Here's a bit of history about the Alaskan Sourdough, which was a name given to the gold prospecters in Alaska.
A certain amount of slang came out of the gold rush. Experienced miners were often known as Sourdoughs, while potential miners, new to the Klondike, were known as Cheechakos. These two names live on in Dawson City, in tourist literature, and enjoy occasional usage by miners still working the tributaries of the Yukon River and Klondike River as well as in literature relating to the gold rush era.
The sourdough tradition was carried into Alaska and the western Canadian territories during the Klondike Gold Rush. Conventional leavenings such as yeast and baking soda were much less reliable in the conditions faced by the prospectors. Experienced miners and other settlers frequently carried a pouch of starter either around their neck or on a belt; these were fiercely guarded to keep from freezing. Ironically, freezing does not kill a sourdough starter; excessive heat does. Old hands came to be called "sourdoughs", a term that is still applied to any Alaskan old-timer.
During the Klondike gold rush of 1898, it was said that a real "Alaskan Sourdough" would just as soon spend a year in the hills without his rifle, as to tough it through without his bubbling sourdough pot. Since food was scare, food provisions were more valuable than gold. In extreme cold, miners would put the dough ball under their clothes, next to their skin, or tuck it into their bedroll with them at night, anything to keep it alive.
Here's an old-time recipe for sourdough starter such as the "Sourdoughs" might pack around in their quest for gold. It was published in the Wildlife Review years ago.
SOURDOUGH HOTCAKES
Wash three good-sized potatoes and boil them with the skins on. When they are about 2/3 done, add a cup of flour, one cup of brown sugar, a pinch of salt, and a cake of yeast and let it set in a warm place.
When it is cooled off, mash it all up and add some water till it's a thin batter, then set it on a shelf above the stove and let it ferment about 24 hours, and when it starts to smell like home brew and bubbles is raising all over the top, just let it go fermenting, have it plenty sour when you start using it.
When you think it's about right and figure on using some in the morning, add plenty of warm water and then carefully stir in flour, most any kind of good flour. Add, say, two cups white to one of whole wheat, then beat it till it's a smooth creamy batter and put it back in a fairly warm spot ot stand overnight.
The next morning pour off what you figure you will use and add a dash of molasses, a jolt of bacon grease; then take maybe a half teaspoon of soda, stir it up in a quarter cup of warm water and just before you are ready to start making cakes, stir it in, and be sure that you get the pan purty warm before you start pouring.
I've always wanted to make this recipe but have held back because of the "smell like home brew" part, as well as the hard-to-find yeast cake. Ahhhh....what the heck. I think I will anyway.:P
Does anyone have an unusual recipe to share?
love,
Rez
I thought I'd lost this one but happily found it on the internet. It was in an old Chinese cookbook that I loaned to a friend and never got it back before her house burned down.
This is an excerpt form a old cookbook which describe the cooking of Stirred Eggs (scrambled eggs) by the Engineer husband of the author of the book. It is a hilarious example of what happens when you let an engineer type try to teach some thing outside of their usual field. I think it is very funny.
The book is called:
How to Cook and Eat in Chinese
by Buwei Yang Chao
Copyright 1945, 1949 0 1963 by Buwei Yang Chao
Published by Random House of Canada limited, Toronto. in 1970.
ISBN: O-394-71703-1 LCCCN: 73-89692
Vintage Books Edition, April 1972
Stirred Eggs
Stirred eggs may be said to be the most everyday dish made by applying the most everyday method to the most everyday material. Learning to stir-fry eggs is the ABC of cooking. As this is the only dish my husband cooks well, and he says that he either cooks a thing well or not at all. I shall let him tell how it is done. -- Buwei Yang Chao
"Obtain:
* 6 average-sized fresh eggs (for this is the maximum number of eggs I have cooked at one time)
* 3 grammes of cooking salt (or, as an alternative, 4 grammes of table salt)
* 50 e.e. fresh lard, which will approximately equal the content of 4 level tablespoonfuls
* 1 plant of Chinese ts'ung (substitute with scallion if ts'ung is unobtainable) about 30 em. long by 7 mm. in average diameter. (This ingredient is optional.)
"Either shell or unshell the eggs by knocking one against another in any order. (Since, when two eggs collide, only one of them will break, it will be necessary to use a seventh egg with which to break the sixth. If, as it may very well happen, the seventh egg breaks first instead of the sixth, an expedient will be simply to use the seventh one and put away the sixth. An alternate procedure is to delay your numbering system and define that egg as the sixth egg which breaks after the fifth egg) Be sure to have a bowl below to catch the contents. With a pair of chopsticks, strike the same with a quick, vigorous motion known as 'beating the eggs.' This motion should, however, be made repeatedly and not just once. Automatic machines, aptly named as 'egg-beaters,' have been invented for this purpose.
