Civil War Recipes

I was reading that this year on April 12 (my birthday!) - it was the 150th year anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War; so I decided to see if I could find out the history of the food eaten around that era and put in some information/recipes to help recognize the day.

Civil War Fried Chicken

1 (2 1/2 lb.) frying chicken
1 tsp. seasoned salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 c. flour
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
2 eggs, beaten
2 tbsp. water
Fat for frying (2/3 vegetable shortening, 1/3 butter)
Cut chicken into serving pieces. Wash well, and pat dry. Combine flour, salt and pepper. Roll each chicken piece in flour mixture, coating well. Beat eggs with the 2 tablespoons of water. Roll each floured piece in the egg mixture and then again in the flour mixture.
Heat about 1 inch of fat in a heavy iron skillet or an electric frying pan. When fat is smoking hot, lay in the chicken pieces (do not crowd). Cover and cook 15 minutes, or until it is golden brown on one side. Turn chicken; cover and cook until the chicken is a deep brown on the underside, about 15 minutes. Remove cover. Cook about 5 minutes until the chicken is a deep rich brown on one side; turn and fry uncovered for another 5 minutes or until other side is brown.
Remove chicken from skillet and place on brown paper to drain. Cool slightly before serving.

Civil War Applesauce Cookies

2 1/4 c. sugar
1 1/3 c. shortening
3 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 c. applesauce
6 c. sifted flour
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. salt
Cream shortening, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Add applesauce and mix well. Add sifted dry ingredients and blend well. Drop by heaping tablespoons on greased cookie sheet, flatten. Sprinkle with sugar and bake 10-12 minutes at 375 degrees (do not brown). Makes 44 four-inch cookies.

Civil War Idiot’s Delight

1 c. brown sugar
1 c. raisins
1 tbsp. butter
1 tsp. vanilla
4 c. water
7 tbsp. butter
1/2 c. white sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 c. milk
1 c. flour
Boil together the first 5 ingredients. Make a batter of the second 5 ingredients. Drop the batter in a greased pan by spoonfuls. Pour first mixture over it and bake in a moderate oven until golden brown.
This recipe was used during the hard times after the Civil War. It was popular because it used only a few, inexpensive, easy to obtain ingredients and is fool-proof. Even an idiot can make it!

Maw’s Civil War Pie

1 1/2 c. dried cooked peaches
3/4 c. sugar
1/2 c. butter
1 1/2 tbsp. flour
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
2 whole eggs
3/4 c. milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla
Mix fruit, 1/4 cup sugar and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon. Put in unbaked 9 inch pie crust. Mix remaining ingredients and pour over the fruit. This makes a custard for the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Civil War Pound Cake

As the war progressed and many items became scarce, cakes were often only made for holidays and special occasions. The extravagant (by Civil War standards) recipe below using nine eggs and brandy, is typical of cakes baked in the most affluent of homes for a homecoming or wedding party.
2 cups butter, softened
2 cup sugar
9 whole eggs
4 cups flour
1 pinch salt
lemon peel, grated
nutmeg, grated
1/2 cup Brandy
Mix the butter and sugar together well and beat in the eggs. Sift the flour and salt together and mix in to the butter mixture until thoroughly blended. Add the lemon peel, nutmeg, and brandy, mix well and pour into two small buttered loaf pans or one large one.
Bake in a moderate oven (350°F) for about 1 hour.

Beef Jerky

1-1/2 pounds of beef, preferably brisket
Marinade:
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. seasoning salt
1/2 tsp. each - pepper, onion powder,
garlic salt
1/4 cup each - soy sauce, Worcestershire
Slice lean boneless beef (such as brisket) into 1/8” strips, trimming fat. Cut with the grain for chewy jerky or across the grain for crumbly jerky. Lay strips on oven rack (use foil or pan underneath to catch drippings). Salt to taste. Dry in oven at lowest temperature (150 degrees), leaving door slightly ajar, for 8-12 hours. Turn several times for even drying. Taste test occasionally. For more seasoned flavor, marinate cut meat overnight in ingredients listed.
(Civil War era cookbooks have no recipes for beef jerky, as far as I can find out anyway. They DID have Worcestershire sauce in 1860, Lea & Perrins (tm) brand as a matter of fact, but cannot vouch for the soy sauce.)

Hardtack Corn Chowder

6 pieces hardtack
1 c. milk
1/4 lb. salt pork
1 large onion, peeled and sliced or chopped
4 large potatoes, sliced or diced
2 c. water
2 c. corn, kernels sliced off cob (about 2 ears)
1 1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. paprika if available
Soak hardtack in milk. (Skim off weevils and other objectionable matter. You may want to start this the night before, depending on age of hardtack.) When they are softened, cut salt pork into cubes and brown over medium fire. Add onion and cook until soft. Add potatoes and water and cook until potatoes are soft, or at least tender. Stir in hardtack and milk, then add remaining ingredients. Stir and cook to almost boiling, and serve at once.

Plain Irish Stew for Fifty Men

Cut fifty lbs. of mutton into pieces which equal 1/4 pound each. Put them in a pan and add twelve pounds of whole potatoes. In addition, add eight tablespoons of salt and three teaspoons of pepper. Cover all with water, giving about half-a-pint to each pound of meat. Light the fire and 1 to 1 1/2 hours of gentle ebulation will make a most excellent stew. Mash some of the potatoes to thicken the gravy, and serve.

Swamp Cabbage Stew

green cabbage
stewed tomatoes
salt pork
salt
pepper
cajun seasoning or cayenne pepper (not both)
onion (on-yon)
garlic
It is hard to tell exact portions as this is a taste to see if it’s right
dish.
Cut up salt pork into chunks, fry in cast iron pot. (large) Slice, not chop, onions and cabbage. Fry these in pot with salt pork. Add stewed tomatoes to make a stew. (remember this will cook down so add water if necessary so it doesn’t burn.) Add spices to taste. *** Add slowly and a little bit at a time, the taste will blend the longer it cooks. Cook at a very low heat for 4-5 hours. Taste at least once every hour so you can tell if you need more seasoning.
Way back when, the cabbage palm was felled and the heart taken to make this dish. Obviously this is a “southern” dish as there are not many swamps in Mass. or RI.....
Served with hush puppys or fried corn bread, this is hm hm good. Print this post