburger or bulk 

pork sausage with salt, pepper,

chopped onion. Shape into 2 1/2"

patties. Brown in hot fat. Make

Richer Biscuit dough (below).

Roll out 1/8" thick. Cut into 3"

rounds. Place each browned patty

between 2 rounds. Press edges

together with fork. Prick tops.

Bake on baking sheet about 15

min. Serve hot as a finger food.

6 Servings.

        Richer Biscuit Dough

Mix 1/4 cup soft butter or shortening,

or 3 tbsp. salad oil into Bisquick. 

Combine. Add 2/3 cup milk. Stir with

fork. Beat 15 strokes. It will be stiff,

but sticky.

    Since I was going with a breakfast theme, I used maple sausage. They turned out fabulously. They were so cute. Auntie thought they looked like little pot pies. We each had one with our omelet. Yum!
    These make a neat little breakfast. Might I suggest having one with a bit of strawberry jammmmm......

Upside-Down Cake

    It's cake time again! I gave the remainder of my "eggless cake" to the birds. I am sure the little beggars enjoyed it, and especially the raisins and dates. 
    How about a vintage upside-down cake? I've never made one before! I turned to "Betty Crocker's Bisquick Cook Book: 157 Recipes and Ideas" from "Betty Crocker of General Mills", dated 1956.

    Says Betty:

"You do so many nice special
things for the family more
often, because you start
so far ahead with Bisquick!"

(I guess Betty's better with cooking than words!)

    Bisquick, like Spam, is a much maligned product, I find. I once made a really delicious banana bread using a Bisquick recipe and brought it into work with me. One of my coworkers asked me for the recipe. He wanted to give it to his sister, but once he found out it was a Bisquick recipe he told me to just forget it. "My sister would never make anything with 'Bisquick' in it". I suppose there are plenty of people too snooty to use Bisquick, but I say if it tastes good, why not?! And it did (does) taste good...

For your consideration:

        Upside-Down Cake  

"Velvet Crumb is a favorite right side up 

and a double favorite upside down."  

Heat oven to 350 degrees (mod.). Melt 2

tbsp. butter in 8" square pan or 9"

round layer pan. Sprinkle with 1/4 

cup brown sugar. Arrange over sugar

mixture fresh or well drained canned

fruit (peach slices, pineapple slices

or chunks, or apricot halves). Make 

Velvet Crumb Cake batter (see below).

Pour over fruit. Bake 35 to 40 min.,

until toothpick stuck in center comes

out clean. Invert at once on serving

plate. Leave pan over cake a minute.

Serve warm with plain or whipped 

cream. 

Neat Trick: Dazzle the family with 

different designs on your upside-

down cakes.  

        Velvet Crumb Cake batter

    1 1/3 cups Bisquick

     3/4 cup sugar

    3 tbsp. soft shortening

    1 egg

    3/4 cup milk

    1 tsp. vanilla

Mix Bisquick, sugar. Add

shortening, egg, 1/4 cup of milk. Beat

vigorously 1 min. Stir in gradually 

remaining milk, vanilla. Beat 1/2 

min. 

    Verdict: Yummy yummy yummy, I've got love in my tummy! And, it was simple to make. I was traditional and used pineapple rings, but peaches sound good too. It makes a nice little cake. Sorry birdies! I don't see any leftovers forthcoming! 

    Stay tuned for another Bisquick recipe! 

Avocado Appetizers - With Salmon

    I wasn't sure whether to use this next vintage cookbook, because, much to my dismay, the previous owner ripped out numerous pages leaving it sadly incomplete. Yet, it is such a fun little cookbook I couldn't part with it. 

    (Hey Mom, if you see one of these it would make a great Christmas gift!)

    This sweet little booklet is called "The Avocado Bravo" and was published in 1976 by the California Avocado Advisory Board of Newport Beach California.

    It comes with a brightly colored map inside showing the avocado growing regions in the state of California which stretch from Goleta in the north to San Diego in the south. "The avocado acreage actually is only 2/10 of 1% of the state- very small, very choice". 

