Posted by: hearttohearthcookery | August 20, 2010

Too Stew Eels

Too Stew Eals

For those of you who know me, my standing holding an eel is a courageous feat!  I have had a phobia about eels since childhood.  I am fascinated by the mysteries of the eel and find them a most interesting  fish-from a distance!  In this picture, I am focusing on the eel bones as they seem not to be found in the faunal remains studied by zooarchaeologists.  With this eel, I prepared Guliema Penn’s receipt-Too Stew Eals as at the sunn in fish Street London.  The eel was cleaned and skinned (not an easy job) and cut into peces.  The pieces were placed in a kettle with as much wine as will cover them and a quarter of a pint of vinegar was added.  Onions, parsley and sorrel were chopped together and added to the kettle with some anchovies and a Rase of ginger.  When done, the appearance was as if tiny salmon steaks were floating in the wine-vinegar and the bones were so soft to be easily consumed.

Visit my website at www.hearttohearthcookery.com

 

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Posted by: hearttohearthcookery | August 16, 2010

Too Stew Larks

Too Stew Larks

 Just look closely in the “Chafing dish” and you will see the birds.  I am taking Corants and putting them “to the broath”  Yes, I can spell but I am quoting Gulielma Penn from her receipt book transcribed by Edward Blackfan for William Penn Jr. in 1702.  William Jr arrived in Pennsylvania in December 1703 with his Mother’s receipts.  The only other ingredients that will be added are marrow and “Croms of manchets” (bread of the whitest wheat flour).   The final product below will be served on “tostes” (think toast or sippets).  Visit my website at www.hearttohearthcookery.com.

Birds with Croms, marrow and Corants

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Posted by: hearttohearthcookery | August 12, 2010

Anana or Pine Apple Cream Ices

Preparing Pine Apple Cream Ice

August 7, 2010 I was the guest of the Simsbury Historical Society for a day of ice cream.  Two different ice creams were prepared, Raspberry and Pine Apple,  with the assistance of the visitors.  I am pictured left squeezing the goodness of the pineapple after it has been processed in a marble mortar and pestle.  That juice was added to the fresh cream with sugar and prepared into a cream ice with my pewter sabotiere.  Visit my website at www.hearttohearthcookery.com.

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Posted by: hearttohearthcookery | August 5, 2010

Back to my “Roots”- Beets

To fry Beets 1723

It has been awhile since I posted another receipt from my “Roots” workshop in June.  It is time to get back to my “Roots” and post the third 18th century receipt-To fry Beets.  This receipt comes from John Nott’s Cook’s Dictionary and is a wonderful receipt for demonstrations and superb in flavor.  The beets are first baked in an oven and peeled, then sliced “long ways and about half an Inch thick”.  A batter is prepared with White-wine, flour, cream, more yolks than whites of eggs; and seasoned with salt, pepper and cloves.  The sliced beets “lie in the Batter a littel while” and then covered with a mixture of bread crumbs, shredded parsley and flour.  The beets are then fried as you see pictured above and then hide them if you want any left as they will be eaten as soon as you make them:)!  They are delicious!    Visit my website at www.hearttohearthcookery.com

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Posted in 18th century foodways, culinary history, food history, Hearth cooking classes, hearth cooking demonstrations | Tags: , , ,

Posted by: hearttohearthcookery | August 1, 2010

Salt-“every attempt should be made to save it”

Salt-"every attempt should be made to save it

Last evening I had the honor to speak at the Brandywine Creek State Park Nature Center on one of my favorite topics SALT!  The State Park is gearing up for their American Revolution re-enactment September 25 and 26th, 2010.  To provide interest and background for the re-enactment, I spoke on the importance and need for salt in the 18th century , its use in military strategy, and the American saltworks in the middle colonies that were started and defended strongly.  In George Washington’s words- every attempt should be made to save it” (salt)  If one worked at the saltworks, it was worth a deferrment from the militia!  I hope my presentation was “worth its weight in salt”!       Visit my website- www.hearttohearthcookery.com

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Posted by: hearttohearthcookery | July 27, 2010

