Hobo Bread

Recipe for "Hobo Bread" attributed to Debbie Aiken:

2 cups raisins
2 1/2 cups boiling water (pour over raisins, add 4 tsp. soda, let stand overnight overnight on countertop)

Mix:

1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
4 tbsp. oil
4 cups flour
1/4 tsp. salt

Mix well. Add raisins and nuts and some of the raisins liquid (enough to make mixture smooth)

Pour into 3 greased 1 lb. coffee cans.

Bake at 350 deg. for 1 hour ten min

Found in "Captain Courageous" by Rudyard Kipling. Published by Grosset and Dunlap, no date, circa 1955.

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Stuffed Peppers

I thought I would share another recipe from my book HANDWRITTEN RECIPES. This one is for stuffed peppers:

4 peppers
1½ cups cooked macaroni
1 can mushroom soup
4 tablespoons grated cheese
1 tablespoon onion
1 tablespoon parsley
½ cup ham

Mix soup, (macaroni), onion, parsley and meat. Sprinkle top with cheese. Bake in oven 375 degrees for 15 minutes.

 Found in The ABC of Casseroles (no author). Published by Peter Pauper Press, 1954.

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Tuna Croquettes

Here's another found recipe that's featured in my book HANDWRITTEN RECIPES.

This one is for a very American version of Tuna Croquettes:

35 Ritz crackers (1 stack pack), crushed
1 (7-ounce) can tuna, drained and flaked
¼ cup milk
½ teaspoon basil
⅛ teaspoon pepper
1 egg, beaten
American cheese, cut into 1-inch cubes

Mix together all ingredients except cheese, reserving some cracker crumbs, and chill. Shape each croquette around a cube of cheese. Roll in remaining cracker crumbs. Sauté in ½ inch of hot fat until well browned. Makes 6 to 8 croquettes.

Found in Gateway to the Great Books, vol. 10: Philosophical Essays edited by Robert M. Hutchins and Mortimer J. Adler. Published by Encyclopedia Britannica, 1963.

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Coffee Cake

Recipe for coffee cake (I think). Some of the writing has faded a bit and is tough to make out:

6 cups flour
1 cup butter
1 cup of coffee prepared as from the label
1 cup molasses
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of raisins
1 teaspoon soda
Spice with cloves and cinnamon

Found in the 1886 edition of "The Centaur Almanac and Cook Book."

Here are a few more scans of that old almanac:

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Eggs in a Basket

This recipe, featured in my book Handwritten Recipes, is for the classic "Eggs in a Basket" -

6 hard-cooked eggs
1 can deviled ham
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 tablespoon sweet pickle relish
green pepper, pimiento, stuffed olives (chopped into strips)

Cut eggs in half and remove yolks. Blend ham, mayonnaise and relish. Fill hollows with mixture and garnish with strips of pepper, pimiento and stuffed olives.

 Found in Good Egg Dishes by Ambrose Heath. Published by Faber and Faber Ltd., 1952.

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Applesauce Cake

Applesauce Cake (1 egg)

1 3/4 c cake flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinn.
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 c shortening
1 c sugar
1 egg, well beaten
2 c chopped nuts
2 c chopped raisins
3/4 c strained hot applesauce, unsweetened

Sift flour, add b. powder, soda, salt and spices and sift three times, Cream butter, add sugar.

Mix thoroughly. Add egg, raisins, nuts, beat well.

Add flour mixture, alternately with apple...(sauce)... a small amount at a time.

Bake into a greased (pan loaf) 9 1/2 x 5 1/2 x 3 in a med. oven 350 degrees 1 hour or until done.

Found in "Pillsbury Kitchens Family Cookbook" published by Pillsbury, 1979.

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Molasses Popcorn Balls

Here's a recipe that appears in my book "Handwritten Recipes."

Molasses Popcorn Balls

¾ cup water

1½ cups molasses

1½ cups light brown sugar

1 tablespoon vinegar

¼ teaspoon baking soda

⅛ teaspoon cream of tartar

¾ cup butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 quarts popcorn

Mix first six ingredients in large saucepan. Place over low heat and stir until sugar is dissolved. Bring to boiling and cook slowly until it will form a soft ball. Add butter and cook until hard ball stage. Add vanilla and corn.

Form into balls.

Makes 18 to 24 balls.

Found in "New Magic in the Kitchen" (no author). Published by Borden, no date; circa 1940s.

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Fruit Cake

This recipe for fruit cake was featured in my book Handwritten Recipes:

¾ pound shortening
3 eggs
1 pound brown sugar
½ pint molasses
2 cups coffee
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 pound raisins
1 pound currants
¼ pound citron, lemon and orange peel
1 pound nuts
2 teaspoons each of all kinds spices, extracts (the ones you like best) little salt
6 cups flour
3 teaspoons baking powder

 Use 5 cups (flour) first and try out. This is a large rule I often cut it down. Do not bake fast. I use 2 or 3 kinds of extracts.

Found in “The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book” by Fannie Merritt Farmer. Published by Little, Brown and Co., 1928.

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Prune Meringue Pie

I had to throw in a pie recipe before Thanksgiving.

This one also comes from Handwritten Recipes.

Prune Meringue Pie

1 ½ cups cooked prunes, cut up
1 cup liquid from prunes
1 cup crushed pineapple
¼ cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
¼ teaspoon salt
3 eggs
1 pie shell

Combine prunes, liquid and pineapple over heat. Blend sugar, cornstarch and salt. Stir into hot fruit.
Cook until mixture is clear.
Beat egg yolks. Stir a little hot fruit mixture into egg. Stir egg slowly into remaining fruit. Cook for 3
or 4 minutes longer over low heat.
Pour into pie shell. Put meringue on top and brown in oven, 325 degrees, for 15 to 20 minutes.

Found in “The Mystery Chef’s Never Fail Cook Book.” Published by Perma Giants, 1949.

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Cranberry Salad

I know many of you readers here in the States are getting ready for Thanksgiving, so I thought I would post this recipe for cranberry salad that appears in my book "Handwritten Recipes." I haven't tried it myself, so I make no promises:

Cranberry Salad


1 cup cranberries (cut or ground)
1 cup sugar
1 small package of lemon Jell-O
1 cup hot water
1 cup pineapple juice

Combine and chill in bowl until syrupy.

Add:

1 cup chopped celery
1 cup pineapple, drained
½ cup chopped nuts

Pour into mold and serve.

Found in "How I Cook It" by Virginia McDonald. Published by Frank Glenn Publishing, 1949.

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