"Make cross sections of the ts'ung at intervals of about 7.5 mm., making 40 sections altogether. Throw in the ts'ung and the measured amount of salt during the final phase of the 'beating.'
"Heat the lard in a large flat-bottomed pan over a brisk fire until it (the lard) begins to give off a faint trace of smoke. Pour the contents of the bowl into the oil at once.
"The next phase of the operation is the most critical for the successful stir-frying of eggs. When the bottom part of the mixture becomes a puffed-up soft mass on contact with the heat, the upper part will remain quite liquid. Preferably using a thin flat piece of metal attached to a handle, the operator should push the mixture to one side so as to allow the uncooked liquid portion to flow onto the hot fat on the now exposed portion of the bottom. (Sometimes this may be facilitated by slightly tipping the pan.) Quickly repeat this until abut 90 per cent of the liquid has come in contact with the hot fat and becomes puffed. Then, still using the flat piece of metal, make the entire content of the pan revolve through 180 degrees about a horizontal axis. This delicate operation is known as 'turning it over,' which in the hands of a beginner may easily become a flop. It can be done neatly and without waste only after repeated practice with different sets of eggs.
"If the turning over has been successfully carried out, wait for 5 seconds, which is about the time it takes to count from 1 to 12, then transfer the contents to the bowl or a platter, when the dish is said to be done.
"To test whether the cooking has been done properly, observe the person served. If he utters a voiced bilabial nasal consonant with a slow falling intonation, it is good. If he utters the syllable yum in reduplicated form, it is very good."-Y. R. C.
Stirred eggs are really much simpler to make than to tell. It is a very handy dish to fill the table when unexpected guests come. Remember that only lard or any animal fat is good for this dish. It is therefore only good for once, in fact only when it is hot. -- Buwei Yang Chao
I could see why the book's author allowed her engineer husband to contribute only ONE recipe. :rofl:
:eat:
Rez
Rez,
My mother occasionally made a desert she called "bread pudding" made from left over bread.
She only made it if she ran into a situation where she had too much bread and it was in jeopardy of going stale.
As kids my siblings and I loved it but, did not get it often.
My mother has had many transient ischemic attacks (mini strokes) and no longer cooks.
I have never seen it made or eaten anywhere else.
Have you ever heard of it?
abe
For dinner tonight we are having a family favorite! Slumgolian.
Browned loosly fried hamburger
mashed potaoes
creamed corn
baked beans ( not the fancy kind, plain cambells)
all mixed up it looks like barf, hence it's name.
My grandmother made this every Friday night in celebration of grand dad being home from working out of town all week.He was tired of Hotel food, it was the depression & this was cheap! I have since learned of it's roots from a visitor from germany, who called it "kinderfood", minced meat, gravy, vegatables mixed up with mashed potaoes. A comfort food for any age. My grand dad was second generation american, recipes have been kept :), but not the stories behind them.:(
Blithe
Rez,
My mother occasionally made a desert she called "bread pudding" made from left over bread.
I have never seen it made or eaten anywhere else.
Have you ever heard of it?
abe
I ate bread pudding all the time growing up, we used stale bread. Cracker Barrel , used to have it on their menu. They made it extra yummy & calorie dense with added ice cream & carmel sauce served over it while still warm. We ate it plain or with milk on it.Ours was baked in a casserole, not a british style pudding.:D
Blithe
I've always wanted to make this recipe but have held back because of the "smell like home brew" part, as well as the hard-to-find yeast cake. Ahhhh....what the heck. I think I will anyway.:P
love,
Rez
Smell like home brew, just means a clean beer like odor, when you stick your nose in the bowl! It won't fog your kitchen! You can use regular yeast in a package, or if living in the right climate culture your own.Have fun!
I gave a starter once to one of my kids, he wanted a pet! I said prove you can take care of one first, take this out everyday & give it a stir, feed it regularly, and train it into a nice loaf.Then we'll talk.He turned into a superb baker, & yes we got a dog.
Blithe
Blithe
Rez,
My mother occasionally made a desert she called "bread pudding" made from left over bread.
She only made it if she ran into a situation where she had too much bread and it was in jeopardy of going stale.
As kids my siblings and I loved it but, did not get it often.
My mother has had many transient ischemic attacks (mini strokes) and no longer cooks.
I have never seen it made or eaten anywhere else.
