A Basket Brigade Christmas (46 page)

Fictional Martha Jefferson’s specialty in
A Stitch in Time

D
IRECTIONS:
(from the historical cookbook)

Rub three quarters of a pound of butter into a pound of sifted flour; mix in a pound of powdered sugar and a large table-spoonful of powdered cinnamon. Mix it into a dough with three well beaten eggs. Roll it out into a sheet; cut it into round cakes, and bake them in a quick oven; they will require but a few minutes.

This recipe is offered in Miss Leslie’s chapter, “Preparations for the Sick.” It’s appropriate for our Basket Brigade angels as they minister to the wounded warriors on the daily train.

D
IRECTIONS:
(from the historical cookbook)

Cut a pound of the lean of fresh juicy beef into small thin slices, and sprinkle them with a very little salt. Put the meat into a wide-mouthed glass or stone jar closely corked, and set it in a kettle or pan of water, which must be made to boil, and kept boiling hard around the jar for an hour or more. Then take out the jar and strain the essence of the beef into a bowl. Chicken tea may be made in the same manner.

From Judith Miller,
A Pinch of Love
:

While researching materials for
A Pinch of Love,
I was particularly interested in some of the foods that were served to the wounded soldiers arriving on the trains. One of the documents contained the following comment and inspired me to share a recipe for pickled peaches and old-fashioned doughnuts. A quotation from the time:

D
IRECTIONS:

Combine sugar, vinegar, and water in large pot, and bring to boil. Boil for 5 minutes. Press one or two cloves into each peach, and place into boiling syrup. Boil for 20 minutes, or until peaches are tender.

Spoon peaches into sterile jars and top with liquid to ½ inch from rim. Put one cinnamon stick into each jar. Wipe rims with clean dry cloth, and seal with lids and rings. Process in hot water bath for 10 minutes to seal.

D
IRECTIONS:

In large bowl, beat butter and 1 cup sugar until crumbly, about 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine flour, baking powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg; add to butter mixture alternately with milk, beating well after each addition. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours.

Turn dough onto heavily floured surface; pat dough to ¼-inch thickness. Cut with a floured 2½-inch doughnut cutter. Heat oil to 375 degrees. (You can use a deep fryer or electric skillet, but Clara didn’t have either of those conveniences.)

Fry doughnuts, a few at a time, until golden brown on both sides. Drain on paper towels. (Unfortunately, Clara didn’t have paper towels, either. She would have covered old newspapers with cloth napkins or tea towels to absorb the grease.)

Combine remaining sugar and cinnamon; roll warm doughnuts in mixture. Yield: about 2 dozen.

From Nancy Moser,
Endless Melody:

I would like to share some family recipes that have been passed down generation to generation. My mother’s side of the family immigrated from Sweden in the 1800s, and my father’s side immigrated from England in the 1600s. On a side note, my mother has traced our family history and found two soldiers who fought in the Civil War: Solomon Young and William Chrystal. Solomon lost an arm, and William (who was in an Illinois regiment) was made lame.

D
IRECTIONS:

Pare and discard hard dark green rind of watermelon and trim off soft pale pink of rind. Cut pieces of white rind about 1 inch square and ¼-to-⅓ inch thick—or whatever size pickles you prefer. Cover rind with hot water and boil until rind is tender and translucent. Drain well, discard water, and place rind in heat-resistant dish.

Bring brine ingredients to boil and pour over rind. Cover and let stand overnight. Repeat process for three successive days: drain off brine, bring to boil again, and pour over drained rind. On third day, pour into mason jars and seal while hot.

These are like Swedish tortillas and were always served at Christmas during family celebrations. They are spread with butter and sugar, or jam, and rolled up. A modern take on serving them is to spread them with peanut butter.

Lefse would have been very easily shared with the soldiers on the train.

D
IRECTIONS:

Boil potatoes. Mash and add salt to taste. Add butter and cream. Cool potatoes (an important step). Divide mashed potatoes into fourths, which makes about 4 cups mashed potatoes in each part. Add 1 cup flour and salt to taste for each part.

Roll out on heavily floured surface to ⅛-inch thick circles of 8-inch diameter. Put between two damp towels until cooked. Grill on stove until just browned. Keep them moist between towels until served. They should not be crispy, but even if they get a little bit crispy on grill, they will soften between towels. Spread with butter and sugar, or jam. Roll up. Serve cool. They freeze well.