The Sweet Truth About Sweets: Candy-Making at Home

With Halloween around the corner (by which I mean on the other side of the weekend), it seemed like a good time to revisit a sweet topic on the blog:

CANDY!!!

In the days before brightly colored bags of candy in store aisles, candy-making was a home activity. It took a set of tools, a set of skills, and, based on my own limited experience, a great deal of patience. And, since I’m certainly no expert, we’re revisiting an authority on many things in the late 19th/early 20th century, Sarah Tyson Rorer (see previous posts about her here and here).

In 1889, Rorer’s Home Candy Making was published. It wasn’t the first manual of its kind, but it is one of the earliest volumes we have in Special Collections specifically dedicated to candy-making.

Candy in the pre-mass-produced era usually fell into some standard categories which had a lot of variation within them. You’ll commonly see creams, glacés, nougats, caramels, drops (essentially hard candies), and taffy.

Following the table of contents, Rorer’s book has a few general rules for candy-making, which, if you delve into candy-making today, still hold true. Unlike some aspects of cooking and techniques, home candy-making today is pretty much the way is was 100+ years ago and not all that different from candy-making in previous, except maybe for the addition of the candy thermometer later on.

The book includes directions for making colorings at home using ingredients, as Rorer specifically advises against what she calls “colorings of commerce” (in other words, commercially produced ones). Her colors rely on an array of ingredients from just sugar and water to saffron, spinach, and cochineal. On a side note, at some point, someone stored a newspaper clipping in this volume, causing one of the pages to discolor–we see that a lot in Special Collections!

A few sample recipes from the section on cream candies and confections, including those flavored with coffee or tea, and those filled with fruit.

Some recipes from the section on taffy, which also includes candies using molasses and, interestingly, a recipe for cough drops.

In addition to more taffy and some fruit caramels, these pages also include a recipe for “chocolate chips.” These are a far cry from the chocolate chips we so often use for cookies today. Rather, they are a brittle hard candy coated in chocolate or chocolate fondant.

Toward the end of the book, there are about 10 blank pages labeled “Additional Recipes.” The idea, of course, is that home candy-makers would record their own recipes. As Rorer points out in the section on creamed confections: “This class is without limit if one has any inventiveness; one variety seems to suggest another.” But that inventiveness can be applied more broadly to all the categories in the book–once one has practiced and mastered the techniques, of course. Sadly, the previous owner(s) of our copy did not include an original recipes.

Also, because it’s too fun not to share, here’s a bonus recipe from The Tiny Book on Candies (1907):

The Tiny Book of Candies (1907) measures just over 2 inches (5cm) in height (paperclip for scale). It’s surprisingly readable and is part of a series of five “tiny” books, of which Special Collections has almost all.

Among its pages is a recipe for “spun sugar,” which are the thin strands of sugar that can be shaped while still warm. The process isn’t difficult, but it involves the use of some surprising tools: broomsticks, chairs, and wire “dippers.”

Special Collections has close to 50 books in the culinary collection that are devoted to the topic of candy and confections. Beyond that, we have hundreds of recipe books and other materials that touch on the subject to vary degrees. So, whatever you sweet-tooth, we probably have something to satisfy it for this Halloween and every other time of year.

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Community Cooking in (and Beyond) the Bluegrass State

Housekeeping in the Blue Grass: A New and Practical Cook Book Containing Nearly a Thousand Recipes was originally published in 1875. The copy is one of the 10th “new and enlarged” edition, first issued in 1879, but our actual copy is from 1881. Compiled and edited by the Ladies of the Presbyterian Church in Paris, Kentucky, these 206 pages are packed with recipes from women (and a few men) from mostly Kentucky, but also Virginia, Arkansas, New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio.

Our edition includes the original 1875 preface, which we can’t NOT quote a bit of for you:

The “Blue Grass” region of Kentucky, as is well know, is considered the garden spot of the State. It is celebrated for the fertility of its soil, the beauty of its pastures, its flocks and blooded stock, and last, but not least, for the hospitality of its people and their table luxuries.

