HOME REMEDY: MILDEW
With all the recent rains and humidity, mold and mildew are increasing problems. Jeanne Fischer of Austin sends along this solution from her great-grandmother’s remedy book: “Pour distilled white vinegar straight into a spray bottle, spray on the moldy area, and let set without rinsing. The smell will dissipate in a few hours. For light stains, dilute the vinegar with an equal amount of water.”
RECIPE: GRANDMA'S CHOCOLATE CAKE
Austinite Terri Johansen, a fifth-generation Texan, offers this recipe from his grandmother, Juliana Franklin, one that was passed down through generations. He remembers hearing stories about how she used to buy vanilla and other ingredients from a Watkins salesman traveling in a buggy.
SERVES: 12
Ingredients
For the cake
· 2 cups flour
· 2 cups sugar
· 1/4 teaspoon salt
· 4 heaping tablespoons Watkins cocoa
· 2 sticks butter
· 1 cup boiling water
· 1/2 cup buttermilk
· 2 beaten eggs
· 1 teaspoon baking soda
· 1 teaspoon Watkins Vanilla
For the frosting
· 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
· 1 ¾ stick of butter
· 4 heaping tablespoons Watkins cocoa
· 6 tablespoons whole milk
· 1 teaspoon Watkins vanilla
· 1 pound (minus 1/2 cup) powdered sugar
Preparation Instructions
Use an 18x13 sheet cake pan, or two smaller.
In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt. In a saucepan, melt the butter. Add cocoa. Stir together.
Add boiling water, allow mixture to boil for 30 seconds, then turn off heat. Pour over flour mixture, and stir lightly to cool.
In a measuring cup, pour the buttermilk and add beaten eggs, baking soda and vanilla. Stir buttermilk mixture into butter/chocolate mixture. Pour into sheet cake pan and bake at 350-degrees for 20 minutes.
While cake is baking, make the icing.
Chop pecans finely. Melt butter in a saucepan. Add cocoa, stir to combine, then turn off heat. Add the milk, vanilla and powdered sugar. Stir together. Add the pecans, stir together, and pour over warm cake.
Cut into squares and eat.
HOME REMEDY: SPRAINS, HEADACHES
From Nadine Miller, who sent along a copy of “Remedies for the Practical Housewife,” an 1893 book that her great-grandmother used. “She, her daughter, and her granddaughter used these with great success,” she reports.
· “For a sprain, mix a little turpentine with flour and the white of an egg and apply it to the part. This cures a desperate sore.”
· “For the head ache, snuff up a little juice of horse radish, or boil a hand full of rosemary in a quart of water. Put this in a mug and hold your head covered with a napkin over the steam as hot as you can bear it. Repeat till the pain stops.
HOME REMEDY: SUNBURN
From the Book of Home Cures, 1881: For skin too exposed to sun, the modern housewife can rely on black tea that is allowed to soak in cool water. Cloth tea bags should soaked and be laid upon the affected skin for half an hour. It removes the heat and any sting, and leaves a soothing, warm feeling for the affected person.
RECIPE: SUMMER MELON SALAD
Austin resident Mary Conrad offers this month’s recipe, a summer fruit salad that that was passed down from her grandmother. “She use to tell how she and her sisters would gather fresh melons and berries from the garden, and eat them in a heavy whipped cream. It was their special summer treat,” Mrs. Conrad explains. “At some point she substituted the whipped cream for yogurt because it was less fattening. But is still delicious. Our family has had this on their table for four generations.”
Serves: 6
Ingredients
§ 1 cup lemon yogurt
§ 1 tablespoon honey
§ 1 teaspoon lemon juice
§ 2 cups watermelon balls or chunks
§ 2 cups cantaloupe balls or chunks
§ 1 cup blackberries
§ Springs of fresh mint
Preparation
In a salad bowl whisk together the lemon yogurt, honey and lemon juice until smooth, and gently fold in the watermelon, cantaloupe, strawberries and blackberries. Toss to coat and then serve in dessert classes., garnished with mint.
RECIPE: HOME-MADE ICE CREAM
A number of readers have requested an 1800s recipe for homemade ice cream, a summer delicacy in those days. The following is offered from The Modern Homemaker, 1899, found and submitted by longtime Austin resident Miles Freeman. Many thanks.
Miles notes the recipe, which has been a summer favorite in his family for decades, is usually doubled because the finished product so quickly disappears.
