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Wild Rice, Anne Hamilton / Secrets of Southern Maryland Cooking

June 2, 2017January 12, 2019

I recently found this 1954 cookbook at the Pratt Library, “Secrets of Southern Maryland Cooking,” with the somewhat creepy subtitle “(How to Keep Daddy Home).” It’s 132 pages are filled with interesting illustrations and handwritten recipes – including stuffed ham, a gravy-less Maryland Fried Chicken, and some more unusual items such as advocaat.

The handwriting and illustrations are done by several people – and some recipes are practically illegible. Rather than St. Mary’s or Calvert, this book actually hails from the somewhat under-represented (on my website) Charles County.

The book benefitted the Charles County Children’s Aid Society, whose mission is to “improve the quality of life for struggling Charles County families with children under age 18 by providing them with the basic necessities of life including, but not limited to, clothing, food, educational classes, recreational activities and holiday assistance.” The organization was founded in 1934 by a group of women hoping to help struggling families affected by the Great Depression. At the time, the organization facilitated services that would become the purview of Charles County Social Services, including foster care and adoption services.

The wild rice recipe comes care of an Anne Hamilton. A little bit of census research leads me to believe that she may have been Anne Offutt Hamilton (b. 1912) from Montgomery County. She married a Charles County man, Francis Patrick Hamilton, and she passed away in 1988. A WWII veteran, Francis may have descended from Captain James Neale, one of the early English settlers of Southern Maryland.

That’s a lot of maybes. Tasty rice dish from a neat cookbook. Copies of the book can be found in the Enoch Pratt, Frederick, and Southern Maryland libraries.

Recipe:

2 Cups wild rice
3 Tablespoons salt
.75 to 1 Cup butter
1 Cup chopped celery
1 Cup mushroom
.75 Cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic

Cook rice per package instructions. Sauté in ¾ to 1 cup butter:1 cup chopped celery1 cup mushrooms1/2 to ¾ cup chopped onion1 clove garlicAdd to rice when it is tender and has absorbed the water. Season with salt and pepper and keep warm until ready to serve.

Stations of the Cross at Mount Carmel illustration in cookbook

The Southern Heritage Cookbook Library + “Sweet Potato Pound Cake”

April 19, 2017January 12, 2019

The books that got me curious about Maryland food were not Maryland cookbooks, strictly speaking. This cookbook set had been a constant in my household growing up, and I never thought of them as regional at all, despite the “Southern” in the name.

On my mother’s kitchen bookshelf they served as a source of inspiration and reference. Everything we could need was in “The Southern Heritage Cookbook Library.” When, as a child, I wanted to try and make cheesecake. We turned to the “Just Desserts” volume which gave us a decadent cake with mounds of cream cheese and sour cream, seven eggs, and which required about five hours in the oven.

That cake became an annual birthday tradition for me and it was what eventually led me to discover the concept of “Maryland food.” Feeling nostalgic in my 20s (and wanting to impress my friends), I borrowed “Just Desserts” for that cheesecake recipe. Thumbing through the book I noticed all of the information – illustrations, ephemera, anecdotes. I fell in love with this cookbook in a new way, and I began to acquire copies of the entire series for myself.

Illustration from “All Pork”

Eventually, I noticed various recipes with names like “Old Maryland Baked Ham,” “Maryland White Potato Pie,” and “Maryland Fried Chicken.” Aside from feeling surprised to see Maryland in a cookbook dedicated to the South, I was surprised that Maryland had any food tradition outside of crab cakes. Some of these dishes were unknown to me. I had to try them for myself. And maybe… blog about them?

So here we are.

The Southern Heritage cookbook series was first published in 1983 by Oxmoor House (Southern Living Magazine.) My mother remembers it as a subscription – one book a month for 19 months (the 19th is a master index to the entire book set). Copies of any of the books can now be found cheaply online, or occasionally in thrift stores or Book Thing in Baltimore.

Several of the cookbooks (e.g. “Company’s Coming,” “Sporting Scene,” “Breakfast & Brunch”) take a menu-based approach, listing a sample menu with the story behind them.

menu in “Company’s Coming” volume

For example, “Maryland Garden Pilgrimage Luncheon” features:

Old Durham Church Crab Cakes
Green Peas with Spring Onions
Cold Slaw
Jubilee Rolls
Maryland Fudge Cake
Glazed Strawberry Tarts

The “Cakes” book or “Plain and Fancy Poultry” might include recipes but also instructions on icing a cake or trussing a chicken, respectively.

