Wednesday, January 4, 2012

My Vintage Thingy for Thursday - Recipes!


Ruby, my paternal grandmother,
married a man who was in the hotel business
for many years. Mother "B" was a wonderful
cook and many of her recipes were written on sheets
of hotel stationery.



I love vintage recipes.
These recipes for Chow-Chow and Cherry Pie
were two of her favorites.

My late mother wrote in a cookbook she compiled with my grandmother's recipes, "I suppose that living in Midland (Texas) at the Circle CB was the closest "Mother B" ever came to living on a farm where she had the opportuniity of "puttin' up" fruits and vegetables. I can still remember the wonderful pungent smells coming from her kitchen when "chow-chow" was being made. Hardly readable now, her recipe for "chow-chow" has been passed among family and friends and will always carry lovely memories with it."

Chow-Chow

1 gallon ripe tomatoes
1 gallon green tomatoes
1 gallon cabbage
1 dozen sweet peppers (red bell peppers)
1 dozen hot peppers (chilies), or to taste
1 dozen large onions
3/4 cup salt
6 cups sugar
2 tablespoons powdered ginger
2 tablespoons dry mustard
1 tablespoon each: turmeric, cloves, cinnamon
1/2 gallon vinegar

Chop first five ingredients into small pieces and mix. Pour salt over mixture and let stand for 2 hours. Squeeze with hands removing the vegetables from the brine. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook a few minutes until thoroughly hot - 2 to 3 minutes. Seal in sterilized jars while hot. Makes 9 quarts.

**

Cherry Pie

1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 tablespoons flour
5 egg yolks or 3 whole eggs (beaten)
1/2 cup milk
1  1/2 cup cherries (Fort Collins brand)

Melt butter in top of double boiler, add sugar, stir and then add flour. Cook until smooth; then add eggs a little at a time. Slowly add milk and blend well. Add cherries and cook a few more minutes. Serve with whipped cream.

No mention is made of a pie crust, but I imagine this is the filling and should be poured into a baked pie shell.

Today I am linking to
Vintage Thingy Thursday
at Colorado Lady

Come check it out!


10 comments:

Robin@DecoratingTennisGirl said...

Karen,
I just love your olden family pics. Keep them coming. I love the tennis racket! Wonderful photo!

Theresa said...

Hi there Karen, my Parents always made chow-chow:) I love it and haven't made it since they have both been gone! I have made pear relish most every year! Thanks for the recipes!!!! Have a blessed day, HUGS!

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

I remember chow chow and all kinds of relishes from veggies in the garden! Great recipes...thanks for sharing them! Happy new year! ♥

LV said...

That recipe takes me way back. My mother and grandmother made a lot of this. I even learned to like it.

Nani said...

Well, I'm intrigued! I'd never heard of Chow-Chow until..Now. It sounds similar to a jarred vegetable mix my Dad makes, only his is not at all sweet (very old-world Italian). If I cut it down to a little smaller, I may give it a try!

I love old recipes! Thanks for sharing this!

Sally Annie Magundy said...

Oh, what wonderful treasures! I'm so glad you've got them to enjoy and cherish.

I found both my grandmothers recipe books in the last year and I found it so touching and sweet. There were two recipes I was longing to locate from my childhood memories of Sunday suppers and desserts made by my paternal grandmother - I've found one but not the other.

Happy VTT,
Sally

c. Joy said...

Wow! This is a great find. My mom and I were talking about my grandmother's (dad's mom's) Chow-Chow in the last couple of weeks. I don't have her recipe and I'm going to try yours and see if it comes close. Do you have a 'tea cake' recipe? Funny how food, especially the smell of certain foods can comfort. My grandmother's tea cakes were over sized plain cakey- cookies sprinkled with sugar.

Laura said...

My Aunt Mary loves chow chow-
I need to send her this recipe!

have a great weekend-

Laura

Hearts Turned said...

Good morning, Karen! I've been such a bad visitor lately...I'm trying to get back in the swing of things!

What wonderful recipes! And how fortunate that you have them on the hotel paper--they're just beautiful!

Thank-you for sharing these two--I'll be copying them down & dive them a try.

Hope your weekend is perfectly lovely, my friend!

Julie

Nancy's Notes said...

How wonderful to have those recipes and in her handwriting! What a treasure! What a beautiful lady, too!