Posted on Thursday, August 28, 2014 7:12 PM
HOMEMADE PUMPKIN PIE
Cut pumpkin into several pieces; do not pare it;
place them on baking tins and set them in the oven; bake slowly until soft, then
take them out, scrape all the pumpkin from the shell, and rub it through a colander.
It will be fine and light and free from lumps.
For three
pies: •
1 quart milk •
3 cups stewed and
strained pumpkin •
1½ cups of sugar •
½ cup molasses •
the yolks and
whites of four eggs beaten separately •
pinch salt •
1 tablespoonful
each of ginger and cinnamon.
Beat all together
and bake with an under crust.
Boston marrow
or Hubbard squash may be substituted for pumpkin and are much preferred by many,
as possessing a less strong flavor. They are both orange, and have the same kinds of center seeds. What's the difference? Well, a Hubbard squash has very buttery flesh, while some pumpkins can be stringy and watery. Technically they are both squashes, so think of them this way. A pumpkin is usually flat, while the Hubbard is tall and slightly crooked.
 You'd never mistake this for a pumpkin, but you'll like it in a pie!
And now that we have finished off another section of Nellie's cookbook, I'm going to let it rest for a few days before taking on the influence of South Carolina and Gullah cookery.
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Posted on Wednesday, August 27, 2014 7:13 PM
SALT COD
DINNER  Buy a pound
piece of salt fish for 3 or 4 servings. Cover fish with cold water and bring to
a simmer on lowest burner on stove. If water tastes very salty pour off
and start over again. Never boil, just simmer until tender. While cod is cooking,
try out bits of salt pork and drain 2 tablespoons fat from pork and add 2
heaping tablespoons flour. Blend well and use to thicken 2 cups hot milk for
cream sauce. Serve the cod on your prettiest platter. Cover with cream sauce and
sprinkle with . Surround with new boiled potatoes and you can really
taste New England!
PICKLED HERRING •
1 or 2 herrings
(fresh)  •
Onions, sliced or
chopped •
2 teaspoons mixed
pickling spices (generous) •
generous ½ cup
sugar •
Add white vinegar
to make 2 cups total of sugar and vinegar.
Soak herrings overnight in cold water in cool
place. Fillet fish by removing small bones and skin. Rinse and drain. Cut fillets
into thin slices. Place in layers with onion and spices. Mix vinegar and sugar
and pour over. (This should cover fish pieces.) Remove red peppers from spices. Fish will be completely pickled in
about 2 weeks. Place in refrigerator for storing.
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Posted on Tuesday, August 26, 2014 2:48 PM
NEW ENGLAND BOILED DINNER
If making boiled dinner with corned beef, just use it as
is and don't add any more seasoning or salt. If the broth ends up being too
salty, you can serve just the meat and vegetables, without the broth, or add
water to the broth to dilute it.
 •
3 ½ pounds corned
beef brisket or plain beef brisket •
15 peppercorn •
8 whole cloves •
1 bay leaf •
Salt, if using
plain brisket •
2 medium sized
turnips, peeled and quartered •
4 red new
potatoes, peeled and quartered •
3 large carrots,
cut into thirds and the thickest pieces quartered lengthwise •
1 small head
cabbage, cut into fourths
Put the brisket in Dutch oven and cover with an inch of
water. Add peppercorns, cloves, and a bay leaf to the pot. If using plain
brisket, add a teaspoon of salt for every quart of water. Bring to a simmer and
then cover, lowering the heat until it is barely simmering. Keep at a low simmer
for four hours or until the meat is tender (a fork goes through easily).
Remove the
meat and set aside, keeping the meat warm. Add the vegetables to the pot. Check
the broth for taste. If it is too salty, add a little more water to taste. Cook
at a high simmer until done, about 15-30 minutes longer, depending on the size of
the cut of your vegetables.
Slice the meat in thin slices. Serve
in bowls, a few pieces of meat in each, add some of the vegetables and
some broth.
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Posted on Monday, August 25, 2014 5:05 PM
Welcome to a new week, I hope. I'm finished with Jury Duty, but it wasn't finished with me. Now I'm fighting a stomach bug that I must have picked up in the crowded, dank, teeming, seething halls of justice. I haven't wanted to think about food, lately, but here are a couple of innocuous bread recipes that helped the Yankee armies survive. Maybe they would be good for me, too.
In the Army, flour was always scarce, so bread became a rare treat. Instead the camp cooks tried one of these New England substitutes.
NEW ENGLAND CORN CAKE •
1 quart milk •
1 pint corn meal •
1 cup wheat flour •
1 teaspoon salt •
2 tablespoons
melted butter •
2 eggs, well
beaten •
½ teaspoon soda,
dissolved in spoonful of water •
½ cup yeast
Scald milk
and gradually pour it on the meal. When cool, add butter and salt and yeast. Do
this at night. In the morning beat the eggs and mix with soda water. Pour batter
into cooking vessel and bake from 20-30 minutes.
BOSTON BROWN
BREAD •
One cup of sweet
milk •
One cup of sour
milk •
One cup of corn
meal •
One cup of flour •
Teaspoon of soda •
Molasses one cup
Steam for three hours in an old coffee can. (The original recipe called for washing the can first. That's probably a good idea!)
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Posted on Friday, August 22, 2014 2:49 PM
This tough old duck is happy to announce that I have successfully completed my jury duty responsibility for the next ten years. By the time the trial was over, I felt as if I, too, had been chopped up as if being prepared for fricassee. But like the old duck in the following recipe, a little spice, a little sugar, and a long period of being tended to will improve my mood.
STEWED DUCK
This is a good way to treat an old
and tough fowl.
•
1 old duck •
Minced ham or salt
pork •
1 large onion,
chopped •
Sage •
Parsley •
1 tablespoon catsup
(type not specified) •
Black pepper •
1 teaspoon brown
sugar •
1 tablespoon
browned flour
Clean and divide, as you would a
chicken for fricassee.
Put into a
saucepan, with several (minced) slices of cold ham or salt pork which is not
too fat, and stew slowly for at least an hour--keeping the lid on all the
while.
Stew another half-hour, or until the duck is tender, and add a
teaspoon of brown sugar, and a tablespoon of browned flour, previously wet with
cold water. Boil up once, and serve in a deep covered dish, with green peas and prunes as
an accompaniment.
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