    From the booklet: "The essential avocado...carved in half and served with a shake of salt and/or pepper...a squeeze of lemon or lime. Here are two leading varieties of California avocado. The green, smooth skinned pear-shaped Fuerte and the pebbly rounded black Hass...both cut open to show a burnished seed and flesh of glowing green-gold. Don't hesitate over the rough Hass. The gourmet knows its deep subtle richness, its burning color and its gruff good looks.

    The flavor of these avocados is delicate and nut-like with such mild authority that the finest of the California recipes are perhaps the simplest...plain, pared down to that essential avocado."

    My choice...

                  Avocado Appetizers -With Salmon

    2 avocados, peeled and quartered

    8 slices Nova Scotia smoked salmon

    8 lime slices

    8 cocktail onions

Wrap salmon around avocado quarters. Secure with picks. Garnish with lime and onions. 8 servings. 

    I cut the recipe in half as I was informed well in advance that this is one recipe I would be sampling alone. Even I was a bit skeptical of this combination, but anyone who knows me could tell you, I relish trying new and/or strange foods. Well, let me tell you, I loved it! I wrapped the smoked salmon around the avocado and gave it a good squeeze of lime juice and it was great! Viva avocado!!  

Peas And Mushroom Toss

    Okay...at last, the pasta recipe I promised. It is from the "American Beauty Celebrates With Pasta" booklet. This booklet was put out by The Pillsbury Co. in 1979.
    I was wondering if the "American beauty" brand of pasta was still around so I searched the internet and found their website American Beauty Pasta. They are having a "free groceries for a year" contest. Why don't you enter? I did.
    This little cookbook appears to be well-used, and why not? Pasta isn't just about spaghetti and macaroni and cheese. There are sections in this booklet for casseroles, side dishes, soups, salads, etc.
     I chose a pasta side to go with the ribeyes I was serving.


            Peas And Mushroom Toss

    "Serve vegetables and pata all in one. It's perfect for a party buffet."

        2 quarts water

        2 teaspoons salt

        1 tablespoon oil

        4 1/2 cups American Beauty Wide Egg Noodles

        1/4 cup chopped onion

        1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms

        1/4 cup margarine or butter

        10-oz. pkg. frozen peas, thawed and drained

        1 cup light cream

        3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

        1/2 teaspoon salt

        1/4 teaspoon pepper

    Boil water in large deep pot with 2 teaspoons salt and oil (to prevent boiling over). Add noodles; stir to separate. Cook uncovered after water returns to a full boil for 6 to 7 minutes. Stir occasionally. Drain and rinse under hot water. 

    In Dutch oven or large skillet, cook onion and mushrooms in margarine over medium heat until onion is soft and mushrooms are tender. Stir in cooked noodles, peas and cream; cook until heated through. Remove from heat; toss with parmesan cheese, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper. Serve immediately. 16 (1/2-cup) servings. 

    What?! Sixteen servings? Well, it is a side dish after all. There's no reason you couldn't serve leftovers as a vegetarian main dish. Both Auntie and I loved this pasta. It was very creamy and flavorful. Also, we both thought some more mushrooms would not be amiss. I highly recommend. Lots of yummy leftovers!

Chili Butter

    Friday night dinner: broiled ribeyes with chili butter. Recipe source: Armour's Meat Cook Book: Recipe ideas for beef, veal, pork, lamb and poultry (as well as buying helps). This booklet is dated 1970 and is put out by The Pillsbury Company.
    In this "collection of contemporary meat recipes" the editors have included "easy-to-prepare recipes" that "range from economical family favorites to the finest gourmet entrees and entertainment fare".
    I chose a very quick and easy recipe for "Chili Butter"
    This was one of four condiment recipes for "steak enhancers". The other three were for "Lemon-chive butter", "Blue cheese spread", and "radish cream". These are all simple mixtures that you put together to spread on your broiled steaks to give them a bit of zest! The recipe for the chili butter is as follows:                                               Whip 1/4 cup butter until fluffy. Add 2 tablespoons chopped parsley and 1 tablespoon chili powder. Spread over broiled steaks before serving.
    You can't beat that for ease.
    The steaks turned out nicely. I could have stood them to be a little redder. The chili butter was flavorful but not all that exciting. I wonder what the "radish butter" tastes like? Sounds interesting. So...it was an okay recipe. The real star of the meal was the pasta side dish I served, which I will mention in the next post. Mmmmm..