To Pickle Reddish Pods

Radish Pods to Pickle

 Look very closely at the pods in the redware bowl as they are not green beans but the seed pods of the radish.  Hannah Glasse in her 1747 reciept book refers to them as Reddish Pods and she has a receipt to pickle them.  Thursday will be the 10th day that the pods have been weighted down in  a “strong pickle” made with enough “bay salt” in water to “bear an Egg”. (And the egg did float!)   The next step will be to “drain them in a sieve” and “lay them on a Cloth to dry”.  White wine vinegar will be boiled “with Ginger, Mace, Cloves, and Jamica Pepper” (all spice) and cover the pods in an earthen ware jar.  The finished product is very good and I used to bring them to re-enactments where they were well received.

Visit me website at www.hearttohearthcookery.com

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Posted by: hearttohearthcookery | July 24, 2010

Hickory Nut Milk

Hickory "nut milk"

Today I reproduced what John Heckewelder (1742-1823), a Moravian missionary in Pennsylvania, described the Indians preparing.  They pound the nuts in a block or mortar, pouring a little warm water on them, and gradually a little more as they become dry,until, at last, there is sufficient quantity of water , so that by stirring up the nuts, the broken shells separate from the liquor, which from the pounded kernels assumes the appearance of milk.  This being put into the kettle and mixed with the pottage gives it a rich and agreeable flavour…  Peter Kalm , a Swedish botanist also describes witnessing this process of preparing hickory nut milk in 1749.  In the picture, the hickory nuts are in my elm bark basket.  The stone mortar and pestle was used to crack and pound the nuts and then the “nut milk” was finished in my small trade kettle.  This “nut milk” would then be added to my trade kettle with the hominy corn, beans, squash, and dried venison.

Visit my website at www.hearttohearthcookery.com and click on the Pennsylvania Humanities Council Presentations button to find out information about a free Lenape Foodways presentation.

 

 

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Posted by: hearttohearthcookery | July 22, 2010

Of pickling Purslane

Pickling Purslane

Pickling Purslane

This past weekend I used Gervase Markham’s receipt Of preserving sallats to pickle the purslane that I had weeded from a garden.  The purslane were boiled, drained, and “spread upon a table” (pictured left) and “a good store of salt thrown over them”  This purslane when “cold” will be “closed up in earthern pots” in a “pickle” made “with water, salt, and a little vinegar”.  The purslane will then be ready to “serve …forth as the occasion shall serve” 

This is one of many preserving demonstrations that I do over the summer months.

Visit my website at www.hearttohearthcookery.com

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Posted by: hearttohearthcookery | July 19, 2010

Currants in the Sun

Drying currants

Drying currants

The sun has been bright and hot this summer and on Sunday I put the sun to use drying red currants.  The sun was so hot that I did not need to use my bake oven drying rack in a slack oven after a baking day.  The center unit of my drying rack is filled with lucious red currants and drying in the sun.  I finished the drying in my van on my dashboard!  The sun’s rays are intensified by the windshield and the drying of produce is very efficient.  I wish I could stay at an historic site long enough to complete the drying but that is usually not the case.  These dried currants will be used in many of the 17th century receipts that I prepare.

Visit my website at www.hearttohearthcookery.com

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Posted by: hearttohearthcookery | July 18, 2010

Happy National Ice Cream Day!

Ice Cream-Hands On

Ice Cream-Hands On

July is National Ice Cream month and the third Sunday of July (today July 18th!) is National Ice Cream day!  This is a month I love, as I do many ice cream demonstrations and hands-on history camps with children.  It was a beautiful day Friday by the Delaware River as 15 children at a history camp in Gloucester County, New Jersey, prepared the blocks of ice for the coopered bucket.   These two young men are turning the pewter sabotiere containing the cream mixture to make ice cream.  The pewter scraper on the table is ready for scraping down the sides of the sabotiere as the cream mixture freezes.  With alternating turning and scraping, the children prepared the ice cream.  At the end of camp, ice cream was shared with both campers and families.  Visit my website at www.hearttohearthcookery.com and celebrate National Ice Cream Day with some ice cream!

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Posted in culinary history, food history, history camps, ice cream, sabotiere | Tags: , , , ,

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