tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51909769853630503102024-02-06T18:49:55.272-08:00Blackbird PieWelcome to Blackbird Pie, the Tank & Ferry Test Kitchen and a place to investigate some culinary delights from another era. I'll be baking (and eating) and sharing my exploits and invite you to join me. If nothing else, it's going to be yummy, but also I hope to gain an insight into food and cooking from the era of The Liberty & Property Legends, wherever that journey may take me. Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190976985363050310.post-36210154632077893972013-03-27T05:16:00.000-07:002013-03-28T03:36:28.798-07:00Longfellow's Wayside Inn Apple Pie<div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYtTCZ64IKG10MMFQdt7O6G7LCZBAIPDTZEvlaunBL5uuBn08mPt1dC8-LY8TKvnHd1io4XsvqjzVeon1DweRQq21PP9SBiZwu2GI3Zh06DX_Ha22xu_yPQKhK9bqJmOtfwSBq-RWpk34/s1600/2013-03-05+10.18.17_CocoAndTheApple.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYtTCZ64IKG10MMFQdt7O6G7LCZBAIPDTZEvlaunBL5uuBn08mPt1dC8-LY8TKvnHd1io4XsvqjzVeon1DweRQq21PP9SBiZwu2GI3Zh06DX_Ha22xu_yPQKhK9bqJmOtfwSBq-RWpk34/s200/2013-03-05+10.18.17_CocoAndTheApple.jpg" width="150" /></a><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: #666666;">On the 27th of last month it was Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's birthday. In honour of that famous gentleman, who happens to be a literary hero of mine, Blackbird Pie presents for your culinary delight</span> <span style="color: #990000;"><em><span style="color: #cc0000;">Longfellow's Wayside Inn Apple Pie</span><span style="color: #444444;">.</span></em></span><span style="color: #444444;"> </span><span style="color: #666666;">I do this with the help of my enthusiastic moodle, Coco Chanel, who it seems, unlike with most food, can be trusted with granny smith apples, and who was happy to provide the cuteness factor to this post about simple apple pie - or is it?</span> </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFrpMUCU8gEfPcCGBmqgth3oZFMY3ZitncUkNUf4ZxyJqHGV5ey6HG0F5Y0Uxn_UVgtn5qjoHcI2sOqlIkHj4moD0lFgAtZzdPdFfRCyE0EGGIggeljslwBOLweSpHtglyCkQkysoESis/s1600/2012-05-29+01.58.55.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFrpMUCU8gEfPcCGBmqgth3oZFMY3ZitncUkNUf4ZxyJqHGV5ey6HG0F5Y0Uxn_UVgtn5qjoHcI2sOqlIkHj4moD0lFgAtZzdPdFfRCyE0EGGIggeljslwBOLweSpHtglyCkQkysoESis/s200/2012-05-29+01.58.55.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">"One Autumn night, in Sudbury town,</span><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Across the meadows bare and brown,</span><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia; font-size: xx-small;">The windows of the wayside inn</span><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Gleamed red with fire-light </span><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia; font-size: xx-small;">through the leaves</span><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Of woodbine, hanging from the eaves</span><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia; font-size: xx-small;">Their crimson curtains rent and thin."</span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Longfellow's Wayside Inn is located in Sudbury, Massachussetts. Tank and I visited the Inn last summer on our trip to Boston. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The menu at the Inn is a </span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">fascination in itself, with a whole</span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">section called Traditional </span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: xx-small;">Wayside Inn Favorites!</span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">In 1862 the beloved American poet visited the <em>Red Horse Tavern </em>as it was originally called. Since his wife's tragic death, grief-stricken Longfellow had writer's block and lacked inspiration. Here at the <em>Red Horse Tavern</em> he found some. He wrote his renowned <em>Tales of a Wayside Inn</em>, which was published in 1863 and became an immediate success. From then on the <em>Red Horse Tavern</em> became known as <em>Longfellow's Wayside Inn</em>.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: #666666;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">This recipe comes from Longfellow's Wayside Inn Cookbook, a cherished keepsake from my visit to the Inn. For this scrumptious, fragrant apple pie you need the following:</span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEsAKXAVAIuYXbNDmb3uoonLkP3QDY1j7lqAFZAvfCBT3_z_acRzSBk9Qdr2zv6qUmzGHYgD5kCFvYUz-swJ-c9xI_8ADljxMNDCgwocxGmVFM3xgWwFmoC73WYInShejXBcflkXl8c6s/s320/2013-03-05+10.09.02_GrannySmithBeauties.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="240" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #444444;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">I used granny smiths ~ perfect apple pie </span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">apples after all ~ check out these beauties!</span></strong></span><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">Back in the day they may have used </span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">Newtown Pippins!</span></strong></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong>6 medium size apples, cored, peeled and sliced</strong></span><br />
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong></strong></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong>1/3 cup brown sugar </strong></span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong></strong></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong>pinch of salt </strong></span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong></strong></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong>2 TB cornstarch </strong></span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong></strong></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong>2 TB flour</strong></span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong></strong></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong>1/2 tsp cinnamon</strong></span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong></strong></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong>pinch of nutmeg</strong></span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong></strong></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong>1 tsp lemon juice </strong></span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong></strong></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong>2 TB melted butter </strong></span></div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong></strong></span> </div>
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<span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong>9" unbaked pie crust (23cm)</strong></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgejqw_6gPM3XwmnmjXXCYqvHbpI1Y-PmjqM6zTqbTiEqBUEmy8beYqgMRkXaeOSyC9IB8M5m86sRIKWXcFV3lRZ-oFKByIyPjY66eH0qZMYH0UBwH8BMmBTMUepCJSw1tJ8oeIo1r2exc/s1600/2013-03-07+14.35.47_UnbakedPieCrust.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgejqw_6gPM3XwmnmjXXCYqvHbpI1Y-PmjqM6zTqbTiEqBUEmy8beYqgMRkXaeOSyC9IB8M5m86sRIKWXcFV3lRZ-oFKByIyPjY66eH0qZMYH0UBwH8BMmBTMUepCJSw1tJ8oeIo1r2exc/s200/2013-03-07+14.35.47_UnbakedPieCrust.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>9" Unbaked pie crust</strong></span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em>And so to the Longfellow's Wayside Inn method:</em> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Place all ingredients in bowl and mix together. </span><br />
<span style="color: black;"></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Pour fruit mixture into unbaked 9" (23cm) Pie Crust. </span><br />
<span style="color: black;"></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Egg wash rim and place top crust over filling. </span><br />
<span style="color: black;"></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Crimp edges and cut steam vents in top crust. </span><br />
<span style="color: black;"></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Egg wash crust and bake at 350 degrees (180 C) until golden brown.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjctD8Do_J7mXaIWpl3-W8rB2VfM1iSQU2AQkfcjsrf7XZfSsyDL-aNFcBgUzabNVEpeoczhbBbpoAqZiEd1H5WfS4XvCIlcoeghj9GuAmwd0cf-IfBCD57o6yf0NNw4CACMOU_3_5BOO8/s1600/2013-03-07+14.38.32_firstpeeledapple.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjctD8Do_J7mXaIWpl3-W8rB2VfM1iSQU2AQkfcjsrf7XZfSsyDL-aNFcBgUzabNVEpeoczhbBbpoAqZiEd1H5WfS4XvCIlcoeghj9GuAmwd0cf-IfBCD57o6yf0NNw4CACMOU_3_5BOO8/s320/2013-03-07+14.38.32_firstpeeledapple.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Ingredients lined up and first apple</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">peeled.</span></strong></td></tr>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Now that's not hard, right? And still I managed to savage my thumb with the knife while slicing the apples - the second one I might add, so basically the whole pie was made with an injured thumb. Enter the complication. I'm probably the world's most clumsy piemaker. That being said, my pies do taste very good. My pie adventure in pictures below, but I spared you the blood... shudder, <em>urgh!</em></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-W7d1Cagpj6DgRp-CVw6-u_u0wLl94jHOupRuZQudCCC_bbxC93jjgiAfj6EJZt0d7C-_eSAmsg6D35GyCX9AGV739gXlyod7Co-BMoKs464Sdf4MuA4FeNsWVc4HZwdsJzzVOtLYytU/s1600/2013-03-07+14.47.38_ApplesPeeledAndCored.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-W7d1Cagpj6DgRp-CVw6-u_u0wLl94jHOupRuZQudCCC_bbxC93jjgiAfj6EJZt0d7C-_eSAmsg6D35GyCX9AGV739gXlyod7Co-BMoKs464Sdf4MuA4FeNsWVc4HZwdsJzzVOtLYytU/s200/2013-03-07+14.47.38_ApplesPeeledAndCored.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>Apples peeled and cored.</strong></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD22HZkkQPSZ-NHm9u7yjhfryIqOy8gaOdCroZzqONgpRoGqaJV0PnpsPkjKAGb_5ReDE_ziS-Yq94zs-HPOuPLXx9D3vFBxWV3nwk2cW3CGnOcpjQvZSKtDeHQDbrN3XxfLPw5sw2LG4/s1600/2013-03-07+15.09.33_ApplesSlicedwithLemonJuice.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD22HZkkQPSZ-NHm9u7yjhfryIqOy8gaOdCroZzqONgpRoGqaJV0PnpsPkjKAGb_5ReDE_ziS-Yq94zs-HPOuPLXx9D3vFBxWV3nwk2cW3CGnOcpjQvZSKtDeHQDbrN3XxfLPw5sw2LG4/s200/2013-03-07+15.09.33_ApplesSlicedwithLemonJuice.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Apples sliced and lemon</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">juiced added.</span></strong><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV1GpVzAG_L0MapoKXrJ2snRcj4mg201TQ7JhYggiuUDbGSm-28M1uATUeEZO0NmFiSIUhinlxE7vbr5huJtyz1RjiSrRI6VEaq2ojF-S6xAXfKNSfM85hx6FfayeT1b2gHnoHjqtr-x4/s1600/2013-03-07+15.15.17_nowforthebrownsugar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV1GpVzAG_L0MapoKXrJ2snRcj4mg201TQ7JhYggiuUDbGSm-28M1uATUeEZO0NmFiSIUhinlxE7vbr5huJtyz1RjiSrRI6VEaq2ojF-S6xAXfKNSfM85hx6FfayeT1b2gHnoHjqtr-x4/s320/2013-03-07+15.15.17_nowforthebrownsugar.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>Now for the brown sugar...</strong></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqJR2VLGDZf7FbnT_5MJT80BgRkZ7YnFrAwEK7VhPSxyAaq3pZ2LiEH7NoA5yP44mKgaJ2RTSvtN4BJZ8wPylHMI1bkmOKQcuFfki7JH0HNWbBdTIiOONQnzULxwYqYNp4D-abjuIvZK8/s1600/2013-03-07+15.22.29_flourcornstarchandcinnamon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqJR2VLGDZf7FbnT_5MJT80BgRkZ7YnFrAwEK7VhPSxyAaq3pZ2LiEH7NoA5yP44mKgaJ2RTSvtN4BJZ8wPylHMI1bkmOKQcuFfki7JH0HNWbBdTIiOONQnzULxwYqYNp4D-abjuIvZK8/s320/2013-03-07+15.22.29_flourcornstarchandcinnamon.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>...flour, cornstarch, cinnamon and pinch of salt.