People who are new to Fasting often pose the questions: “Can I really eat ‘anything I want’ on a Slow Day?” and “What should I eat on Slow Days?” To answer those questions, I have decided to add some blog posts to show some of the foods we eat on what the world calls NFDs [non-fast days] but which, in our house, we call ‘Slow Days.’ This feature will appear sporadically.
Shad fish, Alosa sapidissima, used to be the iconic symbol of springtime in coastal New England. The Shadbush would bloom in the woodlands, and the shad fish would migrate up-stream from the ocean to spawn. Then the fishing would begin! The most prized part of the shadfish was the roe — two pink lobes of unlaid eggs. Cookbooks had many recipes for shad roe. The flesh was good, but so full of little bones that it might be off-putting. My grandmother loved it nonetheless, crunching it down, bones and all. Nowadays, shad is less common, due to the damming of rivers during the early Industrial Revolution. Happily, it can still be found in some markets, and then I snatch it up. Even better, modern processing of the fish minimizes the little bones to manageable proportions.
This preparation is a combination of recipes [though mostly for the roe] which I turned into a fine meal. Why the pancake in lieu of potato or some grain? In Rhode Island, they love to eat shad with their local cornmeal pancake called “Johnny Cakes.” I made a batch of corn bread batter [Fannie Farmer Cookbook], and cooked it like pancakes instead. That was a hit!
As you can see, I couldn’t wait to eat this meal, so I took a few bites before I took the photo!
Begin by cooking some bacon in a non-stick pan — 1-2 slices per person. Blot the bacon and pour off most of the fat from the pan, but save what your pour off. Prepare batter for a simple cornbread and cook the batter like pancakes in a bit of bacon fat. Make 1-2 per person. [freeze remaining batter for another meal, like breakfast] Set them aside to stay warm. For the shad, get some very fine yellow cornmeal. [NB: If all you have is meal the texture of sugar, run it through the blender to make it more fine.] Put cornmeal on a plate and sprinkle on salt, pepper, and thyme leaves. Dredge 4-ounce shad fillets in cornmeal, then cook in a bit of bacon fat, about 4 minutes per side. Spray the pan with some cooking spray if the fat cooks away.
Plate the shad with the bacon on top, next to the ‘pseudo-Johnny Cakes,’ and some green beans. This is a genuine old New England treat!
People who are new to Fasting often pose the questions: “Can I really eat ‘anything I want’ on a Slow Day?” and “What should I eat on Slow Days?” To answer those questions, I have decided to add some blog posts to show some of the foods we eat on what the world calls NFDs [non-fast days] but which, in our house, we call ‘Slow Days.’ This feature will appear sporadically.
Who doesn’t like a good cookie? [The Brits call cookies biscuits. The French call cookies bisquits secs. The Germans call them kekse.] Oh, all right, eating cookies year-’round is an American thing, and the Toll House Cookie is now ubiquitous. The trend of cookies the size of a salad plate has no doubt lead to the obesity epidemic. There are specialty cookies — think Christmas Cookies! — and there are everyday cookies. The cookies that I propose today are the ones that I save for Springtime. One is Mary Berry‘s recipe for Easter Biscuits, which I cut out as flowers and butterflies. The other is an Italian confection that looks so cheery that it must be the herald of Springtime temperatures and flowers.
24 Easter Biscuits, 2.5” diameter
Preheat oven 400F/200C/180C Fan. Line 2 baking trays w/ parchment
100g/ 3½ oz unsalted butter 75g/ 2¾ oz caster sugar** egg yolk finely grated lemon zest
Let butter soften at room temperature. Cream butter and sugar in a bowl until well combined and fluffy. Add the yolk and zest.
100g/ 3.5oz plain flour 100g/ 3.5oz white whole wheat flour 50g/ 1¾ oz currants/raisins 1–2 Tbsp milk
Sift in flour and mix well. Stir in currants and enough milk to make a fairly soft dough.
Knead dough on a floured surface + roll out 5mm/ ¼” thick. Cut out using a 6cm/ 2½” fluted cutter. Work quickly in a cool area of the kitchen lest dough becomes too soft. If soft after mixing, chill 10 mins or until easier to handle.
Put on baking trays and bake 8 mins.
