Replies

http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodbeverages.html#cowboycoffee

ABOUT COFFEE SUBSTITUTES
When *real* coffee was unavailable, a variety of natural substitutes were employed. The final brew varied from somewhat acceptable to downright poor.

“Coffee Substitutes: As substitutes for coffee, some use dry brown bread crusts, and roast them; other soak rye grain in rum, and roast it; other roast peas in the same way as coffee. None of these are very good; and peas so used are considered unhealthy. Where there is a large family of apprentices and workmen, the coffee is very dear, it may be worth while to use the substitutes, or to mix them half and with coffee; but, after all, the best economy is to go without.

French coffee is so celebrated, that it may be worth while to tell how it is made; though no prudent housekeeper will make it, unless she has boarders, who are willing to pay for expensive cooking. The coffee should be roasted more than is common with us; it should not hang drying over the fire, but should be roasted quic; it should be ground soon after roasting, and used as soon as it is ground. Those who pride themselves on first-rate coffee, burn it and grind it every morning. The powder should be placed in the coffee-pot in the proportions of an ounce to less than a pint of water. The water should be poured upon the coffee boiling hot. The coffee should be kept at the boiling point; but should not boil. Coffee made in this way must be made in a biggin. It sould not be clear in a common coffee-pot.

A bit of fish-skin as big as a ninepiece, thrown into coffee while it is boiling, tends to make it clear. If you use it just as it comes from the salt-fish, it will be apt to give an unpleasant taste to the coffee: it should be washed clean as a bit of cloth, and hung up till perfectly dry. The whites of eggs, and even egg shells are good to settle coffee. Rind of salt pork is excellent. Some people think coffee is richer and clearer for having a bit of sweet butter, or a whole egg, dropped in and stirred, just before it is done roasting, and ground up, shell and all, with the coffee. But these things are not economical, except on a farm, where butter and eggs are plenty.

A half a gill of cold water, poured in after yo take your coffee-pot off the fire, will usually settle the coffee. If you have not cream for coffee, it is a very great improvement to boil your milk, and use it while hot.-—Amercian Frugal Housewife, 1830.”
-—Early American Beverages (p. 88-89)

“Acorn Coffee: Take sound a ripe acorns, peel off the shell or husk, divide the kernels, dry them gradually, and then roast them in a close vessel or roaster, keeping them continually stirring; in doing which special care must be taken that they be not burnt or roasted too much, both which would be hurtful.

Take of these roasted acorns ground like other coffee) half an ounce every other morning and evening, alone mixed with a dram of other coffee, and sweetened with sugar, or with or without milk. This receipt is recommended by a famous German physician, as a much esteemed, wholesome nourishing, strengthening nutriment for mankind; which, by its medicinal qualities, had been found to cure slimy obstructions in the viscera, and to remove nervous complaints when other medicines have failed.

Remark: Since they duty was taken off, West India coffees is so cheap that substitutes are not worth making. On the continent the roasted roots of the wild chicory, a common weed, have been used with advantaged. -—Family Receipt Book, 1819.”
-—Early American Beverages (p. 100)

Lemon Curd
Ingredients
3 eggs
2 tbsp grated lemon rind
6 tbsp lemon juice
1/8 tsp salt
3/4 cup sugar
3/8 lb butter
Preparation
Beat eggs in top part of a double boiler. Add remaining ingredients. Stir over hot water until thick. Chill.

http://www.shsu.edu/~smm_www/FunStuff/cooking/lemon_curd.shtml

Sam Houston’s recipes:

http://www.shsu.edu/~smm_www/FunStuff/cooking/

FOOD

A lot of time was spent by the pioneer in the getting, growing, and preparing foods. Once the pioneer farmer worked out the supply problems, the family ate well. With the cedar sticks and oak logs burning many good smells came from the fireplace; the boiling of hominy, the steaming of sassafras tea, the baking of cornbread, and the frying of meat.

The hearth of an early home

Each farm had a garden. First, the land was cleared. Then the crops were planted. No matter what was grown, it had a fence around it to keep out the livestock.

