Blog - Vintage Recipes and Cookery

Sweetbreads Are Meat (Offal), Not Breads

Angela Johnson Comments 9 comments

I had never heard of sweetbreads until I began reading old cookbooks. Sweetbreads are what the thymus gland or pancreas of a calf or lamb are called. Offal or organ meats are the parts of the animal that are not muscle. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS TO PREPARE SWEETBREADSThe sweetbread belonging to the breast of the calf is far superior to that which is found about the throat, being larger, whiter, more tender, and more delicate. Always buy them in…

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The Icebox (Non-Electric Refrigerator)

Angela Johnson Comments 2 comments

To keep food cold In the 1800s, wooden boxes lined with tin or zinc and insulated with various materials. These boxes were called “refrigerators” until the modern electric refrigerator was developed. Then they were referred to as “iceboxes.” In 1915, the electric household refrigerator was introduced in the US, but it wasn’t until the 1920s that the market began to grow. This was due to a new refrigerant, Freon, which made them more reliable. By the 1930s, the average American…

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Tomato Recipes – Pie, Stuffed, Croquettes, Preserved…..

Angela Johnson Comments 2 comments

Back in the 1800s, tomatoes were a seasonal food since there was no refrigeration. People could only have tomatoes out of season by canning, drying, or making them into preserves. I rarely buy canned soups, but I make my own tomato soup when fresh tomatoes are available at farmer’s markets. The recipe for tomato croquettes sounds interesting, too. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS: TOMATOES Tomatoes are a fruit vegetable that may be either cooked or prepared raw. While tomatoes appeal…

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Pickled Tomatoes, Chutney, Mince, Catsup & more

Angela Johnson Comments 4 comments

In the 1800s, people could only eat food in season unless they preserved it. Around 1860, home canning become popular because a tin smith, John L. Mason invented a glass jar with a threaded lip and a reusable metal lid: the Mason Jar. This new canning jar allowed people to safely can fruit, pickles, relishes, and sauces like ketchup. However, canning low-acid vegetables and meat was still too dangerous. SOURCE INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS PICKLING TOMATOES Scald* and peel a…

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How to Cook a Pig’s Head, with Recipes

Angela Johnson Comments 3 comments

A pig’s head can by baked, roasted, boiled, and stewed. It can be served whole or halved, or made into head cheese, souse, or other recipes. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS BAKED PIG’S HEAD Split the pig’s head into halves and sprinkle them with pepper and salt. Lay them with the rind part uppermost upon a bed of sliced onions in a baking dish. Next, bruise eight ounces of stale bread crumb and mix it with four ounces of chopped…

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Peanut Recipes / Soups, Croquettes, Macaroons, and more

Angela Johnson Comments 7 comments

Peanuts are the cheapest nuts to buy, for the reason that they are not really nuts but legumes. Peanuts contain a good deal of oil, and for this reason are recommended for consumptives. The peanut is also recommended as a cure for indigestion. Almost any kind of nut will cure the habitual indigestion induced by “bolting” the food, if only it be chewed until it is liquid. INFORMATION FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS TO BLANCH PEANUTS To blanch Spanish peanuts the usual…

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Delicious Ways to Cook Asparagus

Angela Johnson Comments 6 comments

“All persons that have a garden should have an asparagus-bed; it is valuable as being one of the first vegetables in the spring. Asparagus from hot houses and the South begins to come into the market in March and April. It is then costly, but in May and June is abundant and quite cheap. About the last of June it grows poor, and no matter how low the price, it will be an expensive article to buy as it has…

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How to Cook Tripe (Cow Stomach)

Angela Johnson Comments 2 comments

Tripe is an edible offal (entrails and internal organs). Some grazing animals like cows, buffalo and sheep have multiple stomach chambers to properly digest their food. These stomach linings are called tripe. Most tripe sold in United States grocery stores is from cows. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS TO PREPARE TRIPE Empty the contents of the stomach of a fat beef. Scrape and wash the tripe thoroughly. Put it in cold water and salt and soak for ten days. Don’t…

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