Depression Era Cooking and Recipes

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During the first World War, the American government went to work to help homemakers learn how to be frugal in their cooking. Booklets and pamphlets were distributed with the reasons why people needed to be frugal, along with frugal recipes. There was a world war, crop failures, and famine in Europe. America needed to feed her fighting troops overseas and also her allies.

American homemakers were taught to save:

Wheat-use more corn
Meat-use more fish and beans
Fats-use just enough
Sugar-use syrups

The US Food Administration advised about food:

1. Buy it with thought
2. Cook it with care
3. Serve just enough
4. Save what will keep
5. Eat what will spoil
6. Home grown is best

When the Great Depression hit about 10 years later there was some history and knowledge in place of how to make frugal meals and how to get the most out of your food supply.

Fresh fruits and vegetables could not easily be shipped overseas so families were encouraged to grow them to supplement their diets here at home. At harvest time the produce could be canned or dried to help the family stay well fed and nourished during the winter. They canned tomatoes and tomato juice, green beans, peaches, cherries and many more fruits and vegetables. Many families grew cucumbers for pickle making as well. Produce such as potatoes, carrots, onions and pumpkins would keep for a long time. Making jams and jellies was another way to preserve the harvest.

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Soups provided a good hot meal and were a way to use up leftovers so they didn't get wasted. This is still true today. Into the stockpot goes the bones, fat and any other part of the meat that no one eats. Throw in onion skins for color. Toss in carrot peelings and the ends snapped off of fresh green beans. All of this would otherwise be wasted and it can add nutrients to your stock. It will all be strained out and you will be left with a flavorful and nutritious base for soup.

Here are some soup recipes historically used when times were hard. All of these recipes come from government pamphlets which are in the public domain. All the recipes were designed to show housewives how to economize on wheat, meat, fats and sugar. It was very important not to waste food.

Photo is the Volunteers of America Soup Kitchen in Washington D.C. Great Depression (public domain)

VEGETABLE SOUP

1 qt. boiling water
½ cup carrots
½ cup cabbage
1 cup potatoes
1 cup tomato juice and pulp
1 tablespoon minced onion
¼ teaspoon pepper
4 tablespoons fat
4 cloves
1 bay leaf
2 teaspoons salt
4 peppercorns
2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Heat onion, pepper, salt, bay leaf and peppercorns with tomatoes for 20 minutes. Strain. To juice and pulp add other ingredients and cook slowly 1 hour. Add parsley just before serving.

CREAM OF CARROT SOUP

2 cups diced carrots
2 cups water
1 cup milk
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons fat
2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon salt

Cook the carrots in the water until tender. Melt the fat, add dry ingredients, add gradually the 1 cup water in which the carrots were cooked and the milk. When at boiling point, serve with a little grated raw carrot sprinkled over top of soup. Any vegetable, raw or cooked, may be used in the same way. (cauliflower, cabbage, peas, turnips, etc)

POTATO AND CHEESE SOUP

2 cups cooked diced potatoes
2 cups water in which potatoes were cooked
1 cup milk
2 teaspoons onion juice
2 tablespoons fat
3 tablespoons flour
1½ teaspoons salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
2 tablespoons of finely chopped parsley
¼ cup grated cheese

Dice potatoes and cook slowly until very tender. Rub through strainer, using potato and the 2 cups of water. Melt fat, add dry ingredients and gradually add the liquids and onion juice. When ready to serve, sprinkle parsley and cheese over top.

Clara's depression era recipes have become very popular on YouTube. Now you can buy her cook book and DVD.

Clara's Kitchen: Wisdom, Memories, and Recipes from the Great Depression


Great Depression Cooking with Clara (season 1)

LENTILS WITH RICE AND TOMATOES

¾ cup lentils
1 cup rice
1 quart tomatoes
1 teaspoon Worcestershire
2 teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon cayenne
¼ teaspoon bay leaf
¼ teaspoon sage

Soak lentils over night; drain; add one quart fresh water and one teaspoon of salt. Cook slowly until tender. Add other ingredients. Steam or bake for 45 minutes.

Serve with fruit or a dessert and bread and butter.

RICE WITH CORN AND CHEESE IN BROWN SAUCE

½ cup rice
1 cup cheese
1 cup corn
1½ cup milk
¼ cup fat
¼ cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne

Melt fat until brown. Add flour and seasonings. Heat until brown. Add milk gradually. When at boiling point add other ingredients. Place in baking dish and bake 45 minutes.

Serve with fruit or a dessert and bread and butter.

The great depression years were a time of substituting and making do. Many "Mock" recipes were invented such as this one, basic but tasty.