It is useless to enlarge upon the last feature, especially to those who have attended Bourbon Fairs [that’s the county, not the whiskey], and made visits in this and the adjoining counties. We only refer to it, by way of introducing our book to the appreciation of the public.

The 1879 also had a preface of its own, which states, in part:

…Nine thousand copies have been sold, and its praises have been sung by many of the best housekeepers of the land.

In sending forth this new edition, we have corrected some errors, supplied defects, and added many valuable recipes, which will be found at the close of each section and in the Miscellaneous department.

The entire profits of this work have been, and will continue to be, devoted to religious charity.

Housekeeping in the Blue Grass was, at its core, a community cookbook, designed to raise funds for a cause. But the fact that it went on into at least 10 editions and over 9,000 copies sold says a lot for this little volume. (There was at least one more edition in 1905 AND it has been reprinted  at least once in the last 10 years.) It clearly appealed to a wide audience (not just Kentuckians!) in its originality. (The preface also states that “Many of our recipes are entirely original with our own famed cooks; others have been gathered from the most reliable sources; not one, so far as we know, has been copied from books.”) So, what are these amazing recipes?

Oysters, were an increasingly popular item in landlocked states like Kentucky and Tennessee during this time, both as a stand-alone and as an ingredient in other dishes.

These “Walnut Pickles” include a quite precise direction that they should be “gather[ed]…about the 10th of June, when you can stick a pin through them”

And, apparently, adding cloves makes pickled walnuts even better!

These “Transparent Pudding” recipes all vary a bit, but the idea is generally the same: a kind of baked custard covered in meringue.

Recently, our staff came across a “buttermilk lemonade” recipe from the early 20th century we might be making as an experiment. This book has a more complicated “Milk Lemonade” option.

The cookbook contains an entire section of home remedies (remember: this is NOT medical advice) that gives us some insight into late 19th century folk medicine.

Lastly, this page comes from the later-added “Miscellaneous” section of recipes. We couldn’t pass up sharing “Blue Grass Fruit Cake!”

Housekeeping in the Blue Grass has elements we see in many other cookbooks of the time: sections for home remedies, home cleaning/upkeep, and cooking for invalids, in addition to all the other recipes. Of course, it also reflects a different era of cooking. The majority of the recipes have a list of ingredients in non-standard amounts (standardized measurements, courtesy of Fannie Farmer, were still several years in the future in 1881) and, in some cases, additional directions, but there was still an assumption that a reader would know what to do with those ingredients. Or, they would at least understand the basics of producing a pudding, a white sauce, or a pastry dough as a component. Compared to many modern cookbooks, there was a different set of expectations on home cooks in the late 19th century! Some of the basics may be covered in the book (Housekeeping in the Blue Grass has recipes for pie crust that you could use throughout, for example), but there’s no guarantee.

Community cookbooks were aptly named, especially in their early days–they weren’t just something produced by a community group (often of women). They were produced by a community of cooks, for a community of new and experienced cooks, and to help build community between those who had the knowledge and those who might have needed some culinary and domestic education. That’s a whole other topic we don’t have space for here today, but it is food for thought (at least it has been for me lately).

Housekeeping in the Blue Grass is available online, as it was scanned by Special Collections staff some years ago. So, if our amuse-bouche (I love that word!) of a blog post isn’t enough for you, you can delve further into the book and find recipes for deviled turkey, Sally Lunn, or fish pie…

Women’s History Month, Part 21: Mrs. D. A. Lincoln (1884-1921)

Earlier this month, I had one book from our profiled woman this week on display. It was part of Women’s History Month exhibit and was placed, strategically, with the works of three other women: Fannie Merritt Farmer, Maria Parloa, and Janet McKenzie Hill. Like those three, Mary Johnson Bailey Lincoln (aka Mrs. D. A. Lincoln) was connected to the Boston Cooking School, which is where we’ll start this week.

