As of this post, the Old Line Plate database has 14 different “pone” recipes in it. These fall into three basic categories: straight-up corn pone, old-fashioned pone containing molasses (usually also containing cornmeal or just ‘meal’), and sweet potato pone. According to the “Post & Courier” of Charleston, SC, sweet potato pone evokes a special sentimentality in…
“Being at the house of a good old German friend in Pennsylvania, in September last, we noticed upon the table what was called apple butter; and finding it an agreeable article, we inquired into the modus operandi in making it, which we give for the gratification of such in New England as may wish to…
“Many a southern gentlewoman, delicately reared, but with whom fortune has dealt harshly, has been compelled to appeal to [the Daughters of the Confederacy], and often for the necessities of life. Inability to provide for all of these needs has compelled the societies to adopt some plan of replenishing their treasuries. A bazaar held in…
There’s a lot of tempting 19th century options for tomato preservation. In addition to catsup, tomatoes were preserved spiced, in piccalilli, chow-chow, or stewed and strained into “soyer.” Tomatoes have one of the highest concentrations of naturally-occurring MSG, and these sauces and pickles all provided ways to add some umami to meals throughout the winter….
This isn’t the official Smearcase post- that’s to come later. (Update: Click here for Official Smearcase Post) This is just a brief post with two recipes from Elizabeth Ellicott Lea’s book. I thought they might offer some insight into the history of smearcase. Many Baltimoreans know “Smearcase” as a beloved cheesecake of German origin, available at many…