RECIPES



EARLY AMERICAN LIFE

CHRISTMAS 2020 ISSUE

BONUS MARTHA WASHINGTON RECIPES

(All recipes courtesy of Mount Vernon)

Lafayette Gingerbread

One of the better-known family-connected gingerbread recipes is attributed to George Washington’s mother, Mary Ball Washington, who is said to have served it to the Marquis de Lafayette when he visited her in Fredericksburg toward the end of her life. It came to be called Lafayette Gingerbread, in honor of the beloved French general. That recipe calls for orange juice and orange zest, substituted for the lemon used in Eliza Leslie’s recipe, from which this version is adapted.

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar

1 cup molasses

Scant 2 3/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

2 large eggs, plus 2 large egg whites, lightly beaten

1/4 cup fresh orange juice

1 tablespoon freshly grated orange zest

Fairy Butter (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter a 9-inch-square cake pan.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, or in a large bowl beating by hand, combine the butter and brown sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Add the molasses, and continue to beat until well combined.

Sift the flour with the ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice. Alternately add the eggs and flour to the butter mixture, beating very well after each addition. Add the orange juice and zest, and continue beating for several minutes until the batter is smooth and light.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Set the cake on a rack to cool completely in the pan before slicing into squares. Serve as is or spread with Fairy Butter.

This recipe is a modern adaptation of the 18th-Century original, created by culinary historian Nancy Carter Crump for Dining with the Washingtons.

Fairy Butter

This simple dessert sauce makes a tasty accompaniment to gingerbread, either dotted onto the surface before serving or passed around at the table.

4 large hard-boiled egg yolks

5 teaspoons orange-flower water

4 to 6 tablespoons sugar (preferably superfine)

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

Mash the egg yolks with the orange-flower water. Add the sugar, and mix to a smooth paste. Work in the butter until the mixture is smooth, and set aside in a cool place for 2 to 3 hours. Press the butter through a strainer into a small serving bowl. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Makes 1 cup.

Culinary historian Nancy Carter Crump adapted this recipe from one by Elizabeth Raffald, who suggested letting the sauce “stand two or three hours” before rubbing it “through a cullendar upon a plate; it looks very pretty.” Maria Rundell included the recipe as Orange Butter in her 1808 cookbook, A New System of Domestic Cookery, noting that it pairs well with “sweet biscuits.”

Apple Pie

Apple pie seems to have been a favorite of George Washington. In an August 1779 letter from West Point inviting friends to dine with him, he noted that they might be treated to an apple pie. “[The cook] has had the surprizing luck to discover that apples will make pyes,” the general wrote. Apple trees grew in abundance at Mount Vernon, with Newtown Pippins being among the most popular there. When fresh apples were not available, the fruit was ordered by the barrel to be stored for winter use.

Juice and zest of 1 lemon

5 to 7 tart apples, such as Newtown Pippin or Granny Smith, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices; peels and cores reserved

About 3 cups water

1/2 teaspoon ground mace

1 2/3 cups sugar, divided

6 whole cloves

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and diced into small pieces

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll the pie-crust dough into a circle about 1/4 inch thick, and place in a lightly greased pie pan, gently pressing it into the pan. Set aside in the refrigerator.

Combine the lemon juice with about 3 cups of water in a large bowl, and add the apple slices to prevent them from darkening. Cover and set aside.

Cover the reserved apple peels and cores with water, add the mace and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. Strain and reserve the liquid. Discard the peels and cores, and return the liquid to the heat. Add 1 cup of the sugar and bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Boil uncovered for about 15 minutes, or until the liquid is reduced by half. Remove from the heat, and set aside to cool.

Thoroughly drain the apples from the acidulated water. Put one layer of the apples in the prepared pie shell. Dot with cloves, and sprinkle with 1/3 cup of the sugar. Add another layer of apples, packing them densely and piling them high. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/3 cup of sugar. Carefully pour 2 cups of the reserved apple liquid over and around the apples.

Put on the top crust, tucking it in and around the edges of the bottom crust, folding the bottom edges up over the top piece of dough and then pinching together to seal. Cut several slits in the top crust, and dot with butter.

Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the juices are thick and bubbly. Remove the pie to a wire rack, and cool thoroughly before slicing.

Culinary historian Nancy Carter Crump adapted this recipe from Hannah Glasse. Although it doesn’t call for any accompaniment, another of Glasse’s apple pie recipes suggests clotted cream. Both recipes recommend that the pie be sent to the table cold.

