“The following bill of fare, with details of preparation,
was contributed to the Sunday Globe by the president and secretary of the New
England Culinary Club, and has the sanction of every member.’
American Thanksgiving Dinner.
SOUPS
Mullagatawney
FISH
Baked Cod, New Bedford Style
ROASTS
Roast turkey, St James style.
American roast ham
ENTREES
Chicken Pie, American style
VEGETABLES
Baked mashed potatoes.
Boiled onions.
Squash – mashed turnip.
PASTRY
Cabinet pudding, lemon sauce.
DESSERT.
Fruit and cake.
I was
astonished to note the complete absence of pumpkin, apple, pecan, mince, or any
other sort of sweet pie in this menu! What does that say about ‘tradition’?
Recipes for
all of the major dishes were given in the article, but I could hardly chose
anything other than the chicken pie, could I?
Chicken Pie, American style.
Take two
large chickens. Singe, draw, and wash. Cut in medium sized pieces. Take three
onions chopped fine, a little celery, one small carrot scraped and cut in very
thin slices. Put this in a stew pan with four ounce of butter. Let it cook ten
minutes, then put in the chickens, cover with hot water. Let cook slowly till
tender; add two bay leaves or sprig of mace, pepper, and salt. Thicken with two
tablespoons of flour kneaded with butter. Line the sides of an earthen pie
dish, put in the chickens, and cover with a rich paste. Glace the top with
beaten eggs. Bake twenty minutes until a rich brown. Serve.
Quotation for the Day.
Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary
3 comments:
This is great! Yes, NO pies, especially pumpkin. But there IS cake! What fun. Plus the ham and the cod fish, the baked mashed potatoes and boiled onions. Makes it, in some ways, more similar to the menu at the so-called "First Thanksgiving" than our modern meal. What a hoot.
Regarding the lack of pumpkin or apple pie on the menu, I wonder if those were considered too "plebeian" for such an upscale restaurant. What people cook in the home isn't necessarily what would be done in a fancy hotel. Wikipedia (for what that's worth!) says the earliest recipe for pecan pie in a cookbook is 1897 - later than the date of this menu - and also says that it wasn't found in more "common" (popular) cookbooks until the 1940s.
Thanks carolina and Alys - and my apologies for the late response. I have been distraacted and busy with a new granddaughter!
This whole thing about 'tradition' fascinates me. I also looked at the 'traditional' green bean casserole - which is a post-WW II ideas as far as I can tell. I must now look for pecan pie recipes and see how far back I get!
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