Founded by the Women’s Education Association of Boston in 1879, the Boston Cooking School (which I will happily abbreviate as BCS to save my fingers a bit of typing) was developed to “offer instruction in cooking to those who wished to earn their livelihood as cooks, or who would make practical use of such information in their families.” Inspired by similar schools overseas, in America, the Boston Cooking School, and others like it, signified a shift in domestic culture. Previously, both women cooking for their families and those making a profession from cooking, learned their skills at home and/or from their own community of women. The BCS was among the first formal education options for women of any age to improve their skills. During its tenure, a variety of culinary educators, authors, and lecturers worked there. In 1902, the BCS was incorporated in Boston’s Simmons College.

As to Mary…She was born in Massachusetts in 1844. Shortly after she graduated from the Wheaton Female Seminary, she married David A. Lincoln in 1865. About a decade into their marriage, with David’s health failing, Mary began cooking in the homes of others. In 1879, she was invited to teach at the new BCS, but she declined, as she had no teaching experience. After taking a few courses at the school, however, that soon changed. She started teaching at the BCS in 1879 and was the first principal, a position she held until 1885, during which time she began programs like free courses for immigrant girls in Boston’s North End to special instruction in “sick-room cookery” for nurses from area hospitals. During this time, she wrote the Boston School Kitchen Text-Book: Lessons in Cooking for the Use of Classes in Public and Industrial Schools, which would go through numerous editions. It represents a small portion of Lincoln’s work in establishing a textbook for cooking school education. Over the course of her career, which continued another 36 years after she left the BCS, she would author cookbooks and columns, continue to help establish the field of domestic science, provide endorsements, and teach at public and industrial schools. She died in 1921.

Mrs. Lincoln was, like many of the other women we’ve profiled, a household name. Her recipes were taken from her own sources and incorporated into generations of other published cookbooks, pamphlets, and community cookbooks, and shared among communities of women. By tying her name to products, like Janet McKenzie Hill, Marion Harris Neil, and others, she gained a certain level notoriety and fame in the culinary world. She authored or co-authored more than 30 individual titles, 10 of which we have in Special Collections (plus other editions of three of those). We have included those items in bold, as well as a sampling of some of her other works. On an interesting side note, from her first publication in 1884 until the time of David’s death in 1894, she published as Mrs. D. A. Lincoln. After his death, she published as Mary J. Lincoln.

• The “Quick Meal” Cook Book, 1892 (Ringen Stove Company)
• Cornstarch Cookery: A Collection of Recipes for Dainty Dishes in which Kingsford Oswego Corn Starch is a Principal Ingredient, 1893
• Boston School Kitchen Text-Book: Lessons in Cooking for the Use of Classes in Public and Industrial Schools, c.1887. Also 1909 edition. 1901 edition available online through Special Collections.
• Twenty Lessons in Cookery: Compiled from the Boston School Kitchen Text-Book, 1888
• Frosty Fancies, c.1898. Available online through Special Collections.
• Mrs. Lincoln’s Boston Cook Book: What to Do and What Not to Do in Cooking, 1898. Also 1901 edition. 
• A Cookbook for a Month at a Time, 1899
• Frozen Dainties: Fifty Choice Receipts for Ice-Creams, Frozen Puddings, Frozen Fruits, Frozen Beverages, Sherbets, and Water Ices, 1899. Available online through Special Collections.
• Dainty Recipes for the Use of Boston Crystal Gelatine, late 1800s
• The Peerless Cook-Book: Valuable Receipts for Cooking, Compact and Practical, 1901
• The Home Science Cook Book, with Anna Barrows, 1902. Available online through Special Collections. 
• What to Have for Luncheon, 1904
• Carving and Serving, 1910
• Home Helps, a Pure Food Cook Book: A Useful Collection of Up-to-Date, Practical Recipes by Five of the Leading Culinary Experts in the United States: Mrs. Mary J. Lincoln, Lida Ames Willis, Mrs. Sarah Tyson Rorer, Mrs. Helen Armstrong [and] Marion Harland, c.1910
• Sixteen Dainty Desserts, with Mrs. C. M. Dearborn and Miss Anna Barrows, before 1930?

In addition to our digitized editions of her works, the Internet Archive has a large selection, many in various editions, available online. Mary was an early adopter of standardized measurements, as well as a proponent of teaching food chemistry and domestic science, and one of the first to push for a structure and organizational model for cookbooks that would be easy to use and easy to follow. If you spend a little time with early 20th century culinary history, you’re bound to come across her original works and her influences.

