August 22, 2011

Perch, brook trout, catfish, and all small fish are best fried. They should be cleaned, washed well in cold water and immediately wiped dry inside and out with a clean towel, and then sprinkled with salt. Use oil if convenient, as it is better than drippings or lard. Never use butter as it is apt to burn. See that the oil or lard is boiling hot before putting in the fish.

–Mrs. Charles H. Gibson’s Maryland and Virginia Cook Book. Baltimore: John Murphy & Company, 1894.

July 3, 2011

March 26, 2011

“As the name would indicate this punch is dear to the hearts as well as the palates of the southern people and is used always to entertain distinguished guests. All the presidents and distinguished potentates have drunk deep of this delicious concoction. In spite of a declaration of a distinguished southerner,that one glass of this punch would make you climb the nearest lamp post, two glasses will make unable to reach the lamp post, the third, alas! will make you fight yourself.

One and a half gals. (6 qts.) Jamaican rum, 8 qts. Apollinaris, 2 lbs. sugar, 1 jar or can of maraschino cherries, 1 and 1/2 dozen lemons, 1 can sliced pineapple,1 small tumbler raspberry cordial. Reserve 3 qts. of apollinaris; just before serving add, to produce an effervescent effect. It is best to place a bowl of punch on a block of ice for some times before serving, instead of in the punch. Then look out for the nearest lamp post!”

—Jacquieine Harrison Smith and Sue Mason Maury Halsey, Famous Old Receipts Used A Hundred Years and More in the Kitchens of the North and the South, Contributed by Descendants. Philadelphia: John C. Winston and Co., 1906.

August 17, 2010

So called because made of stale bread, which would be a loss
Six thick slices of stale bread, soaked in sugared milk,
flavored with vanilla ; drain and dip in beaten egg, fry in hot
lard, browning on both sides ; sprinkle with powdered sugar
and serve hot.

Mrs. Franklin L. Morgan.

—Echoes Of Southern Kitchens, Compiled and Published by the Robert E. Lee Chapter, United Daughters of the Confederacy No. 278, Los Angeles, 1916

May 30, 2010

Make a rich lemonade, using two lemons to one pint water.
Rub some of the rind with loaf sugar, so as to extract the oil,
say about four lemons to a gallon. Take the whites of eight
eggs beat to an icing, adding pulverized sugar; about two
pounds sugar to a gallon, including the icing, is about the
quantity, but it depends upon the size of the lemons and the
amount of juice they have. A quarter of an ounce of Cox’s
gelatine [sic] dissolved and added is a great improvement.
–Mrs. Charles H. Gibson’s Maryland and Virginia Cook Book. Baltimore: John Murphy & Company, 1894.

February 17, 2010

Beaten Biscuits

To one quart of flour add one teaspoonful salt, one pinch soda, sift these alltogether, then mix in one tablespoon of lard, which has previously been on ice. (It must be cold and stiff.) Moisten all with half a pint of milk, which also has been on ice and in which two tablespoonfuls of crushed ice is put. Mix all well together, beat or work in machine until light, and bake in a moderate oven. A hot oven blisters them.
—Laura Thornton Knowles, Southern Recipes Tested by Myself. New York: George H. Doran, 1913.

October 22, 2009

Stew apples and strain them: whip the whites of 3 or 4 eggs: add to them pulverized sugar; to this slowly whisk in the apples. Eat with cake.
— Mrs. William S. Donnan, ,A Collection of Virginia Recipes. Richmond, VA: Whittet & Shepperson, 1891.

October 9, 2009

Clean thoroughly and scrape it. Put it into a stove-pan with sufficient cold water, a pod of red pepper and salt. Baste frequently to make it crisp. Cook well done. Serve cold.
—Church of the Epiphany (Danville, Va.). Key to the Pantry: Choice, Tried Recipes. Danville, Va: Boatwright Bros, 1898.

August 22, 2009

Tipsy Parson is an English dessert that was a staple in the Nineteenth Century South.  It is made by soaking sponge or pound cake in brandy or wine and topping it with a custard pudding.

“Soak a whole sponge-cake (or any pieces of dry cake will answer) in some sherry; when saturated with the wine, pour over it a rich boiled custard flavored with what you like and stick blanched almonds thick all over the top.”
—Mrs. Clement Carrington McPhail, F. F. V. Receipt Book. Richmond, Va.: West, Johnston & Co., 1894.
(FFV is the First Families of Virginia, a genealogical and historical group made up of descendants of Virginia’s original colonists).

March 23, 2009

“Cover the berries with cold water and let boil a few
minutes until done. Then strain, and to every pint of juice
add one pound of granulated sugar. Put back on the fire.
Tie up a little cinnamon, allspice and cloves in a thin muslin
bag, and let boil with the juice until the latter is a pretty
thick syrup, then take off, and when it is thoroughly cold
add one-third as much good brandy or whisky as you have
syrup. It is not necessary to seal it.”

—Echoes Of Southern Kitchens, Compiled and Published by the Robert E. Lee Chapter, United Daughters of the Confederacy No. 278, Los Angeles, 1916

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