</strong></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuX_fQWU7l62JYZAcOHbmNEOcguGg1zYla4R3_DkJI_RqsxKdfZ3pgBsgZg91sJAVzuyfphdKH5poAb9VzZG5XH8zUeA2Z-VjQEfa3lLZbohUNqq7qf1nsw8QcKQNotQYqC28d01rQIdo/s1600/2013-03-07+15.24.06_freshgratednutmeg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuX_fQWU7l62JYZAcOHbmNEOcguGg1zYla4R3_DkJI_RqsxKdfZ3pgBsgZg91sJAVzuyfphdKH5poAb9VzZG5XH8zUeA2Z-VjQEfa3lLZbohUNqq7qf1nsw8QcKQNotQYqC28d01rQIdo/s320/2013-03-07+15.24.06_freshgratednutmeg.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>Freshly grated nutmeg is a bit of spice coup de gras</strong></span><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">as well as being great fun and very satisfying. If you</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">don't grate your own nutmeg you've got to try it!</span></strong></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV1GpVzAG_L0MapoKXrJ2snRcj4mg201TQ7JhYggiuUDbGSm-28M1uATUeEZO0NmFiSIUhinlxE7vbr5huJtyz1RjiSrRI6VEaq2ojF-S6xAXfKNSfM85hx6FfayeT1b2gHnoHjqtr-x4/s1600/2013-03-07+15.15.17_nowforthebrownsugar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL2m6HWFhFfZHyjcdJ4KYMlnK4AUTLu-o1YX8XkC1Ihw_rrQruIyCMYdk4VevdwHzyXmW68fY-hoT8l5MHLRSNjpoKlcb2ptVl8YkuSRQV_Kpsw1Y5t_xc24YF1P11-BfY5qPADyr88ig/s1600/2013-03-07+15.17.21_meltedbutteradded.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL2m6HWFhFfZHyjcdJ4KYMlnK4AUTLu-o1YX8XkC1Ihw_rrQruIyCMYdk4VevdwHzyXmW68fY-hoT8l5MHLRSNjpoKlcb2ptVl8YkuSRQV_Kpsw1Y5t_xc24YF1P11-BfY5qPADyr88ig/s320/2013-03-07+15.17.21_meltedbutteradded.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>Pour in the melted butter...</strong></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX6JL2YXksPzWsoAGuvRPajJeg8EiYnwcHLzwA2MHNwtj8hOrYE-OOtub_0yweCyrZmeRoGYyBNOjTbLGevO1_rssYyvWRi6QET2O5BQDYtsPLbpPFMyzIR9uuuA3_RF5phXeSGrrAKeY/s1600/2013-03-07+15.27.05_bowlofspicyapples.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX6JL2YXksPzWsoAGuvRPajJeg8EiYnwcHLzwA2MHNwtj8hOrYE-OOtub_0yweCyrZmeRoGYyBNOjTbLGevO1_rssYyvWRi6QET2O5BQDYtsPLbpPFMyzIR9uuuA3_RF5phXeSGrrAKeY/s320/2013-03-07+15.27.05_bowlofspicyapples.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>...and give it a satisfying mix ~ the aroma of </strong></span><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>apples and spices is heavenly, and you </strong></span><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">just know that this pie is going to be good.</span></strong></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHM_coOI4i65l_JzgbErHpD0cNkYNRsPgsYwcuKmzVbcAJvGtvAQsvuiSqHE16kuaK9ljRE5gxUwQ1Vvo5T-Tkw2xb9PawRquOTXZiMMja-YBAunQlXgX9AB2nrEm84B4n2pUXL86oyLU/s1600/2013-03-07+15.29.40_pouredintopiecrust.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHM_coOI4i65l_JzgbErHpD0cNkYNRsPgsYwcuKmzVbcAJvGtvAQsvuiSqHE16kuaK9ljRE5gxUwQ1Vvo5T-Tkw2xb9PawRquOTXZiMMja-YBAunQlXgX9AB2nrEm84B4n2pUXL86oyLU/s320/2013-03-07+15.29.40_pouredintopiecrust.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>Fill the unbaked pie crust with your</strong></span><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">apple mixture...</span></strong></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwemDpHdz1-drWbWt7ogudKhQ12gO1hcQUyDb7AqcFc14Wn_DUf8gL6yRArNxOfRim3rrmll1P-cWnvD-GpOuel1BtLQJ835PoWmmb0YjfQLiBo4ntQV60YpyFRekMFJFGxNhuASqhakI/s1600/2013-03-07+15.30.00_lookattheheightofthosebabies.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwemDpHdz1-drWbWt7ogudKhQ12gO1hcQUyDb7AqcFc14Wn_DUf8gL6yRArNxOfRim3rrmll1P-cWnvD-GpOuel1BtLQJ835PoWmmb0YjfQLiBo4ntQV60YpyFRekMFJFGxNhuASqhakI/s320/2013-03-07+15.30.00_lookattheheightofthosebabies.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>...look at the height of those babies!</strong></span><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">I'm getting very excited at the prospect</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">of eating at this point.</span></strong></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrMnkZt28cHrX0O5-bQM9BTy5M1tk5ZeAtNYzbBq_P9c17DCYOodPRuIQJQFZBGKvvPQJQ-5nLnsKS7CGg7qorHUOpWxW2g4L6RQQF7rhB29vXWChKG7ML0V0sRX4EJHcQ5m00xMk3Zo8/s1600/2013-03-07+15.42.25_topcrustonedgescrimpedeggwashon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrMnkZt28cHrX0O5-bQM9BTy5M1tk5ZeAtNYzbBq_P9c17DCYOodPRuIQJQFZBGKvvPQJQ-5nLnsKS7CGg7qorHUOpWxW2g4L6RQQF7rhB29vXWChKG7ML0V0sRX4EJHcQ5m00xMk3Zo8/s320/2013-03-07+15.42.25_topcrustonedgescrimpedeggwashon.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>Top crust on, crimp the edges and </strong></span><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>egg </strong></span><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>wash the lot ~ love painting </strong></span><strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">with egg. </span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">And </span></strong><strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">below ~ </span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">oven ready and just look at that shine!</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;"> </span></strong><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQaMEvjnNJm3GRpzyg1I3INaCphoTPN-gVWEdAnkRvD-ZnVG59XXWfEdfMzBJUiRYH7NKskOOrYlEM16Snf2JBZ1FLKWjhJ7xYe0qj_xzfHf1n3MQ63rbpXZffXhSG7nTKevgnyOqclQA/s1600/2013-03-07+15.44.07_lookatthatgloss_ovenreadyatlast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQaMEvjnNJm3GRpzyg1I3INaCphoTPN-gVWEdAnkRvD-ZnVG59XXWfEdfMzBJUiRYH7NKskOOrYlEM16Snf2JBZ1FLKWjhJ7xYe0qj_xzfHf1n3MQ63rbpXZffXhSG7nTKevgnyOqclQA/s320/2013-03-07+15.44.07_lookatthatgloss_ovenreadyatlast.jpg" width="281" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ94LFhNkjYnUjYPZQYHI6koK24R7CLGJkHSjgkQx12YIb5JGaj01kOCOi9-W8y0kSgYuRazFcx3uLewEOXUgWJT3KFNhn9hbb6mgymPl_3maOHpWT-QmSF9jfuqSEncI1F7nUPTD5zBc/s1600/2013-03-07+15.46.52_let%2527scheckouttherestofthebookwhilebaking.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ94LFhNkjYnUjYPZQYHI6koK24R7CLGJkHSjgkQx12YIb5JGaj01kOCOi9-W8y0kSgYuRazFcx3uLewEOXUgWJT3KFNhn9hbb6mgymPl_3maOHpWT-QmSF9jfuqSEncI1F7nUPTD5zBc/s320/2013-03-07+15.46.52_let%2527scheckouttherestofthebookwhilebaking.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>While I wait for the pie to go all golden</strong></span><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">I take a moment to give the <em>Longfellow's</em></span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;"><em>Wayside Inn Cookbook</em> it's due recognition.</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">It mentions at the bottom of the recipe that</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">you can make this pie with pears instead of </span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">apples, substituting brown sugar for white.</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;"></span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">~~~</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;"></span></strong><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;"></span><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong> And below ~ after about 40 minutes this</strong></span><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">is the result of my labours and considering</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">it was mostly done without any input from</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">my left thumb, I'm pretty thrilled. Look at</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">this pie, all golden and delish.</span></strong><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;"></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0RlU3Sz9x9lwP4k8z8pQKQb2ZSbkfL2PaBAncqXMkwO3-Kqnag367XvTaeFvWgg_V7-y-wbP7MqjRoHBGBq9BwXyXckfDY-2ALXnhmI6I20BvgyhG2LRnnjbKwGKs7TRbFOWkLySnvPE/s1600/2013-03-07+16.22.52_lookatthatpie_goldenanddelish.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0RlU3Sz9x9lwP4k8z8pQKQb2ZSbkfL2PaBAncqXMkwO3-Kqnag367XvTaeFvWgg_V7-y-wbP7MqjRoHBGBq9BwXyXckfDY-2ALXnhmI6I20BvgyhG2LRnnjbKwGKs7TRbFOWkLySnvPE/s320/2013-03-07+16.22.52_lookatthatpie_goldenanddelish.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQLGkJk_upJgwNxGCl1yFIVdgK7DaGqldqPSlGnXoJyrS2-WKCVdwzIM3ricwE1H4hKwoX0nJyGaoduK2Ll6jih6sConRR6inFaSxitOFoCCfuIQ5jhb6ap7FV3Bu79otoMR5mg4dUnXo/s1600/2013-03-07+20.14.22_applesandblackbirdsbakedinapie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQLGkJk_upJgwNxGCl1yFIVdgK7DaGqldqPSlGnXoJyrS2-WKCVdwzIM3ricwE1H4hKwoX0nJyGaoduK2Ll6jih6sConRR6inFaSxitOFoCCfuIQ5jhb6ap7FV3Bu79otoMR5mg4dUnXo/s320/2013-03-07+20.14.22_applesandblackbirdsbakedinapie.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>Apples piled high and spicy. Smells good</strong></span><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">tastes even better. </span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">How did those blackbirds get in there!</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">I cannot recommend this apple pie enough.</span></strong></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjofdM95i0S-YgB5rDXpHOY8nOH8GOU5wawuOtpy1n93nGrV4Xw6AQE7SThD5HC8t_6ff2q6QXTlYU-YC7Ei66eMjOupY2VDsKBQDbXtKTgUdPkf_OksJcNrFPPsy1U4CbhpE5SI5rklZ8/s1600/2013-03-05+10.18.29_canyouseethegreenappleofmyeye.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjofdM95i0S-YgB5rDXpHOY8nOH8GOU5wawuOtpy1n93nGrV4Xw6AQE7SThD5HC8t_6ff2q6QXTlYU-YC7Ei66eMjOupY2VDsKBQDbXtKTgUdPkf_OksJcNrFPPsy1U4CbhpE5SI5rklZ8/s320/2013-03-05+10.18.29_canyouseethegreenappleofmyeye.jpg" width="171" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>Can you see the green apple of my eye?</strong></span><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>Guarding apples </strong></span><strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">is no mean feat for a moodle </span></strong><strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">whose </span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">epilepsy medication makes a pup </span></strong><strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">even more hungry than usual. </span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">And I was there when mummy's </span></strong><strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">thumb got the chop. I was there</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">for her, like I'm always there. I don't think I barked from the front door</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">at a someone in </span></strong><strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">the street and thereby causing the knife to slip. Do you take me</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">for an indiscriminate barker with no consideration for those wielding a dangerous</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">implement? </span></strong><strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">Besides, I'm cute. It's in my job </span></strong><strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;">description and I'm good at my job. Yeah!</span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;"></span></strong><br />
<strong><span style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia;"></span></strong><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"><em>See you next time on Blackbird Pie!</em></span></td></tr>
