Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Veggie Wednesday: Retro



This recipe card is one of a collection I have that belonged to my late great-grandmother. Grandma died in 1974 just before her 90Th birthday. The 1930's then, when this card and many of the others in the collection was written, was mid-life for her. It was also the time of the Great Depression.

When grandma and grandpa weren't off in a foreign country doing missions work, they lived in the parsonage of whichever church grandpa was pastoring at the time. Grandpa was always there, wearing a clean, long-sleeved, white shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a pair of suspenders. At a moment's notice, he could roll down the sleeves, add a tie and a suit jacket and be ready to preside over any ceremony necessary. As my mother told me, "You have no idea how many weddings he performed right there in the parsonage."

Being a pastor in those days often meant being paid in food, which was not so bad an idea, really. Grandma would have to entertain quite a bit and extra food certainly helped. Meat was a real commodity, though, so recipes had to be adapted and worked around what a person could afford. Grandma never served anything, even Creamed Peas and Carrots on Toast, that wasn't pretty enough to photograph.



Creamed Peas and Carrots on Toast
Creamed Peas and Carrots on Toast

This recipe reflects the life of a preacher during the Depression better than any other in that stack of recipes.

Creamed Peas and Carrots on Toast

As written on the card.
Printable Recipe

Take equal parts of cooked peas and carrots. Make a white sauce; using

1 cup milk,
2 tbs. flour,
2 tbs. butter,

Add white sauce to carrots and
Peas and return to fire and heat.
Pour over toasted bread.

9 comments:

Whistle Britches said...

What an absolutely wonderful legacy.
You made Batman get teary eyed on this one. seriously.

Anne Coleman said...

Wel, now--that weren't my intention :O)

Mirz said...

What an amazing thing to have those recipe cards. I always find it so wonderful to share the recipes of the past. The picture in your post looks amazing. Wish my family would eat it.

Anonymous said...

What a treasure. That recipe reminds me of my childhood. My mother only liked a couple of vegetables, and peas and carrots headed the list.

Thanks for sharing.

Cas
I posted a recipe today that I used to make when my boys were little. I guess it's "remember day".

Anonymous said...

Nice and simple! Sounds like a great lunch idea for a rainy Sunday afternoon.

Anonymous said...

You have a very nice blog, good post...keep up the good job

KFarmer said...

I love your treasure chest of old recipes. I know Dave would love this one :)

Blah Society said...

Since I'm dieting, this seems like it would be a great dinner (or even lunch) for me.

I have one question: Do you have to use butter to make the sauce?

Anne Coleman said...

a.j.-no-anything that's used to thicken can be subbed for the butter and flour--you can use the same amount of oil for the butter with the flour and get the same result. You can cut out the flour and butter all together and use a bit of cornstarch and water added after the milk starts to heat up.