Basically, they were the only reference I needed throughout my 20s, right up until I decided I wanted to, say, try to cook Vietnamese food… or to collect every Maryland cookbook just for the heck of it.

While it is true I now have many more ‘authentic’ sources for Maryland recipes, the Southern Heritage Cookbook library has continued to be a useful reference and a visual delight.

The weathered page of my beloved cheesecake recipe

Two Illustrations from “Cakes”

menu in “Family Gatherings” volume

Recipe:

1 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2.5 cups cooked mashed sweet potatoes
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
.5 teaspoon ground nutmeg
.25 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
.5 cups flaked coconut
.5 cups chopped pecans

Cream butter. gradually add sugar, beating well. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add sweet potatoes and beat until blended.

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt; gradually add to sweet potato mixture, beating well after each addition. Batter will be stiff. Stir in vanilla, coconut, and pecans.

Spoon batter into a well-greased 10-inch tube pan. Bake at 350° for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until take tests done. Cool in pan 15 minutes, remove to rack and cool completely.

May be glazed with lemon or orange glaze if desired.

Recipe adapted from Southern Heritage “Cakes” cookbook

Recipe notes: This is not a Maryland recipe as far as I know but it was very tasty; “a keeper” as they say. I’ll probably make this in the fall with black walnuts.

One Hundred Dollar Fudge

November 13, 2016January 13, 2019

In 1971, a woman in Fruitland, MD, recovering from an illness, took out an ad in the Salisbury Daily Times to express gratitude towards the “many friends who contributed in any way” towards her recovery. She thanked friends, neighbors, ambulance drivers, doctors, her Pastor, and she praised the Lord. She also thanked “Bill Phillips and the many Party Line listeners” – for the cards, flowers, phone calls and cash donations that they provided in her time of need.

For over thirty years, Party Line was one of the most popular radio shows on the Eastern Shore. Hosted by onetime station manager William Phillips on the WICO country music station, “Party Line” served as a forum where listeners could call in to buy, sell and swap anything from outboard motors to exotic birds. The idea of Craigslist as a morning talk show may seem confusing, but by all accounts, the show’s popularity could be attributed to Phillips himself, who charmed listeners with “folksy chit-chat” – and a sense of community so strong that it mobilized listeners to care for one-another in times of need. An oft-repeated anecdote about the show involves a woman who called to report that her husband lost his dentures on the beach – later found by another Party Line listener, of course.

The nature of radio broadcasts is somewhat ephemeral – and an on-air flea-market even more so. But the show has left behind a lasting legacy in the form of a beloved cookbook sourced from its many listeners. Eastern Shore natives still seek out copies and share memories of the tattered copies of this book serving faithfully in their family kitchens. According to the book’s preface, “What is Cooking On Party Line” received 1400 contributions from listeners.

The resulting book gives an overview of what was cooking in Eastern Shore kitchens around 1983. From the first recipe for “Cheddar Cheese Balls” to the final recipe, “Red Pepper Jelly,” the collection demonstrates that food habits from a particular time and place can’t be easily pigeonholed or stereotyped. While there are many convenience recipes associated with the 1970s, featuring processed ingredients such as Kool-Aid and Cheez-Whiz, there are also recipes that have obviously been passed down for generations, for pickling and preserving, or serving up game like muskrat, possum, and woodchuck. Eight different corn pudding recipes are included. There are, of course, nearly 40 recipes featuring crab. The book also weaves prayers throughout, a constant reminder of spirituality and its ties to the kitchen.

My own copy has a previous owner’s index of favorite recipes hand-written in the back cover- mostly for some of the cakes. When the compilers of “What is Cooking on Party Line” received multiple submissions of very similar recipes, they attribute the recipe to multiple names. It’s interesting to observe the way the recipes had spread and been shared, even before this popular cookbook was published.