Women’s History Month, Part 14: Eliza Leslie (1787-1858)

This week, we’re looking at the life and books of Eliza Leslie (1787-1858). Eliza Leslie was born in Philadelphia and most of her books were published there (or in New England). She spent the first 12 years of her life living abroad in England. After the family returned to the United States, for financial reasons, her mother opened a boarding house (and we can speculate about what influence that may have had on her future written works). She eventually began publishing stories in children’s and women’s magazines. It wasn’t until around the age of 40, however, that she published her first cookbook: Receipts for Pastry, Cakes, and Sweetmeats (1828). She did not publish under her own name. Rather, the title page of Receipts for Pastry, Cakes, and Sweetmeats reads “By a Lady.” Later editions and at least one publication would use this moniker. Another variation was “By a Lady of Philadelphia.” Eventually, though, she used her own name, often branding her books (as we’ve seen with other authors) by including her name in the title, as with Miss Leslie’s new Cookery Book (1857), Miss Leslie’s Behaviour Book: A Guide and Manual for Ladies (1859), and Miss Leslie’s Lady’s New Receipt Book (1850). She died in 1858, and she was writing and publishing right up until then (Miss Leslie’s Behaviour Book: A Guide and Manual for Ladies appears to be a posthumous guide).

There is a brief, but good, biography of her (to which I am indebted) from the Library Company of Philadelphia that includes a portrait of Eliza. Many editions of her books (culinary, household, gift books, and novels) are available online through projects like the Internet Archive, Project Gutenberg, HathiTrust Digital Library, and many other sources. I’ve also scanned some pages from a few items in our collection (two are a bit too fragile for the scanners).

Title page from The Violet (1839), a gift book edited by Leslie. It also includes one of her stories.

Title page from The House Book (1841)

Table of contents from The House Book (1841)

Sample pages from The House Book (1841)

Sample pages from The House Book (1841)

Front cover of the 1998 reprint of Corn Meal Cookery, originally published in 1846

Glossary page from the 1998 reprint of Corn Meal Cookery, originally published in 1846

Recipe from the 1998 reprint of Corn Meal Cookery, originally published in 1846

Recipe from the 1998 reprint of Corn Meal Cookery, originally published in 1846

Title page from New Receipts for Cooking (1854)

Table of contents from New Receipts for Cooking (1854)

Sample page from New Receipts for Cooking (1854)

Sample page from New Receipts for Cooking (1854)

Title page from The American Family Cook Book (1858)

Sample entries from The American Family Cook Book (1858)

Sample entries from The American Family Cook Book (1858)

Sample entries from The American Family Cook Book (1858)

Bibliography of Eliza Leslie Publications at the University Libraries (items in bold are in Special Collections; items underlined are in Newman Library):