Roast Beef

     "It doesn't need watching...The All American Crockery Cook Pot Cook Book"! Yea! This booklet was put out in 1972 by Grandinetti Products, Inc. It is a mere 31 pages of instructions and recipes to get you started with your new appliance. These "cook-pots" were "made in America by Americans for all the World". That's nice.

    Now, while I don't have an official "All American" cook pot, I do have at my disposal a crock pot, which is essentially the same thing. 

    Crock pots are great! According to our friends at Grandinetti Products, Inc., "Cook-Pot time makes meals divine: Retains vitamins, money-saving, less work, flavorful food".

    Here is a nice little poem they have included. I suggest you put it to music and sing it while you are toiling away outside the home. It will remind you that dinner is cooking itself and will be ready and waiting for you when you return home from a grueling day at that old hell-hole you call work.

    "Does your cooking while you are away

    Morning, afternoon or the whole day." 

    Onward! To the recipe! 

    Roast Beef (which I always think of as roast beast, thank you Dr. Seuss)

3-4 lb. rib roast of beef                      Seasonings: salt, pepper, etc.

Place in Cook-Pot. Add no liquid. Cover and cook on low for 10 to 12 hours. If you wish to serve this with vegetables, add 1/2 cup beef consomme, placing vegetables on the bottom and sides of the Cook-Pot.

    That's it! Isn't it great! How simple is this? The recipe says it is "great for company dinner or sandwiches". I decided to add veggies to make it more of a meal. I added to the pot the consumme, 8 red potatoes, 4 carrots (peeled and cut in half), and 2 onions (cut in 1/4s). The cookbook warned against using too many onions because a cook pot keeps strong flavors locked in.

    The results: The meat wasn't quite as juicy as I would have liked. It needed some seasoning when it was done cooking, but those are called for in the recipe. The veggies were nice and tender- not mushy at all.

    Having a traditional meal like this is a nice change from fast food. Also it didn't leave a bunch of pots and pans, measuring spoons and utensils to be cleaned. I would absolutely make it again. If anybody has any tips about making the meat a bit juicier, I would welcome them. Should I have seared the meat on top of the stove first? That's the only thing I can think of.

    Just so you don't think I do all the cooking around here, I had for lunch today "truffled macaroni and cheese" that my aunt made. Mmmm yummy. Macaroni and cheese is my favorite comfort food! Thanks Auntie!

Eggless Cake Pt. 2: Success!

    Yesterday I wrote of my kitchen disaster with an eggless cake recipe from the "land before time". Okay, just kidding, but I did some further investigating and found out that my honey cook book was put out in 1919! Even earlier than I thought.

    As to the cake nightmare, the cards were stacked against me. I actually found this notation in the cook book: "Practically all of the recipes in this booklet have been thoroughly tested." Well, heck! It would be just my luck to pick a recipe that had been only slightly tested!

    Well, as you know I intended to do everything I did on the first tryout, only use a Bundt pan instead of a loaf pan. This I did. I threw everything together like an old pro and popped it in the oven.  Twenty minutes passed, not even close. Thirty minutes passed, nope, now I'm starting to worry. At forty minutes time I took the cake out. It looked beautiful: a deep golden color. It smelled good:  But, the toothpick did not come out completely clean. My hopes sank to the floor. Nevertheless, I put the pan on the rack to cool and went to watch my t.v. show (I Spy, again). 

    When the cake had cooled enough to remove it from the pan it was a beautiful sight to behold. Just the right color and texture. After a bit I cut a slice for myself and my aunt. It was good! The inside was not raw, but moist and the outside was perfect. I let out the breath I was holding and cut myself another slim slice!

Victory is mine! Guess what I am having as an afternoon snack? No guesswork.

    Now I feel I can move on with my head held high. 

