Bedside Reading: Shall we Sup?

Ever wonder what the difference is between lunch, supper, and dinner? Wonder no more!

"Lunch is a noon or evening meal, depending on when the main meal I'd served. The main meal is dinner, whether it is served at noon or evening. When dinner is served in the evening, the noon meal is known at lunch; when dinner is served at noon, the evening meal is called supper. 

There are also three types of luncheons or suppers: light, medium, and heavy. Light lunches or suppers are only for grownups who are very inactive, who have eaten a late heavy breakfast, or will have an early heavy dinner."

- Laura Baxter, Margaret M. Justin, Lucile O. Rust, Our Share in the Home, c.1945, pp217-219

Bon Apetit!

Eden

 

Credits: All images taken by Eden Hensley Silverstein for Recipes for the Good Life.

What I Crave: The Perfect Cocktail

Last night I tried a restaurant's signature drink - The ChinChin Bloody Mary, a version of a Bloody Mary. The drink that arrived on my table didn't match its description. It was spicy but plain. I was expecting something more like this drink from Skate's on the Bay.

When I dine alone I people watch. Last night I was fascinated by the drinks, specifically their lack of style. None were adorned with lemon or orange twists, with mint leaves, or cherries. I've gotten spoiled by the San Francisco bartenders who concoct wonders such as these.

from Range

from Luce

One local bar that I'll miss when we move is The Orbit Room, specifically their Blood and Sand cocktail, one of the few drinks that includes Scotch.

Where's your favorite local bar? What's your favorite cocktail?

Bon Apetit!

Eden

 

Credits: All images taken by Eden Hensley Silverstein for Recipes for the Good Life.

Bedside Reading: Good Health Comes from Good Cooking

At our wedding we served a raw foods wedding cake. We didn't publicize this; in fact, if you weren't told the cake hadn't been baked, you wouldn't know.

Why am I bringing up our wedding cake? Because raw foods relate to a cookbook by Adelle Davis that I'm currently reading. Adelle Davis, according to Wikipedia, was a pioneer in nutrition and advocated whole unprocessed foods. Her beliefs were radical for their time and have since been proven to be "largely right" by medical research.

"If nutrition is to be successfully applied, the homemaker must be able to prepare delicious foods which appeal to the eyes and nostrils as well as to the taste buds. It is a popular belief that anything which builds health tastes like witches' brew and looks like baby spinach. Exactly the reverse; foods which retain their greatest nutritive value also have the best flavor, texture, and color."

- Let's Cook It Right by Adelle Davis, c.1947, Chapter 1, p.3 

See the connection to our raw foods wedding cake? Delicious, nutritious food that appealed to the eyes and nostrils as well as the taste buds.

Credits: Image taken by Eden Hensley Silverstein for Recipes for the Good Life.

Bedside Reading: Handbooks for the New Bride, c.1940

Last year I started collecting vintage cookbooks, beginning with those that had graced the shelves of my grandmothers' and mother's kitchens. With my shower, an interest in Home Economics books was born.

What are your favorite books? Were they passed down to you or did you actively acquire them?

Right now, my favorite is a find from 1848, The Art of Home Making, which is signed by the author. Inside the front cover I also found the first owner's name, as well as her daughter and son-in-law's name and date of their marriage when she passed the book on, December 8, 1921.

From time to time, I'll be sharing passages that tickle my fancy as I read through these hefty tomes. The following quote struck a nerve with me as much of the focus of Blogging Your Way has been on figuring out who you are and what you want to write about - both now and in the future.

"Every home, no matter how simple, holds a place in the hearts and memories of the family members that continues even after they are grown up. For each of us, the members of our family are the ones whose understanding and love mean the most to us. It is important that we understand our families and be able to give satisfaction in our own family group. Perhaps the first step in this direction is to understand ourselves and what we possess by being a member of our own family. Our first problem, then, will deal with ourselves and may be expressed in words one hears often on streets and schoolgrounds: 'Who are you?'"

- Our Share in the Home, Baxter, Justin, Rust, p.1

Blast from the Past: Cocoa & Cookies for Santa

Image courtesy of Flo's Full Wagon

Today's recipes come from Let's Cook It Right by Adelle Davis, c1947 (the most recent edition of Let's Cook It Right (Signet) was 1988). I decided to choose something for Santa-cocoa and cookies. Some of the ingredients are unusual.

Cocoa (p450)
Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp Sugar
• 2 Tbsp Cocoa
• 1/2 c Powdered Milk
• Pinch of Salt
• 4 c Milk
• 1 tsp Vanilla

Instructions

1. In a sauce pan, combine sugar, cocoa, powdered milk, and salt.
2. Add 1 cup milk and beat until smooth.
3. When smooth add remaining milk and stir well.
4. Cover and heat to simmering, or 185 degrees F; do not boil.
5. Remove from heat.
6. Add vanilla.
7. Serve immediately.

Drop Sugar Cookies (p538)
Ingredients

• 1/2 c Butter-flavored Crisco
• 3/4 c Sugar
• 2 Eggs
• 1 Tbsp Vanilla
• 3 Tbsp Evaporated or Fresh Milk
• 1 c Whole-wheat pastry flour, sifted
• 1/2 c Wheat germ
• 1/2 c Powdered milk
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 2 tsp double-acting baking powder

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Lightly brush baking sheet with oil and set aside.
3. Mix Crisco, sugar, eggs, vanilla, and milk.
4. Sift in remaining ingredients.
5. Stir only enough to mix.
6. Drop from teaspoon onto baking sheet.
7. Sprinkle lightly with sugar.
8. Bake in oven no longer than 8 minutes.