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<strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">* * * * * </span></strong> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Photos of Longfellow's Wayside Inn from <em>Author! Author! A Journey of Literary Heroes</em>. Follow the link </span><a href="http://terrisedmak.blogspot.com.au/#!/2012/07/author-author-journey-of-literary-heroes.html"><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">http://terrisedmak.blogspot.com.au/#!/2012/07/author-author-journey-of-literary-heroes.html</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"></span></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuX_fQWU7l62JYZAcOHbmNEOcguGg1zYla4R3_DkJI_RqsxKdfZ3pgBsgZg91sJAVzuyfphdKH5poAb9VzZG5XH8zUeA2Z-VjQEfa3lLZbohUNqq7qf1nsw8QcKQNotQYqC28d01rQIdo/s1600/2013-03-07+15.24.06_freshgratednutmeg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuX_fQWU7l62JYZAcOHbmNEOcguGg1zYla4R3_DkJI_RqsxKdfZ3pgBsgZg91sJAVzuyfphdKH5poAb9VzZG5XH8zUeA2Z-VjQEfa3lLZbohUNqq7qf1nsw8QcKQNotQYqC28d01rQIdo/s1600/2013-03-07+15.24.06_freshgratednutmeg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">And Happy 206th Birthday, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow!</span></div>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190976985363050310.post-22984048049987815042012-05-20T23:11:00.000-07:002012-05-21T01:49:33.989-07:00Wheat a to-do about Gluten!<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Believe me, I got lots more where that came from... and there <i>is</i> a <b>pioneer bread pudding</b> at the end of this, but let's go all Part Two and cerebral for a moment to look at a timeline of gluten as a medical issue in human history. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Let me introduce this by recapping from my previous blog that wheat originally came from Asia. It went forth into China and Egypt etc etc. It landed in America by way of Chris Colombus (the explorer, not the film director) in the 15th century. So sensitivity to wheat has been around a long, long time, but most common among those of European ancestry, because for these peoples wheat was introduced into their diet, and not a natural part of it as in those civilisations who had eaten it for thousands and thousands of years - it's a theory, and it's a good one. And all of us sensitive European types probably would have done a lot better with it but for those rolling flour mills and the hybridised strains I mentioned last time which killed it for us (that's my theory). Moving on...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">You gotta love those ancient Greeks. In the 2nd century, Greek physician Aretaeus of Cappodocia first described the trouble some people had with gluten. His work was translated by Francis Adams in 1856, and in the chapter called "The Coeliac Diathesis" we find the crux of the matter. If you don't like medical details, turn away now... He describes fatty diarrhoea (I can't even begin to imagine the analysis that went into that), and weight loss and pallor, in people of all ages.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The word 'coeliac' is derived from the Greek word 'koiliakos' and it means 'suffering in the bowels'. Let me quote here from the work of Aretaeus as translated by Adams, the chapter on the Cure of Coeliacs: "If the stomach be irretentive of the food and it pass through undigested and crude, and nothing ascends into the body, we call such persons Coeliacs". </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">(You can come back now.)</span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">You see, apart from the gluten making us sick, if food doesn't get absorbed, we don't thrive.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Let's see what happened next.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">In 1888, Samuel Gee, a British paediatrician at St Bartholomew's Hospital wrote up the "affection" as "a kind of chronic indigestion", noting the "wasting, weakness and pallor of the patient". He recommended correcting the patient's diet was the way to cure the patient of this bowel complaint, which was then called non-tropical sprue, sprue being chronic nutrient malabsorption.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Between 1908 and 1924, paediatricians in Britain concentrated on this coeliac condition in children. So, over a period of months and years, they changed the diet of these patients and by introducing different kinds of foods in stages they determined that fats were better tolerated than carbs. Carbs, including bread and cereals, were the last to be introduced. Of course, here were the culprits. In 1924, the famous banana diet by Haas was recommended for people with gluten issues and it was used widely until the next stage in the unravelling came about in the Second World War.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Let's face it, bananas are just good for everything. When they don't know what to do with you, they stick you on bananas - I remember that from when I was a kid. If I woke up peckish in the middle of the night, my mother would feed me a banana. My sister had very bad asthma - they fed her bananas while they worked out what caused it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Where were we... This, now, is so typical of how human beings find out about stuff (it's good, because it shows someone is paying attention). Due to the shortage of wheat in the Second World War in Holland, Dutch paediatrician (gosh, I'm tired of typing that word, it's so damn tricky) Willem Dicke, realised that children with gluten issues who had to eat other things instead of wheat were on the improve. When wheat was back on the menu after the war, these children went down hill again with symptoms of gluten intolerance.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">In 1954, Dr John Paulley discovered the abnormal change in the lining of the small intestine for coeliacs; on a gluten-free diet, the lining returned to its normal state. This was very significant now, for doctors developed ways to stick tubes down patients and take biopsies of their sad and sorry insides. One such doctor was Dr Margot Shiner.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">For next two decades nothing really helped advance the understanding of why gluten wrecks the lining of the small intestine. They threw some molecular biology at it, due to the advent of the study of DNA, so they were trying.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">In 1990's there were lots of advancements and more understanding of the condition. A blood test was developed. In 1992 and 1993, optic fibres were invented to do the job of the tubes. Labelling laws helped people identify which foods contained gluten. An anti-endomysial antibody test came into use and a tissue transglutiminase antibody screening test.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">It's all very interesting (snap out it - timeline's over)...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">So why does gluten wreak havoc in the small intestine? I'm going to quote direct from the source, www.chiropracticchesapeak.com<span style="font-size: small;">,</span></span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: #444444;"></span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">but just note this: gliadin is the culprit... read on:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">"When gliadin in gluten becomes water soluble, it is free to bind to cells in your body. If you are sensitive, your body will make antibodies to gliadin and attack the cells gliadin has attached itself to, treating those cells as an infection. This immune response damages surrounding tissue and has the potential to set off, or exacerbate many other health problems throughout your body, which is why gluten can have such a devastating effect on your overall health, causing inflammation, diarrhoea, nausea and abdominal pain."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">CONCLUSION (yes, there is one):</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Back in 1883-85, in the time of The Liberty & Property Legends, and according to the timeline, Dr Jennifer Sullivan would have had a certain small amount of knowledge about non-tropical sprue; she would have been aware of the failing health of children and adults due to their diet and very likely advised her patients to correct it. She would have called them coeliacs. She would have known this from her own observations of their health, as well as the knowledge provided by Francis Adams' 1856 translation of </span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">the work of the ancient Greek physician, Aretaeus of Cappodocia.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The important work of Samuel Gee <i>et al</i> was still to come, but a good doctor always observes their patient and asks questions, and Dr Sullivan was a very good doctor, particularly with children, as we know.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Gluten intolerance was present in the population, but not to the extent that it is today because back then the population didn't consume over-refined, hybridised and/or genetically modified wheat. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">According to www.thenaturalrecoveryplan.com/articles/What-Happened-to-Wheat:</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">"The hybridisation and genetic engineering of wheat has resulted in a staggering <i>500 fold </i>increase in the gluten content of modern day wheats compared to the wheat our forefathers would have known."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">One
thing we clearly need to be aware of: stay as far away as possible from
genetically modified wheat. Use organic flour and products wherever
possible. And try to cut back on the amount of gluten in our diet. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">We've gone from a few gluten-intolerant people in the population to an explosion of people affected! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">My GIO (gluten intolerant one) experienced mysterious symptoms of fatigue, stomach ache, bloating, pallor, headaches, lack of energy and feeling ill, before a gluten-intolerant friend suggested that she try 'going gluten-free'. It worked. Just as in times gone by, she eliminated those foods, felt better, ate them again, felt ill again... got better again! But the GIO is not a coeliac (as determined by a genetic test), meaning the consumption of some gluten may not cause symptoms. She has to be careful. She reserves the consumption of gluten for her very favourite wheat-based foods and then only a small amount. In our house we substitute all wheat-based foods for gluten-free versions, including pasta, pizza and baked goodies, although the GIO has her own gluten-free bread or bakes her own. More and more gluten-free goods are appearing on the supermarket shelves, which is good for our family and many others obviously, but what is it saying about the food the population as a whole is consuming in the 21st Century?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">The millstones and the water-wheels and the poor old donkey clip-clopping in a circle may look quaint and olde-worlde to our eyes, but in actual fact they signify a time when that staple food of life - wheat - was better for us.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><i>PIONEER BREAD PUDDING</i></span></b></div>
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Ready for the pud? <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvVCkXzlw974B2fwpWpT4U81YsEna9kDsGXWVBnvGLyru0pnqfTjj88EfAUQzAdPynxQjRfjPLmRqPLCGUil67oZ5ETsVUx5F9mxrFDOVc4oSd3hZToHlEp9SuGVKUZKMGc6CsIPwdCoU/s1600/2012-BreadPudding_05-18+09.36.08.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvVCkXzlw974B2fwpWpT4U81YsEna9kDsGXWVBnvGLyru0pnqfTjj88EfAUQzAdPynxQjRfjPLmRqPLCGUil67oZ5ETsVUx5F9mxrFDOVc4oSd3hZToHlEp9SuGVKUZKMGc6CsIPwdCoU/s400/2012-BreadPudding_05-18+09.36.08.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Note: I used gluten-<i>fierce</i> bread. My GIO was not even given a sniff of this pudding because as yummy as it turned out to be, it wouldn't have been pretty if she'd eaten a bite of it!</div>