    If you are interested in some more honey info, here are some more notes from the booklet:

• Honey is "nature's sweet" and "is as pure and wholesome as mountain air and a real food that any stomach will welcome".
• "Baked goods, and, in fact, foods of any kind prepared with honey, keep better than if prepared with sugar. It is well known by scientists that honey, in a sense, is a preservative.Fruit put up with honey not only keeps better, but the color is brighter, and cakes and cookies are less likely to grow musty." (I do hate having to brush the must off my cookies).
• Honey is pure, "without an untruth hidden in it". (Unlike those lying sacks of sugar!)
• Honey "imparts that waxy quality to cakes that makes them so delicious" Waxy? Really?
• "It's flavor will take your memory back to shady lanes and clover-studded fields- to June and the drone of bees"... (and the fleeing and the stinging and the screaming).
• Honey is "immediately absorbed into the blood". (How is this a bonus? I don't want to imagine my blood thickly infused with honey. I figure my blood is just barely chugging along on a good day.)

    Lastly, I know I have complained about the lack of specifics listed in the recipe; oven temp, cooking time, etc. but as I was perusing the other recipes I saw ingredient quantities listed as: one coffee cupful of this, or two coffee cupfuls of that. How much is that? Did everybody have standard-sized coffee cups back then? At least I didn't pick one of those! In some cases the editors did give you an idea of required oven temp by stating "put cake in quick oven". I couldn't remember, myself just how hot that was supposed to be so I looked it up online. It is a 400 degree oven. While I was looking this up I came upon an inquiry from some poor fool who had an old cookbook she wanted to use and she wanted to know where she could purchase a "Quick Oven"! So sad. Well, at least there's one dingleberry out there who knows less about cooking than I do!

Eggless Cake Pt. 1: Disaster!

    Ugh! Yesterday was kind of a crummy day all-around. I woke up to the sound of a cat coughing up a hairball and it went downhill from there: work was hectic, the man at the grocery meat counter ignored me and tried to wait on two men that had just arrived (tried!), and the electricity went off with 10 minutes left in my t.v. program (I Spy). Oh, and then there was the cake.
     I had a hunch I was in trouble from the start. The recipe booklet was so old that it only listed ingredients. As a knowledgeable cook of the past I would have known the right oven temperature, the cooking time, the size of the pan, etc. As a hapless cook of the present I turned to the internet to give me some clues. I figured out what I thought was the right timing and temperature. Where I screwed up (I think) was the pan...but I digress, let me tell you about my recipe choice.
     The recipe booklet of choice is called "Airline Honey Cook Book". This booklet is put out by The A. I. Root Company of Medina, Ohio "The Home of the Honeybees". While I could find no date on the booklet I think it might be from the 1920s. It references a study done in 1913 to emphasize a point. According to the booklet "Eighty-five pounds of sugar on the average is annually consumed by every man, woman, and child in the United States. According to that 1913 study the consumption of cane sugar by the average American is nearly five times that of the average European." To stress the perils of cane sugars and the goodness of honey, the booklet quotes Prof. A.J. Cook, of Claremont, Cal. "If cane sugar is absorbed without change, it will be removed by the kidneys and may result in their breakdown." Therefore, "There can be no doubt but that in eating honey our digestive machinery is saved work that it would have to perform if we ate cane sugar. We all know how children long for candy. Children should be given all the honey at each meal that they will eat"!
    Some more tidbits:

• What is  honey? "Honey is the nectar of flowers modified and evaporated by the bees."
• Different kinds of honey: Honey may have a good heavy body or it may be quite thin. It ranges in color from almost water-white to as dark as the darkest molasses. The flavor varies according to the flower from which it is obtained- the lighter-colored honeys being milder in flavor, as a rule.  White-clover honey, sage, sweet clover, alfalfa, willow-herb, raspberry, etc. are quite mild,each, however, having its own distinct flavor. Goldenrod, aster, heartsease, buckwheat, etc. are darker and stronger in flavor, especially the latter which is very strong and practically the darkest honey sold.
• Honey is placed on the market in four forms: comb honey, extracted honey, bulk comb honey, and granulated honey.

Now, I can't put it off any longer. I must describe the disaster.

         Eggless Cake
    One cupful sugar, 1/2 cup honey, one cupful sour milk, 2 tablespoonfuls of butter, one cupful chopped raisins, one cup chopped dates, one teaspoonful soda, 2 1/2 cupfuls flour. Spices may be added to taste.