Egg white
Lightly beat egg white with a fork until frothy. Take biscuits from oven and brush tops with beaten egg white.
Caster sugar
Sprinkle with caster sugar and bake 5 mins, or until pale golden brown and cooked though. Cool on trays for a few mins, then longer on a wire rack.
96 Ricotta cookies
48 Ricotta cookies
350 F/175 C. Cover baking sheet with parchment.
1 cup butter 1¾ cup sugar
½ cup butter ¾ cup sugar
Add softened butter and sugar to a stand mixer. Mix together until combined.
2 eggs 2 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg 1 tsp vanilla
Add eggs and vanilla extract. Continue to mix.
2 cups ricotta cheese
1 cup ricotta
Add ricotta cheese. Mix again and scrape off bowl sides to be sure that all ingredients are combined.
1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp baking soda 4 cups white flour
½ tsp baking powder ½ tsp baking soda 1 c white flour 1 c almond meal
Pour in flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Mix to form a dough.
Portion dough with a 1.5 tsp scoop and put on the baking sheet. Bake 15-20 mins, until bottoms are golden brown.
Take from oven and cool 10 mins.
1 cup 10X sugar 1 T milk rainbow sprinkles
½ cup confectioners sugar 1.5 tsp milk rainbow sprinkles
Combine sugar and milk in small bowl, Stirring until smooth. Dip each cookie into frosting and top off with rainbow sprinkles. Let frosting dry, then enjoy.
69 calories… 3 g fat… 0 g fiber… 1 g protein… 10 g carbs… 18 mg Calcium
People who are new to Fasting often pose the questions: “Can I really eat ‘anything I want’ on a Slow Day?” and “What should I eat on Slow Days?” To answer those questions, I have decided to add some blog posts to show some of the foods we eat on what the world calls NFDs [non-fast days] but which, in our house, we call ‘Slow Days.’ This feature will appear sporadically.
Large cosmopolitan cities around the world have many choices of cuisine, and opportunities to get food that one didn’t cook oneself. Chinese food is very popular for take-away. But out here in the woods of New Hampshire, carry-out might involve a drive so long that the food is cold by the time one gets home to eat it. The solution? Make your own. OK, perhaps there is a bit of Yankee self-sufficiency in that course, but it is need-driven.
Chinese steamed buns, Char Siu Bao, are yummy and really not that difficult to prepare. With Chinese New Year coming up, treat yourself and your friends to steamed buns from home. You can make the filling days in advance. If you wish, the filling, or at least the Chinese Roast Pork, could be purchased at an Asian market or from a co-operative Chinese restaurant — I think I might have seen it at a supermarket in the deli case. Not an option? Then make your own filling.
FOR THE FILLING:
1 T. oil OR 1 tsp oil + spray of PAM ⅓ cup finely chopped shallots or red onion
Heat the oil in a wok over medium high heat. Add the onion and stir-fry 1 min.
Turn heat down to medium-low, and add these ingredients. Stir and cook until mixture starts to bubble up.
½ cup chicken stock 2 Tbsp white whole wheat flour
Add the stock and flour, cooking for a couple minutes until thickened
1½ cups diced Chinese roast pork = 6.75 oz = 193 g
Take from heat and stir in pork. Set aside to cool. If you make filling ahead of time, refrigerate covered to prevent drying.
FOR THE BUN DOUGH:
1 teaspoon active dry yeast ¾ cup warm water
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook (you can also just use a regular mixing bowl and knead by hand), dissolve the yeast in the warm water.
1 c all-purposeflour 1 c white whole wheat flour 1 c cornstarch 4 tablespoons sugar ¼ c canola or vegetable oil
Sift together flours and cornstarch, and add to the yeast-water along with sugar and oil. Set mixer to lowest setting and let it mix until a smooth dough ball is formed. Cover with a damp cloth and let it rest for 2 hours.
2½ tsp baking powder 2-3 tsp water
Add baking powder and turn mixer to lowest setting. If dough looks dry and baking powder won’t mix in, add water. Gently knead with dough hook until it is smooth again. Cover with damp cloth, let rest 15 minutes. Set up your steamer in the wok.
Roll dough into a long tube and divide into 20 equal pieces. Press each piece of dough into a disc about 4½ inches in diameter (it should be thicker in center and thinner at edges).