Common garden crops included corn, potatoes, beans, onions, squash, pumpkins, and turnips. Fruit trees took time to grow, so it took a few years to have their own apples, but other wild berries and fruits were picked. In the forest, there was meat from deer, bear, turkey, squirrel and wild pigeons. The pioneer farmer also raised chickens, hogs, sheep and cattle.

A Dutch Oven Things used to cook food in were dutch ovens, brass kettles, large and small iron pots and skillets. Jars, crocks and mugs were also needed. Early potters found clay to make dishes. The firing of the pottery was done in a huge oven of brick with a slow fire of poplar wood. This firing took twenty-four to thirty-six hours. The pioneer often ate on a trencher. This was a wooden plate made from a board. Some plates were made from a metal called pewter. Spoons and forks were made of wood1 horn or pewter.A Trencher

Baskets were made for carrying, measuring and storing food. Splits of white oak, hickory1 ash or buckeye made good baskets. Honeysuckle vine, willow cane, and cornhusks were also used. Baskets would last many years. Other containers such as pails and buckets were made of wood. All day-to-day cooking was done in the fireplace. These fireplaces were usually big enough that you could walk into them. The making of apple butter and soap making were done outdoors.

A Wooden Pail Corn was a common food of the pioneer family. It had to be shelled before it could be ground into meal. Shelling of corn was a chore for small children. It: was often done in front of the fireplace on winter nights. Corncobs were saved to help start a fire and to smoke some meats.

The most common bread was made from corn meal, salt, and water. This was known as corn pone or hoecake. Cornbread was made from corn meal, eggs and buttermilk. It was cooked in a dutch oven covered with coals.

Buttern Churn Pumpkins were one of the most useful of the vegetables. They could be kept fresh by putting them in a dry, cool place. Pumpkin was mixed with corn meal to make pumpkin bread. It could be baked whole or mashed up. Pumpkins were also fed to the animals.

Butter was made in churns. After the butter formed in the churn, it was lifted out into a wooden bowl and washed several times. A little salt was added. It was then put into pretty molds.

There was not much sugar in the pioneer’s kitchen. Honey, maple syrup and sorghum molasses were used to sweeten foods. Bees were kept in hollow pieces of the tree trunks. The bees made the honey. Maple sugar could be made by boiling down maple tree sap. Molasses was made by boiling down the liquid from mashed sorghum cane. Fresh meat was cooked by broiling, frying, boiling, and roasting. Meat was preserved by being salted, smoked or pickled. Pork or ham was the most common meat of the mountain people.

Iron Skillet Vegetables and fruits were cooked fresh or preserved by drying or pickling. Jelly could be made from wild grapes and blackberries. The entire family helped with the making of apple butter. Long hours were spent cutting up the apples. Before sunup of the big day a fire was started under a large copper kettle. The apples were added and the cooking began. All day the apples cooked over a slow fire. The apples always had to be stirred, so as not to burn them. By the end of the day, the apple butter would be done and put away in jars for the winter.

Root Cellar Drinks of the pioneers were sassafras tea, buttermilk, apple cider, fruit wines and spirits. The family liked hickory nuts and walnuts. Children gathered nuts each fall.

During the summer, the diet of the pioneer family was good. Common farm tools used to plant, grow, and pick crops were the harrow, plow, hand cradle, flail, hoe, rake and pitch fork. The diet was not as good in the winter months because foods were hard to keep. The root cellar was used to keep vegetables (potatoes, cabbage, turnips) and fruits (apples, pears, quince). Smoked meats might have hung from its ceiling. A plow, flail, and a hand cradle. The root cellar was often dug into a hillside. This helped make the room both cool and dark. Foods needing to be kept cool and dry were kept in the loft of the log house or hung from the ceiling beams. Corn, dried beans, pumpkins and apples were examples of these foods.

