Depression Era Recipes

This cookbook contains a useful Table of Contents. Almost all recipes have a complete list of ingredients and respective amounts and complete directions. I appreciate the author sharing her family recipes from the Depression Era with us.I grew up in a family of 12 children, on 465 acres in Upstate, NY. We had a huge garden and wide selection of farm animals: cows, pigs, chickens, rabbits, ducks, geese, sheep and a goat. We were reminded that they were our food, not pets. Without warning, any of them could be our next meal.The men tended the farm animals, the hunting and fishing. The women tended the cooking, cleaning and taking care of the men and children. Our home was always bustling with activity (mostly work, but when it is all you know, work is play, and together time that builds memories).Our mother often spoke of the depression and the need to be able to live off the land (farm, garden, fish, hunt, gather fruits and berries) and we very much did, and we ate like royalty, maybe better. She wrote her recipes in a leather-look recipe memory book. Recipes she had clipped from resources at the time, she also pasted to those pages.My earliest memories are of the aroma of delicious meals almost ready to be served and the clatter of pots and pans in the kitchen. Our mother was a professional cook in her working days. She cooked for our family like she was cooking for a fine restaurant and on holidays it truly was a feast of everything imaginable.This cookbook details several of the things we ate (that our mother cooked) that I would not cook or eat now. We often did not know what we were eating. Our mother made everything delicious. We only knew it tasted good. That was her and the era she was raised in. I have no intention of ever cooking or cleaning rabbit, squirrel, venison or even a duck or goose. Not likely I could or would be willing and able to filet fish to be cooked.When our mother spoke of the Depression, she spoke of not having enough food to eat and existing on bread and water or bread and milk some days. It was very important to her that her children never be in a situation where they did not have enough to eat and important that what they did east was not just nutritious but also delicious.I lost both my parents in 1981. Our mother bound the family together. With her loss, the property was sold, her things put in storage and never again did we all sit down together to eat as a family.Every one of her children wanted her cookbook. After her passing, it went missing and has not been seen since. I was provided copies of recipes of one of the local cookbooks of her day to which she had contributed a few recipes. The recipes in it were very typical of recipes she would make, as are the recipes in this cookbook.It is true some of the ingredients used in recipes in this cookbooks and others of that time are no longer readily available. The author simply provided the recipes of the time that were provided to her as they were written. It is not difficult to replace what is no longer available with what is and, with the substitution, you may create a recipe just as delicious and healthier.The frugality of the depression era wasn't eating cheap, it was survival. It was eating what was readily available even if that meant you had to plant it, can it, fish for it, hunt for it or gather it. Not many seem to want to do any of that today unless it can be done at the local supermarket. The nearest supermarket from our home was a 45-minute drive away. Shopping was only done once a month. It was important to always have staples on hand and to be able to make delicious meals with what you had available. Recipes often were a base to be built upon. The pie recipe would be filled with whatever fruit or berry was in season. We had apples, plums, raspberries, strawberries, blackberries and elderberries. If you wanted a snack you helped yourself to the fruits and berries growing on our property or to what was growing in the garden. If you wanted a pie, you picked the fruit and brought it back. My happiest memories with my mother were cooking together in the kitchen. To me, this cookbook is a book of memories. In the pages of this cookbook and others I have of the same era, I search for and find recipes from my childhood to make, to cherish and to remember.

Very interesting book with some history and recipes. I like it

Back to basics type recipes. It even has different wines and drinks! Easy to read, well organized and includes charts in back for different temperature references. Vintage articles added for some fun, and has a few pages blank for your own personal “notes”. Can’t complain about the reasonable price as well! I will probably pick up another copy or two as gifts for Christmas! (:

Great reference / historical information for depression era recipes; enjoyed the humor and facts through the book. However, words of wisdom are to follow modern food safety cooking temps and sanitation from FDA. The roast turkey with dressing recipe describes cooking the bird in a low 200-degree oven overnight- not to mention that this is a stuffed bird, too. The U.S. Department of Agriculture urges home cooks not to can'tthe turkey overnight, stating that bacteria can’t be killed when cooked under 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Other experts believe that a few precautions eliminate this issue. Proceed with caution if you chowon'tn overnight turkey recipe- for our home, we won't take the risk. Otherwise, these are very useful recipes when looking at minimal ingredients.

Many of the recipes resonate today. A smart individual should open a vintage diner rotating these and other Depression era dinning.

Not quite what I wanted. I was expecting more frugal recipes, bare bones stone soup recipes (like, tomato soup made from ketchup, or meal stretchers, meat stretchers, stuff like that). But there are a lot of recipes that ask for not so frugal, not so "hard times" ingredients. With added ingredients that aren't necessary and I sure wouldnt waste them in that recipe. But there are a few recipes I put a sticky note on, and overall I am glad to have this book. I do find it worthwhile, so I hem & haw between 3 & 4 stars eating. I can flip through and find a handful of basic recipes that I dont have already printed out, or jotted down. I dont want to rely on digital, ya know? Many of the recipes are simple looking enough, some are questionable (why would I waste an egg in making coffee???). Not as frugal as I expected. But there are a few good ones. Btw, these are recipes that had been jotted down and not all have been tested by author. I would have appreciated notes on why things were used, or why this recipe is made the way it is or what it is or swaps for current times. Educational. Stuff like that. But, no.I can now say that I have a good Racoon Roast recipe now, LOL. (blegh).Some notes, trivia and old time advertisement fodder aren't as precious, entertaining, or informative as I would like. Tiny print. Would much prefer some functional notes. But this was printed in the late 80s, and I am sure this was more for (kind of) learning about the era rather than having a need for return to that era--which we have now. Hello 2020's. I imagine there will be a surge of people buying up books like this for at home library. Choose wisely. This isn't useless, but it may fall very short. Might want to look for terms such as "frugal", or those books that really emphasize bare bones ingredients. Also be sure to have a robust pantry, food storage, and gardening going on. Good luck, be well.3.5 starsI made the ham & potatoes patties. Added chives.

I was raised blue-color in the 50s and 60s, so many of these recipes I remember from my childhood... mostly because those were what my mom learned during the depression. I'm going to enjoy sharing these with my family!