Add some filling and pleat buns closed. Place each bun on a parchment paper square or cabbage leaf. Put steamer over wok, being sure boiling water does not touch the buns during steaming process.Once the water boils, put buns in the steamer for 12 minutes over high heat.
Place each bun on a parchment paper square, and steam. I steamed the buns in two batches using a bamboo steamer Be sure boiling water does not touch buns during steaming process. Once water boils, put buns in the steamer, and steam each batch 12 mins over high heat.
Serve the Cha Siu Bao fresh, with stir-fried vegetables. Freeze any that are left over for a future dinner or even breakfast.
People who are new to Fasting often pose the questions: “Can I really eat ‘anything I want’ on a Slow Day?” and “What should I eat on Slow Days?” To answer those questions, I have decided to add some blog posts to show some of the foods we eat on what the world calls NFDs [non-fast days] but which, in our house, we call ‘Slow Days.’ This feature will appear sporadically.
If you want something special for a holiday breakfast, this delightful brioche wreath fills the bill. The recipe is from Bonne Maman, makers of jams, jellies, and spreads, and of course they want you to use one of their products. You may use any quality homemade or purchased jam you wish. I prepared this for a gathering of the knitting group, and it was a success. The step involving the preparation of the jam-filled balls could be a family affair and is a good way to include little hands in the kitchen. I have broken the recipe into steps over two days, which simplifies the process [I think], and breaks it into steps that are not too time-consuming. And the next day, Voila! a splendid breakfast centerpiece that looks spectacular, but was made with little fuss.
1 large wreath of 18 puffs
10” tube pan or 12” pie plate + ramekin
DAY 1, EARLY
7g sachet fast-action dried yeast 25g golden caster sugar 150 g white whole wheat flour 150g strong white = bread flour zest of ½ orange + ½ lemon 1 tsp salt
Caster sugar is a fine-grained sugar from the UK. Blitz granulated white sugar in the food processor to make a substitute. Zest the orange and lemon rinds OR USE 2 Tbsp ORANGE PUREE. [chop an orange into large pieces, run through food processor to make a chunky mush] Mix these in the bowl of an electric mixer with a dough hook. Make a well in the center.
50 ml warm milk 3 large eggs, beaten
Pour these into center well. Mix on a slow speed 2 mins, then on medium 3-4 mins, until dough is soft, glossy and elastic.
225g/16 Tbsp/2 sticks butter, cubed and very soft
Add butter, bit by bit, and mix 4-5 mins. Scrape down bowl to mix thoroughly. Dough will be very soft. Tip into an oiled bowl, cover with film and chill 8-24 hrs until firm.
DAY 1, LATE
18 tsp Bonne Maman Conserve – choose your favorite or make 9 of one flavor and 9 of another
On a lightly oiled surface, divide dough into 18 pieces, ~40 g each. Roll pieces in circles 10 cm in dia. Spoon 1 tsp of jam on centre of each. Bring up sides, pinch together, roll into a ball.
Butter a 10” tube pan. ORPut a greased ramekin in center of buttered 12″ pie plate. Put 6 balls, seam side down, around center tube. Put 12 balls in an outer circle. Cover, let sit 2 hrs until puffy –OR– OVERNight @ 40 degrees
DAY 2, MORNING
Heat oven to 170ºC/340F/ gas mark 5.
Egg wash ½ tsp lemon finishing salt 1 tbsp ground hazelnuts sliced almonds
After rising, brush dough with a little egg wash, sprinkle with salt and nuts. Bake 20 mins, until golden.
Cover with foil and cook 10-15 mins longer.
Icing sugar
Cool slightly, remove from pan. Remove ramekin if using. Dust with icing sugar.
People who are new to Fasting often pose the questions: “Can I really eat ‘anything I want’ on a Slow Day?” and “What should I eat on Slow Days?” To answer those questions, I have decided to add some blog posts to show some of the foods we eat on what the world calls NFDs [non-fast days] but which, in our house, we call ‘Slow Days.’ This feature will appear sporadically.