The springhouse was the walk-in refrigerator of the pioneer time. It was built over a mountain spring. In the summer, it became a storehouse for good things like fresh milk, butter, eggs, buttermilk, sweet cream and cheese. These foods were kept in bowls and placed In the cool spring water.
A Springhouse

Introduction || Shelter || Food || Clothing

Special Thanks and Overview by Dr. Hartley

http://www.museumsofwv.org/kids/pioneers_food.html

http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodpioneer.html#pioneercookbooks

[They took trading stock with them, or were heavy drinkers....granny]

” ‘A party recently left Joe’s store at Mormon Bar for the Valley, and a friend of the Star furnishes the following statistiics— showing the amount of “the necessaries of life” which is required for an eight day’s trip in the mountains:
8 lbs potatoes.
1 bottle whiskey.
1 bottle pepper sauce.
1 bottle whiskey.
1 box tea.
9 lbs onions.
2 bottles whiskey.
1 ham.
11 lbs crackers.
1 bottle whiskey.
1/2 doz. sardines.
2 bottles brandy, (4th proof.)
6 lbs sugar.
1 bottle brandy, (4th proof.)
1 bottle pepper.
5 gallons whiskey.
4 bottles whiskey. (old Bourbon)
1 small keg whiskey.
1 bottle of cocktails , (designed for a “starter.”)
From Hutchings’ California Magazine, 1860’”
-—ibid (p. 59)

Trail provisions & Oregon prices, c. 1852

[Time for me to clear my open links, so will list them here, so you can have fun too.....granny]

Index, may take a month to read it all, and the links in the links:

http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodfaqindex.html

19th Century Food:

http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodpioneer.html#pioneercookbooks

FAQs: ambrosia to corn bread

balloon pictureHave questions? Ask!

* ambrosia
* ants on a log
* applesauce & apple butter
* baking powder & baking soda
* brownies & blondies
* Brussels sprouts
* casseroles
* cherries jubliee
* chewing gum
* Chex mix
* chocolate & white chocolate mousse
* coconuts
* corn bread (johnnycakes, hoe cakes, hominy, grits, spoonbread, shortnin’ bread)

http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodfaq.html#1940scasserole

Food rationing, propaganda about using the ration stamps for meat, I am not against the efforts used, am interested in the choice of words to sell you on the idea............

Plus a long dead uncle got very rich on the black market, in Texas, he had been a car dealer, before the war.

I went with my father to get tires from him, the uncles warehouse was stacked floor to ceiling with big bags of sugar and tires. granny

http://www.archives.state.al.us/teacher/ww2/lesson6/doc04p1.html

This is Victory Gardens:

http://www.archives.state.al.us/teacher/ww2/lesson6/

Interesting forum, many good links for recipes on this page:

http://www.roadfood.com/Forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2168

On line to read very old cook books:

http://digital.lib.msu.edu/projects/cookbooks/html/browse.html

popular American foods 1920-1980

Party planning tips
1920s
1930s
1940s
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s
Historic food prices

Australia: 20th century foods by decade
United Kingdom: 1950s-present

http://www.foodtimeline.org/fooddecades.html#1930s

All kinds of crockpot recipes:

http://www.roadfood.com/Forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=16347

page 2:

http://www.roadfood.com/Forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=16347&whichpage=2

http://www.google.com/search?q=Squirrel-tale+Soup%21&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

http://www.google.com/search?q=potato+and+chocolate+pudding.&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a

http://www.google.com/search?q=food.historic&hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&hs=pNI&start=10&sa=N

http://www.google.com/search?q=++WARTIME+KITCHEN&btnG=Search&hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&hs=gic

Food links/info:

http://www.roadfood.com/Forums/forum.asp?FORUM_ID=22

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&q=+WW2+cookbook&btnG=Search

http://www.stretcher.com/menu/topic-d.htm#earningmoney

http://www.stretcher.com/menu/topic-g.htm#groceriesandfood

[A quick look, could be useful info, from Iran 1913, uses the most basic of foods and meat.]

http://digital.lib.msu.edu/projects/cookbooks/books/orientalcookbook/orie.html

The
ORIENTAL
COOK
BOOK

A.H. Keoleian

View page [illustration]

[Illustration: A portrait of a man in a suit presumably Mr. A.H. Keoleian.]

