Old-Fashioned Bread and Rhubarb Pudding

 

Bread and Rhubarb Pudding

Sometimes I know that I want to make a recipe for a particular seasonal food. This week is one of those times. I had some rhubarb, so began going through my hundred-year-old cookbooks and magazines looking for a rhubarb recipe. I found two that looked like possibilities Rhubarb and Figs and Bread and Rhubarb Pudding. I leaned towards making the Rhubarb and Figs. The Bread and Rhubarb Pudding recipe seemed complicated and I couldn’t quite picture what it would be like.  However, my husband said that he didn’t like figs, and my daughter said that she thought the Bread and Rhubarb Pudding sounded awesome, so I decided to give it a try.

I’m glad that my family talked me into making Bread and Rhubarb Pudding. This recipe is a winner. Rhubarb and slices of bread are layered in a baking dish, then a milk, egg, and nutmeg mixture is poured over it. The dish is baked in the oven, and then jelly is spread over it. (I used current jelly – though the old recipe suggested using grape jelly.) I served the Bread and Rhubarb Pudding with whipped cream.  The dish definitely was a hit with my family. My daughter said that it had just the right amoun of sweetness, and my husband said that I should make it again.

One thing that I’d do differently if I made it again is to try to work a bit more on the presentation. My baking dish and the bread slices that I used when making this recipe didn’t exactly align in size and I had to cut some of the bread slices. If I made it again, I might either use another dish, bread slices that were a different size, or cut every slice of bread (and not just the ones that didn’t fit when whole).

Bread and Rhubarb Pudding

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Bread and Rhubarb Pudding
Source: American Cookery (March, 1924)

I cut the rhubarb into 1-inch pieces; 2 inches seemed a bit long to me. I decided that the egg and milk mixture that is poured over this dish made about enough to cover 8 slices of bread and 4 cups of diced rhubarb.

The recipe called for using sugar in the amount of “half the bulk” of the rhubarb (plus 4 additional tablespoons for the milk mixture). I decided to go with 1 1/2 cups of sugar, which may be a little less than half the bulk, but the Bread and Rhubarb pudding had just the right amount of sweetness so that’s the amount I put in the updated recipe.

I don’t have whole nutmeg, so I used 3/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg.

I decided to serve with whipped cream rather than going the meringue route.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Bread and Rhubarb Pudding

  • Servings: 6 - 8
  • Difficulty: moderate
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4 cups rhubarb, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 1/2 cups sugar + 4 tablespoons sugar

8 slices bread (I used white bread.)

butter

1 egg

3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

2 cups milk

grape or other flavor of jelly (I used current jelly.)

whipped cream

Preheat oven to 400° F.  Put the rhubarb and 1 1/2 cups sugar in a bowl; stir to coat the rhubarb with sugar. Then put half of the rhubarb mixture in a 7 1/2 ” X 12″ X 2″ (or similar sized) baking dish. (The dish I used was about the right size as far as volume goes, but I had to cut some of the bread slices, so if I made it again, I may use a different dish.)

Spread butter on 4 of the bread slices. Arrange the slices (buttered side down) on top of the rhubarb. Then put the remaining rhubarb over the bread slices. Spread butter on the other 4 bread slices, and place buttered side up on top of the rhubarb. Set aside.

Put the egg, 4 tablespoons sugar, and nutmeg in a mixing bowl; beat until smooth. Add milk and beat until combined. Pour the milk mixture over the rhubarb and bread. Cover (I used aluminum foil to cover), and then put in the oven. Bake for approximately 30 minutes or until the rhubarb is tender, and hot and bubbly. (Periodically check on how the baking is coming along. When I made this dish, liquid boiled over and onto my oven while I had the dish covered.)

Once the rhubarb is hot and bubbly remove cover, and continue baking until the bread is lightly browned (about another 10-15 minutes). Remove from oven and spread with jelly. Serve with whipped cream. I served this warm, though it could also be served cold.

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com

Hundred-Year-Old Table Covering Descriptions

set table
Source: The New Butterick Cook Book (1924)

Here’s how a hundred-year-old cookbook describes table clothes and other table coverings:

Table Coverings

The table-cloth is the form of table covering most frequently used, and if in an exquisite texture it may be considered the most formal type of cover. The table-cloth should always be laid over a silence cloth, which is usually of felt or a double-faced cotton material made expressly for this purpose. The silence cloth should drop over the edges of the table several inches. Many prefer to fold it at the corners and pin it underneath the table. The silence cloth prevent noise, protects the table and improves the appearance of the linen.

The table-cloth must be laid with great exactness. The center lengthwise crease should fall exactly in the middle of the table and extend over the sides and ends of the table until its edges just escape the seats of the chairs. For breakfast, luncheon or supper, a smaller cloth may be used, simply covering the top of the table or falling a few inches over the edge. Great care must always be taken that the threads of the cloth are parallel to the diameter of a round table, or parallel to the edges of a square or rectangular table. A table seldom presents as restful and interesting a picture when the cloth is placed diagonally as when it is placed with the treads running parallel to the edges of the table.

The small table-cloth, or the cloth used on informal occasions, does not need to be the snowy white linen used for the formal dinner.  Nothing is more satisfactory or pleasing than beautiful unbleached cloths with possibly a simple line design in color along the edges.

Doilies for each place are also used instead of the table-cloth and silence cloth, and are most satisfactory not only for their ease in laundering but for their appearance when correctly arranged on a well-polished table top. . .

Runners are another type of covering used on the bare table. These may be made of linen, or of the various cotton materials sold for such use. The runner is used for the informal meal.

Paper coverings are being used more and more for very informal occasions and may be secured in a very usable quality and size.

