Category Archives: History

American home recipes

Fruit Fit for a President

In the days before air freight, I impatiently waited for summer fruit season. First, green grapes, followed by berries, cherries, peaches, and melons. Most of the time, I simply ate the fruit plain, or enhanced it with a bit of … Continue reading

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Cornbread with Colonial Roots

There must be as many recipes for cornbread as there are cooks who have made it. The common ingredient is corn meal, but the shortening, the sweetener, and the type of corn meal itself varies from region to region, and … Continue reading

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A Sunny Dessert for Dreary Days

By this time of the year, I need something sunny-looking on my table because there’s no escaping the snow and day after day of below-freezing temperatures. Enter apricot pudding, a recipe I adapted from The New Thought in Cooking by … Continue reading

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Gingerbread Fit for a President

Inaugural ceremonies of the past week inspired me to read more about the inauguration of George Washington, America’s first President, in 1789. It took place at Federal Hall in New York City, as the U.S. Capitol and the White House … Continue reading

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Recreating a Tearoom Treat

Through the mid to late 20th century, department store tearooms gave shoppers a place to relax and regroup. Originally a clever marketing ploy to keep customers in the store, the tearooms became a beloved part of the community. Many were … Continue reading

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Cucumber Soup: A Summer Soother

As our garden yields a profusion of cucumbers, slices in salads quickly become monotonous. I’ve tried cutting spears for vegetable dips, tossing cubes into smoothies, and making batches of blender gazpacho. Too bad I don’t like pickles! Americans have grown … Continue reading

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Vodka with Old-World Elegance

In between a one-two-three punch of snowstorms, I pulled out The Russian Tea Room: A Tasting (Clarkson Potter, 1993), a book of recipes and reminiscences from then-owner, Faith Stewart-Gordon. I never went to the Manhattan restaurant but its tea (and … Continue reading

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Here We Come for Cider Wassail

Who remembers the English folk song that starts, “Here we come a-wassailing among the leaves so green”? That’s what I hummed when I saw the recipe for Cider Wassail in The Blue Ridge Cookbook.

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Gardening in a Time of War

You won’t find too many sumptuous meals in Richmond, the capital of the Confederacy in the Civil War. You will find two women gardening to supplement their meager larder in Secrets in a House Divided, the historical  novel I just … Continue reading

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Egg Nog in August: Pieathlon Time!

These dog days of August make frozen custard more inviting than a pie with a custard filling, but I couldn’t resist the call from Yinzerella of Dinner is Served 1972 for competitors in the 5th annual Pieathlon.

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