Category Archives: cookbooks
A Pale Green Spring Cocktail
Boston’s first day of spring started with snowstorm, but the white stuff soon melted and the daffodils perked up again. In this blustery, changeable season, I crave a palate cleanser. Enter the Snap, a drink I found in The Bartender’s Guide … Continue reading
Cornbread for a Harsh Climate
In the early 1600s, the first English settlers in Massachusetts saw a “wilderness,” yet the Native Americans saw a “rich landscape” that included corn, fruits, game, and dozens of varieties of fish, The Pleasure of the Taste cookbook tells us.
A Southern Cocktail for a Snowy Week
One snowstorm down, two more to go this week (forget the Groundhog Day prediction for an early spring). For a diversion, I pulled out Charleston Receipts (Junior League of Charleston, 1950) from my shelf full of Southern cookbooks. The “Simons’ Special” looked … Continue reading
Stewed Groundhog: ‘The Cleanest Meat One Can Find’
Given this year’s warm winter in New England (so far, so good), I expect that Punxsutawney Phil will predict an early spring on Groundhog Day. The American version of the holiday, celebrated February 2, is 130 years old. In the … Continue reading
‘Tossed Salad Superb’ for a Healthy Start
Pre-washed greens make for the simplest salad possible: open the plastic container, put the leaves in a bowl, and add dressing. In the middle of winter, when the only produce on the shelves comes from greenhouses or countries on the … Continue reading
Christmas Welcoming Bread
Take ordinary baking powder biscuits, top them with a sugary fruit and nut mix, and suddenly they transform into Christmas bread. That’s what the Michie Tavern in Charlottesville, Virginia served in the 1700’s,
More Joys of Jell-O
Take the ingredients of a typical Christmas dessert (dried fruits, citron, nuts, cinnamon), mix them with Jell-O and what do you get? Jell-O Plum Pudding, of course!
Fruits that Sink, Fruits that Float
Jell-O for the holidays? In the 1930s, festive molds competed with cookies on many holiday buffets.
‘Vodka Bog’ a Sweet Slog
Cranberries star in sauce on most Thanksgiving tables, but there’s no reason to stop there. This “Vodka Bog” punch from More Thoughts for Buffets (Institute Publishing) gets its kick and distinctive rosy hue from cranberry juice as well as cranberry liqueur.
A Cider Cake Fit For a Governor
In 1850s America, anyone who wrote down recipes often measured in wine glasses and handfuls, if they measured at all. That’s true in a handwritten book kept by Sara Adelia Boutwell,
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