Have you ever heard of it?
abe
Sorry that I've not been back to this thread for a few days. I've been throwing some seeds into my garden.:farmer:
Ahhh, yes. Bread pudding.:licklips:.....a staple of my childhood. Do you want a recipe for it?
The very best bread pudding I ever ate was in a restaurant in Shelburne Nova Scotia (sorry mum:P) about 30 years ago. It was wonderfully scrumptious, having been made with fruit or raisin bread that was spread with marmalade. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.
Do you cook, Abe? :chef:
love,:heartbeat:
Rez
PS, note to Blithe: I've always seen it made in a pan or casserole dish and then cut into squares. Is there another way?
I've always wanted to make this recipe but have held back because of the "smell like home brew" part, as well as the hard-to-find yeast cake. Ahhhh....what the heck. I think I will anyway.:P
love,
Rez
Smell like home brew, just means a clean beer like odor, when you stick your nose in the bowl! It won't fog your kitchen! You can use regular yeast in a package, or if living in the right climate culture your own.Have fun!
I gave a starter once to one of my kids, he wanted a pet! I said prove you can take care of one first, take this out everyday & give it a stir, feed it regularly, and train it into a nice loaf.Then we'll talk.He turned into a superb baker, & yes we got a dog.
Blithe
Hmmmm.....a pet sour dough jar. Good strategy!:thumbsup:
My dad was a bit of a brewmeister back in the '40's and I can remember exploding bottles, etc. He made a mean brew!:drinking:
As for the yeast thing, I think some folks even use grape-skins for the wild yeast. There is one store down on the French shore where I believe they still have yeast cakes for the old time cooks. I can remember nibbling on my mother's yeast cakes on bread-making day....again back in the '40's. Goodness knows what brewed in my belly as a result.:P
BTW, has anyone ever heard of ammonia biscuits? Compared with baking powder biscuits?
love,
Rez
PS, note to Blithe: I've always seen it made in a pan or casserole dish and then cut into squares. Is there another way?
I have recipes called "Bread Puddings" that are cakes made from bread crumbs & baked/steamed in pudding molds. British recipes, I bought the molds on sale but haven't got around to making them.Just something I always wanted to try.
We call all sorts of things "pudding", but I grew up with the family cooks being more specific while cooking but still everything was named pudding.
Pudding was corn starch pudding, and we had stirred custards ( tapioca ), baked custards( bread pudding),rice pudding ( baked , no eggs)& italian style rice pudding that's a whole other concoction.
Ammonia biscuits , yah, heard ,of them! I've bought ammonia for making cookies ,Norwegian recipes.
I've made sourdough from wild yeast, either capturing it in potato water or flour water set out uncovered. Caught some good wild ones & some really nasty growths! When we lived in Alaska I had good ones, in the desert southwest, yucky, so I mail ordered sourdough.
Since moving to a damp climate we have had both. One of my children did experiments with all sorts of grains & ground beans, seeds, etc. seeing what she could ferment & bake with, it was a long winter.:funnyface:
My Pennsylvania Dutch heritage shows when the subject of food comes up! If we aren't eating we are talking about it!
Fun conversation, something we can all agree we like!:friends:
Blithe
I have recipes called "Bread Puddings" that are cakes made from bread crumbs & baked/steamed in pudding molds. British recipes, I bought the molds on sale but haven't got around to making them.Just something I always wanted to try.
My mum used to steam puddings (carrot, in particular) in large tin cans. She also used smaller cans to put cornmeal leftover from breakfast to solidify. She would open the other end to shove the thing out the next day and then slice, fry and serve with syrup and sausages.
Ammonia biscuits , yah, heard ,of them! I've bought ammonia for making cookies, Norwegian recipes.
Here's a recipe from my grandma's cookbook:
Dissolve a teaspoonful of baking ammonia (powdered rock ammonia or ammonium bicarbonate--druggists have) in a tablespoon of milk. Beat until creamy, I cup sugar and 1/2 cup butter or shortening. Add 1 egg, well beaten in the "ammoniated milk." Then stir in 2 cups flour. Roll out and cut into shapes, squares or oblong wafers as desired. Bake on a floured tin in a quick oven, 375 to 400 degrees F., but watch carefully, as they burn easily. This recipe can be varied by adding extract of lemon (this is what grandma used when she was alive) or vanilla, cinnamon or any preferred flavoring.
"This is an old-time recipe and a newtime recipe as I've never seen it in print for years, but watch your guests enjoy these biscuits and come back for a second helping, please."