The New Butterick Cook Book (1924)

In the old cookbook, “table-cloth” was always hyphenated. I guess its an example of how words have changed across the years.

Old-Fashioned Raisin Custard

Raisin Custard

I love old-fashioned baked custards so decided to try a hundred-year-old recipe for Raisin Custard. The raisins are on the bottom of the custard. I want to say that they sank to the bottom, but I think that the recipe author intended for there to be plain custard on the top and a raisin-custard mixture on the bottom.

The Raisin Custard was very delicate, but the recipe didn’t call for any sugar, so the custard was not sweet (though the raisins added a bit of sweetness when I got to the bottom).

Here’s the original recipe:

recipe for Raisin Custard
Modern Priscilla Cook Book (1924)

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Raisin Custard

  • Servings: 4 - 6
  • Difficulty: moderate
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2 eggs

2 cups milk

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

2/3 cup raisins, coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 325° F. Put eggs in mixing bowl and beat until smooth. Add milk, salt, and nutmeg; beat until thoroughly combined. Pour mixture into custard cups. Place the custard cups in a pan with hot water that comes to about an inch below the top of the cups ( 4 – 6 custard cups will be needed. The number of custard cups needed will vary depending upon the size of the custard cups.) Bake for 60-90 minutes or until a knife inserted in center of the custard comes out clean.  May be served warm or cold.

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com

1924 Directions for Cooking Hot Cereals

Table About Cooking Hot Cereals
Source: Low Cost Cooking by Florence Nesbitt (1924)

Here’s some excerpts from a hundred-year-old cookbook  about how to cook hot cereals:

Cooking Breakfast Cereals

Cereals are made from hard grains and contain much starch, so require long cooking to make them easily digested. Do not be deceived by directions on the box which say that the contents can be cooked in 15 or 20 minutes. This is never long enough to cook thoroughly and make them fit food for young children.

When the coal range is used, a very convenient way to cook the cereal is to start it cooking at supper time and leave closely covered on the back of the range all night. In the morning it will be found to be well done.

All of the cereals named above may be served hot as mush with cream or milk with or without sugar. Mush may also be served with syrup instead of milk. Cornmeal mush is much liked in this way.

Low Cost Cooking by Florence Nesbitt (1924)

Old-Fashioned Hot Slaw with Sour Cream Sauce

Hot slaw with sour cream dressing

When browsing through a hundred-year-old magazine, I came across a recipe for Hot Slaw with Sour Cream Sauce, and decided to give it a try.

The Hot Slaw was mild,  rich, and creamy. The recipe called for only 1 tablespoon of vinegar (and no sugar), so the flavors were much more nuanced than many modern slaws.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Hot Slaw with Sour Cream Dressing
Source: American Cookery (October, 1924

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Hot Slaw with Sour Cream Sauce

  • Servings: 5 - 7
  • Difficulty: moderate
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1 head of cabbage (approximately 2 pounds; The cabbage should be firm and white.)

2 teaspoons salt

4 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon flour

1 tablespoon water

1 cup sour cream

1 tablespoon tarragon vinegar or apple cider vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar.)

Grate or finely shred the cabbage. Stir the salt into the cabbage. Let sit for 30 minutes, then drain and rinse. Press to squeeze out excess water.

In a skillet or large saucepan, melt the butter. Stir in the cabbage. (Do not add water.) Cover and cook over low heat for 10 minutes. Several times remove lid and stir to keep the cabbage from scorching, then replace lid. (The idea is to stir enough to prevent scorching, but to keep the steam in as much as possible as the cabbage cooks.) Cook for 10 minutes.

In the meantime, stir water into the flour to make a thick paste. Then stir in the sour cream. Stir the sour cream mixture into the hot cabbage, and cook for 1-2  additional minutes while stirring. Stir in the vinegar and serve.

http://www.ahundredyearsago.com

Tasty Asparagus (Asparagus and Onions) Recipe

 

Tasty Asparagus (Asparagus and Onions) in BowlSome recipes in old cookbooks have the strangest titles. For example, I recently came across a hundred-year-old recipe for Tasty Asparagus. In one way the title was very descriptive – it clearly says that the asparagus is tasty. However, in another way, the description is very inadequate. How is the asparagus prepared? What are the main ingredients?  I tend to skip over recipes with titles like this, but was intrigued when I saw that this was a recipe for asparagus and onions, and decided to give it a try.

I agree with the recipe author. Tasty Asparagus is tasty. Asparagus and onions make a really nice combination. And, it was quick and easy to make. This recipe is a keeper.

Here’s the original recipe:

Recipe for Tasty Asparagus (Asparagus and Onions)
Source: Modern Priscilla Cook Book (1924)

By today’s standards, cooking asparagus for half an hour is excessive, so when I updated the recipe I reduced the cooking time substantively. For the cooking oil, I used olive oil. I’m not sure why the old recipe calls for adding the water used to cook the asparagus to the asparagus and onion mixture. I drained some of the excess liquid off before serving.

Here’s the recipe updated for modern cooks:

Tasty Asparagus (Asparagus and Onions

  • Servings: 6
  • Difficulty: easy
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1 bunch asparagus

2 medium onions, sliced

3 tablespoons olive oil

Trim off the woody ends of the asparagus, and then cut into 1-inch pieces. Put in saucepan, and add about an inch of water. Bring to a boil using high heat, then reduce heat and simmer for 4 minutes. Remove from heat. Drain, but save 1 cup of the water used to cook the asparagus.

In the meantime, put the olive oil in a skillet. Heat oil using medium heat, then add the sliced onions. Cook until the onions are transparent, then add the cooked asparagus pieces and 1-cup of the water in which the asparagus was cooked. Bring to a boil using medium heat, then reduce heat and simmer for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and serve.

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