Serves: 8
Ingredients
· 4 egg yolks
· ½ cup granulated sugar
· 1 cup whole milk
· 1 cup heavy cream or whipping cream
· 2 teaspoons Watkins vanilla extract
· Crushed ice
· Rock salt
Preparation
In a medium-size bowl, add the egg yolks and sugar; beat until thick and lemon colored. Set aside.
In a small heavy saucepan over low to medium-low heat, add the milk. Slowly bring the milk to a gentle simmer or until it begins to bubble around the edges. Do not let the mixture boil. Remove from heat.
Gradually stir hot milk into beaten egg/sugar mixture with a wire whisk. Pour mixture back into the saucepan. Over low heat, stirring constantly, heat until the custard-like mixture thickens and will coat the back of a metal spoon with a thin film, after approximately 7 to 10 minutes. Your cooking thermometer should reach between 165 and 180 degrees F.
Do not let the mixture boil or it will curdle. If your custard base does curdle, immediately remove from heat and place in a blender. Process until smooth.
RECIPE: PAW-PAW'S FALL BRISKET
Georgetown resident Tom Reichmann send along this month’s recipe with this note: “Paw-Paw was my grandfather, and every fall he used to cook brisket in the oven, not in a smoker. We served it at family reunions and other gatherings, and everyone loved it. He said he got the recipe from his father, who homesteaded near Taylor. We updated the recipe with Liquid Smoke, but otherwise it’s the same it’s always been.”
Serves: 12
Ingredients
§ 10 pounds beef brisket
§ 2 cans beef consommé
§ 1/2 cup lemon juice
§ 1-1/2 cup soy sauce
§ 5 cloves chopped garlic
§ 2 tablespoons Liquid Smoke
Preparation
Combine first five ingredients in large roasting pan (a disposable pan is just fine). Place brisket in the marinade, fat side up. Cover tightly with foil. Marinate in refrigerator for 24-48 hours. When ready to cook, place pan covered in foil into a 300-degree oven. Cook brisket for approximately 40 minutes per pound.
When fork-tender, transfer whole brisket to a cutting board. Slice against the grain and place slices back into the cooking liquid. Serve immediately, spooning juice over the slices.
Barbeque sauce may be used, if preferred.
You may store pan in fridge for up to two days or freeze for use at a later date. If fat collects and hardens at the top, remove and discard.
Brisket is great with potatoes, mashed or in a potato salad. Serve with a salad and pie and you’ve got yourself an All-American winner. Brisket is also great on a sandwich with melted cheese.
REMEDIES FOR EAR ACHE, BURNS
From The Settlers Companion, 1873: “For ear ache, roast together onions and tobacco and squeeze the juice, drop in the ear . . . For burns, apply butter immediately. It will prevent blistering, and remove the fire and soreness. A remedy always at hand and easily applied.”
1897: PLANTING A FALL GARDEN
From the Texas Gardener’s Handbook, 1897: “Milder fall temperatures bring out better flavors in vegetable gardens. Insects and disease are less of a problem. Both warm- and cool-season crops can be grown.
“Warm-season vegetables include beans, cucumbers and summer squash that will not grow when fall’s cool comes. Plant them soon, adjoining newly planted tomatoes. Cool-season crops include beets, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, lettuce, radishes, spinach and turnips. They can be cultivated alongside the others.
“Plant crops where they will receive at least six hours of direct sun daily. Root crops such as turnips, and leaf vegetables like lettuce tolerate some shade, but fruiting types such as tomatoes and squash need sun. A south or southeastern exposure is best, and when possible, plant rows in an east-west alignment. A garden that catches the early morning sun will dry more quickly, reducing the chance that harmful fungi or bacteria will develop.
RECIPE: SADIE'S PUMPKIN MUFFINS
austin resident georgia renfro sent along this month’s recipe, which she says is a family heirloom from her Great Aunt Sadie. “It’s been modified over the years, but is absolutely as delicious as ever.” It’s perfect at Halloween, especially if the frosted muffins are decorated with orange sprinkles.