• Seventy-Five Receipts for Pastry, Cakes, and Sweetmeats. Boston : Munroe & Francis, [1829?].
• Pencil Sketches, or, Outlines of Characters and Manners. Philadelphia : Carey, Lea & Blanchard, 1833.
• Laura Lovel: A Sketch, for Ladies Only. Lowell: Franklin Bookstore, 1834.
• Pencil Sketches, or, Outlines of Characters and Manners. Philadelphia : Carey, Lea & Blanchard, 1835.
• Pencil Sketches, or, Outlines of Characters and Manners. Philadelphia : Carey, Lea & Blanchard, 1837.
• Althea Vernon, or, the Embroidered Handkerchief: To Which is added, Henrietta Harrison, or, The Blue Cotton Umbrella. Philadelphia : Lea & Blanchard, 1838.
• The Violet: A Christmas and New Year’s Gift, or Birth-day Present. Philadelphia: E.L. Carey & A. Hart, 1838.
• The House Book: or, A Manual of Domestic Economy for Town and Country. Philadelphia : Carey & Hart, 1841.
• Mr. and Mrs. Woodbridge: with other Tales, Representing Life as It Is and Intended to Show What It Should Be. Providence : Isaac H. Cady, 1841.
• Mrs. Washington Potts, and Mr. Smith: Tales. Philadelphia : Lea and Blanchard, 1843.
• Leonilla Lynmore and Mr. and Mrs. Woodbridge, or, A Lesson for Young Wives: Also, Dudley Villiers. Philadelphia : Carey and Hart, 1847.
• Kitty’s Relations: and Other Pencil Sketches. Philadelphia : Carey and Hart, 1848.
• Amelia, or, A Young Lady’s Vicissitudes: A Novel. Philadelphia : Carey and Hart, 1848.
• Directory for Cookery, in Its Various Branches. Philadelphia : Henry Carey Baird, 1851. 40th edition.
• New Receipts for Cooking: Comprising All the New and Approved Methods for Preparing All Kinds of Soups, Fish, Oysters…with Lists of Articles in Season Suited to Go Together for Breakfasts, Dinners, and Suppers…and Much Useful and Valuable Information on All Subjects Whatever Connected with General Housewifery. Philadelphia : T.B. Peterson, [c1854].
• The American Family Cook Book: Containing Receipts for Cooking Every Kind of Meat, Fist, and Fowl, and Making Soups, Gravies, and Pastry, Preserves and Essences; with a Complete System of Confectionery, and Rules for Carving; and also Seventy-Five Receipts for Pastry, Cakes, and Sweetmeats. Boston : Higgins, Bradley & Dayton, 1858.
• Directory for Cookery, in Its Various Branches. New York, Arno Press, 1973. (reprint of 1848 edition)
• Corn Meal Cookery: A Collection of Heirloom Corn Meal Recipes Dating from 1846. Hamilton, Ohio : Lawrence D. Burns, Simon Pure Enterprises, c1998.

Unfortunately, there isn’t a single good bibliography of all of Leslie’s works that I was able to locate (there is a partial one on Wikipedia). [Perhaps one of these days I’ll finally get around to doing some Wikipedia edits and tackle the challenge!] But we do know that she wrote a great deal in culinary/household management, in what we might consider children’s literature for girls and young women (in so much as some of her stories were filled with lessons and instruction) and she wrote and edited for a variety of gift books. In other words, she had plenty of good advice to share. Next week, we’ll look at another women who wrote for the home and for children (so, Eliza makes a great transition)–Lydia Maria Childs. See you then!

 

Need a New Years’ Eve/Day Candy Rush?

Happy (almost) New Year! Special Collections is still closed, but we don’t want to leave you recipe-less or uninspired on the cusp of 2016. If you need some last minute candies for guests or a sugar rush for yourself, this week’s feature will help! It’s Plain Rules for Candy Making, published in 1922. It’s not a book or even a pamphlet. Rather, it’s a double-sided card. We’ve seen some similar items before in the Cocktail History Collection, but this is the first candy-based one we’ve acquired.

Plain Rules for Candy Making, 1922. Advertisement and ingredients for Maple Sugar Fudge.

Plain Rules for Candy Making, 1922. General instructions and directions for Maple Sugar Fudge.

Plain Rules for Candy Making, 1922. Advertisement and highlighted recipe for Cocoanut Macaroons (other recipes above).

Plain Rules for Candy Making, 1922. General instructions and directions for Cocoanut Macaroons (other recipes above).

For the most part, Plain Rules for Candy Making  speaks for itself. Also, while your usual archivist/blogger Kira planned ahead and wrote this back on December 16, it’s the holiday season and there are more important (but only slightly more fun ;)) things to do than read a long blog post. However, before we part ways until 2016, there are a few points worth making. First, this sliding recipe card comes from Livermore & Knight Co., no strangers to the History of Food and Drink Collection. They published the set of tiny cookbooks you may have read about on the blog before in “A Tiny Post on Some Tiny Books” and “From Tiny Books to Chunky Books.” Apparently, quirky and unique methods of sharing recipes was there thing. Second, it’s a good reminder that there are connections to be made through the collection and not always in obvious ways. We have a variety of books it the collection that don’t contain related content, but are connected by other elements like publisher, which makes them an interesting study for other reasons (did a publisher produce books that all looked a certain way? focused on a certain theme/ingredient? contain a shared element?). Perhaps we’ll take some of that up…next year.