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<i>Here we go...</i></div>
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<b>bread, cubed - 2 cups </b></div>
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<b>raisins - 1 cup </b></div>
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<b>eggs, lightly beaten -2 </b></div>
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<b>butter - 3 tablespoons </b></div>
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<b>vanilla - 1/2 teaspoon</b></div>
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<b>sugar - 1/4 cup</b></div>
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<b>milk, scalded - 2 cups</b></div>
<b><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">small pinch of salt</span></b><br />
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<b>Place in buttered dish. </b><i>Let's face it, bread pudding ain't rocket science, but four words!</i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrPa1YYhL10Il6FOZ9QrkodeheNvaq43qxWXIsGb_qKxwYZQ6vcMOgw5fcFbVY7Mvmr9R5lF2jB5IpierlWssUnQRKGNIMlOFbpEPJupkYBnS22d4LRPwHQ96SFeOqJ68pCsPyrEL1h6E/s1600/2012-BreadPudding_05-18+10.23.36.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrPa1YYhL10Il6FOZ9QrkodeheNvaq43qxWXIsGb_qKxwYZQ6vcMOgw5fcFbVY7Mvmr9R5lF2jB5IpierlWssUnQRKGNIMlOFbpEPJupkYBnS22d4LRPwHQ96SFeOqJ68pCsPyrEL1h6E/s200/2012-BreadPudding_05-18+10.23.36.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdDxG-h_bTTKOMu6DGu0mc76_k9SY5SLZ4L-0QaAvwySuPoeV7DQT1eV0Cjy10Mh3D-_CPJZ9eTWlbqkJbxFtHCjwao_ieQZW1uSfNFzNUJZQusYxA65r-wre53_JekLoSMelsUWNjBBI/s1600/2012-BreadPudding_05-18+10.36.03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdDxG-h_bTTKOMu6DGu0mc76_k9SY5SLZ4L-0QaAvwySuPoeV7DQT1eV0Cjy10Mh3D-_CPJZ9eTWlbqkJbxFtHCjwao_ieQZW1uSfNFzNUJZQusYxA65r-wre53_JekLoSMelsUWNjBBI/s200/2012-BreadPudding_05-18+10.36.03.jpg" width="150" /></a><i style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Yes, that's all the instruction there is in this recipe, so I suggest you do similar to me and that was slice the bread, butter it and cube it and place in baking dish. Scald the milk and add slowly while lightly whisking the beaten eggs to make the custard mixture. Add the sugar, and the vanilla (which is extract in my pantry.) Now you have the custard mixture to pour over the buttered bread cubes in your baking dish.</i></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2lowRrV1JdicSacuQykKFa0CeQyIW9Owv_IMUbGsq1birWKh5pb8oWJkMA3_A0zL1AGayIlZkkHUrreWdHt1miVEOA77HgH7OO9SxszzXzkfSpY6ksEAaEVfO3XmxT-dEYP9HJGWla48/s1600/2012-BreadPudding_05-18+10.44.50.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2lowRrV1JdicSacuQykKFa0CeQyIW9Owv_IMUbGsq1birWKh5pb8oWJkMA3_A0zL1AGayIlZkkHUrreWdHt1miVEOA77HgH7OO9SxszzXzkfSpY6ksEAaEVfO3XmxT-dEYP9HJGWla48/s200/2012-BreadPudding_05-18+10.44.50.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUjcdW9KfcEwxQFg8rghpuyEsa6AK3or8CDRAGfW5enh8K3cJU7_1vqj7Ibr21D_lgbFWlxuXV-uIDaD2x1AReGcZhXhs0heR2xSzVoxabG59H4wjU2GIcnYw2Df6u9_aBBtAL8c1JUbA/s1600/2012-BreadPudding_05-18+10.46.41.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUjcdW9KfcEwxQFg8rghpuyEsa6AK3or8CDRAGfW5enh8K3cJU7_1vqj7Ibr21D_lgbFWlxuXV-uIDaD2x1AReGcZhXhs0heR2xSzVoxabG59H4wjU2GIcnYw2Df6u9_aBBtAL8c1JUbA/s200/2012-BreadPudding_05-18+10.46.41.jpg" width="150" /></a><i><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I also squished the bread down in the custard mixture, so the bread took up the mixture. You can add the raisins - you know me and raisins, not really a fan, so in my dried-fruitless world I wouldn't add them, but I did follow the recipe and </span></i><i><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">dutifully </span></i><i><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">added a few... er, on top. (they're there for show, sorry raisin-lovers). </span></i></div>
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<b>Place in a 350 F/ 180 C oven and bake for about an hour or until a skewer or knife comes out clean when inserted into the middle of the pudding.</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidW7JOfd_3dQo8D7loouMwt3RtK6MqC8jE7SFAESJBXeu9u4mzfKHKnUS2B1A7ohV2IPuSB894KF1iK8JNX-svT9lFQIJQplAjZZkJC5V07LMxgBpN_LGdTCT_EcN1ca-NT8ia0N2OPlo/s1600/2012-BreadPudding_05-18+10.51.22.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidW7JOfd_3dQo8D7loouMwt3RtK6MqC8jE7SFAESJBXeu9u4mzfKHKnUS2B1A7ohV2IPuSB894KF1iK8JNX-svT9lFQIJQplAjZZkJC5V07LMxgBpN_LGdTCT_EcN1ca-NT8ia0N2OPlo/s320/2012-BreadPudding_05-18+10.51.22.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">As you know, my oven is on the fierce side so I lowered the temp to 325 F/160 C and reduced the cooking time - ended up being about 45 minutes. I could have lowered the temp further and cooked longer, which would have been better, but patience is not always a virtue with me when it comes to food. While it was cooking, I got a little peckish, and thought it was a shame to waste the crust from the end of the loaf. A scraping of left-over butter and a smearing of wonderful and nutritious manuka honey... now that's not bad, that is :). </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">It all turned out satisfactorily and smelling delicious. The pud was devoured to the tune of many compli-ments. The raisins were removed by you know who before eating. Make sure you put yours into the custard mixture, so they stay lush inside the pudding! </span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>This recipe serves 4 - 6.</b> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWcED2n1oRpZlI0Ybe68LgAMHJaaXnI7TrVxZXV2fQmXyhkmoY96vWuFP4mDc9vntyLAcxfuavlCwEbeNBOo6wvHJlYmTo5Xu_BPktGrhBFV8T9eJn-rm-jif_Ac2_6eaUR-A8k2kb1j8/s1600/2012-BreadPudding_05-18+11.27.55.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWcED2n1oRpZlI0Ybe68LgAMHJaaXnI7TrVxZXV2fQmXyhkmoY96vWuFP4mDc9vntyLAcxfuavlCwEbeNBOo6wvHJlYmTo5Xu_BPktGrhBFV8T9eJn-rm-jif_Ac2_6eaUR-A8k2kb1j8/s320/2012-BreadPudding_05-18+11.27.55.jpg" width="308" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></span><i><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </span></i><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">As we have seen, there is now the option of using gluten-free varieties of bread to really bring some</span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> nutritional valu</span><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">e and coeliac safety to this timeless dish. We know from the research that it would be better, perhaps even more authentic, to use bread of mixed grains. But it is a pudding afterall, almost a souffle really, and it should be light and delicate. It is our choice, and as I've discussed previously, experimenting with food is half the fun... eating it being the other half of course! </span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Next time, we leave the joys of gluten-fierce and gluten-free cooking behind and try something hearty and savoury... the venison stew perhaps. Sure sounds like a frontier cooking adventure to this city slicker living in a dominion of a one-time colonial power... </span></i></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: small;"><i>Sing a song of sixpence a pocketful of rye</i></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: small;"><i>Four and twenty blackbirds baked in a pie</i></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: small;"><i>When the pie was opened the birds began to sing</i></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: small;"><i>Now wasn't that a dainty dish to set before the king.</i></span></b></div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190976985363050310.post-48650947557406166222012-05-16T20:15:00.000-07:002012-05-16T20:15:56.275-07:00Wheat'll we do about gluten?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I was buying breakfast cereal for my gluten-intolerant one not long ago and instead of selecting the gluten-free, wheat-free, nut-free, low-salt, slightly blended with psyllium and a hint of golden syrup, no artifiical anything, and definitely no preservatives <i>Corn Flakes</i>, something rather intriguing caught my eye. <i>Ancient Grain</i> flakes. This is sure to be relevant, I say to myself, thinking of my yet-to-be-written gluten intolerance blog. Ancient Grain flakes are made with buckwheat and sorghum. Again, the flakes are 'free', but on the back of the box is a whole host of graphics and information that, well frankly, a history nut and gluten-free detective such as myself, is apt to drool over. Buckwheat, that favourite of pancakes, is a highly nutritious gluten free ancient grain (actually, a seed) originally found in the Himalayan region (think Kashmir). Sorghum was discovered in Africa thousands of years ago. These ancient grains are labelled superfoods and they have been eaten by people the world over for thousands of years, such as the Aztecs, imparting strength and endurance. There was one box left - the one I was reading. Mm... I quickly put it in my shopping cart. Maybe it's just me, but the thought of being connected to the ancient Aztecs and Africans et al, through food was dizzy-ing. That and the fact that so much good information came from the back of a cereal box.</div>
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These grains don't taste like wheat and they don't taste like corn/maize, in fact they impart that sense of <i>you should be familiar when I taste you, but you're not</i>. But wheat, which gluten intolerant people and coeliacs cannot eat, was once different to what it is today; the gluten content was much lower than in our modern hybridised strains. Wheat itself is an ancient grain, consumed for over 12,000 years kind of ancient, orginating in Asia, hightly significant in Greek, Roman and Sumerian cultures, just to name a few. It was considered nutritious, prized, sacred. The wheat that our ancestors ate was better tolerated and they mixed it with other grains, beans and nuts. </div>
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So what happened to make wheat - well, gluten - a dirty...er, unpalatable word?</div>
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As industry took over the production of this precious and nutritious grain, hardy strains of wheat were majorly hybridised and grown en masse; they had a much higher gluten content. And instead of using millstones to ground the flour, leaving in all the nutritious heart and soul of the wheat in the bran and germ, roller mills came into being, and together with the new wheat produced a highly refined flour that everyone liked to eat but that was not part of the traditional diet of human beings. Is it any wonder we have problems? </div>
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My research tells me that this new roller milled flour came onto the market in a big way in the 1880's. Back then, science didn't understand the importance of vitamins, minerals, fibre and all those things that we now know we should be leaving in our food, not removing by processing. The new rolled flour made great white, fluffy bread, but it wasn't and isn't good for us.</div>