Well that's the whole recipe. My research told me I should bake the cake at 350 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes. Now as you can see this is not your standard white cake with buttercream frosting (mmm...buttercream frosting). This is more like what I would call a tea cake or a tea loaf. So, because I thought of it that way I put it in a loaf pan. BIG MISTAKE! Oh man, what a disaster!
     It baked and baked and baked and baked. 20 minutes passed, 30 minutes passed, still totally soupy in center. 35 minutes, 40 minutes, 45 minutes...finally I could take it no more! I took it out after 50 minutes! It was burnt on the outside, but I told myself, that, surely, the inside parts would be edible. Dear reader, after the brick, er...cake, had cooled on the rack I cut into it. Oh the humanity! Burnt on the outside, raw on the inside! In total disgust I heaved it into the trash.
My aunt was bothered that I didn't save it for the birds. I asked her which part she thought the birds would want, the burnt or the raw and she answered without batting an eye, "the burnt".  I'm not sure, but I think that would qualify as animal cruelty.
So here's the deal...I'm making it again tonight. This time in a bundt pan. Wish me luck! I'm sure going to need it!!

"What They Eat"

    I will be baking a cake tonight but now let's focus on a fun little pamphlet I have, called "Happy, Healthy 4-H Club Members: What They Eat". 
    This is a 4-H circular dated December 1933. The booklet includes, 
"Health Goals For 4-H Club Members": 
"A 4-H club member is expected to know all the good qualities to be looked for in the products made, but even more important than the recognition of the good points of a perfect loaf of bread, a suitable dress, or a calf, are the good points of the members themselves. What are these qualities we should look for and try to attain? 
Some Signs Of Good Health:

A well-formed and well-developed body with: 
Straight back and legs 
Well-formed knee and ankle joints 
Clear, firm skin 
Bright, clear, mucous membranes 
Firm muscles 
Clear, bright eyes 
Glossy hair 
A broad, deep chest 
Well-formed, even teeth that fit together 
A happy, cheerful disposition." 

    Wow! These are tough standards! I'm thinking of asking my aunt to put me through this test every morning before I leave for work. I'm sure she wouldn't mind checking out my mucous membranes and testing my dental symmetry. And what's more I know she would do it with "a happy cheerful disposition". 
    Our 4-H friends give us fine advice about the ingredients of healthful meals: 
    "Milk- One quart a day for each child and one pint a day for adults 
    Potatoes- Once or twice a day 
    Vegetables- At least two good servings 
    Fruit- At least two servings, one of which should be citrus or tomato 
    Whole grain cereal or bread- Once or twice a day 
    Meat, egg, fish, or cheese- Once or twice daily. 
    An egg a day is advisable." (Ha! Take that, cholesterol Nazis!)  

Other random advice:

• Substantial meals should only be taken by those doing hard work or vigorous exercise (Does this mean I should serve myself an "insubstantial" meal?)
• When having two vegetables with dinner, one should be cooked, the other raw (Salad, I guess.)
• Children under 8 years should not eat salad.
• A simple dinner may easily be expanded to include meat or a meat-like dish. (Meat-like? What's that...Spam? Just kidding, Mom, Spam is fab!)
• Beverages at meals should be hot for elderly persons (for better digestion, perhaps?)
• Only food planned for the meal should appear on the table. (Please remove the Cheerio box from the table at dinner-time!)
• If a food is left over it is more appreciated if it does not appear again on the same day. (Or the next day, either, in my opinion- absence makes the stomach grow fonder.)

Next we move on to the kitchen and some advice about maintaining your appliances. Here is some timely advice: "A sink strainer is a very useful article in keeping particles of refuse from escaping down the pipe and clogging it." (As for me, I have to go home tonight and stick my arm down the garbage disposal and try to find the pop can tab my aunt lost down there!) 
    Here is a little poem about washing dishes (which I loathe!): (Note: I loathe washing dishes, not the poem) 

        The Art of Dish Washing
When we on simple rations sup, 
How easy is the washing up. 
But heavy feeding complicates 
The task by soiling many plates. -- Christopher Morley 

    And lastly, I will throw in a very important rule regarding making good coffee:  
    Do Not reheat cold coffee! (That one's for you, Mom!)