I decided to make one of the more ‘popular’ recipes and so I made “One Hundred Dollar Fudge,” a recipe with seven names listed underneath. I didn’t have marshmallow fluff so I made it from marshmallows. I would actually recommend this step to others who make the fudge. The corn syrup in the fluff controls sugar crystallization, and my fudge came out so smooth that it got comments on that fact.

1966 ad for a political appearance on “Party Line”

William Phillips passed away in November 1994, and the show came to an end. WICO Program Director Dave Parks recalled “he was one of the last local superstars in radio. One of a dying breed. He was known all over the Eastern Shore. He was like a Hollywood star here. He endured because of his personality. He really was Mr. Radio.”

Some younger cooks who have inherited copies of the book may have never heard the show, but many people still recall it fondly and can sing the jingle by heart.

“Hello.
Is this the party line?
Yes, it’s your party line and it’s time for all the gossip on your party line.
What’s goin’ on, tell us who, when and how?
Well, just listen in to your party line now.
WICO Radio brings you the latest on your party line, party line.”

Recipe:

2 sticks margarine or butter
4 ½ c. sugar
1 can evaporated milk

Cook over medium high heat and bring to a rapid boil, stirring constantly. Boil exactly 5 minutes, remove from heat and add:

3 c. (18 oz.) chocolate chips
9 oz. jar marshmallow creme

Stir until melted. Add:

2 Tbsp vanilla
½ c. nuts
1 c. peanut butter (optional)

Pour into buttered 13 x 9 inch baking pan. Set in refrigerator overnight. Then set out two hours before cutting or it will crumble. Makes 5 lbs. of fudge.

Free State Oyster Omelet

September 4, 2016January 13, 2019

This recipe comes from a popular cookbook produced by the Maryland Seafood Marketing Authority.

First produced in 1974, the book was developed with the aid of “state seafood home economist” Beverly Butler in order to “expand the role of the Chesapeake Bay seafood industry as a major contributor to the state’s economy.”

At the time, the seafood industry was reeling (oops no pun intended) from 1972 Hurricane Agnes’ devastating effects, particularly on the clam population.

Early editions of the book feature a 70′s looking cover that shows a pot brimming with uncooked mixed seafood sitting in the sand on a beach, and a sexy lady standing in the water in the background. Throughout the book she can be found clamming in short shorts, posing in the surf, and finally relaxing by a beach bonfire.

The 1980s reprints did away with this lady and created a unified design scheme throughout the first book and the two slightly-less-popular follow-ups. They also discontinued encouraging people to consume rockfish, since it was banned – instead, consumers were guided towards bluefish, shark and even squid.

All three books are available in a bundle on Maryland DNRs website, currently for $15. If you want the 1970s eye candy, you could always find a used copy online. The slim volumes don’t take up too much space on a bookshelf and make a decent reference. Maryland Seafood Cookbook is how I learned about steaming shad so you could eat the bones.

There is some very useful information in these books, but for the love of god, please PLEASE don’t consider the microwave a viable way to cook a crab cake.

Recipe:

1 pint shucked oysters (preferably selects), drained
9 large eggs
¼ cup flour
2/3 cup dry breadcrumbs (I used House Autry spicy & it was great!)
6 slices bacon
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp lemon & pepper seasoning
1 heaping teaspoon chopped chives
Paprika, for garnish

In a small bowl, beat 1 egg. Put flour in a separate bowl. Spread ½ of breadcrums onto about a square foot of waxed paper. Dip each oyster in flour, then in egg, then place on breadcrums. Sprinkle remaining breadcrumbs over top of oysters and set aside.

Fry bacon until crisp, in 12″ skillet. Remove bacon & drain off most of the grease. Add oysters to the pan in a single layer and cook on each side until golden brown, about 5 minutes.

Beat remaining eggs until foamy and add chopped/crumbled bacon, plus remaining seasonings. Pour mixture over oysters and cook until eggs begin to set. With a spatula, lift up the edges of the omelet and tilt the skillet to allow uncooked egg mixture to run under omelet. Cook until all eggs are set but moist.

Garnish with paprika, serve in slices.

Recipe adapted from Maryland Seafood Cookbook I

Macaroons No. 2, Miss Tyson

July 24, 2016June 8, 2022

This is another entry laden with tedious detective work, my unrestrained fanaticism ruining any possibility of ever attracting repeat readers.
I’ll try to keep it brief.