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So back in the days of The 1880's West of Luke, Jennifer, Kelley and Cliff, we would have seen a mixture of traditional and more refined flour on the shelves in the general store. White, whole wheat, corn and rye. Less milled or superfine according to your needs. Amy Keaton would have used Superfine for cakes and pastries, definitely. And she would have sifted her various flours to remove any impurities. Notice how today modern chefs recommend sifting your flour to aerate it and make your batter lighter (we have to do something with all those sifters on the market). And there would have been buckwheat, sorghum, rice flour and barley flour, brown rice flour, flax, millet, tapioca, arrowroot, corn meal, corn flour. Just to name a few. Think of all the seeds as well - we love to munch on those. </div>
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While gluten intolerance existed - and I will continue this in my next blog - the wheat we consumed in times gone by was better for us, and we consumed less of it and in conjunction with other nutritious foods. All round, this arrangement was better for our gut and our overall health. </div>
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And so, next time you pick up that gigantic box of super-refined wheaties or corn-flakes, think again... would you be better off with something more exotic in your brekkie bowl every morning? And something else... you don't need to eat as much of the exotic stuff; they fill you up and have lower GI. Of course, back in the day, GI were just two capital letters sitting next to one another. </div>
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We've come the full circle - again - and human beings are masters at that. </div>
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In my next blog, I will be a little more scientific, and a little bit statistical, because that's fun, too - when was gluten intolerance first identified and how did they treat it? You just might be surprised. And I may even get around to making that pioneer bread pudding - now what kind of bread will I use...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOrjxH2_pOWo01FZvJbLJzdqzNd0lcSWDZqM4KKPLFZtIu6fvkQNdPGi7d53xfVxPozIfbonr1eUF_-AX4Dj_Yl5mK_gEJgH2zYGWdrnZbHQneLFT_0BbxjR3Wo3B9tbLwrm0KUzby9Ac/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Wheat_000017646720XSmall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOrjxH2_pOWo01FZvJbLJzdqzNd0lcSWDZqM4KKPLFZtIu6fvkQNdPGi7d53xfVxPozIfbonr1eUF_-AX4Dj_Yl5mK_gEJgH2zYGWdrnZbHQneLFT_0BbxjR3Wo3B9tbLwrm0KUzby9Ac/s400/2012-BlackbirdPie_Wheat_000017646720XSmall.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190976985363050310.post-79578097206604888302012-04-23T18:07:00.000-07:002012-04-23T18:07:57.968-07:00So what's Blackbird up to?<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">So, where were we? I've just checked </span><i style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Empire for Liberty</i><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> pages 184 and 186. As you may recall, currently we are making those dishes that Sheriff Cliff Ryan found on his kitchen table the day after he was... spoiler alert noted... after he ran into a spot of trouble <span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">;)</span> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I think we are up to the stew or the bread pudding. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Stew sounds delicious (because I believe it was venison stew, which is new to me), but the bread pudding will be easier. I live in a big city where venison is considered an exotic meat, not your frontier staple. And we have a gluten intolerant family member, so by rights the bread pudding should be made with gluten- free bread. Not very authentic to the time I'm thinking. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">But you know what, I'd like to know what happened with folks with gluten intolerance back in the day? Did they know what gluten intolerance was? Did they suffer from it as much as we in modern times do? Did they use less wheat-based flour and more seed-based and nut-based products? Is it our super-refined, super-douper flour that makes it harder to digest while it's resistant to disease and better for farmers to grow and sell. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I will investigate to the best of my ability and report back. Meanwhile, if anyone has knowledge of gluten intolerance in the 1880's, please feel free to share.</span> <br style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;" /> <br />
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</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190976985363050310.post-1596484129665263052012-03-14T20:46:00.003-07:002012-03-16T00:22:14.450-07:00Osgood Pie<div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvdMw-VqUD3Jylf15TB1LMvmZ4tJiZ6X2TuD1w5PSZ9oBCW-NVPUjoJfNUii4fHIn2oAHGRi-_Nka4WKbsfR_yZT9JA16aopZyypVdMtghnGfbUu2R799GeliQh36obRmxzUqxd_Uywek/s1600/iStock_000015422387XSmall.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvdMw-VqUD3Jylf15TB1LMvmZ4tJiZ6X2TuD1w5PSZ9oBCW-NVPUjoJfNUii4fHIn2oAHGRi-_Nka4WKbsfR_yZT9JA16aopZyypVdMtghnGfbUu2R799GeliQh36obRmxzUqxd_Uywek/s320/iStock_000015422387XSmall.jpg" width="296" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
So, this is what you need for Osgood Pie...<span id="goog_1327649899"></span><span id="goog_1327649900"></span></div></div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYEgqtYyxxv5mPIRjHs6uHC2crGiW0WocgKE7mqwjKLXELvh6jYTd51Io0BvNsFv_8QLUB4Odljypro47HFB7Z-QM2sdNRn3zszsyez6XjsB9WpyxPxT8g8mHZY5kTlXtcV4ehCuK9-y0/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.20.50.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYEgqtYyxxv5mPIRjHs6uHC2crGiW0WocgKE7mqwjKLXELvh6jYTd51Io0BvNsFv_8QLUB4Odljypro47HFB7Z-QM2sdNRn3zszsyez6XjsB9WpyxPxT8g8mHZY5kTlXtcV4ehCuK9-y0/s200/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.20.50.jpg" width="186" /></a></div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">pecans, 1 cup 5 eggs, lightly beaten together </span></b></div></div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">dark raisins,1 cup 1/2 teaspoon cloves</span></b></div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">sugar, 1 1/3 cups 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon</span></b></div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">grape juice, 1/2 cup 1/2 teaspoon allspice</span></b></div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;">According to Alberta Roberts (Mrs L.W. Roberts) of Cheyenne,<br />
to whom this recipe is attributed, (and who notes that this recipe has been in her family 'a long time'), you may add a drop or two of red food colouring which apparently will pretty up the look of the pie. These days we tend to baulk at food colouring unless its absolutely necessary, but... well, it's just a little bit, so I might<br />
try it. I want my pie to look nice.<br />
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</div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxkIlF6cBKK7Kr-70kqM1vvWVNYKh2DsVwji9lq32DvH21HG00KxjBx967jj3EyNyc_SOP85Z6wary1co0HdbeSZC7COuP37i-YAekl_8HkN-kPpcoor_0G4YLlZYlRKUrs7eQn6QtK4k/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.26.44.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="115" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxkIlF6cBKK7Kr-70kqM1vvWVNYKh2DsVwji9lq32DvH21HG00KxjBx967jj3EyNyc_SOP85Z6wary1co0HdbeSZC7COuP37i-YAekl_8HkN-kPpcoor_0G4YLlZYlRKUrs7eQn6QtK4k/s200/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.26.44.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Osgood Pie is one of those recipes that has been around since </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">long before anyone can remember. And according to my research, some folks think it turns up most often in Texas cookbooks, but I haven't gone through a whole bunch of Texas cookbooks looking for it, so I'm just spreading folklore here. Speaking of folklore, the Osgood Pie could have got its unusual name three ways:</span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCmO1qIKMPH-c79kzwZAJy79z_EOD18VcATr8kMyBefJm6uGhN7gSi0dng0DjRa-zd7pXuXsenp6PK2mGhfbjqkBVoqbYArOXgQG1-lily0_mhZCanFtGtpp39iLtdEbXikbhvqB0FvgI/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.29.10.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCmO1qIKMPH-c79kzwZAJy79z_EOD18VcATr8kMyBefJm6uGhN7gSi0dng0DjRa-zd7pXuXsenp6PK2mGhfbjqkBVoqbYArOXgQG1-lily0_mhZCanFtGtpp39iLtdEbXikbhvqB0FvgI/s200/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.29.10.jpg" width="180" /></a>1. from folks exclaiming Oh So Good after eating a piece<br />
of the pie!</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCmO1qIKMPH-c79kzwZAJy79z_EOD18VcATr8kMyBefJm6uGhN7gSi0dng0DjRa-zd7pXuXsenp6PK2mGhfbjqkBVoqbYArOXgQG1-lily0_mhZCanFtGtpp39iLtdEbXikbhvqB0FvgI/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.29.10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>2. from the name of the cook who invented it</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;">3. from the place where it is thought to have originated -<br />
the Ozarks.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;">If you believe number one, I reckon you'll believe anything, and backing me up in this is pie officionado Nancie McDermott, who thinks this is just an urban myth.</div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;">If you subscribe to number two, we're getting somewhere, but what are the chances of tracking down the Mr or Mrs Osgood who first thought of putting pecans and raisins in the same pie. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoSS4IF27inNj9KDuzrBQ2lxEXYFNRq6DM0jP2s0Z1EXBTsHCS5KdSoBpXuP1GfKVPL_SMSMklyPeZV_iUoKdv5XyEzPja4cNXRT5nRtY66h_yitztiB1oMOlP4BgZKZxP64rIqzuYTPw/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.37.45.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoSS4IF27inNj9KDuzrBQ2lxEXYFNRq6DM0jP2s0Z1EXBTsHCS5KdSoBpXuP1GfKVPL_SMSMklyPeZV_iUoKdv5XyEzPja4cNXRT5nRtY66h_yitztiB1oMOlP4BgZKZxP64rIqzuYTPw/s200/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.37.45.jpg" width="182" /></a></td></tr>
<tr style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Grapejuice, not vinegar </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>In fact, Mrs Roberts' pie departs from the usual Osgood Pie in one rather peculiar way... all other Osgood Pie recipies I have looked at have vinegar as an ingredient - and indeed, some folks think Osgood Pie evolved from Vinegar Pie. But Mrs Roberts' pie uses grape juice - sweeter, eh? Now, if you wish to bake your pie with vinegar, find that recipe and go right ahead, however, I'll be baking Mrs Roberts' Cheyenne version because I have no doubt that this is the version that was waiting for Sheriff Cliff Ryan on his kitchen table, along with the prune cake, doughnuts, venison stew and bread pudding, and all the other treats prepared for him by grateful townsfolk of Cheyenne. </div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYErLNfWXVs_AWSjosoEHBu8UwVR0YR3kBsLEe7CpfGUMbk2z0iI5ZeGl4ZcVF8zzIxBI7A1390vVy-mGy1-merI5aUUq-Q5ABWWvZnx1WACootkvHoVQpXS9fGUFfH_1E1bPhOsiCOWQ/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.33.57.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYErLNfWXVs_AWSjosoEHBu8UwVR0YR3kBsLEe7CpfGUMbk2z0iI5ZeGl4ZcVF8zzIxBI7A1390vVy-mGy1-merI5aUUq-Q5ABWWvZnx1WACootkvHoVQpXS9fGUFfH_1E1bPhOsiCOWQ/s200/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.33.57.jpg" width="166" /></a></td></tr>
