places Archives - Page 2 of 6

Chicken Leek Cobbler, Gil French

November 22, 2019January 2, 2023

“There used to be a stone yard at 26th and Charles and in it was a large tool box about 6′ by 4′ by 4′. This the older boys called THE HOT BOX, and they took delight in locking the younger boys in there for a couple of hours, and believe me by that time they were scared to death.” – Marion deKalb Clark in “Charles Village: An Edwardian Memoir,” 1969

For a little over a decade, I’ve lived around the borders of Baltimore’s Charles Village neighborhood. Although I was sad when I had to leave Mt. Vernon, I do enjoy access to lots of different grocery stores, parks and bus lines. I also have come to enjoy the sense of history that permeates the neighborhood spirit.

When “A Brief History of Charles Village” by Gregory J. Alexander and Paul K. Williams came out in 2009, the book was sold all over the neighborhood. The book told the story of the colonial Merryman’s Lott and Huntington land grants, and the neighborhood’s past as a retreat for wealthy Baltimoreans to move to in the summer. The origins of what we now know as Charles Village lie in the 1870s when the Peabody Heights Company acquired the land which was gradually built into the relatively-dense neighborhood.

A lot of the photos and information found in Alexander and William’s book also appeared in Baltimore Sun Columnist Jacques Kelly’s 1976 book “Peabody Heights to Charles Village.” Although that book is slimmer, it contains thorough research including building dates and builder names of almost every house in the neighborhood.

2600 block of Maryland Avenue shown in “Peabody Heights to Charles Village” by Jacques Kelly. Photos originated from the Peale Museum

Cracklin Bread, Glen Albin

June 7, 2019January 2, 2023

Easter was almost two months ago, but the fat from the stuffed ham I made has been living on in my kitchen. After rendering lots of lard of varying purity, I’ve learned just how much flavor it can impart when used for sautéing, and how the very faint meatiness actually adds welcome complexity to a flaky tender pie crust. My allegiance to butter is in question – at least until I’ve worked my way through the last of my home-rendered lard.

The rendering process left me with a bowlful of finely-ground pork cracklings, too small to snack on but suitable for cornbread.

The recipe I chose comes from a typewritten manuscript found at the American Antiquarian Society, and available digitally, entitled “Cookbook of Maryland and Virginia Recipes.” This mysterious manuscript contains some recipes that appear in other collections like “Eat, Drink & Be Merry in Maryland,” plus others that I haven’t seen elsewhere. Culinary Historian Karen Hess took a look at the manuscript and wrote some notes about its possible date of creation, but she did not recognize the book as anything that had seen publication. That was in 1981 – the year I was born. I’m no Karen Hess but I have the advantage of the digital age. I’ll save my research into this interesting little book for another post.

I chose this recipe primarily because it had a huge ratio of cracklings – maybe impractical for other uses, but this cornbread was for topping chili.

Cookbook of Maryland and Virginia Recipes, American Antiquarian Society

Pot Pie of Wild Mushrooms, Old Angler’s Inn

May 15, 2019January 2, 2023

I wasn’t surprised to learn that the Old Angler’s Inn doesn’t exactly date to the 19th century. Rather, the building in Potomac was built on the site of a previous Anglers’ clubhouse that had burned down in 1896. The current building, now a restaurant, dates to just after 1900. Perfectly respectable.

I was surprised to learn that the story of a nearby gold-mine, operated by a Union soldier, was absolutely true. The ruins of the mine still sit near the C&O Canal, just a mile away from the Old Angler’s Inn. The mine even has a historical marker validating its existence.

Legend has it that the Anglers’ Association, whose nearby clubhouse inspired the Inn’s name, boasted several U.S. Presidents as members.

Old Angler’s Inn, Maryland Historical Trust

Lamb Curry & Cinnamon Mousse, Saint Mark’s Methodist Church

April 17, 2019January 2, 2023

Somewhere in the history of nearly every church, there was a cookbook.

The authors usually intended to raise money for their church or auxiliary group, but from my vantage point, their efforts would amount to more than just the funds they generated. Church cookbooks are documents of social networks and culinary trends. Sometimes they even contain illustrations, i.e. folk art. They offer a deeper connection to a place in time.

The 1942 “Favorite Recipes of the Woman’s Society of Christian Service” of Saint Mark’s Methodist Church in Forest Park is a fine specimen. It appears to be printed on a ditto machine. The recipes are mostly for desserts, doughnuts and gelatin-based fruit salads, but there are some dinner options, including local favorite Sour Beef, and three chili recipes (at a time when they were not so common in Maryland cookbooks). Best of all, the book includes the full names of many recipe contributors, enabling me to do a little research on the people behind the recipes.

Olney Inn Sweet Potatoes

December 31, 2018January 2, 2023

Legend has it that Clara May Downey discovered the site of the Olney Inn when she got a flat tire near the 1875 Montgomery County farmhouse. It was the mid-1920s and Downey was considering following many women into the business of operating a tearoom.

Instead of a dainty tearoom catered towards women, Downey’s restaurant (it never operated as a true inn) would become a local institution that operated for 50 years. It is still fondly remembered today.

Baltimore certainly didn’t have a monopoly on the grandiose “Welcome to the South” style of dining that was fashionable in the early 20th century. Montgomery County, though once home to many abolitionist Quakers, also had many citizens who “did not forget their Southern Bonds.*” Downey’s restaurant offered up Southern-style hospitality – complete with house-cured hams and produce grown on the Inn’s sprawling grounds.