Ancestral Recipes

I'm always looking for ways to give context and character to my ancestors. Of course I look for births, deaths, marriages, etc., but I am equally interested in things that give a glimpse of their daily lives.

On a recent eBay search I came across the Elgin Ladies Cemetery Association Cookbook published Dec. 1, 1912. I do infrequent eBay searches on the off chance some wayward family relic was sold at auction by a distant cousin and found its way online. It's worked out several times already! I ordered the cookbook because, considering how concentrated my ancestry is in Elgin, there had to be something from them in the book.

What I found were dozens of recipes from great-great-great-great aunts, cousins, and three of my great-great-great grandmothers. I love this because it gives a look at the everyday life of an ancestor. Did they make these recipes often? Where they "special occasion" meals? Where they good cooks? I hope to make some of these recipes soon.

Chocolate Ribbon Cake.

One teacupful of sugar, 1 cup of milk, 2 teaspoonful of baking powder sifted with 2 cups of flour, 1 tablespoonful of butter, 1 egg. Mix in the usual manner. Divide the cake batter in 2 parts and add 3 tablespoonful of grated chocolate to ½ the batter for the dark part. This rule will make 4 layers, two of light and two of dark. Put together alternately with the following cream. 1 cupful sweet milk, 1 egg, 2 teaspoonful of cornstarch or flour, 3 tablespoonful of sugar, 2 tablespoonful of chocolate. Cook until it thickens and spread.

MRS. W.J. GRUVER.
Mary Louisa (Hunsberger) Gruver (1854-1928)

Orange Marmalade.

Take 12 oranges and 2 lemons, quarter and slice them, removing seeds. For each pint of fruit add 1  ½ pints water, let stand 24 hours then boil 1 hour, then set aside for 24 hours. Now add 1 ¼ pounds sugar to each pint of fruit and water. Heat slowly till sugar is dissolved, then boil 1 hour or till it jellies.

MRS. J.D. SHAFFER.
Susan Christena (Robbins) Shaffer (1859-1923)

Burnt Sugar Pie.

Yolks of 2 eggs, 1 tablespoon sugar, 2 tablespoons flour. Stir all together and have 2 cups of milk on and when it boils put in mixture. Stir so it will not stick. Put ½ cup sugar on to melt and brown, then pour into cream stirring briskly. Flavor then put in crust and frost with whites.

MRS. THOS. KERR.
Eliza  Ellen "Ella" (Moats) Kerr (1857-1939)

Sad Farewells

One of the best parts of being a family historian is getting to know so many extended members of your family spanning the generations. The downside of that is the more people you meet, the more loss you eventually endure.

This week was a sad week for my extended family, as it saw the passing of two people - both distant cousins and both fellow family history fanatics. My paternal grandfather's first cousin, Ralph Sienknecht passed away January 17 after a short illness. I got to know Ralph about 8 years ago and have since enjoyed talking with him and his wife, Pauline, about our shared family history. I would see him every year at the Sienknecht Reunion and we had spent time together visiting other relatives around the area.

On January 15 Margaret Foxwell passed away at the age of 93. Margaret was a true force of nature and the last of a generation. Her late husband, Thomas Foxwell, was first cousin to my great-great-grandmother, Bessie (Richards) Shaffer. Margaret loved history of all kinds and was a wealth of knowledge. She and Tom spent years researching the Foxwell family, traveling to England and visiting the lands from which our families came. She was creative and smart and generous. I first met her in 2009 after writing to ask about our shared history. She invited me to her home in Elgin and we spent a day looking at artifacts, reading through documents, and reveling in the rich history our families shared. She will be missed.

It is truly sad to see them go, but I am also grateful to know that because of my family history research I had the chance to know them in the first place.