The Rural Voice, 1979-06, Page 4421 a pound.
"I remember that man could only pay us in honey and my
mother used a lot of it when she was baking. I still love honey
today," Mr. Whelan said.
When he was a boy the dentist asked him what he used to
clean his teeth. Mr. Whelan remembered saying "salt
occasionally". The dentist was surprised for the Whalen children
had the best polished teeth around. The reason, the dentist
decided, was their favourite food ...cornbread.
But Mr. Whelan's not the only one whose favourite food was in
his school lunch box. Gordon Hill, former OFA president says his
favourite food came in his lunch bucket, too. "Mother would put
in pork spare ribs and bread. You know the kind. About four to
six inches long with lots of meat on them, unlike the spicy saucy
ones many are familiar with today."
Scraps were a real treat for breakfast: Gordon Hill
"A real treat for breakfast was scraps" says Mr. Hill. "My
grandmother would serve a bowl of cracklings for breakfast from
a jar she kept in the cupboard." Cracklings are what is left after
pork fat is rendered into lard.
And there was always the home where children ate everything
on their plates. That's where Ontario's agriculture minister Bill
Newman grew up.
"I had to eat everything on my plate," says Mr. Newman.
"But if I had to pick a favourite it would be roast beef." Ms.
Molly McGhee, director of the women's branch of the Ontario
Ministry of Agriculture and Food also liked roast beef, "medium
rare", when she was a child.
Roast beef and strawberries were Molly McGhee's
favourites
"I cook my favourite roasts in a slower oven than what my
mother used to," says Ms. McGhee. "I'm afraid it is very
plebian. I also liked fresh strawberries."
But for those who get out to the farm kitchens to smell the air
may find some good cooking that would remind them of when
they were a child. The agriculture agent for Bruce
favoured his mother's home canned peaches.
Huron's home economist Grace Bird says oatmeal cookies
were her favourite food when she was young. "My mother
always made plain oatmeal cookies with a red cherry on top and
that was always my favourite."
Bea Gosslin remembers her mother's apple crisp. "All mom
ever put into it was oatmeal and brown sugar and it was really
good," says Bea.
Bruce county's home economist remembered raw vegetables.
"As well as the vegetables, cream filled cake was good too"
admits Barb DeVisscher.
Old favourites!
Raisin pie, oatmeal cookies and cornmeal muffins like mom used to make
RAISIN PIE
1 unbaked pastry shell unpricked 9 in.
2 cups seedless raisins
2 cups boiling water
1 cup sugar (brown)
2 tbls. cornstarch
1/4 cup cold water
1 tabls. grated orange rind
'/ cup orange juice.
Preheat oven to 400°F
Wash raisins add to water and simmer
10 minutes. Caramelize sugar and add
liquid from raisins, simmer until syrupy.
Combine cornstarch, orange rind and cold
water stirring until smooth; add to syrup,
cook until the mixture thickens and clears:
add raisins. Remove from heat; add orange
juice; cook pour in unpricked shell, finish
with a lattice top and bake 30 minutes.
(to caramelize sugar: stir sugar in a heavy
saucepan over high heat until it becomes
lumpy and begins to melt to a clear syrup.
Reduce heat and push the larger lumps to
the center until the lumps melt and syrup is
reddish brown.)
OATMEAL COOKIES
1 cup butter or shortening
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 cup warm water
1 cup rolled oats
1'/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
Pre -heat over 375°F.
Cream fat; add sugar and cream mixture
until fluffy; add vanilla. Combine rolled
oats flour and baking soda; add to fat
-sugar mixture alternately with water.
Flatten balls of dough onto a cookie
sheet so that the pan almost shows
throughthe dough Bake 8-10 minutes. cool
on racks. Yield 60-70.
CORN MEAL MUFFINS
1 cup flour
1 cup cornmeal
1/3 cup skim milk powder
3 tbsp. sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 tsp. baking powder
5 tbsp. oil
1 egg
1 cup water
Grease muffin tins; preheat oven to
400°F.
Thoroughly combine all the dry
ingredients in a large bowl. In a small bowl
beat oil, egg and water with a rotary
beater; stir into dry ingredients with
minimum mixing. Batter should be
somewhat lumpy. Fill prepared muffin
pans % full; bake about 20 minutes. Cool
on a rack; loosen muffins by running a
knife around the e0 ;es. Serve warm.
Makes 10 to 12 muffins.
PG. 42 THE RURAL VOICE/JUNE 1979