Hollyhock dolls, clothes on the line and gardens

My grandmother was a young woman during the depression. The 'making do' ways she learned never left her. She still used a big kettle washing machine when I was a girl, letting me crank the soggy clothes through its rubber rollers, expressing water, until they fell, stiff and flatten into the wooden basket.

Together, her with one handle, me the other, we carried the basket to the clothes line. It ran north and south - the width of her yard, just like her garden. All summer we'd weed radishes and carrots, dig potatoes, and as the corn grew, hung clothes on her line.

At summer's end, I sat in her steamy kitchen, molding holly hocks into dolls as she canned Mason jars of tomatoes and corn, peaches and relish. She's been gone for years, but every now and then, in the way we all walk a moment in the past, I remember and long to touch a crisp breeze-dried pillowcase or crunch a carrot fresh from the garden.

More than anything, I find I long for my grandmother's sweet pickles. So last summer I set out to replicate her recipe and was met with wonderful success! I'll share the recipe in my next post, but until then, check out the youtube video for making hollyhock dolls!

Cooking Class : Cheese Fluff

The depression era used some colorful names for food. Hobos called sausage "gut". A "foamy omelet" was baked, rather than fried, and resembled a souffle because the egg whites were beaten stiff before cooking. And a "Rag Cake", despite its unappetizing name, was a cake make with oil instead of the more expensive butter. In fact, a "Rag Cake" is the same as the more elegantly named, "Chiffon Cake." Chiffon, in french, means cleaning cloth...or rag!


I chose the following recipe from Jolly Times Cook Book : Simple Recipes for Young Beginners. Like many recipes from that time, this recipe has a unique, and inviting name. The book suggests the fluff be served with "tomatoes, Gossamer Pickles, Tumbling Bisquits, and fruit sherbert." I can't quite tell if this casserole is incredibly delicious, or just the opposite. While I have not made it, it appears to be a dish along the lines of french bread with cheese. The mustard threw me. I suppose you could leave it out. Bon appetite...and pass the Gossamer Pickles!

Cheese Fluff

4 slices white bread of medium thickness (this recipe assumes the bread was homemade)

1 pound American cheese (approx. 6-8 slices of American Cheese will be adequate)

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. dry mustard

2 eggs

1 C. milk

The recipe calls for a large casserole pan be greased with butter. (While it does not indicate the exact size of the pan, I'd suggest a 9x13 pan.) Break the bread into pieces and layer evenly on the bottom of the pan. Place cheese slices evenly over bread. Combine the salt and mustard, then sprinkle over bread and cheese. Beat eggs and milk together. Pour mixture over bread and cheese. Cover for one hour so bread can absorb egg/milk mixture.

Uncover and bake in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes. While I've modified the directions to suit how we cook, today, it is interesting to note that the original recipe instructs to "uncover casserole and place in a cold oven. Light fire, and bake.." In the 1930's, cooking stoves would have had to been 'lit', as opposed to merely turning a knob.

Osborn, Marjorie Noble Jolly Times Cook Book. Illus. Clarence Biers. Chicago : Rand McNally & Company, 1934.

Ok, I couldn't resist: Gossamer Pickles! Layer dill pickle slices with granulated sugar. After several layers, top with a final layer of sugar. Place in refridgerator for four or five days before serving.

Becky