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Category: Vegetables

Variety of fresh garden vegetables
Ways to Preserve Vegetables for the Winter

Ways to Preserve Vegetables for the Winter

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During most of the 1800s, people ate fresh garden produce seasonally. People didn’t begin home canning until the invention of the Mason jar in 1858 and it took a while for canning to become popular. So they needed to preserve their produce to have during the winter months, and making sure it was as fresh tasting as possible. No one wanted mushy or rotten vegetables because they weren’t stored properly. RECIPES BELOW COMPILED FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS PROPER PLACE FOR PRESERVING…

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Potato pumpkin fritters
Recipes for Savory Fritters

Recipes for Savory Fritters

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The terms fritter and croquette are often used interchangeably, but there are differences. A fritter has a runny batter or dough that is dropped into hot fat and fried. A croquette has a thicker batter, often breaded, and is shaped into balls, patties, or logs before frying.  RECIPES BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS Fritters are served for luncheon, dinner or supper, as an entree, a vegetable or a sweet, according to the ingredients used. The foundation batter is much the same…

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fresh beetroot
Interesting Beet (Beetroot) Recipes

Interesting Beet (Beetroot) Recipes

Beets (also called beetroots) were an important root crop in the 1800s.  They kept well during the winter, were nutritious, and provided color to a meal. Beet tops (greens) and stalks were also cooked, but only when fresh. I had only eaten canned pickled beets until recently.  A friend baked some beets that were drizzled with olive oil and I liked them. The beet recipes below also sound interesting, especially the Beetroot Fritters. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS SELECTING BEETS…

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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

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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Cabbages on table
Cabbage Recipes – Pudding, Sour, Hash, Stuffed …

Cabbage Recipes – Pudding, Sour, Hash, Stuffed …

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FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS ~ Cabbage is a succulent vegetable with a high flavor. In fact, its flavor is so strong that in many cases it disagrees with persons.  When cabbage is cooked, the cover should be removed from the kettle. This plan permits the evaporation of much of the strong flavor which arises in the steam, which would otherwise be reabsorbed by the cabbage. It is the retention of this flavor, together with long cooking, that causes this vegetable to…

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Green spinach soup
Spinach Recipes – Spinach Balls, Cream, Fried, Dumplings….

Spinach Recipes – Spinach Balls, Cream, Fried, Dumplings….

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INFORMATION FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS “Spinach requires close examination and picking, as insects are frequently found among it and it is often gritty. Nothing is worse than spinach when gritty, so likewise there is nothing more troublesome to get quite clean, from its growing so near the earth. Spinach should be picked a leaf at a time, and washed in three or four waters. Then drain it and put it in boiling water. Fifteen to twenty minutes is generally sufficient time…

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fresh, raw cucumbers
Cooked Cucumber Recipes

Cooked Cucumber Recipes

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In reading through 1800s cookbooks, I was amazed to see recipes for fried, boiled, stewed, and stuffed cucumbers, as well as cucumber catsup and vinegar, and soup. I’ve only eaten cucumbers raw, but these recipes sound interesting. INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS CUCUMBERS AND THEIR PREPARATION In food value, cucumbers are very low, comparing closely with celery in this respect. However, as they contain a large amount of cellulose, or bulk, and mineral salts, they should not be disregarded in…

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Fresh Jerusalem artichokes on wooden background
Jerusalem Artichokes Were a Popular Vegetable

Jerusalem Artichokes Were a Popular Vegetable

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Have you ever tasted a Jerusalem artichoke? It is a root vegetable and sometimes called sunroot, sunchoke, or earth apple. It’s related to the sunflower and native to central North America. The name ‘Jerusalem’ is derived from the Italian word for sunflower, ‘girasole’. Jerusalem artichokes have very thin skins and bruise easily. This is why you won’t find them in grocery stores. I often go to Farmers Markets and have never seen any there, either. Maybe I haven’t have been in…

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