Serves: 12
Ingredients
Muffins
· 1 cup All-Purpose Flour
· ½ cup sugar
· 2 teaspoons Watkins Baking Powder
· 1 ½ teaspoon Watkins Cinnamon
· ¼ teaspoon Watkins Ground Ginger
· ½ teaspoon Watkins Nutmeg
· ½ teaspoon Salt
· 4 Tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
· 1 cup (heaping) pumpkin puree
· ½ cup Evaporated Milk
· 1 whole egg
· 1 ½ teaspoon Watkins Vanilla
· ½ cup Golden Raisins, if you like them
Topping
· 2 Tablespoons sugar
· 1 teaspoon Watkins Cinnamon
· ¼ teaspoon Watkins Nutmeg
Frosting
· ¼ cup softened butter
· 4 ounces cream cheese
· ½ pound powdered sugar
· ½ teaspoon Watkins Vanilla
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Generously grease 12 muffin tins.
Sift flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt. Cut in butter with two knives or a pastry blender until it is fully mixed. In a separate bowl, mix together pumpkin, evaporated milk, egg and vanilla. Pour pumpkin mixture into the flour mixture. Add raisins. Fold gently until mixture is just combined.
Pour into a greased muffin pan. The batter hardly ever fills all twelve unless you keep it down to half full. Sprinkle with remaining cinnamon-sugar-nutmeg mixture over the top of each unbaked muffin. Bake for 25 minutes. Allow to cool in pan for 15 minutes.
To make the frosting, beat all ingredients until soft and whipped. Spread onto completely cooled muffins, or with a large pastry bag with a large star tip. Store in the fridge, as icing softens at room temperature.
1899: GROW A FALL GARDEN
From the Texas Garden Handbook, 1899: “Sow beets, carrots, green onions, cauliflower and some cabbages. Some can be planted into November, as they can handle light frost, which makes them sweeter. Hardy spinach and flat beans can grow well into early winter. Mulch heavily to raise the temperature of the soil.”
REMEDIES FOR SINUSITIS, WARTS
From Family Home Remedies, 1878: “Use anise for respiratory infections such as sinusitis. Combats infection and relieves mucus from air passages. Good digestion aid. Helpful during menopause . . . Cedar treats viruses, fungus, stimulates the immune system, increases venous blood flow. Expectorant, lymphatic cleanser, urinary antiseptic. Use externally for warts.”
RECIPE: MAGGIE'S PECAN APPLE PIE
AUSTINITE TINA SCHULTZ SENDS ALONG THIS RECIPE FOR GRANDMA MATTIE'S PECAN APPLIE PIE, A REALLY MOUTH-WATERING ONE PASSED DOWN FROM HER GRANDMOTHER WHO SAID IT CAME FROM HER MOTHER'S MOTHER. "SO DREAMY, IT WOULD PUT GRANDPA DOWN FOR A NAP EVERY TIME," SHE SAYS. "IT'S FAMOUS IN OUR FAMILY."
Serves: 12
Ingredients
Crust
1 whole unbaked pie crust
Filling
3 whole Large (4 or 5 small) Granny Smith Apples, peeled, cored and sliced thin
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons Watkins Vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon Watkins cinnamon
Topping
7 tablespoons butter
3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup pecans (more to taste)
Dash of salt
Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Roll out pie dough and place it in a pie pan. Decorate the edges as desired.
Add apple slices to a large bowl. In a separate bowl, mix together cream, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon flour, vanilla and cinnamon. Pour over apples. Pour apples into pie shell.
In the bowl of a food processor (or you can mix by hand) combine butter, flour, sugar, pecans (chop if you're not using a food processor), and salt. Mix until everything comes together in clumps. Pour topping over apples.
Attach foil to the edges and lay a piece of flat foil loosely over the top of the pie. Place pie pan on top of a rimmed cookie sheet and bake for one hour. At the end, remove foil and allow to finish baking and browning. Can bake for up to 15 or 20 minutes more if necessary.
Remove from oven when pie is bubbly and golden brown.
Serve warm with hard sauce, whipped cream, or ice cream.
CLEANING WINDOWS
From the Book of Home Care, 1876:
"Use two tablespoons of turpentine in water, for clean glass panes."
REMEDIES FOR RINGWORM, PAINS
From Helene Gaither, who sent along a copy of “Home Remedies,” an 1880 book that her great-grandmother used. “I’ve used several of them, and they work,” she reports.
“To cure ringworm, rub the spot with milk from wild milkweed for three days.”
“Mix salt with the yolk of an egg until about consistency of mustard, then use same as mustard plaster.”
RECIPE: INDIAN GRILLED CORN
Austinite Gina Phelps sends along this recipe for Indian Grilled Corn, one passed down by her grandmother who said it was how the Tonkawa people used to cook their corn.
