Strawberries and Cream

In time for Wimbledon... where they still serve Strawberries and Cream... a sketch by Robert Seymour, 1835, with cream pitcher, sugar container with spoon and pottles (cone baskets for strawberries). Pottles are so interesting that I did a blog post with 15 images. HERE

Iced Tea

June is National Iced Tea month... though not sure if it is official... and June 10 is Iced Tea Day. There are several talks on tea. Even a multiday conference. Ad from 1906 magazine.

Glass bee hives 1772, 1828 ... and 1650s

There is an intriguing talk this Thursday on late 17th century glass hives. GLASS! In this 1772 example, bees entered the bottom section then moved up through a hole into the middle section to build a hive. Then a hole was opened into the top glass section where the bees continued making honey combs on the two cross bars.

Elder flowers to make ... Grape Water Ice

The other year I noticed while doing a blog post HERE on the 6 cookbooks (describe freezing pots/tubs and sabotieres) by people who worked at Negri’s, then Gunter’s tea shop; that half (Nutt, Jarrin, Jeanes) included an ice made from elder flowers... called Grape Water Ice. And yet, grapes could also be used to make Grape Water Ice.

Army chef used umbrella to protect fried croquettes - 1854

Memorial Day... never forget.

During the Crimean War, the chef for Prince George (Lt. Gen. & cousin of Queen Victoria) was preparing a dish of fried croquettes in the rain before the Battle of Alma (Sept. 1854)

Barrel butter churns 1758-1805

It is spring, so time for another post on butter. Over the years I have covered butter types and shapes, and a wide variety of churns. HERE. Instead of plunger churns, with the up and down motion, the barrel churns used a circular motion. Pictured is a c1900 churn of my great grandmother from an eastern PA farm.

More cookbook talks

Eliza Acton (1799-1859) and Isabella Beeton (1836-1865) talk in the British Library series. Alice Urbach’s popular How to cook in Vienna! A cookery and household book for home-style cooking, first published in 1935 (500 pages) was stolen for another book when she was forced out of Austria by the Nazi. TAPED. "Betty Crocker" first published in 1921, TAPED. Laura Shapiro's book, TAPED, and other talks.

Mother's Day

For the Moms


Le Benedicite (Saying Grace) by Jean Baptiste Simeon Chardin c1740, in the Louvre.

Fewer muffin street sellers by 1896

The decline of muffin street sellers was described in the following 1896 article. The muffins were still made by older ladies in their poor homes and sold to stores or a few remaining street sellers, who had a hard time making a living. Earlier that century there were 500 muffin street vendors in London with their tinkling little bells, traditionally starting on Oct 15.

Easter - Pasch eggs, given out at homes in Austria

Chamber's Book of Days 1863, mentioned Pasch eggs in Chester, UK and handed out at the houses in the Tyrol area in the Alps.

Bouilli - beef and soup

Bouilli was popular in France and with Jefferson, whose French chef often made it for White House dinners, and also sold it from his F street home/shop near Mr. Madison's home. Quality pieces of meat were slowly simmered for hours and served seperately, first the soup (broth) then the meat (bouilli). 3 talks on French food.

Poisonous Easter Eggs and Easter talks

Paas Egg dyes, patented 1881, were advertised to "be eaten without fear of poisoning." At that time some eggs were dyed with a biproduct of coal being burned to make gas. Logwood dye was recorded in a 1781 letter ... with pin scratched Battle of Bunker Hill scene.

Foraging

Ramps - Allium tricoccum (three seeded garlic, or wild leeks) - are found in the spring and early summer in wooded areas along the Appalacian Mountains. Don't confuse with Lily of the Valley.

There are many small and large Ramp festivals and dinners. West Virginia hosts so many there is a website listing yearly events HERE

Flour / Grist Mills talks and taped talks

Sharpening millstones (photo on left and in blog post). Wye Mills in Maryland is having three talks on mills and grains. Upcoming talks on London mills, Oliver Evans, 17th cen. water engineering for water gardens & fountains and ... Tide Mills! Several taped talks.

Loft over the hearth in 1846 Ireland

During the Irish Famine, or The Great Hunger of 1845-49, this image of a loft, oddly built over the hearth fire in a County Kerry tenent's cabin was in The Pictorial Times, London.
So what was on the loft?

Maple sugaring

Native Americans collecting sap, then boiling it in a 1724 image. Two talks are about Native American traditions in Vermont and Michigan.

Several taped maple syrup and harvesting talks, followed by this week's talks.

People's Collection of Wales & Welsh Cakes

The National Library of Wales's A People's Story of Wales is a wonderful collection of film clips, oral histories, books, photos, recipes and more.
Welsh Cakes on griddle over fire.

Valentine Sweets - Chocolate and Candies

Talks on chocolate history and material culture, Cadbury, Hershey, Jews and Chocolate, and the Boston area had over 140 factories for candies. Over the past two years there have been many talks on chocolate, tapes below.

Cattle, Dairy, Cheese, and Butchers virtual talks

There was an interesting talk last fall on "Plymouth Women and the Birth of the American Dairy Business," taped, but there have been, and will be, other good talks. Image: Cattle Market before a large city, 1820

Bees and Insects - virtual and taped talks

Bee behavior, wax, honey, an entire day of bee talks and two talks on eating insects.
Image of bee tanging, link below.

Update: June 2022 talks, including Glass Beehives in Restoration England, Late 17th cen