The late, lamented Gourmet Magazine had a practice of publishing favorite recipes from readers. One of them was for this coffee cake. What makes it “Pennsylvania Dutch” is probably the method of cutting the butter into the flour to form a crumb, then combining most of the crumbs with the moist ingredients. This is similar to the process of preparing a Shoo-Fly Pie, a classic of Pennsylvania Dutch cuisine. Since the recipe makes two 8″ cakes, there is one to eat and one for gifting or for the freezer.
Fresh from the oven, in an 8×8″ pan. Cut into 9 pieces.Served with strawberry yogurt, back bacon, mocha cafe au lait, and orange-rhubarb juice.
The coffeecake is delicious and easy to prepare. Have only one egg to use? You can just as simply make one cake from the recipe. Either way, the cake is moist and flavorful. This is a regular in our breakfast rotation.
Two 8 or 9” cakes
1 cake or 12 muffins
8 or 9” round cake pans
2 eggs 1 c. milk, fat % of your choice
1 eggs ½ c. milk, fat % of your choice
Whisk together and set aside.
2 ½ c. white whole wheat flour 1 ½ c sugar or 1¼ c. ½ tsp salt 1 Tbsp baking powder ¾ c/12 oz butter
1¼ c. white whole wheat flour ¾ c sugar or 2/3 c. ¼ tsp salt 1½ tsp baking powder 1/3 c/ 6 oz butter
With pastry blender or 2 knives, cut together until mixture looks like a coarse meal. SAVE OUT ½ OR ¼ CUP OF CRUMBS, set aside
Stir egg-milk into flour crumbs until combined.
Pour into pans, buttered or lined with parchment paper.
½ cup crumbs
¼ c crumbs
Sprinkle tops with crumbs.
Bake @ 375F 25-30 mins, until top begins to turn golden.
People who are new to Fasting often pose the questions: “Can I really eat ‘anything I want’ on a Slow Day?” and “What should I eat on Slow Days?” To answer those questions, I have decided to add some blog posts to show some of the foods we eat on what the world calls NFDs [non-fast days] but which, in our house, we call ‘Slow Days.’ This feature will appear sporadically.
In Summertime, we eat mussels. “Rope-grown mussels” are a big industry where we vacation in PEI, Canada, and we take full advantage of them. Years ago, when we first started going to the local mussel processing plant to buy them, they sold for 50 cents/pound. Even though they are $2/pound now, they are worth it. One of our favorite ways to prepare them is a recipe from A Well-Seasoned Appetite by Molly O’Neil. You can prepare these with fresh mussels in their shells, or use cooked mussel meat that has been removed from the shells. We prefer the latter, and find it to be a good way to use left-over mussels from a previous feed. Very quick, very easy, very good.
People who are new to Fasting often pose the questions: “Can I really eat ‘anything I want’ on a Slow Day?” and “What should I eat on Slow Days?” To answer those questions, I have decided to add some blog posts to show some of the foods we eat on what the world calls NFDs [non-fast days] but which, in our house, we call ‘Slow Days.’ This feature will appear sporadically.
When our sons were young, our Summer Vacation was two weeks at Prince Edward Island in Canada. I would pack up ingredients for the meals we would eat, we would stuff our duffels with bathing suits and snorkel equipment, and off we would go to the old farm house we would always rent on a little lane that went down to the sea. It was delightful.
Early on, I discovered a new recipe: Pecan Rolls that could rise overnight and be enjoyed for the next day’s breakfast. Even better, the recipe made so many that they could be frozen and re–heated for subsequent breakfasts large enough to satisfy two growing boys. Great!! The recipe is from Great Breads by Martha Rose Shulman.
Now we have our own house on Prince Edward Island, built to resemble our former rental, but with some serious updates — like a large, well-equipped kitchen. Every Summer there, I make a batch of Pecan Rolls: some for the next breakfast, many for the freezer to feed our Summer guests. Depending on how you cut the dough, you could make 24-36 large rolls. Have fun with this one!
Mise en place: in big bowl — 2 flours, mace, salt; in smaller vessels, left to right: milk-juice-honey, yeast, pecans, egg-oil, unplumped raisins
24 huge rolls OR 32 regular
12 huge rolls OR 16 regular
1 cup raisins boiling water to cover
½ cup raisins boiling water to cover
Soak 15 mins, then drain, saving the water and raisins.