I made this recipe tonight and tested it on my family. I had made the "pucks" earlier and had them in the freezer so tonight I just had to make the mashed potatoes. Everyone liked it and said they would eat it again. Even my son who doesn't like bacon liked it. He did ask me if I would try it with turkey bacon so next time we will try that. The potato patties did spread out and were a little greasy from the meats but it all tasted good. Mock Filet Mignon was a success here. July 30, 2010

Mock Filet Mignon

INGREDIENTS
1 lb lean ground beef
1/2 lb ground pork
1/3 cup chili sauce
1/4 tsp dry mustard
Dash of pepper and paprika
1 small onion (1/2 cup) finely diced
6 strips bacon (about 1/4 pound)
2 lb Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and quartered
1/4 cup hot milk
1/2 tsp salt
DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, combine meat, chili sauce, mustard, pepper, paprika and onion, mixing well. Shape into 6 pucks about 2 inches tall. Wrap strip of bacon around each; fasten with toothpick. Set aside.
Cook potatoes in large pot of boiling water until soft enough to mash, about 20 minutes.
Beat potatoes with hot milk and salt. Form into six flat patties big enough to hold the mock filets; place on baking sheet. Top with meat.
Bake 10 minutes in 450F oven; reduce to 350F and bake 30 minutes, until bacon is crisp and meat is cooked through.

One of my grandmothers would often make fried hamburger patties with brown gravy. The gravy was served over a piece of bread. She also made delicious Applesauce Cookies which she handed out on Halloween.

My other grandmother would make a mixture of elbow macaroni, stewed tomatoes and cottage cheese. I never liked it but my brother did. Mom says they would also make "hamburger" patties out of eggs and oatmeal. She doesn't remember what else was in them but she says they were pretty good. Grandma would serve plain boiled potatoes and boiled pork. Meals were made with ingredients that were inexpensive and far from fancy. Grandma lived on a farm and kept chickens. She made the most wonderful strawberry rhubarb jam. I wish I had that recipe!

Mom would make us creamed dried beef gravy over toast. Sometimes it would be creamed tuna on toast. I think this recipe originated in the Depression era.

GRANDMA'S APPLESAUCE COOKIES

3/4 cup soft shortening
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup applesauce
2 1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1 cup raisins
1/2 cup nuts

Mix thoroughly, shortening,brown sugar and egg. Stir in applesauce. Sift together four, salt, soda, and spices and stir in. Mix in raisins and nuts. Drop by spoonfuls onto greased cookie sheets. Bake at 375 degrees F or 10 to 12 minutes.

Yield: 4 dozen

WELSH RAREBIT

1 cup of cheese
1 cup of milk
¼ teaspoon of mustard
1/8 teaspoon of pepper
2 tablespoons of flour
1 teaspoon of fat
1 teaspoon of salt
1 egg

Put milk and cheese in top of double boiler over hot water. Heat until cheese is melted. Mix other ingredients. Add to cheese and milk. Cook five minutes, stirring constantly, and serve at once on toast.

POLENTA

1 cup cooked cornmeal mush
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup cheese
1/8 teaspoon pepper

While mush is hot, place ingredients in layers in baking dish. Bake 20 minutes.

My mom would sometimes make cornmeal mush for breakfast. She would slice the cornmeal mush, fry it and serve it with butter and syrup. She was born in 1929 and grew up during the Great Depression so maybe this was a hold over from that time.

Our grandmothers knew how to prepare many dishes without sugar. In their day molasses, sorghum, and honey were commonly used for sweetening. There are many methods of supplying the necessary food value and sweetening without using sugar.

Dried fruits, raisins, dates, prunes and figs, which contain large amounts of natural sugar, may be added to desserts and cereals instead of white sugar. Maple sugar and maple syrup were used when available.

EGGLESS, BUTTERLESS, MILKLESS, SUGARLESS CAKE

1 cup corn syrup
2 cups water
2 cups raisins
2 tablespoons fat
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1½ cups fine cornmeal, 2 cups rye flour; or, 3½ cups whole wheat flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder, or, ½ teaspoon soda

Cook corn syrup, water, raisins, fat, salt and spices slowly 15 minutes. When cool, add flour, soda or baking powder, thoroughly blended. Bake in slow oven 1 hour. The longer this cake is kept, the better the texture and flavor. This recipe is sufficient to fill one medium-sized bread pan.

CRUMB SPICE PUDDING

1 cup dry bread crumbs
1 pint hot milk
Let stand until milk is absorbed.

¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup molasses
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
1 egg
½ teaspoon mixed spices, cloves, nutmeg, allspice, mace and ginger
2/3 cup raisins, dates and prunes (steamed 5 minutes)

Mix and bake 45 minutes.

