We may live without poetry, music and art,
We may live without conscience and live without heart,
We may live without friends, we may live without books,
But civilized
men cannot live without cooks.
I have really neglected this blog. So sorry. I took some time and enjoyed it
with my family. Worked a few writing contests and now it's time to get back to work. Fall
is my favorite season. I really meant to get back to this blog weeks ago, but it's been hard to make myself
concentrate again on all the things I've had to do/want to do. There is just not enough time in the day.
Anyway, since it's already November (can you believe it!) and Thanksgiving it just around the corner, I decided
to focus on food (one of my favorite things) and all that goes with it. So over the next couple
of weeks I will post about foods, drinks and eating habits found in the Regency and later periods.
This first post comes from The Young Lady's
Book, A Manual of Amusements, Exercises, Studies and Pursuits. It was published in 1888. I
found the little poem I posted at the beginning of this post in this same book.
You need to entertain and you have a party of
six? This book will help with that. It breaks down what to serve for which season, and for the amount of people
being served.
Bill of fare for four to six persons--Autumn
Italian Paste Soup
Fillet of Turbot with Cream Sauce
Savory Rump Steak
Fried Potatoes
Stewed Kidneys
Spinach Wall
Grouse
Fried Crumbs
Whitefriars Pudding (see recipe below)
Lobster Bashaws
Cheesekins
Whitefriars
Pudding
Boil a good size
carrot till tender, then rub it through a hair-sieve, chop fine one small apple and a half a pound of suet, wash and rub dry
a quarter pound currants, stone a quarter of a pound of raisins; mix these ingredients together, and then add two tablespoons
full of treacle, half a salt-spoonful of mixed spice, and, by degrees, half a pound of flour, and a little cold water if necessary.
Beat the mixture into a stiff dough; put into a basin rubbed with butter, tie a cloth over it; put it into boiling
water, and boil fast for four or five hours. Turn it onto a hot dish and sift loaf sugar over it.
Serve at once.
That meal seems like a lot of work, for a beginner, since this is a beginner cookery book, but then what do I know.