½ c cooled raisin water 1 Tbsp yeast
¼ c cooled raisin water 1.5 tsp yeast
Pour into 1-Quart bowl. Let sit a few minutes, then stir to dissolve
¾ c warm milk ½ c warm orange juice 1/3 c warm honey
1/3 c warm milk ¼ c warm orange juice 3 Tbsp warm honey
Stir into yeast solution, let stand 5-10 mins.
¼ c oil, ex: canola two 2-oz eggs
2 Tbsp oil, ex: canola one 2-oz egg
Add to the bowl and mix.
1 2/3 c white flour 2 tsp salt ½ tsp mace or nutmeg 4-5 c white whole wheat flour
½ + 1/3 c white flour 1 tsp salt ¼ tsp mace or nutmeg 2-2½ c white whole wheat flour
Combine in a large bowl.
Plumped Raisins 1 cup liquids
Plumped Raisins ½ cup liquids
Stir into dry ingredients.
1 cup liquids
½ cup liquids
Add more liquids and mix.
Remaining liquids
Remaining liquids
Add and mix. Knead and let rise 1½-2 hours.
Punch down, divide dough in half if making larger amount. Roll ½ to an 8×12” oblong.
4 Tbsp melted butter 2 Tbsp honey 1 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbsp melted butter 1 Tbsp honey ½ tsp cinnamon
Stir to combine. Divide into 2 parts, if making larger amount. Brush rolled dough with 1 part butter-honey.
1/3 cup + 1/3 cup chopped pecans
3 Tbsp chopped pecans
Sprinkle dough with 1 part nuts. With long side toward you, roll up dough, slice into 12-16 pieces. Repeat with other ½ of dough, if making larger amount.
Arrange rolls, cut side up, on buttered baking trays.
Let rise on counter 1 hour, or overnight in ‘fridge.
Bake 15-20 mins at 350F.
½ c. icing sugar or more 1 tsp orange juice or more
¼ c. icing sugar or more 1 tsp orange juice or more
Stir together icing. Slather on rolls to serve today. Cool and freeze un-iced remaining rolls in plastic bags.
Pecan Rolls, back bacon, strawberry yogurt — tastes like Summer to me!
People who are new to Fasting often pose the questions: “Can I really eat ‘anything I want’ on a Slow Day?” and “What should I eat on Slow Days?” To answer those questions, I have decided to add some blog posts to show some of the foods we eat on what the world calls NFDs [non-fast days] but which, in our house, we call ‘Slow Days.’ This feature will appear sporadically.
Friends were going to drop by for a summer luncheon. We see them only once a year and don’t really know their eating preferences, so we opted for a ‘grazing meal.’ Call it Mezedakia if you are Greek, call it Tapas if you are Spanish, call it Small Bites if you are writing the restaurant appetizer menu. A meal like this offers flexibility and choices for the people around the table, and this assortment is very much in the Mediterranean Diet mode. One can eat as much or as little as one wants. My kind of meal!
Top Row, left to right: Gozleme Bread, Felafel patties Second Row, left to right: Cucumber-Tomato salad, Tzatziki [white, with spreading knife], black olives, cherry tomatoes, watermelon chunks Bottom Row, left to right: Carrots in lemon marinade, za’atar chicken chunks, White Beans with capers
This menu has many make-ahead components, so there is no scrambling at the last minute. And here are the preparation notes:
Gozleme Bread: make ahead
1¼ c white whole wheat flour ½ tsp salt
Mix in a 1-Qt-sized bowl.
¼ c water ¼ c plain yogurt
Combine yogurt/water and stir into the flour until well-combined. Add a bit more water if too dry.
On a floured surface, knead ~3 mins, until smooth and elastic. Cover and let sit for a few mins on the counter OR overnight in a cool place.
Roll on a floured surface into flat breads. Divide into sizes for your recipe. Cook on an oil-sprayed skillet 3-4 mins per side until turning brown in spots.
FELAFEL: makes 25 patties So convenient to have in the freezer for ‘instant’ meals.