When searching for Depression Era recipes I kept seeing a recipe for Mock Apple Pie made with Ritz Crackers,which supposedly originated during the Great Depression. I had to do a little research on that because I didn't know when Ritz Crackers were introduced.

I learned that Ritz Crackers were introduced by the National Biscuit Company in 1934. In 1935 they introduced Mock Apple Pie using Ritz Crackers. This was not a totally original invention. Housewives were using soda crackers to make pies as early as the 1800s. Using Ritz Crackers was new. Mock Apple Pie really was a recipe from the Great Depression and it still enjoys some popularity today.

This recipe was created by Nabisco and was found on the back of Ritz Cracker boxes. Now it can be found at: The Kraft Foods Website

MOCK APPLE PIE~DEPRESSION ERA RECIPE

What you will need:

pastry for 2-crust 9-inch pie
36 RITZ Crackers, coarsely broken (about 1-3/4 cups crumbs)
2 cups sugar
2 tsp. cream of tartar
Grated peel of 1 lemon
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 Tbsp. butter or margarine
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

HOW TO MAKE IT

PREHEAT oven to 425°F. Roll out half of the pastry and place in 9-inch pie plate. Place cracker crumbs in crust; set aside.

MIX sugar and cream of tartar in medium saucepan. Gradually stir in 1-3/4 cups water until well blended. Bring to boil on high heat. Reduce heat to low; simmer 15 minutes. Add lemon peel and juice; cool. Pour syrup over cracker crumbs. Dot with butter; sprinkle with cinnamon. Roll out remaining pastry; place over pie. Trim; seal and flute edges. Slit top crust to allow steam to escape.

BAKE 30 to 35 minutes or until crust is crisp and golden. Cool completely.

My grandparents raised their family during the Great Depression. This left a mark on them for all their lives. They lived in a tiny, run down house and drove an old pick up truck. When my Granddad died and Grandma moved into a nursing home, Mom and her sister cleaned out their house. Tucked away in drawers and closets they found brand new dresses that Grandma never wore. There were brand new sets of sheets and pillow cases that were never used. She was wearing threadbare dresses and using threadbare sheets and saving the new things until they were absolutely needed.

Also tucked away in drawers and in the pockets of coats, and hidden here and there, they found money. A twenty dollar bill here, a fifty there until they had several thousand dollars. That was my Granddad, distrustful of banks and wanting to make sure his girls got his money. My grandparents lived extremely frugally even when they no longer had to.

What is a hobo? Here is what Wikipedia on Answers.com says, "A hobo is a term which is often applied to a migratory worker or homeless vagabond, often penniless. The term originated in the Western-probably Northwestern-United States during the last decade of the 19th century. Unlike 'tramps', who work only when they are forced to, and 'bums', who do not work at all, 'hobos' are workers who wander."

This page on Answers.com gives a pretty complete explanation of what hobos were. It explains when the word surfaced, the etymology of the word, its history and more.

This term may be somewhat politically incorrect today. The closest example we have today might be "homeless" but hobos and homeless are not quite the same thing.

During the Great Depression hobos would ride the trains. Some were looking for work, some were running away from something and some were looking for a new start where things might be better. Sometimes they would come up to houses and ask for a handout. If they got a handout they would mark the house to let other hobos know that this was a house where they could get something to eat.

We lived near a railroad track in rural Iowa and I remember my mom talking about the hobos and how they would mark your house if you gave them a handout, but I don't remember a hobo ever stopping at our house.

Wikipedia on Hobos:

To cope with the difficulty of hobo life, hobos developed a system of symbols, or a code. Hobos would write this code with chalk or coal to provide directions, information, and warnings to other hobos. Some signs included "turn right here", "beware of hostile railroad police", "dangerous dog", "food available here", and so on. For instance:

* A cross signifies "angel food," that is, food served to the hobos after a party.
* A triangle with hands signifies that the homeowner has a gun.
* Sharp teeth signify a mean dog.
* A square missing its top line signifies it is safe to camp in that location.
* A top hat and a triangle signify wealth.
* A spearhead signifies a warning to defend oneself.
* A circle with two parallel arrows means to get out fast, as hobos are not welcome in the area.
* Two interlocked humans signify handcuffs. (i.e. hobos are hauled off to jail).
* A Caduceus symbol signifies the house has a medical doctor living in it.
* A cat signifies that a kind lady lives here.
* A wavy line (signifying water) above an X means fresh water and a campsite.
* Three diagonal lines mean it's not a safe place.
* A square with a slanted roof (signifying a house) with an X through it means that the house has already been "burned" or "tricked" by another hobo and is not a trusting house.
* Two shovels, signifying work was available (Shovels, because most hobos did manual labor).

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