Fried Apple Fritters

So you love the language of old cookbooks? Well, how about this one? “The Virginia Housewife” was one of the first cookbooks published in the United States. I’m sure that it didn’t hurt that she was one of THE Randolphs of Virginia. Other than the quaint language, Fried Apple Fritters are as good today as in my 1830 edition of her cookbook.

Fried Apple Fritters:

“Pare some apples, and cut them in thin slices–put them in a bowl, with a glass of brandy, some white wine, a quarter of a pound of pounded sugar, a little cinnamon finely powdered, and the rind of a lemon grated; then let them stand some time, turning them over frequently; beat two eggs very light, add one quarter of a pound of flour, a tablespoonful of melted butter, and as much cold water as will make a thin batter; drip the apples on a sieve, mix them with the batter, take one slice with a spoonful of batter to each fritter, fry them quickly of a light brown, drain them well, put them in a dish, sprinkling sugar over each, and glaze them nicely.”

Like the precise measurements? Spoonful. Glass. “Some wine.” Mrs. Randolph assumed that her readers could think for themelves

Cornmeal Mush

Well, Max, we had a wonderful trip to Jamestown, Yorktown, Williamsburg, and Monticello in Virginia. These places make history come alive! Naturally I was checking out the kitchens and looking for new old cookbooks, or old new cookbooks, to add to my collection.

When you see the primitive conditions under which women cooked in the early years, you really appreciate all our modern conveniences. Much as you and I love to cook, I don’t think either of us would like spending our entire day preparing meals. Especially on an open hearth.

They told us at Jamestown that most cooking was over an open fire outside, or indoors on a hearth whose chimney was made of sticks and mud. At Jamestown, fish seemed to be the main food, but that during a Starvation Time they resorted to rats, horses and even their cats. That kind of puzzled me with the broad James River right next to the fort. Were there no fish for a time? Or was it that they did not know how to fish?

I am sure that one food that entered the Jamestown diet early on was Cornmeal Mush. It was easy to cook and corn was usually plentiful. The only hard thing would have been grinding the corn into meal. Only I think they pounded the corn in the early years with tree trunks and stumps. Once stoves were invented, women would start the Mush in the evening, set it back on the cooler part of the stove, and it would be ready the next morning.

If the family was lucky, there would be butter to melt over the Mush, or some sort of sweetener like honey or molasses. Leftover Mush could be cooled and patted or cut into slices and then fried for a real treat. Confession, I have never been able to fry Mush and get the golden crust my grandmother did. I love Fried Mush!

Cornmeal Mush:

2 teaspoons salt
4 cups boiling water
1 cup cornmeal

In a double boiler add the salt to boiling water, and then slowly add the cornmeal while stirring constantly. Cover and steam over simmering water from 1 to 3 hours.