Category Archives: history

Historic American recipes

Texas Enchiladas That Fed a ‘Giant’

When the cast and crew of the movie Giant came to Marfa, Texas in 1955, they traded Los Angeles glitz for an arid, desolate landscape. “[Marfa] is located somewhere south and west of El Paso in a region of the … Continue reading

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‘Something a Little Exotic’ to Grill

Americans have long celebrated July 4 with picnics but they didn’t always grill hamburgers and hot dogs. The Food Timeline reports that at various times in history, Americans served whole, broiled hogs; cold meats; salmon with new potatoes and green peas; and “temperance” … Continue reading

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A Cocktail From the 50th State

Hawaii, coveted for its sugar plantations and its strategic location in the Pacific, didn’t become the 50th of the United States until 1959. Just six years later, history does not creep into Vincent and Mary Price’s A Treasury of Great … Continue reading

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Cucumber Soup from a ‘Culinary Landmark’

When I participated in the Vincent Price Treasury Cookalong with Silver Screen Suppers and many other bloggers in the fall, I had yet to pick up a copy of the 50th Edition of the Treasury of Great Recipes that Vincent … Continue reading

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‘Shake Until Frost Forms’

In the 19th century, British sailors used to mix their rations of lime juice (to prevent scurvy) with rum, creating the gimlet and other gin-lime cocktails. This Cool o’ the Evening cocktail from the Charleston Receipts (The Junior League of … Continue reading

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Hurry Up Curry: Convenience from the 1930s

In this age of microwave dinners and mail order meal kits, we all seem intent on erasing every extra second from food preparation. My Richmond grandmother, Hanna, was attracted to the same idea in the 1930s.

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Peach Cake Rushes the Season

A week of gloomy weather in Boston means it’s time for a sunny recipe. This peach-almond kuchen does double duty for Mother’s Day

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Baseball Cocktail with Global Appeal

The Boston Red Sox just returned to Fenway Park for the 2016 season with concession stands awash in expensive beer. It’s easier, though certainly less rowdy, to watch a game from the living room couch nursing a Cooperstown Cocktail. I discovered … Continue reading

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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. 

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For Washington’s Birthday: Easy Cherry Sherbet from the 1930s

The 1930s – the era that brought us the Great Depression as well as an end to Prohibition – also brought us some of our most enduring kitchen convenience products, such as Miracle Whip and Bisquick. This was also the … Continue reading

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