2 cups canned chick peas [if you use dried chickpeas, you will get a grainer product. Factor in the time to reconstitute and cook them] 1.5 cloves garlic, crushed [add as much as you enjoy!] ¼ cup celery, minced ¼ c. scallions, sliced 1 two-oz egg 1½ tsp tahini ½ t. cumin ½ t. turmeric ¼ t. cayenne ¼ t. black pepper 1.5 t. salt
Combine in food processer until ingredients form a uniform paste. Scoop into a bowl and chill 1 hour. Form into balls on a silicone mat or parchment paper on a cookie sheet. I used a 1½ Tbsp scoop and then flattened the patties. TIP: You don’t have to bake them now. You could freeze the patties on a cookie sheet, then put them frozen into bags to cook later. Bake at 400F for 10-15 minutes. The patties should be heated through and have an outside ‘crust’ which is firm to the touch. In most recipes, you will cook them further. At this point you want them to be firm enough to store well. There will be about 25 of them. Use now or cool and freeze for later use.
Cucumber-Tomato Salad: make ahead What a Summer treat!
Sv 4
1 English cucumber, unpeeled
Trim off ends of cuke, halve it lengthwise. Cut into ½” dice.
10 oz grape or cherry tomatoes ½ small red onion
Dice tomatoes and red onion. Put all three veg into a bowl.
2 Tbsp olive oil 2 Tbsp red wine vinegar 1 tsp honey ½ tsp Kosher or fine sea salt ¼ tsp black pepper
Whisk these together.Pour dressing over the salad and toss gently to mix.
1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley/dill /basil
Gently stir in the fresh herbs, if using.
Serve immediately or chill in ‘frige 1-2 hrs to let the flavors meld before serving.
Tzatziki: make ahead Thisis thetraditional Greek condiment. Very refreshing. The recipe comes from themediterraneandish.com and
2½ cups
1 English cucumber or another variety Kosher salt
Grate cucumbers whole if using English cucumbers. If using cucumbers with waxy skin, peel and cut in half before grating. Remove and discard seeds. Salt lightly.
Squeeze cucumbers in a clean cloth to remove liquid.
4-5 cloves garlic, minced 1 tsp distilled white vinegar 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
In a big bowl, combine garlic with these and mix.
drained cucumber 2 c plain Greek yogurt Ground pepper + salt 1 Tbsp chopped fresh dill or mint
Add drained cucumber mixture to the above bowl, then add these ingredients. Stir to combine.
Chill 30 mins -2 hrs before serving with fresh veggies and pita or chips
Carrots in lemon marinade:make ahead Prepare the marinade: In a wide bowl, whisk together 1 tsp olive oil, 1 tsp lemon juice, pinch of granulated garlic, pinch oregano. Cook small carrot sticks until tender and put them into the marinade while they are still hot. Stir at whiles, as the carrots cool on the counter.
Za’atar Chicken:make ahead or grill in front of your guests to show off your skills. Serve the chicken meat in large pieces or cut into 1-inch cubes and serve on picks.
Serves 4
Serves 2
5 garlic cloves, pressed zest of 1 lemon 1/3 c yogurt ¼ c chopped fresh cilantro 3 Tbsp EVOO 1½ Tbsp za’atar 1 Tbsp chopped oregano/marjoram 1¾ tsp salt ¼ tsp ground black pepper
MARINADE – In a large bowl or container, stir together these ingredients.
2¼# boneless, skinless chicken thighs
2 thighs with legs, boned
Add chicken and toss until well coated. Cover and refrigerate for 2+ hrs or overnight.
Heat grill to medium or heat broiler with rack 3” from heat. If broiling instead of grilling, line sheet pan with foil for easier clean up. Take chicken from bowl, shaking off excess marinade, and grill/broil on one side until charred in spots, 5-8 mins. Flip, grill/broil 5-8 mins, until just cooked through.
White Beans with capers:make ahead Drain and rinse canned beans, such as navy or cannellini/white kidney. Stir in 1 Tbsp capers for every cup of beans, along with a pinch or two of salt. Let sit at room temperature to marry the flavors.
People who are new to Fasting often pose the questions: “Can I really eat ‘anything I want’ on a Slow Day?” and “What should I eat on Slow Days?” To answer those questions, I have decided to add some blog posts to show some of the foods we eat on what the world calls NFDs [non-fast days] but which, in our house, we call ‘Slow Days.’