Common Pie Crust

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into pea-size pieces

1/4 cup lard or vegetable shortening, chilled

5 to 6 tablespoons ice water

Sift the flour and salt together. With a pastry blender or by hand, work the butter and lard into the flour until the mixture is well combined and resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Blend in about 5 tablespoons of the water, mixing until the dough comes together. Add up to 1 more tablespoon of water, if needed.

Divide the dough in half, and shape into disks. Wrap individually in waxed paper, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 24. Wrapped disks can be sealed in a plastic bag and frozen for later use. Makes enough for one double-crust 9- or 10-inch pie.

Culinary historian Nancy Carter Crump adapted this recipe from Eliza Leslie, who noted, “This paste will do for family use when covered pies are wanted, and should always be eaten fresh.”

Shrewsbury Cakes

These crisp, buttery cookies, of which many varieties exist, have been known in England since at least the 1500s. Although they taste like shortbread, they are rolled thin and cut into rounds. The late food historian Alan Davidson wrote that Shrewsbury cakes “always appear to have been known for their crisp, brittle texture.”

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

3 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 tablespoon rose water

2 tablespoons heavy cream

In the bowl of an electric mixer, or in a large bowl beating by hand, cream the butter until light and fluffy. Stir together the flour and sugar. Add to the butter gradually, mixing together well.

Stir together the eggs, rose water, and cream. Gradually add to the butter mixture, blending until smooth. Wrap the dough in waxed paper or plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease baking sheets with vegetable shortening. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll 1/4 -inch thick and cut into 3-inch rounds or other desired shapes. Sprinkle with additional sugar. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until crisp and slightly browned around the edges. Immediately transfer onto a wire rack, and set aside to cool.

Serve Shrewsbury Cakes within a day of baking to ensure they maintain that characteristic crispness. They can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Makes about 4 dozen cakes.

Culinary historian Nancy Carter Crump adapted this recipe from Hannah Glasse for Dining with the Washingtons.

Culinary historian Nancy Carter Crump adapted this recipe from Hannah Glasse for Dining with the Washingtons.

Compote of Apples

1 1/2 cups water

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, or 2 cinnamon sticks

3 pounds cooking apples (such as Granny Smith or Pippin), peeled, cored, and quartered

Zest of 1/2 lemon, cut into thin strips

Boiled Custard for serving (optional)

In a large Dutch oven or saucepan, bring the water to a boil over medium-high heat. Add 1/2 cup sugar, and stir until dissolved. Add the cinnamon and lemon zest. Add the apples, and stir to coat with the liquid. Bring to a boil, and then immediately reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, until the apples are tender (but not mushy), occasionally basting them with the liquid.

Remove the apples to a serving dish, reserving the liquid in the pan. (If you use cinnamon sticks, remove and discard them.) Using a slotted spoon, remove and reserve lemon zest and set aside to cool.

Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar to the reserved cooking liquid, and bring to a boil over high heat. Boil uncovered until the liquid is reduced and syrupy. Set aside to cool briefly, and pour over the apples. Lay the reserved lemon zest over the apples.

Serve the compote warm or chilled as a side dish with Boiled Custard, if desired. Serves 6 to 8.

Culinary historian Nancy Carter Crump adapted this recipe from Mary Randolph’s 18th-Century version.

Chocolate Tart

Enjoy the flavor and aroma of rich, full-bodied, real hot chocolate the way George Washington would have enjoyed it. This all-natural, preservative-free product is fashioned from an 18th-Century recipe using cinnamon, nutmeg, and red pepper.

6 ounce American Heritage Chocolate Block

1 tablespoon rice flour

3 tablespoons white sugar (or to taste)

5 medium egg yolks or 4 large

1 tablespoon whole milk

1 pint heavy cream

1 prepared, frozen 9-inch pie shell

Pinch of salt

Grate the chocolate into a bowl and set aside. Combine salt, egg yolks, rice flour, and milk in a separate bowl and set aside.

Pour cream and chocolate into a saucepan and heat to a boil, stirring constantly. Add the sugar and cook until both the sugar and chocolate are melted. Take a quarter cup of the hot mixture and slowly add it to the egg yolk and rice flour mixture, stirring constantly with a whisk to prevent scrambling.

Stir the warmed egg yolk mixture into the saucepan and bring all the ingredients to a boil for about a minute. Set aside and allow it to cool to room temperature. While the mixture is cooling, preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Pour the chocolate mixture into the frozen pie shell, set it on a cookie sheet to prevent spillage and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until set. Remove from oven and let it cool to room temperature. Refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours or overnight. Serves 8.

Recipe courtesy of American Heritage Chocolate®, Historic Division of Mars.

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