Happy New Year (and be sure to join us for a whole new year of feature items in 2016)!

 

Jack Frost in the Kitchen

With the holidays just around the corner, fall and winter baking season is here! (It’s baking season almost year round if you’re me, but this time of year can be especially popular.) And, in the past, we’ve talked a fair bit about flour and baking powder on the blog, but we haven’t said much about another staple: sugar!

Front cover

Recipies

Recipes

Back cover

This 1930-ish pamphlet belongs to the large family of advertising publications and icons in our collection. Eighteen Unusual Recipes has a center image, so each page has a half moon cut out, allowing Jack Frost and a few of his products to shine through. He’s framed by recipes that may not all seem that unusual. We have things like cakes and dessert loaves, and “Sea Wave Candy” (which may sound a bit strange, but isn’t really, when you see the ingredients). For the time, we might consider “Spanish Marmalade” and “Chutney Sauce” to be a bit out there. Perhaps more importantly, though, is convincing people to buy the right product. And, with as diverse a set of sugar products as the company made, they were certainly targeting a wide market. (I particularly like the little individually wrapped sugar tablets in the center of the back page.)

The National Sugar Refining Company of New Jersey isn’t called that anymore. It has long since become part of a larger company. But you might still see Jack Frost on a package or two, depending on where you live, continuing to bring you granulated sugar for all your goodies!

Cooking with Dromedary (NOT Camels, I promise!)

…Although the idea of cooking with a camel in one’s kitchen (not as an ingredient, but as a helper) is worth a giggle. Rather, our feature this week is from the Hills Brothers Co. of New York. Dromedary was the label of a variety of products, includes dates, figs, coconut, fruit butters, and tapioca. This particular cookbook comes from 1914. At 100 years old, it needs a moment in the spotlight.

Front cover

Conserves and sandwiches

Cakes, cookies, sweet breads, and pies

Puddings

Gelatine and frozen desserts

Candies

“Dates Have Great Food Value” and Hills Bros. Buildings

Back cover

Not surprisingly, then, the recipes in this little volume tend to highlight dates, figs, and tapioca. But, we can’t escape without our share of unique fillings (“Sweet Green Peppers Stuffed with Figs” and “Thanksgiving Squash Pie”), fried goodies (date AND fig fritters, plus croquettes), and curiously named recipes (“Golf Balls,” “Camel Fig Mousse”–named after the brand, and “Masked Apples”). Still, there are LOTS of great ideas for dried fruit in here and the recipes are diverse. It wasn’t all desserts, as I expected. So go on, try a “Delicious Sandwich”– It’s camel approved. 🙂

Candy! Candy! Candy!

Happy Halloween! (almost)

This year for the Halloween post, I thought it might be fun to feature variations on some classic Halloween/autumn treats. So let’s talk candy!

Caramels

It’s amazing how much variation you might find in a basic caramel recipe. The examples below are from three different candy-making books in a twenty year period (1889-1919). Some of the differences come down to changing availability of ingredients and some could be the result of simple taste preference. Butter, molasses, and brown sugar will create a flavor distinct from cream, sugar, and corn syrup.

Caramels, pg. 49

Caramels, pg. 50

Caramels, pgs 36-37

Caramels, pg. 93

Caramels, pg. 94-95

Popcorn Balls

Popcorn balls aren’t just a fall treat, though they are most common (and popular!) this time of year. October is National Popcorn Poppin’ Month, but popcorn isn’t restricted to a single month. National Caramel Popcorn Day is celebrated in April and National Popcorn Day is in January. Home Candy Making (1889), The Art of Home Candy Making (1915), My Candy Secrets (1919), AND The Holiday Candy Book (1952) all had some variation on this sweet and (sometimes) salty treat!

Candied Pop Corns and Pop Corn Balls, pg. 70-71

Popcorn Crisp and Sugared Popcorn, pg. 47

Sugared Popcorn and Popcorn Balls, pg. 48

Pop-Corn Balls, pg. 19

Chocolate Popcorn Nut Clusters, pg. 106

Candy and Caramel Apples

A little more digging is required, but my initial hunt only turned up one candy book with caramel and candy apple recipes! I’m sure there are more recipes hiding among our stacks. but at least this is a start. And just in time for tomorrow, which is also National Candy Apple Day!