According to “The American Magazine and Historical Chronicle“, 1987, “famed Baltimore hostess, Mrs. B.C. Howard, compiled the earliest charity cookbook published in Maryland, Fifty Years in a Maryland Kitchen’(Baltimore, 1873).” Certainly, “50 years” is one of the more famous and important of Maryland cookbooks.

A few months ago, in my quest to print-on-demand every Maryland cookbook in the public domain, I found a lesser-known Maryland cookbook entitled “Queen of the Kitchen,” written by a mysterious “Miss Tyson” or “M. L. Tyson” in 1870. The name of course resonated but Tyson is no Paca, Howard or even Pratt – not as unquestionably Maryland upper-crust.

“Queen of the Kitchen” certainly disseminated around Maryland. Some of the recipes in “Maryland’s Way” came from different Marylanders’ personal copies of the book.

When I began to enter the recipes into my database I noticed something – many of the recipes were strikingly similar to recipes in “Fifty Years in a Maryland Kitchen.” Copying recipes into new cookbooks hardly qualified as plagiarism at the time. It was rampant. Still, it is pretty interesting to see the source of so many recipes from Mrs. B.C. Howard’s book!

Howard may have owned a copy of the book, or she may have known Tyson and they both sourced the recipes from common friends or from each-other.

So… who was M. L. Tyson?

Apparently “Queen of the Kitchen” was a cookbook by a Baltimore woman, published to raise money to build an Episcopal church in Oakland Maryland. Kind of random but… ok.

By researching the church I was able to determine that M.L. Tyson was Mary Lloyd Tyson, born in 1843. And she was indeed Maryland upper-crust. Mary Tyson’s mother was none other than Rebecca Ann Key, cousin of Francis Scott Key. Her father, physician and planner Alexander H. Tyson was Rebecca’s second husband. According to accounts, Rebecca Ann Key was a stunning woman.

“What was she, you will ask—she was no Queen or Goddess—she represented
no character in Shakespeare—neither was she attired in any costume as a
princess—she was herself only and as herself dressed in some white
material familiar to you ladies, but unknown to me. She paraded through
those rooms—crowded with all the beauty of this city of beauties—the
acknowledged Queen of the Night—not that she received more attention,
but she elicited the most admiration.” – “Some Account of Mr. and Mrs. Cohen’s Fancy Ball,” MDHS Underbelly blog

It’s agonized me that I could not find her portrait.

Dr. William Howard’s home, Charles and Franklin Street, (loc.gov)

So anyway, Rebecca’s FIRST husband was William Howard. William was Benjamin Howard’s brother. Basically, Mrs. B.C. Howard and M.L. Tyson were related, and certainly knew one-another.

What’s more, Mary Tyson’s half brother, William Key Howard, married a woman named Clara Haxall Randolph in 1860. Clara was Mary Randolph’s niece. How about that!

There’s a few other asides. Pretty much all of the people involved were Confederate sympathizers – William Key served in the war. Here is his picture:

findagrave.com

Mary’s younger sister Nannie married an actor named Robert Lee Keeling. He was twenty years younger than her. Future mayor James H. Preston (I made his corn pone) was an usher at their wedding. The marriage quickly soured. Robert Lee Keeling went on to become a celebrated painter of miniature portraits.

When “Queen of the Kitchen” was published, Mary Lloyd Tyson was a single woman of 27. She was likely not the female head of her household as her mother was still alive. (As opposed to Mrs. B.C. Howard who was 72 when her book was published.)

I think the Tyson’s lived here, on the 500 block of Park Avenue (loc.gov)

Mary Tyson became Mrs. George Tucker in 1875. The Tuckers resided in Virginia. Both Rebecca Ann Key and Mary’s sister Nannie spent their final days there, and Mary herself passed away in 1908.

I made Tyson’s macaroons – what would today be called ‘macarons’. This is not one of the recipes that Howard reprinted, although she did use a second macaroon recipe, with slight adjustments. The Tysons lived in Baltimore city, not far from Belvidere at all. Especially considering that M.L. Tyson was not the head of her household at the time of the books publication, the families might have shared receipts.

I don’t have a good way to finish this post but if you’ve made it this far, what does it matter? These cookies were delicious for the record.