Serves: 4 to 6
INGREDIENTS
· 8 ears corn
· Kosher salt
BBQ Butter:
· 2 tablespoons canola oil
· 1/2 small red onion, chopped
· 2 cloves garlic, chopped
· 2 teaspoons paprika
· 1/2 teaspoon cayenne powder
· 1 teaspoon toasted cumin seeds
· 1 tablespoon ancho chili powder
· 1/2 cup water
· 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
· 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
· Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Herb Butter
· 2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
· 1/4 cup chopped fresh herbs ( basil, chives or tarragon)
· 1 teaspoon kosher salt
· Freshly ground black pepper
DIRECTIONS
Heat the grill to medium. Pull the outer husks down the ear to the base. Strip away the silk from each ear of corn by hand. Fold husks back into place, and place the ears of corn in a large bowl of cold water with 1 tablespoon of salt for 10 minutes. Remove corn from water and shake off excess. Place the corn on the grill, close the cover and grill for 15 to 20 minutes, turning every 5 minutes, or until kernels are tender when pierced with a paring knife. Remove the husks and eat on the cob.
Serve with the BBQ Butter and/or Herb Butter. Spread over the corn while hot.
BBQ Butter
Heat the oil in a medium sauté pan over high heat until almost smoking. Add the onion and cook until soft, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the paprika, cayenne, cumin and ancho powder and cook for 1 minute. Add 1/2 cup of water and cook until the mixture becomes thickened. Let cool slightly. Place the butter in a food processor, add the spice mixture and Worcestershire sauce and process until smooth. Season with salt and pepper, scrape the mixture into a small bowl, cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to allow the flavors to meld. Bring to room temperature before serving.
Herb Butter
Combine in a food processor and process until smooth.
A NATURAL SUNBURN RELIEF
From the Book of Home Cures, 1881: For skin too exposed to sun, the modern housewife can rely on black tea that is allowed to soak in cool water. Cloth tea bags should soaked and be laid upon the affected skin for half an hour. It removes the heat and any sting, and leaves a soothing, warm feeling for the affected person.
REMEDIES FOR SPRAINS, HEADACHES
From Nadine Miller, who sent along a copy of “Remedies for the Practical Housewife,” an 1893 book that her great-grandmother used. “She, her daughter, and her granddaughter used these with great success,” she reports.
“For a sprain, mix a little turpentine with flour and the white of an egg and apply it to the part. This cures a desperate sore.”
“For the head ache, snuff up a little juice of horse radish, or boil a hand full of rosemary in a quart of water. Put this in a mug and hold your head covered with a napkin over the steam as hot as you can bear it. Repeat till the pain stops."
RECIPE: GRANDMA'S CHOCOLATE CAKE
Austinite Terri Johansen, a fifth-generation Texan, offers this recipe from his grandmother, Juliana Franklin, one that was passed down through generations. He remembers hearing stories about how she used to buy vanilla and other ingredients from a Watkins salesman traveling in a buggy.
Makes: 12 servings.
INGREDIENTS
For the cake
· 2 cups flour
· 2 cups sugar
· 1/4 teaspoon salt
· 4 heaping tablespoons Watkins cocoa
· 2 sticks Butter
· 1 cup boiling water
· 1/2 cup buttermilk
· 2 beaten eggs
· 1 teaspoon baking soda
· 1 teaspoon Watkins Vanilla
For the frosting
· 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
· 1-3/4 stick butter
· 4 heaping tablespoons Watkins cocoa
· 6 tablespoons whole milk
· 1 teaspoon Watkins vanilla
· 1 pound (minus 1/2 cup) powdered sugar
PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS
Use an 18x13 sheet cake pan, or two smaller.
In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt. In a saucepan, melt the butter. Add cocoa. Stir together.
Add boiling water, allow mixture to boil for 30 seconds, then turn off heat. Pour over flour mixture, and stir lightly to cool.
In a measuring cup, pour the buttermilk and add beaten eggs, baking soda and vanilla. Stir buttermilk mixture into butter/chocolate mixture. Pour into sheet cake pan and bake at 350-degrees for 20 minutes.
While cake is baking, make the icing.
Chop pecans finely. Melt butter in a saucepan. Add cocoa, stir to combine, then turn off heat. Add the milk, vanilla and powdered sugar. Stir together. Add the pecans, stir together, and pour over warm cake.
Cut into squares and eat.