Blog - Vintage Recipes and Cookery

Making Boiled Fruit Dumplings

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I usually think of dumplings as an addition to soup, but fruit dumplings make a delicious dessert. Although dumplings can be baked (usually apple dumplings), these recipes are for boiled dumplings. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS ORANGE DUMPLINGSMix two cups prepared flour, two eggs, two teaspoons butter, one tablespoon sugar and one cup water into a thick batter. Pare three nice oranges and cut them into small pieces. Remove the pits and all the skin, so that there is nothing…

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The Value of Soup and its Place in the Meal

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Making homemade soup isn’t hard today with the convenience of a Crock Pot, Instant Pot, or other modern cooking device. But there was no electricity in homes during the 1800s, so it was a little more complicated. Once you accomplished the skill of knowing how to regulate the heat in your wood-burning stove, you could use a huge pot to simmer soup for hours, letting the ingredients all meld together for a wonderful appetizer or first course. INFORMATION BELOW FROM…

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Keeping Fruit Fresh Through the Winter

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Home refrigerators that held a block of ice were available in the 1800s, but they were small and didn’t hold much food. Electric refrigerators were introduced around 1913, but were quite expensive and only the rich owned one. They became a little more common in the 1920s, with more being sold in the 1930s, but even then, not everyone had one. My grandparents lived on a small farm in Illinois and didn’t even get electricity until 1950. So until electric…

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Cottolene – First Vegetable Shortening Alternative to Lard

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Cottolene was the first mass-produced alternative to lard, made with cottonseed oil and beef suet. It was launched in 1868 by the N.K. Fairbank Company and advertised as a vegetable shortening more pure and wholesome than lard. Although cotton isn’t a vegetable, the FDA defines any oil sourced from plants—regardless of whether it comes from a fruit, nut, seed, or vegetable as a “vegetable oil.” Cottolene looked like lard and came packaged in pails, just like lard. It was aggressively promoted…

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How to Make Crackers

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When I was young, the only crackers my mother bought were saltines and occasionall graham crackers (for a treat). Today there is usually a whole aisle in stores devoted entirely to crackers. During most of the 1800s, people made their own crackers. They may have flavored them, but recipes in cookbooks didn’t mention it. In the latter part of the 1800s and early 1900s, crackers were sold in country stores. They were shipped in barrels to prevent them from breaking….

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Syllabub for Festive Occasions

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Syllabub is a creamy, sweet dessert, originally from England. It’s made with cream, sugar, citrus juice, usually wine, or some other liquor. Syllabub was popular in the United States during the 18th and early 19th centuries, especially at festive occasions and social gatherings. It sounds deliciious and would be fun to try and make. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS SYLLABUBTake one quart of rich milk or cream, one cup wine, and one-half cup sugar. Put the sugar and wine into a…

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Young green leaves of sorrel on craft paper. Useful vegetable culture and medicinal plant Rumex acetosa, rich in vitamins and minerals. Close-up.

Ways to Use Common Garden Sorrel

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Common garden sorrel has a tart, lemon flavor and was popular in the 1800s. The larger leaves were used for soups and sauces and the young leaves for salads. I haven’t been able to find out why people quit using it, but it now seems to be making a comeback. You probably won’t find sorrel in a grocery store because it doesn’t ship or store well, even when refrigerated. It doesn’t tolerate heat well, so try growing it as a…

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Making Sweet Treats With Molasses

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Molasses is a thick, sticky liquid sweetener made from refining sugarcane or sometimes sugar beets. I’ve always loved the taste of molasses. When I was a child, my mother would sometimes let me eat a spoonful of it from a jar (we didn’t get many sweets). Of course, I like it in baked beans and molasses cookies, too. There are different types of molasses depending on the amount of time it’s refined. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS: MOLASSES CANDY Boil…

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