View page [title page]
THE ORIENTAL
COOK BOOK

WHOLESOME, DAINTY AND ECONOMICAL
DISHES OF THE ORIENT, ESPECIALLY
ADAPTED TO AMERICAN
TASTES AND METHODS OF
PREPARATION
> BY
ARDASHES H. KEOLEIAN
(FORMERLY OF CONSTANTINOPLE)
SULLY & KLEINTEICH
NEW YORK
1913

[snipped]

The Oriental Cook Book
> TABLE OF CONTENTS

PAGE

A FEW IMPORTANT NOTES......................................... 17

SOUPS.............................................................. 20

PILAFS............................................................. 41

FISH............................................................... 52

BAKED FISH......................................................... 54

BROILED FISH....................................................... 60

FRIED FISH......................................................... 64

BOILED FISH........................................................ 67

PICKLED AND SALTED FISH....................................... 73

OYSTERS............................................................ 77

LOBSTERS........................................................... 86

MACARONI........................................................... 92

BROILED MEATS...................................................... 101

ROASTS............................................................. 123

BOILED DISHES...................................................... 135

VEGETABLES—WITH MEAT......................................... 151

VEGETABLES—WITH AND WITHOUT BUTTER OR OLIVE OIL................... 179

STUFFED DISHES—WITH MEAT............................... 208

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PAGE

OTHER STUFFED DISHES—WITH OLIVE OIL............................... 213

MINCED MEAT DISHES................................................. 224

MISCELLANEOUS...................................................... 233

SAUCES............................................................. 244

EGGS............................................................... 257

SALADS............................................................. 266

PICKLES............................................................ 276

PASTRY............................................................. 284

FRUITS AND {CREAMS}................................................ 304

PRESERVES.......................................................... 312

DESSERTS........................................................... 319

EXTRAS............................................................. 326

ORDER OF SERVICE................................................... 333

MENUS.............................................................. 334

LIST OF SPECIAL ORIENTAL INGREDIENTS............................... 344

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> THE ORIENTAL COOK BOOK
> A Few Important Notes

In the preparation of Oriental dishes, stock or broth is used extensively instead of plain water. This practice, however, does not involve any special effort or expense because the materials used for this purpose are trimmings of meat or poultry bones, and the like, not fat, nor any other foreign substances, except uncooked vegetables.

The making of stock is very simple, as it only consists in boiling the above mentioned materials in plain water. It is unnecessary to say that before using this broth for any purpose it should be strained through a fine metal sieve.

THE KINDS OF MEAT USED: In Oriental cookery lamb is the principal meat used, with which most of the Kebabs, the Basdis and the Dolmas are very delicately made. Still, good beef, veal and mutton often serve the purpose. However, it is better that the question of the meat should be

View page [18]
left entirely to the judgment and liking of those for whom the food is prepared.

PREPARATION OF DRESSINGS, ETC.: There are certain Dressings—Terbieh—which are exclusively Oriental. These Dressings consist of the following ingredients and are used with:

1.—Certain Boiled Dishes, Soups, Etc.Dressing is made with the juice of lemon and beaten egg (the preparation of either or both can be increased according to taste and requirement), and is used by pouring the combination of both over the whole food, after blending the mixture with a little portion of the boiled cooking.

2.—Certain Soups, Etc. Dressing is made with overheated butter and chopped dry onion or crumbs of bread, with pepper shaken over. This mixture, after good frying, is poured into the food and stirred.

3.—Boiled Head and Shin of Lamb, Mutton, Veal and Beef. Dressing is made with the juice of garlic, vinegar and beaten eggs, and is used by pouring over the whole food, after blending the mixture with a little portion of the cooking.

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4.—Certain Boiled Dry Beans, Broiled Fish, Broiled Meat, Etc. Piaz, a mixture of finely cut dry onions (or green onions in season) crushed with salt, then washed, and then mixed with finely cut parsley, is used as garnishing.

5.—Meats, Fishes, Oysters, Etc., also with Salads. Mayonnaise is made of very finely cut and pressed parsley, olive oil, the juice of a lemon and the yolk of egg, also salt and pepper, all well mixed.

6.—Pastry and Deserts. Sugar syrup is used on most of Oriental pastry and deserts, and is made of sugar simmered in plain water and moderately thickened.

contined.