<tr style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">In they go!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;">A small point: the raisins seem to be contentious (bit like the prunes). I myself as a child pulled raisins and sultanas out of anything they happened to be in (I try to be more mature about such things these days)... and from what I've read that's precisely what has happened with other child consumers of the Osgood. Having said that, I'll be including the raisins in my Osgood Pie because you surely can't have an Osgood Pie without them, even if the colour of them - golden or dark - depends where or from whom you get your recipe. </div></div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-NXHtoWUui0QatGhBw8XrjaLJpwlapJM17kwRDickH0-WX8dJKnBDXwnXXuxV_0AXh9DWw60zfECwK3hBb9rpariiq13jLsNubzGlUoZTzx5kwsJLoAVPMCAwR9g6iAblPkWsBK5AJJw/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.31.31.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-NXHtoWUui0QatGhBw8XrjaLJpwlapJM17kwRDickH0-WX8dJKnBDXwnXXuxV_0AXh9DWw60zfECwK3hBb9rpariiq13jLsNubzGlUoZTzx5kwsJLoAVPMCAwR9g6iAblPkWsBK5AJJw/s200/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.31.31.jpg" width="190" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">cinnamon, cloves, allspice - heavenly!</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>Origin version three may or may not be correct. What it does serve to illustrate is the wide migration of food across the United States. Pioneers and settlers brought their recipes with them from home. We often talk about people migration, or even animal migration, but food migration is another altogether <i>too</i> fascinating category of the human journey and evolution!</div></div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidnJ3oeoXz78aLpJnX5kJ5JV3EwXsy8O3PDVcthO2tEFJREtQsnTihNISnvqqbtIkry1HeImLXghQLY_6QZHGxJbFgCxlvyTRltGeDDYUPa-UwXT50qm_k3kC7g144f5_Sm9fd_C16laM/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.39.06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">So much about food these days is 'fusion' and what's fashionable. But the fact that a recipe such as Osgood Pie is still gracing tables across North America at times of celebration and commemoration, Thanksgiving for example, demonstrates that people aren't about to let go of what has made them feel warm, cosy and comfortable for generations. Heritage is still important when it comes to food. </span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;"></div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;"><br />
So if Osgood Pie did orgininate in the Ozarks, more power to it... look where it is today!</div></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;"></div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;"><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRGEIvBPo_V_MZybVnvmiEGnV3OaolTbkvhaoUjXyVVE3_xgPr-ZKn79BOKU5Am-dcGmzBVCN2hGVFk_EVi2N14Ts7Ovix1vVykMq31NDlKZQIuTac6UqLTakM8THzd-n6YLkCUCfTu_o/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.39.37.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRGEIvBPo_V_MZybVnvmiEGnV3OaolTbkvhaoUjXyVVE3_xgPr-ZKn79BOKU5Am-dcGmzBVCN2hGVFk_EVi2N14Ts7Ovix1vVykMq31NDlKZQIuTac6UqLTakM8THzd-n6YLkCUCfTu_o/s200/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.39.37.jpg" width="156" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidnJ3oeoXz78aLpJnX5kJ5JV3EwXsy8O3PDVcthO2tEFJREtQsnTihNISnvqqbtIkry1HeImLXghQLY_6QZHGxJbFgCxlvyTRltGeDDYUPa-UwXT50qm_k3kC7g144f5_Sm9fd_C16laM/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.39.06.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="153" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidnJ3oeoXz78aLpJnX5kJ5JV3EwXsy8O3PDVcthO2tEFJREtQsnTihNISnvqqbtIkry1HeImLXghQLY_6QZHGxJbFgCxlvyTRltGeDDYUPa-UwXT50qm_k3kC7g144f5_Sm9fd_C16laM/s200/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.39.06.jpg" width="200" /></a> The ingredients all come together easily; once this is done, pour into an unbaked pie shell. Bake at 400F/200C 'to start', but then lower the temperature to 375F/190C - 350F/180C. My oven is quite a 'hot' (fierce-ish) oven, so I am baking at 350F/180C. And I'm assuming that 'to start' would include preheating the oven to 400 F/ 200C, so I have done that. In non-numerical terms, that's start with a quick oven and reduce to a moderate oven. I assume that starting with a quick oven is to brown the pastry (which you will recall is unbaked); from my research, I'm going to allow about ten minutes for this part; then bake at the moderate temp for the rest of the baking time.<br />
<br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;"></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: left;">Back in the day in Cheyenne, it's likely that Cliff's Osgood Pie was cooked in a quick oven and then likely the oven door was opened for a bit to reduce the oven temp.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTgg9OPmhGyYwtVDDN4CAonDgFKnTbm30tkPNcWKKeiMJ3lbKO77BD-uCrrYrdFKcSmCsJllrcAkk22saEQqYwa_ABn0zDRDfFsDoHNCy_XhAKEYy2B024IE_lI6ZKnfVczLeVibnU1IY/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.44.11.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTgg9OPmhGyYwtVDDN4CAonDgFKnTbm30tkPNcWKKeiMJ3lbKO77BD-uCrrYrdFKcSmCsJllrcAkk22saEQqYwa_ABn0zDRDfFsDoHNCy_XhAKEYy2B024IE_lI6ZKnfVczLeVibnU1IY/s200/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.44.11.jpg" width="189" /></a></div>But for the experienced cook who knew her oven there were undoubtedly other ways. At this point, I just want to acknowledge this excellent information on how to cook pies in a woodburning cookstove provided by Jim on his terrific blog: http://woodcookstovecooking.blogspot.com.au/ <br />
<br />
</div></div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLISBK_9mURUIdAjLFrJ6H6dEcjGeABIztc8abfOQKyiZZNh-RFYCsXpUUN-qLDq935M1i193y4-gVTpg6wCbgNM5khLBOn2A12m7KfV9stPCCEH_PYvaNA5MHImDgPpdjlLsAtItBSQg/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_10.16.32.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLISBK_9mURUIdAjLFrJ6H6dEcjGeABIztc8abfOQKyiZZNh-RFYCsXpUUN-qLDq935M1i193y4-gVTpg6wCbgNM5khLBOn2A12m7KfV9stPCCEH_PYvaNA5MHImDgPpdjlLsAtItBSQg/s200/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_10.16.32.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-size: small;">Mrs Roberts instructs that the Osgood Pie is cooked when the center is just firm, and warns against overbaking it. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;">Because the recipe doesn't specify exact cooking times, </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">you need to keep an eye on it. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;">There is a delicate spicey fragrance as this pie bakes. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">The flavor is delicious, although quite sweet. </span><br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbpmO2LvdD3zY80dIKfzIvl4Nn01_6uBGrMmPysMEUz9DzGJ4bAFilcKiOMlIYJ2ptFWDS-1qtiEj-gCTDoGpGjgoeTmO4b7ljglN1Rt2jpiz9tjdaEYoCg9AWrb1PpB4qmkxL9TMv_IM/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_10.17.14.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbpmO2LvdD3zY80dIKfzIvl4Nn01_6uBGrMmPysMEUz9DzGJ4bAFilcKiOMlIYJ2ptFWDS-1qtiEj-gCTDoGpGjgoeTmO4b7ljglN1Rt2jpiz9tjdaEYoCg9AWrb1PpB4qmkxL9TMv_IM/s200/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_10.17.14.jpg" width="188" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kettle's on !</td></tr>
</tbody></table></div><span style="font-size: small;">For a first time effort at making the Osgood, and considering my pie-making skills and experience are almost negligible, I didn't do too bad. My apologies to all those who can make this pie in their sleep<i>!</i> After all, it's all about the journey, right?</span><br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidkfyduK-VplNNh5_74Rt3O9LwwiUYyICCX_7JiqpE2UJc_sULIypWRj7issJyUM6djYOa6CEeXzHZx2IT4N__Ab4eZvz_rnhjXQFjGrquswNYE8rHBJL-pydcLngS4zblBcz1eA5Uk5c/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_14.52.28.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidkfyduK-VplNNh5_74Rt3O9LwwiUYyICCX_7JiqpE2UJc_sULIypWRj7issJyUM6djYOa6CEeXzHZx2IT4N__Ab4eZvz_rnhjXQFjGrquswNYE8rHBJL-pydcLngS4zblBcz1eA5Uk5c/s200/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_14.52.28.jpg" width="175" /></a><span style="font-size: small;">And there is always that thought hovering, taking me back to another era to reflect upon how this sweet and scrumptious pie would have been received and enjoyed on a difficult day when the comforting generosity of appreciative neighbors and townsfolk was most welcome.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;">In spite of it all, no one had any trouble devouring it (although I think a few of those raisins didn't </span><span style="font-size: small;">quite make it - and I may be one of the guilty ones).</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span><br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><i>Footnote: the red food coloring made it in; although I didn't use much for fear of baking a bright pink pie, it did give the mixture a rosy glow! </i></span></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidkfyduK-VplNNh5_74Rt3O9LwwiUYyICCX_7JiqpE2UJc_sULIypWRj7issJyUM6djYOa6CEeXzHZx2IT4N__Ab4eZvz_rnhjXQFjGrquswNYE8rHBJL-pydcLngS4zblBcz1eA5Uk5c/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_14.52.28.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</a></div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidkfyduK-VplNNh5_74Rt3O9LwwiUYyICCX_7JiqpE2UJc_sULIypWRj7issJyUM6djYOa6CEeXzHZx2IT4N__Ab4eZvz_rnhjXQFjGrquswNYE8rHBJL-pydcLngS4zblBcz1eA5Uk5c/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_14.52.28.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDqzjWeLcBTk66uc2zgP7niCo4OC1E0NFNGt7UczyDcCJKmxdHZEbt8ZJ4b_eaTZCrlEdqeJvZDgQuYEivoHiQwBfHqnyCl7lBj0SpI6QatZ61FnZhphEqSYuJrVXRAyzrKmEEZtqQqeY/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.40.19.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDqzjWeLcBTk66uc2zgP7niCo4OC1E0NFNGt7UczyDcCJKmxdHZEbt8ZJ4b_eaTZCrlEdqeJvZDgQuYEivoHiQwBfHqnyCl7lBj0SpI6QatZ61FnZhphEqSYuJrVXRAyzrKmEEZtqQqeY/s200/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.40.19.jpg" width="156" /></a></td></tr>
<tr style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">To red or not to red, that was the question!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidnJ3oeoXz78aLpJnX5kJ5JV3EwXsy8O3PDVcthO2tEFJREtQsnTihNISnvqqbtIkry1HeImLXghQLY_6QZHGxJbFgCxlvyTRltGeDDYUPa-UwXT50qm_k3kC7g144f5_Sm9fd_C16laM/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.39.06.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidnJ3oeoXz78aLpJnX5kJ5JV3EwXsy8O3PDVcthO2tEFJREtQsnTihNISnvqqbtIkry1HeImLXghQLY_6QZHGxJbFgCxlvyTRltGeDDYUPa-UwXT50qm_k3kC7g144f5_Sm9fd_C16laM/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.39.06.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"> </a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxkIlF6cBKK7Kr-70kqM1vvWVNYKh2DsVwji9lq32DvH21HG00KxjBx967jj3EyNyc_SOP85Z6wary1co0HdbeSZC7COuP37i-YAekl_8HkN-kPpcoor_0G4YLlZYlRKUrs7eQn6QtK4k/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.26.44.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCmO1qIKMPH-c79kzwZAJy79z_EOD18VcATr8kMyBefJm6uGhN7gSi0dng0DjRa-zd7pXuXsenp6PK2mGhfbjqkBVoqbYArOXgQG1-lily0_mhZCanFtGtpp39iLtdEbXikbhvqB0FvgI/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.29.10.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxkIlF6cBKK7Kr-70kqM1vvWVNYKh2DsVwji9lq32DvH21HG00KxjBx967jj3EyNyc_SOP85Z6wary1co0HdbeSZC7COuP37i-YAekl_8HkN-kPpcoor_0G4YLlZYlRKUrs7eQn6QtK4k/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.26.44.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCmO1qIKMPH-c79kzwZAJy79z_EOD18VcATr8kMyBefJm6uGhN7gSi0dng0DjRa-zd7pXuXsenp6PK2mGhfbjqkBVoqbYArOXgQG1-lily0_mhZCanFtGtpp39iLtdEbXikbhvqB0FvgI/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.29.10.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDqzjWeLcBTk66uc2zgP7niCo4OC1E0NFNGt7UczyDcCJKmxdHZEbt8ZJ4b_eaTZCrlEdqeJvZDgQuYEivoHiQwBfHqnyCl7lBj0SpI6QatZ61FnZhphEqSYuJrVXRAyzrKmEEZtqQqeY/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_09.40.19.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidkfyduK-VplNNh5_74Rt3O9LwwiUYyICCX_7JiqpE2UJc_sULIypWRj7issJyUM6djYOa6CEeXzHZx2IT4N__Ab4eZvz_rnhjXQFjGrquswNYE8rHBJL-pydcLngS4zblBcz1eA5Uk5c/s1600/2012-BlackbirdPie_Osgood_14.52.28.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br />