Caramel Apples, pgs. 96-97

Candy Apples. pg. 101

Candy Apples. pg. 102

Halloween Shaped/Themed

The “Hallowe’en Faces” below begin with a base of a homemade mint patty. One wonders about the use of “yellow” to describe the color of a pumpkin.  My Candy Secrets (the full title of which is actually My candy secrets: a book of simple and accurate information which, if faithfully followed, will enable the novice to make candies that need not fear comparison with the professional product, by Mary Elizabeth [pseud.] … with fifty-three illustrations from photographs specially taken to show actual processes in making candies) was published in 1919, but this could very well be an issue of food coloring availability.

Halloween Faces and Pumpkins, pg. 138

Whatever your plans, enjoy your favorite treats this Halloween–and beware those tricks!

From Powder to Ganache: A Little Chocolate Inspiration

Fair warning: This week’s post is ALL about the chocolate. With one day left before Valentine’s Day, some of you might still be looking for the perfect dessert. We here at the History of Food & Drink Collection are here to help. Chocoholics may want to consider a bib or drool guard for their keyboards….

All set? Okay!

This 1955 publication, The Chocolate Cookbook, includes cakes and pies, but also cocoas and chocolate sodas. It also has a hefty selection of candy ideas, from toffees to fudge. (Click on any of the images for a larger view.)

Beverages

Candies

If you need some breakfast to go with that cocoa, but still can’t do without the delicious fix, the 1971 reprint of the classic 1934 Hershey’s cookbook can help. It includes directions for chocolate waffles….and a variety of pies that might do nicely after lunch.

Chocolate Waffles

Chocolate Pies

Want something to compliment that chocolate flavor? How about berries and cream? The 1983 Baker’s Book of Chocolate Recipes (we’ve featured recipes from the Baker Company’s early days on the blog before) includes a decadent layered cake and some delicate lace cookies.

Chocolate Berry Cake

Chocolate Cookies

Looking for something not quite so dense? This 1984 book, Chocolate (the title says it all, doesn’t it?) contains recipes cakes, pies, and cookies. But it also has some delicious looking classics and interesting alternative: Bite-sized chocolate dipped fruits, truffles, a variety of flavored chocolate sauces, ice creams, and mousses.

Chocolate dipped fruits

Mousses, cakes, and cocoas

If you can think about anything besides chocolate after at this point, it’s time to interrupt with a brief historical note (after all, we are trying to provide you with a little background alongside the recipes). You may notice how relatively recent these publications are. While chocolate has long held a place in food history, its role in the realm of American desserts is largely a development of the 20th century. This doesn’t mean, however, that references to this milk (or dark), creamy, dreamy favorite are absent. One of our favorite regional American cookbooks and blog favorites mentions chocolate once or twice.

Mary Randolph’s 1831 The Virginia Housewife, or Methodical Cook contains a recipe for “Chocolate Cakes.” It isn’t the classic layer cake we might think of, but a sort of griddle cake cut into strips and served with chocolate. The only recipe in her book that actually integrates chocolate is homemade chocolate ice cream. But fear not, Virginia culinary history lovers, Mrs. Randolph doesn’t let us down! Why not try a few cherries in brandy with a gateau, tip a teaspoonful of rose brandy into your cake mix, or sip a homemade mint cordial with your mousse? Any one might be just the extra kick you had in mind.

Celebrate your Valentine’s Day in your own style and enjoy! And if you’re including chocolate, sneak a little nibble while you’re baking. We won’t tell. 🙂

Trick or Treat: Candy, Please!

Happy Halloween! In honor of the sweet, sticky, and salty goodness that is candy, we have a brief post with recipes for some classic (and not so classic) treats: Caramel, candy apples, popcorn balls, and a few holiday characters…

Happy Halloween!

Oh, and Happy National Candy Apple Day!

(P.S. Don’t eat all that candy at once!)