A Glimpse at Recipes of The Past: Lumberjack Cookies

I have a small but very treasured collection of cooking books. I have Russian cooking books with recipes prepared for the Czarist family and recipes cooked for the French Aristocracy, as well as a collection of recipe books that I bought here in America, dating back to our American ancestors.
Why do I like these old books so much?
Firstly, the illustrations found in these books are a rare sight indeed nowadays, because each illustration is beautifully drawn in detail, giving insight to a modern-day person of the dedicated and personal atmosphere that emanated from that time period.
Secondly, each recipe in these books has its own story. It’s not just a list of ingredients thrown into a pot and boiled---it’s an entire experience beginning from the detailing of the recipe’s origination to its eventual passage from generation to generation. This is why I have decided to begin a column on this blog dedicated to posting and discussing recipes taken from these books. There’s something very sentimental about making history come back to life.
Feel free to add to our historical recipe collection.



From "Favorite New England Recipes" 1972

Lumberjack Cookies
Lumbering is a unique occupation and projects a day-to-day life unlike any other. In the upper reaches of the rivers, when spring freshets deepen the water enough to float the logs, men of a particularly courageous breed shepherd the raw wood down the rivers, sometimes for hundreds of miles, to the sawmills. They spend many days on the logs and on a raft with a shanty on it that brings up the rear. In the shanty is a man at whom the others characteristically jeer but deeply value - the cook.



One morning early in this century, such a log drive was moving along the Muskegon past a riverside farm, when a dignified little woman marched to the water's edge and waved to them. She wished to parley with the lumberjack cook. Just why is explained by Mrs.Paul V.Bretz of St.Paul, Minnesota. "The great lumbering industry of Michigan was beginning to wane, but there was still some lumbering along the Mu. When the logs where being floated down the river to the mills, there was always a cook shanty on a raft following the log drive. It was a great treat for children to have a meal with the lumberjacks on this river raft. They could look forward to fried salt pork, boiled potatoes, boiled beans, hot breads, cookies, and strong black coffee. Good hearty fare.
"These were molasses cookies and so good that my husband prevailed upon his mother to go to the river and learn the recipe from the cook. We always called them 'Lumberjack Cookies,' and here is the recipe:"

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup shortening
• 1 cup molasses
• 1 cup sour milk
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ginger, vanilla, and mace (or nutmeg) to taste
• flour enough to make a soft dough

Directions:
Drop by tablespoons on a lightly greased cookie sheet and bake in a moderate oven (350F) until done, about 10 minutes.

Lentil Soup with Homemade Turkey Stock - Amazingly Delicious Soup

Thanksgiving: THE best time to make the turkey stock.
That roasted turkey carcass, will make an extraordinary rich delicious poultry broth.
Chop up that carcass or pull it apart so that it fits into your biggest pot. Cover it with water, enough so it’s covered by an inch or so of water. Bring it to a simmer. Skim off anything that rises to the top that you wouldn’t want to eat if you saw it floating in a bowl of soup. Cook for about two hours then add a couple carrots and a couple big onions, cut up, celery, parsely, thyme, garlic, bay, peppercorns, these are good to add as well, and continue cooking for another hour. Strain through a colander. Then, strain it through a kitchen cloth, cheese cloth if you have it, or any kind of cloth. Now it’s ready to use. Great to try a consomme with. Make a risotto. Any soup or souce. And it freezes great.

Ingredients:

• 6-8 cups homemade turkey stock
• 1 cup smoked turkey, diced
• 1 cup dried lentils, rinsed well and drained
• 1/2 cup split peas, picked over and rinsed
• 2 Tbs. olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2-3 potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1 tsp. smoked paprika
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• thyme sprigs (optional)

Directions:
In a large pot over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil. Add the onion, smoked turkey and cook, stirring frequently, until onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring frequently, for 3 minutes.



Stir in the homemade turkey stock, the lentils, split peas, potatoes, paprika, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until the lentils are very tender, about 20-25 minutes. Stir in the thyme.
Ladle the soup into warmed bowls. Serve immediately.

Mushroom and Red Onion Tart with Gorgonzola Cheese and Parsley

The wonderfully mild and sweet taste of red onions and mushrooms when cooked goes perfectly with Gorgonzola cheese and parsley in this tart.

Ingredients:

• 1 disk (pate brisee) tart dough
• 2 Tbs. unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 lb. mixed fresh mushrooms, halved or quartered
• 1 large red onion, chopped
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1/3 cup Gorgonzola cheese
• 1 tsp chopped fresh parsley
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions:
To bake the tart shell, preheat an oven to 375°F.
On a floured work surface, roll out the dough into a 12-inch round. Fit into a 9-inch round tart pan and trim the dough, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang. Fold the overhang back over itself and pinch to create a sturdy edge. Pierce the dough all over with a fork.



Line the pastry shell with aluminum foil or parchment paper and fill with pie weights or raw short-grain rice. Bake for 20 minutes, then lift an edge of the foil. If the dough looks wet, continue to bake, checking every 5 minutes, until the dough is pale gold, for a total baking time of 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack.



To make the filling, in a large fry pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the mushrooms and red onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the honey and parsley, season with salt and pepper, and stir to combine. Add the Gorgonzola cheese, mix and remove from heat.
Spread the mushroom mixture in the pastry shell. Garnish with a few parsley springs and cut the tart into wedges and serve with any Jerez, we had Matusalem from Spain and it was wonderful!

Salmon Mousse - Gorgeous Appetizer for Holiday

The best thing about this appetizer that you may prepare it one or two days before the Holiday.

Ingredients:

• 1 envelope unflavored gelatin
• ¼ cup cold water
• ½ cup broth from poached salmon
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon finely grated onion
• dash of Tabasco
• ¼ teaspoon sweet paprika
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill
• 1 pound finely flaked poached fresh salmon
• 1cup heavy cream
• Toast, tomatoes, boil egg, dill, salmon fish row, slice of lemon for serving

Directions:
To cook poached salmon you need to put 1/2 cup of wine, 1/2 cup of water, dill, parsley and a few thin slices of yellow onion in a saute pan, and bring to a simmer on medium heat. Place salmon fillets, skin-side down on the pan. Cover. Cook 5-7 minutes or to desired done-ness. Do not overcook.
Soften the gelatin in the cold water in a large mixing bowl. Stir in the boiling broth from poached salmon and whisk the mixture slowly until the gelatin dissolves. Cool to room temperature.
Whisk in the mayonnaise, lemon juice, grated onion, Tabasco, paprika, salt, and dill. Stir to blend completely and refrigerate until the mixture begins to thicken slightly, about 20 minutes.
Fold in the finely flaked salmon. In a separate bowl, whip the cream until it is thickened to soft peaks and fluffy. Fold gently into the salmon mixture.
Transfer the mixture to a 6 to 8 prepared ramekins, or decorative mold. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
Garnish with toast, tomatoes, boil egg, dill, salmon fish row.
Yield : 12 portions