</a></div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"></div><div style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190976985363050310.post-23223171600802251832011-12-30T15:22:00.000-08:002012-01-01T04:20:35.795-08:00Christmas Cake Wrap<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyEv4MX4q-DhzEx3ygUXS7kNjyKwY8Ff_zHV3UobbVWMlnzXa7MYb6AwkMhKUMBaweveXicKhYOYkIklH7qZU0nBkeMghpUfgD3vLSIxx53iPsWOzIu_2so1tXya-bXh7QonutcF3j0Ys/s1600/_DSC0753.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyEv4MX4q-DhzEx3ygUXS7kNjyKwY8Ff_zHV3UobbVWMlnzXa7MYb6AwkMhKUMBaweveXicKhYOYkIklH7qZU0nBkeMghpUfgD3vLSIxx53iPsWOzIu_2so1tXya-bXh7QonutcF3j0Ys/s320/_DSC0753.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> <br />
<span style="color: #134f5c; font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> <i style="color: #990000;"><span style="color: #990000;">When you google </span>Prune Cake</i><span style="color: #444444;"><span style="color: #990000;"><i> in search of its history or origins, you discover everyone's great aunt or grandmother had a recipe that was likely handed down to them, and there are more prune cake recipes out there than you can poke a stick at.</i> </span>That's the history of this cake... it's been around for ages and lovingly baked to nourish and delight (and surprise - it's amazing how many aunties and grannies kept mum about the main ingredient; poor prunes, it's just not fair). And many of these vintage recipes have the beautiful toffee icing, sometimes called a butterscotch glaze. One version I read added vanilla to the cake mixture - I adore vanilla, so I am tempted to add that next time, although it won't be the same recipe as the Wyoming pioneer one I've presented here on Blackbird Pie. What cook doesn't love to experiment with their favourite flavours, make a recipe their own? Me, I've changed the name of the cake... </span></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJBLQ8b-DKN0Lf1-38qnVMT7q6PBfbnPgmLDUOqcV1agBe-HVyueAntG3Q5w6TjLBq_Lx0r2Ll2rTQsExwT7YKVqH4PONGAMSaO49FAnFLYAS-6Yg3go0jIgsSvUcDOwUz6bdrqgEYwbU/s1600/_DSC0740.JPG" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJBLQ8b-DKN0Lf1-38qnVMT7q6PBfbnPgmLDUOqcV1agBe-HVyueAntG3Q5w6TjLBq_Lx0r2Ll2rTQsExwT7YKVqH4PONGAMSaO49FAnFLYAS-6Yg3go0jIgsSvUcDOwUz6bdrqgEYwbU/s320/_DSC0740.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">I love a Santa with muscles</span>!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table> <span style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;"> So, I made my spicy fruit and nut cake for Christmas (cue the wonderful aroma on the morning of Christmas Eve as it was baking, mmm), and draped the cake and the toffee nut topping with a smooth layer of sugar icing so it looked like snow (the nuts in the toffee gave the white surface a natural undulating surface that I really liked the look of), topped it with bright red cherries and dotted with silver cachous. I replaced the walnuts with pecans and I used gluten-free flour (as I mentioned I would for the gluten intolerant one in our family). I think I preferred the walnuts and although the gluten-free flour produced a beautiful cake, I prefer gluten-fierce flour overall.</span><br />
<div style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJBLQ8b-DKN0Lf1-38qnVMT7q6PBfbnPgmLDUOqcV1agBe-HVyueAntG3Q5w6TjLBq_Lx0r2Ll2rTQsExwT7YKVqH4PONGAMSaO49FAnFLYAS-6Yg3go0jIgsSvUcDOwUz6bdrqgEYwbU/s1600/_DSC0740.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></span></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The whole thing not particuarly pioneer I grant you, but well, whenever you are introducing something new into the family, you are pioneering a little, I think (especially when someone declares I hate prunes, and enjoys eating it nevertheless, bit like making it to the Promised Land really). At Christmas time the family are sticklers for tradition, so anything new has to be well rationalised. </span></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Anyway... I hope you enjoy the pics of the pioneer prune cake made over into Christmas spicy fruit and nut cake, with its delicate Christmassy spices and fragrance, it went down a treat with the family. I think it looks quite festive. And I just wanted to acknowledge GEM and her beautiful photography; her gorgeous Christmas pics will continue to pop up.</span></div><div style="color: #444444; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPkBpT28g5h7HUhwo6Nxts7i7OnDHKQQzY41QQrcBigJJub7q4nkFFl-cumVzScFQZeob9t_nEXxlHxLfiJHMfSBvRsfUVXPj3M_lKjo5jXbkckk0CCT3jnxtQ9x2MHg5ucXYCiTW56sk/s1600/_DSC0749.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPkBpT28g5h7HUhwo6Nxts7i7OnDHKQQzY41QQrcBigJJub7q4nkFFl-cumVzScFQZeob9t_nEXxlHxLfiJHMfSBvRsfUVXPj3M_lKjo5jXbkckk0CCT3jnxtQ9x2MHg5ucXYCiTW56sk/s320/_DSC0749.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="color: #134f5c; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; text-align: center;">The golden candles look a bit like antennae! </td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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<b><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">I hope you all enjoyed a bright and beautiful Christmas of amazing festive treats. </span></b><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJBLQ8b-DKN0Lf1-38qnVMT7q6PBfbnPgmLDUOqcV1agBe-HVyueAntG3Q5w6TjLBq_Lx0r2Ll2rTQsExwT7YKVqH4PONGAMSaO49FAnFLYAS-6Yg3go0jIgsSvUcDOwUz6bdrqgEYwbU/s1600/_DSC0740.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190976985363050310.post-13290091203507693662011-12-11T21:45:00.000-08:002011-12-12T18:10:22.437-08:00Prune Cake<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></div><br />
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<div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div></div><br />
<div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><div style="color: #0b5394;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><span style="color: #0b5394;"></span></span><b><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> <span style="color: #3d85c6;"> "... if you or your dear ones don't fancy traditional Christmas cake </span></span><span style="color: #3d85c6; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> </span></b></div><div style="color: #3d85c6;"><b><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> or would like a change, roll out some smooth white fondant over </span></b></div><div style="color: #3d85c6;"><b><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> the top of the toffee icing and crown this spicy fruit and nut cake</span></b></div><div style="color: #3d85c6;"><b><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"> with a festive topping..."</span></b></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXjQxPnxR_DMKwaO0m3zLXmeiSeZL57xHWKSX-KZ8pS7lIIngFfT11aFvji6DxQu-ep5yhdP2WKZunHtk0dSbhrNC88xFetupC4nmQQOt3WjMe8AZp6WmJx8JdiJHOoQRVA9xPw8v3GrA/s1600/PB290534.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXjQxPnxR_DMKwaO0m3zLXmeiSeZL57xHWKSX-KZ8pS7lIIngFfT11aFvji6DxQu-ep5yhdP2WKZunHtk0dSbhrNC88xFetupC4nmQQOt3WjMe8AZp6WmJx8JdiJHOoQRVA9xPw8v3GrA/s320/PB290534.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><b><i> While prunes tend to get a bad wrap from time to time, once you've tried this traditional prune cake recipe you'll be convinced that not only have prunes been a desirable source of nutrition for a very long time, but they also make a delicious cake. </i></b></div><br />
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<div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">If you've opened up to this and thought, "Prune cake?" and "Is that the best she can put up?" perhaps we should address the name of the cake... in essence, this is a spicy fruit and nut cake. Now, doesn't that sound better? Rich with cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice, dotted with mixed nuts (your choice) for crunch, hearty with eggs, butter and flour and that secret magic ingredient sour cream, it's delish and satisfying. And the icing, a toffee and nut confection... well, let's just say it very nearly didn't make it to the top of the cake... yum!</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> So, you'll need a couple of large mixing bowls; this is a big cake, quite thick in texture. Wet and dry ingredients prepared separately and then combined. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> I preheated my fanforced oven to moderate... 160 C, but you could go lower and cook the cake slower, I think. Grease or line your cake pan. I used an 8 in (20 cm) pan.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> What you'll need for this spicy fruit and nut cake:-</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>For the wet ingredients</i>:</div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>1 cup of sugar</b></div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>3/4 cup of butter</b></div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>3 eggs</b></div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>4 tablespoons of sour cream</b></div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>1 cup of chopped prunes</b></div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>4 tablespoons of prune juice</b></div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>For the dry ingredients:</i></div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>1 teaspoon of bicarb of soda</b></div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>1 teaspoon of cinnamon</b></div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>1/2 teaspoon of allspice</b></div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg</b></div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>2 cups of flour</b></div><div style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><b>1/2 cup of chopped nuts</b></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">So, cream together sugar and butter, and then add the eggs and beat these in. Add the sour cream, the chopped prunes and the prune juice. Give it a mix. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> How hard was that then? Well, if your butter isn't room temperature, it will be a chore, so keep chilled butter for your shortbread pastry. Also, the sour cream looks clumpy when you mix it in, but don't worry about that because it all works out in the end. As for the prunes, well, there'll be a few left from the packet for tossing in your mouth while you mix. A health bonus, you might say. And prune juice is vitality itself. If I haven't convinced you yet, well maybe you're a hard case and won't ever touch a prune. More's the pity.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> Okay, on with the cake batter...</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;">Sift the dry ingredients together into a bowl. Well, you can't sift the nuts, so sift all the others and then fold in the chopped nuts when you combine the wet and dry ingredients. You could sift the dry ingredients directly into the prune mixture... I just like keeping things a little separate in case I make a mistake and have to start again.