I've made sourdough from wild yeast, either capturing it in potato water or flour water set out uncovered. Caught some good wild ones & some really nasty growths! When we lived in Alaska I had good ones, in the desert southwest, yucky, so I mail ordered sourdough.
Since moving to a damp climate we have had both. One of my children did experiments with all sorts of grains & ground beans, seeds, etc. seeing what she could ferment & bake with, it was a long winter.:funnyface:
The iffyness of wild yeast was probably a concern to Israelite wives who had to get rid of their yeast before passover every year. Imagine having a really good one that made praiseworthy bread and then.....
Maybe that's why Jesus parable about the leaven says "that a woman hid in three seah measures of flour." Interesting choice of words, eh?
My Pennsylvania Dutch heritage shows when the subject of food comes up! If we aren't eating we are talking about it!
Fun conversation, something we can all agree we like!:friends:
Blithe
Ah, Pennsylvania Dutch reminds me of dilled beans. My family used to love them out of existence. And I love that we can agree on this topic. That's one of the reasons I started this thread. Sometimes we just have to find some common ground :chef: :eat:
love,
Rez
Rez,
Speaking of old recipes, I made up a new batch of mushy pea's in my crock pot today!
I'll have some for dinner tonight and freeze the rest.
abe
Rez,
Speaking of old recipes, I made up a new batch of mushy pea's in my crock pot today!
I'll have some for dinner tonight and freeze the rest.
abe
....and are you going to classify that as "funny", "old" or "strange"? :giggle:
Now, split pea soup....yum!
But seriously, is that an old ethnic recipe? Do you put any other ingredient in it, like onion? I imagine that you're using green split peas. Do tell.
Rez
Rez,
Speaking of old recipes, I made up a new batch of mushy pea's in my crock pot today!
I'll have some for dinner tonight and freeze the rest.
abe
....and are you going to classify that as "funny", "old" or "strange"? :giggle:
Now, split pea soup....yum!
But seriously, is that an old ethnic recipe? Do you put any other ingredient in it, like onion? I imagine that you're using green split peas. Do tell.
Rez
Its a food with origins in Britain where most fish and chip "shops" will sell mushy peas as a side order.
Most Canadians won't touch the stuff.
I fill up my crock pot 1 third with dried marrowfat peas, the biggest I can find. (not split peas)
Fill to the top with water and soak overnight.
In the morning the peas will have soaked up the water and filled the crockpot.
I put in a tablespoon of baking soda and fill with water again stirring in the baking soda.
The baking soda breaks down the skins of the peas.
You could put the baking soda in the first soaking however, I find it changes the flavor of the peas if you do this.
At noon I pour out the water and rinse the baking soda away a couple of times.
Refill with fresh water, add teaspoon of sugar, a big gob of butter and sprig of mint.
Turn on crockpot for remainder of day.
I stir them and if they start to get mushy they are ready which, is when I add salt to taste.
If they don't get mushy I add water and cook again the next day.
I have never added onions or anything else.
abe
Thanks for the info on mushy peas and the method for their preparation. It isn't at all what I expected. After looking it up on Google I see that it's very loved by many Brits. One guy even said that he wouldn't get fish and chips anywhere that didn't serve a side order of mushy peas.
I really dig the mint addition. I love mint on fresh peas..or mint sauce. Even love it on small new potatoes. Must have been the combination I enjoyed as a child when my mum made roast lamb.
Definitely going to try it if I can get my hands on marrowfat peas. I have a feeling that I'd like it. :licklips:
love,
Rez
Thanks for the info on mushy peas and the method for their preparation. It isn't at all what I expected. After looking it up on Google I see that it's very loved by many Brits. One guy even said that he wouldn't get fish and chips anywhere that didn't serve a side order of mushy peas.
I really dig the mint addition. I love mint on fresh peas..or mint sauce. Even love it on small new potatoes. Must have been the combination I enjoyed as a child when my mum made roast lamb.
Definitely going to try it if I can get my hands on marrowfat peas. I have a feeling that I'd like it. :licklips:
love,
Rez
Rez,
Let me know how it turns out.
Roast lamb is one of my favorite meals.
There is a little hole in the wall Greek diner in an area of Toronto called "The Beaches" that makes the most incredible roast lamb.
I have recently tried some lamb shank recipes in my crock pot which are equally good. The smell while they are cooking is amazing. Trouble is, it is sometimes hard to obtain the lamb shanks where I live.
There are several good lamb shank crock pot recipes on the net.
Up until a few years ago I did not even know what a lamb shank was.
Its not something very popular in Canada.
Probably because most Canadians have never tried it.
abe