Homemakers who lived through the years of the Second World War have many stories to tell about the lack of certain ingredients and how others were rationed to support the war effort.
Rationing did typically require the average Canadian to consume less butter, sugar, and tea and to plant gardens for their own produce.
“Wartime Recipes and Food Rules” is a war-era cookbook published to “assist housewives in the task of adjusting their menus to wartime conditions.”
This week’s recipes come from the cookbook, published by Woodlands Dairy in Edmonton and shared with me by Legion Comrade Dan MacAulay.
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Braised Ox Tails
2 lbs. ox tail
flour
1/4 cup cooking fat
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 cups canned tomatoes
1 tsp. salt
1 clove garlic, finely chopped, optional
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. celery salt
4 whole cloves
4 medium carrots, diced
2 small onions, chopped
Wash the ox tail, dry and cut into 2 inch lengths. Roll in flour and saute in the fat until well browned.
Add water, tomatoes and seasonings. Pour into a covered casserole dish and bake for 1 1/2 hours at 325 degrees F. Add vegetables and bake for another hour.
• • •
Spice Cake
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups honey
2 eggs
3/4 cup sour milk
2 1/2 cups flour
2 tsps. baking powder
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. baking soda
Cream butter. Add honey gradually, creaming thoroughly. Add well-beaten eggs and beat thoroughly. Add mixed and sifted dry ingredients alternately with milk.
Bake in a 9x9 inch prepared cake pan at 350 degrees F for 65 minutes.
• • •
Angel Bread Pudding
2 cups bread cubes
2 cups milk
1/4 cup sugar
dash of salt
2 eggs
3 tbsps. butter
1/2 tsp. vanilla
Cut stale bread, crusts and all, into 1/4-1/2 inch cubes. Place in buttered one-quart baking dish.
Mix the milk, butter and sugar and heat just enough, while stirring, to dissolve the sugar and melt the butter.
Beat eggs slightly, add salt and then stir in the warm milk mixture and add the vanilla. Pour over bread cubes.
Set the baking dish in a pan of hot water and bake in a 350 degrees F oven for about 1 hour to until a silver knife comes out clean when it is inserted in the centre of the pudding. Serves 4-5.
For variations: use 1/2 cup strained honey instead of sugar; substitute 1/2 tsp. lemon juice for vanilla; or add 1/4-1/2 cup chopped raisins before baking.
Joyce Walter can be reached at [email protected]