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> I chose walnuts and almonds this time, but you could use whatever combination you fancy. The walnuts certainly go well with the spices, as would pecans for instance.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeDo6_tCTq0yDCqX9Jgv1l-n1QtnJBqBEWydqdVisw_KrpCKadkIIRm16VskJizpPoe2143btijY35L_i2BWml52SJkrIKGsB9itD0OWMAs6UiqTS-BXFCjjqXJ6-3w1SjwGKOPCXVJp0/s1600/_DSC0485.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeDo6_tCTq0yDCqX9Jgv1l-n1QtnJBqBEWydqdVisw_KrpCKadkIIRm16VskJizpPoe2143btijY35L_i2BWml52SJkrIKGsB9itD0OWMAs6UiqTS-BXFCjjqXJ6-3w1SjwGKOPCXVJp0/s200/_DSC0485.JPG" width="146" /></a></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeq-w26ydZC4oYmVxaHutkASnUL7mBQdDZ9-ubGXYQB8v-6ZFo7j3KvFhXxDu_nu7rRL4dwpx_h6PNQIqmeSl064e5YyLfn9XLm_zSML6hSEFBnCWfRrqRD0UTpfeg_3JbO70xbSP_-QY/s1600/_DSC0481.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeq-w26ydZC4oYmVxaHutkASnUL7mBQdDZ9-ubGXYQB8v-6ZFo7j3KvFhXxDu_nu7rRL4dwpx_h6PNQIqmeSl064e5YyLfn9XLm_zSML6hSEFBnCWfRrqRD0UTpfeg_3JbO70xbSP_-QY/s200/_DSC0481.JPG" width="133" /></a> Once all the ingredients are in your large bowl and getting to know one another, emitting a pleasing and spicy aroma, and the batter is becoming thick and fulsome beneath the wand work of your wooden spoon, you will realise what a great recipe this is turning out to be. Then when all are combined, spoon into your prepared cake tin and smooth out.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div> Bake in moderate oven for 45 minutes, but do use a scewer to test doneness because it is a thick mixture.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> As thick a mixture as it is, as moist a cake as it makes, it still has a lightness to it.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> It is even better the next day (all cakes are in my opinion, except for gluten-free cakes). That's if it will last till the morrow.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCZj0WCM6QJgCfZ0XDvSI2zlg8n2CL9_KH3qOht-tqcV-y29tUS5NcdGeBz0quG4z5NtMv6QftHhNSjqKN_neLr_K4twXb3i_bxNo2vunnhvpRzZ_WSPDOaX-YhIZCk3DZRrE_TW-lEPQ/s1600/PB290527.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCZj0WCM6QJgCfZ0XDvSI2zlg8n2CL9_KH3qOht-tqcV-y29tUS5NcdGeBz0quG4z5NtMv6QftHhNSjqKN_neLr_K4twXb3i_bxNo2vunnhvpRzZ_WSPDOaX-YhIZCk3DZRrE_TW-lEPQ/s200/PB290527.JPG" width="200" /></a> </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> I let my prune cake cool in the cake pan for five or so minutes before I could wait no longer to turn it out.<br />
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</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> Now to frost this baby... this was a new way of creating icing for me, so I was completely fascinated by the process.<br />
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Cook: 1 cup of sugar, 1 egg, 1/2 cup of sour cream, and 1/2 cup of chopped nuts in a small saucepan until all the sugar has melted and it starts to resemble soft toffee. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><div class="" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTMcxMFTOSIx5q8q8yCnDPRksRKH32PqoTZDoOLmDaLn7-LyPlpMjZglvUTaQa8E5x5m1L71ayf2oj9_eko1dMoI8u-Ruj4TgIo8lWXZrUfKZd4VLQg5bfm2L5xbrepMa05REbAk0K1v8/s1600/_DSC0494.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTMcxMFTOSIx5q8q8yCnDPRksRKH32PqoTZDoOLmDaLn7-LyPlpMjZglvUTaQa8E5x5m1L71ayf2oj9_eko1dMoI8u-Ruj4TgIo8lWXZrUfKZd4VLQg5bfm2L5xbrepMa05REbAk0K1v8/s200/_DSC0494.JPG" width="133" /></a>Stir it well often, and don't go leaving it alone for too long while you attend to something else. You'll know when it's done because apart from the fact that it looks and smells like soft nutty toffee, you'll have been taste testing it and wondering whether to bother icing the cake with it and resisting the temptation to eat it straight out of the pan... once you've got past this stage you're thinking 'I get to put this on prune cake, oh yum'. </div><div class="" style="clear: both;"> The cake and the icing take quite some time to cool.</div><div class="" style="clear: both;"><br />
</div></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"> Smooth that frosting over your prune cake (while beating back little fingers, and not so little, doing a good imitation of Winnie the Pooh and a jar of honey).</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9GtfZV3pdPDwOGpRazVe-uWF3bvuicWVsTyOuVOpfTcP0w_uuybcH4RMbkZuFRO0YY47UOdFdt1MCNpEDJLypDQ4lCOssOnWefEZXLqPFX3aPY8eVXXpX1SQQ_LO0mCgLBvWnV5VGpns/s1600/PB290531.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9GtfZV3pdPDwOGpRazVe-uWF3bvuicWVsTyOuVOpfTcP0w_uuybcH4RMbkZuFRO0YY47UOdFdt1MCNpEDJLypDQ4lCOssOnWefEZXLqPFX3aPY8eVXXpX1SQQ_LO0mCgLBvWnV5VGpns/s200/PB290531.JPG" width="198" /></a></div>I sprinkled some almonds on top of mine, but you know what... if you or your dear ones don't fancy traditional Christmas cake or would like a change, roll out some smooth white fondant over the top of the toffee icing and crown this spicy fruit and nut cake with a festive topping, decorating with silver or gold cachous, or marzipan/candied fruits or whatever you usually like to adorn your Christmas cake. </div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><br />
</div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"></div><div style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-LTUmXgts5-2Mn_RlHkWAnp2PY3CvWkYTfPGt_U1zMsSqYOFgcpvpzriCfXTdPAqclBbsp01rr4pisPftwApqd83h6496djv0ywtCiVcdJVsjPEDQIPDbBB5ZCNVyY6lfRO1ErQ9vpQA/s1600/PB290532.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-LTUmXgts5-2Mn_RlHkWAnp2PY3CvWkYTfPGt_U1zMsSqYOFgcpvpzriCfXTdPAqclBbsp01rr4pisPftwApqd83h6496djv0ywtCiVcdJVsjPEDQIPDbBB5ZCNVyY6lfRO1ErQ9vpQA/s200/PB290532.JPG" width="168" /></a>This is an old-fashioned cake. It tastes amazing. The best part for me was that I could not help but feel a wondrous connection to that other time, and saw my sweet spicy fruit and nut Prune Cake sitting on Sheriff Cliff Ryan's kitchen table, waiting for him to slice a generous piece and tuck in. The grateful citizen who made it for him knew it would nourish, sustain and uplift him, and show him how much he was appreciated. Only fiction, you say... maybe, but in that moment of reflection and wonder, the cake and its sense of history were very real.<br />
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<i>Post Script: This was such a hit with my family, I'll be baking it again for Christmas, this time testing out the recipe with gluten-free flour.</i> </div><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS;"><br />
</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5190976985363050310.post-25131306850065889662011-08-29T21:04:00.000-07:002011-08-29T22:41:43.257-07:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV0nSeWm5E1UW4BCkSbek3oDeZBbZ7KkEb3ykRoysS8KNoGaVSZafqc1RIY6CwFIQGhVuk4DkRzGyuMuyUiwkr6KjMtWv0a94iESahJC32xFq_dV13f1HG2cNEvkko-NVBCnjJ2C_YLcU/s1600/thumbnail%255B1%255D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="101" qaa="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV0nSeWm5E1UW4BCkSbek3oDeZBbZ7KkEb3ykRoysS8KNoGaVSZafqc1RIY6CwFIQGhVuk4DkRzGyuMuyUiwkr6KjMtWv0a94iESahJC32xFq_dV13f1HG2cNEvkko-NVBCnjJ2C_YLcU/s200/thumbnail%255B1%255D.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"></span></span></strong></span> <span style="font-size: x-large;"></span></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong><span style="font-size: large;">TO BURN OR NOT TO BURN... </span></strong></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><em><strong><span style="font-size: large;">JUST DON'T BURN THE FOOD!</span></strong></em></span></span></div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #990000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>BACK IN THE DAY, I’m pretty sure cooks didn’t have temperature settings on their wood burning stoves! In fact, they used different types of wood to achieve the right temperature for the kind of food they were cooking. </strong></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="background-color: white;"> <span style="background-color: white;"><strong>This link gives a very informative description about how a cast iron wood burning stove works! I recommend it... </strong></span></span><strong> </strong></span></span><a href="http://www.everydishtellsastory.com.au/?p=790"><span style="background-color: white; color: #990000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong>http://www.everydishtellsastory.com.au/?p=790</strong></span></a><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #990000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; mso-spacerun: yes;"><strong> </strong></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #990000; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong> <span style="color: black;">Possessing the skill to judge the right baking time and temperature is obviously a skill that most 21st Century cooks can only wonder about. The recipes on the What’s Cooking...? page of my website have been adapted over the generations, hence the standard baking temperatures. Because my own oven is particularly hot (burning was not uncommon in the early days), as well as fan-forced, when I test these recipes I will most probably lower the temperatures and reduced the cooking times where needed. You may or may not have to do the same. A bit of trial and error may be needed, particularly with recipes that have travelled through time. </span></strong></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong> I was doing a bit of research on the Aga, a 20th Century evolution - and don't they look the business - and found out that to make it to work successfully you really have to know your stuff, know your oven. It's technical, it is. You can't just make a dish and then stick it in there and fasten the door. It's positively scientific, in fact. But quite a few cooks have them and swear by them, and I love watching tv chefs, such as Rick Stein, cooking with their Aga. I don't know anyone who owns an Aga, so I can't share any firsthand information. </strong></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong> When I was growing up we lived over a shop, which was very very old and still had original features, such as an antique Kookaburra gas cooker. I recall the peas cooking on the back hob (I didn't like peas back then) and the lamb chops (still my most favourite meat - I can always eat a lamb chop or three) or steak sizzling in the old frypan on the front hob. A roast went in the oven on Sundays and fed all eight of us. A lot of simple goodness came from 'the living flame' of the old gas Kookaburra. </strong></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong> I suppose childhood memories are where we all start when it comes to our attitude to food and cooking. My father made everything he ate look positively irresistable, and he cooked beautiful Italian food that I could hardly wait to eat. And he timed everything; he was a stickler that way. Observing him cook taught me to cook. And I make killer gravy because my mother often asked me to stir the gravy. </strong></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong> Anyway, I'm no foodie, just someone who likes cooking and history and the thought of combining both in some small way. Hope you do, too.</strong></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: black; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;"><strong> Which brings me back to my initial comments... there is a lot of skill in knowing how to bake to perfection when the temperature knobs and gauges aren't anywhere to be seen! Perhaps we can channel our inner frontier cook and take a step back in time.</strong></span></span></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0