Martha Engstrom - The Farmers Wife Cookbook: Over 400 Blue-Ribbon recipes!

The momentous question of What shall we eat, which comes to the
housekeeper three times every day and which must be met with a
well-supplied tablewhether everything else in the house goes
undonebecomes monotonous and wearying. We hail suggestions
as a ship-wrecked mariner does the distant sail.
Table Talk, The Farmers Wife, May 1912 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The recipes in this book were chosen from The Farmers Wife, a monthly magazine from Webb Publishing of St. Paul, Minnesota, and from The Country Kitchen Cook Book, first published in 1894 by The Farmers Wife. The illustrations and cover art were also reproduced from The Farmers Wife. My thanks to Farm Journal of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for permission to adapt and reproduce all materials. Chapter 1
FIRST COURSES AND SOUPSChapter 2
BEVERAGES Chapter 3
BREADSChapter 4
MEATSChapter 5
VegetablesChapter 6
HOT SUPPER DISHESChapter 7
SALADS AND SALAD DRESSINGSChapter 8
DESSERTS AND CANDIESChapter 9
CAKES, COOKIES, AND DOUGHNUTS
ICINGS, FILLINGS, AND DESSERT SAUCESChapter 10
PASTRY AND PIESChapter 11
JELLIES, CONSERVES, AND JAMSChapter 12
PICKLES AND RELISHES The recipes in The Farmers Wife Cookbook are true farm recipes.

They originated in country kitchens and were submitted by readers to The Farmers Wife, a monthly magazine published from 1893 to 1939 by Webb Publishing Company of St. Paul, Minnesota. Many of these recipes are almost a century old, offering a step back in time to another era of cooking. They have all been updated for the modern kitchen to provide similar results today as they did in Grandmas kitchen. Many of the recipes are downright delicious, such as the Swedish Meatballs, the pies and cakes.... Some are chock full of nostalgia, reviving memories of Grandmas special cooking.

Others are quaint, offering a window to look back at a long-ago style of North American farm country cookery that is largely forgotten today. Other than spices and such, the recipes call for the homegrown ingredients that were typically raised and produced on American farms during this era. Milk and cream, both sweet and sour, butter, chicken and eggs, cured meats, variety meats (todays vernacular for organs such as the heart and liver), and fresh and home-canned fruits and vegetables were considered staples. The recipes were created to give equally satisfying results using either fresh or preserved ingredients. The Farmers Wife Cookbook presents recipes for soups and salads, as well for as meat, egg, and vegetable dishes. Of course, no farm cookbook would be complete without recipes for baked and canned goods that were deemed good enough for county and state fair competitions.

Included are recipes for pies, cakes, cookies, fudge, candied fruit, muffins, and breadsall of which were proudly submitted to The Farmers Wife by their blue-ribbon-winning creators. Modern guides to home canningwith recipes for jams and jellies, pickles and relishesare also included. Most of the recipes in The Farmers Wife Cookbook were planned for the average-sized family of an earlier erafrom four to six persons. Some are written in generous quantities that allow for second helpings or leftovers. If you reduce or increase a recipe, note the amounts of ingredients used for future reference. In reviewing issues from almost forty years of The Farmers Wife, I was struck by the number of feature articles and fictional works that touched on the significance of community.

The desire or need for farm families to participate in both social events and common work-related activities, within the greater community, was an everyday, embracing theme. The purpose or focus of such gatherings varied, but common to all was food. Whether it was a church circle or some other womens society, the 4-H club, or the crews of men who aided neighbors in raising barns or threshing grain, a meal to be shared by all participants was considered central to the event or activity itself.

First courses or appetizers are meant to stimulate the appetite and put one in a frame of mind to enjoy a meal. For that reason, something light and refreshing is the rule, such as fruit in some form, a light soup, or canaps. Sometimes a crisp salad of fresh fruits or green vegetables is served as the first course. Fruit cups, fruit juice, sea food, or tomato cocktails should be served cold.

Keep fruit in fairly large, distinct piecesnot mushy, and not sweetened to excess. Fruit punch makes an attractive and appetizing first course when served in tall glasses or sherbet cups. Soup served as a first course should be light, such as a clear broth with a few vegetables or bouillon. Cream soups, chowders, and rich vegetable soups serve as the main course of a supper or luncheon. Then generous bowls can be served, while first-course soups are served in small soup plates or cups. The Farmers Wife

Winter Fruit Cup Serves 810 cup (125 ml) honey or 1/3 cup (80 ml) sugar cup (125 ml) water Juice of lemon 4 oranges, pared and diced 4 bananas, diced, or 1 cup (250 ml) canned pears 4 apples, cored and diced 2 cups (500 ml) diced pineapple, or 2 cups (500 ml) canned peaches 1 cup (250 ml) red grapes 1.

Make a syrup of the honey or sugar and the water by combining and heating in a saucepan. Stir continuously and allow to boil for 34 minutes. Add the lemon juice. Cool completely. 2. Prepare the fuit and put in a large bowl.

Pour the syrup over the fruit. Mix gently. Refrigerate for 1 hour and serve. Cranberry Cocktail Serves 4 1 cup (250 ml) raw cranberries, halved cup (125 ml) diced pineapple 1 cup (250 ml) raisins 1 cup (250 ml) pineapple juice cup (125 ml) sugar 1. Combine the cranberries, diced pineapple, and raisins in a large bowl. Pour the sugar and juice over the fruit.

Mix gently. 2. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Serve chilled. Melon Cocktail Combine balls or cubes of melon of two or three colors in sherbet glasses. Juice of canned pineapple. Ginger ale.

Beef Stock Serves 6 The following recipe makes a clear stock.