During World War 1 and World War II, the people on the home front in Great Britain, Canada, and the US shared in the war effort. They donated metal to make munitions, they saved cooking fat and sent it to use as a lubricant for machinery. And most of all, they endured years of food scarcity since food was diverted to the troops. At home, eggs, butter, sugar, cheese, and meat were rationed. Each household received a ration card which was taken to the store to determine how you could shop. Each week, the grocer would dole out the commodities needed to run a home kitchen, and it was not enough. Here was the weekly rations per adult in Canada:
sugar: one cup (the average Canadian eats twice that much today)
butter: four ounces (one-quarter pound)
tea: two ounces, or coffee: eight ounces (because these items came from other countries)
meat: 24-32 ounces (less than five ounces per day)
beer, spirits and wine were also rationed, the amount varying between provinces [PEI still had total Prohibition until 1947]
Cooks became creative. No butter? Lard would substitute in baked goods. No milk? Water or tea might suffice. No sugar? Try molasses. No eggs? Oh bother.
From those privations came ‘War Cake,’ a special bake to make a family celebration more festive in trying times. A housewife had to plan ahead for it, saving out a bit of sugar for weeks before baking. This recipe is from Maritime Canada, where it was often served at Christmas, and still is in some families. In the baking division at the Dundas Plowing Contest in PEI, one category is ‘war cake.’ So I tried this last year and it was a winner — literally and figuratively. It won 1st Prize and has been popular when served to friends and family.
12 servings, 1 cake
Preheat oven to 325 F/165 C. Grease and flour a tube/loaf/Bundt pan.
1 c water/herbal tea 1 c raisins + dried apricots 1/2 c light molasses 1/3 c/5 Tbsp sugar 1/3 c lard
If using dried apricots, dice them. Or use all raisins. Bring these to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce heat to low, and simmer until raisins are plump, ~5 minutes. Let cool, but not so much that the lard solidifies.
1.5 c white whole wheat flour 1/2 tsp baking soda 1.5 tsp cinnamon
Whisk together in a bowl.
Stir flour mixture into raisin mixture until well combined. Pour into prepared baking pan.
Bake until a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean, ~1 hour, less if baked in tube pan.
Serve with slices of Cheddar Cheese and a cup of tea. Splendid for breakfast, elevenses, tea time, or dessert. Enjoy a taste of the past.
People who are new to Fasting often pose the questions: “Can I really eat ‘anything I want’ on a Slow Day?” and “What should I eat on Slow Days?” To answer those questions, I have decided to add some blog posts to show some of the foods we eat on what the world calls NFDs [non-fast days] but which, in our house, we call ‘Slow Days.’ This feature will appear sporadically.
In the depths of winter, when snow is deep on the ground in the North, lemons are ripening in warmer climes. How cheery they look! How fresh they taste! Lemon-growing spread around the Mediterranean Sea by 1000 CE. Berbers brought their cultivation to Spain, then when Spain took over the Netherlands in the 1500s, lemons went with them to Northern Europe. Eventually, lemons and limes were prized as sources of Vitamin C to prevent scurvy in the winter, when fresh vegetables were scarce. Have you tried Lemon Ricotta Pancakes? They are bright and light in flavor, and are perfect for a February breakfast. If you have left-over pancakes, freeze them. The recipe is from Geneveve Ko, writing in the New York Times.
8-10 pancakes
Heat a griddle or large nonstick pan or well-seasoned cast-iron skillet over medium-low.
33 g/3 Tbsp sugar zest ½ lemon or 1 tsp Lemon Juice 1 tsp vanilla
Put these in a large bowl and whisk to combine.
2 eggs
Add eggs and whisk until foamy.
½ c lower-fat ricotta 3 Tbsp yogurt/buttermilk 20 g butter
Melt butter. Add these to the bowl, and whisk until well blended.
½ c/52 g white whole wheat flour 1 tsp baking powder ½ tsp salt
Add dry ingredients and gently stir until no traces of flour remain.
Optional: drop blueberries on the batter as pancakes cook
Butter griddle. Use a ¼ cup measure to portion batter onto it. Cook 3 mins on each side until golden brown.
Blueberry Maple Syrup or other toppings chicken breakfast sausage
Serve warm, with blueberry syrup and chicken sausages.
Eating well, with creative recipes, to follow the Fasting Lifestyle according to Michael Mosley's "Fast Diet." 