wartime recipes

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Wheatmeal Pastry

In preparation for dinner tonight I’ve made a ball of wheatmeal pastry from one of my favourite modern day wartime cookbooks “Feeding the Nation” and now I have to decide what to actually make with it… I just know I had a craving for pastry and I do have some left over “Lentil & Legume Gravy” so I may well make some potato pasties and fill them with a little of the leftover gravy.

Wheatmeal Pastry

  • 8 oz (225 g) of plain wheatmeal flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 oz- 30z (50-75 g) of cooking fat, margarine or dripping (I used 50/50 vegan margarine and shortening)
  • water

Method

  1. Blend the flour with the salt and the baking powder
  2. Chop up the fat into small pieces and rub into the flour until well distributed
  3. Add enough water to make a rolling consistency although a little softer than you would normally make with white flour
  4. Roll out and use.
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Curried potatoes

When I found this old 1940s wartime recipe in a book I punched the air and went YESSSSSS!  I kind of wanted something that was like fast food but without the unhealthy bits and for anyone British, this was like the healthy version of “chips, curry sauce and mushy peas” and this was surprisingly good and there was no added fat in any shape or form! (although the original recipe calls for 1 oz of dripping to be dotted over the top while baking)

Curried Potatoes

  • 2lb washed potatoes in their skins
  • 1 dessertspoon of curry powder
  • 1 dessertspoon of medium oatmeal
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 oz dripping (optional)

Method

  1. Place potatoes in boiling water and parboil for about 10 minutes
  2. Mix curry powder, oatmeal and salt together
  3. Sliced or chunk parboiled potatoes into 1/2 inch pieces
  4. Ensure the surfaces of potato are moist before rolling in the curry powder mixture
  5. Place pieces on baking tray and dot with 1 oz dripping (optional)
  6. Cook in oven at 230 C for about 30 minutes until the outsides start to crisp
  7. Garnish with extra salt and vinegar for that chip shop taste
  8. Serve with fresh peas

 

 

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Hungry for Change- Free World Premiere

Watch this. Please watch this…. Please watch this all on 21-31 March 2012.

This is what the 1940s Experiment is trying to prove… that obesity can be cured and health radically improved by eating simple wholefoods,  meat and dairy very sparingly, and eating vegetables and legumes abundantly.

A plant strong diet devoid of processed convenience food and drinks is the way we need to head to heal ourselves and our planet

C xxxxxxxx

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Potato Fingers

These were really tasty..

I think I made mine too thick. Aim for a much thinner finger for best crispiness!

Method

  1. Mix 1 oz of flour with 1/2 lb of mashed potato and season with salt and pepper
  2. Shape into fingers, glaze with egg or milk (I used almond milk being vegan)
  3. Sprinkle with an extra pinch of salt and some mixed dried herbs
  4. Put into a hot oven 230 C for around 15 minutes until outside is crispy
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Split pea soup

Dried peas were available through the points system during the rationing years… you could get quite a lot of split peas for your points every month (8 lbs) if you didn’t use your 16 points up for 2 lbs of dry fruit or just one can of meat/fish. Split peas have lots of fibre, protein and iron so were a very healthy and frugal food to have as part of your ration..

I had split pea soup as my main meal of the day and had two servings. I currently buy a whole bag of organic split peas for $2.49 and that is enough to feed 8 people with a large bowl each! The recipe below uses just half a bag.

I prefer my soups to be thick with texture but if you prefer to have yours thinner and smooth then just add a little extra water and when cooked, liquidize it.

Split pea soup

  • 8 oz (225g) of split green peas
  • 2 onions
  • 2 carrots
  • 1 parsnip or british turnip
  • 1 medium white potato
  • 1 pint (600 ml) of water
  • 1 teaspoon of sugar
  • salt and pepper to taste (I used 1 teaspoon sea salt)
  • sprig of mint or a little dried mint

Method

  1. Wash the split peas in cold water
  2. Cover with cold water and soak overnight or you can use straight away (they’ll just take longer to cook)
  3. Chop up the onions, parsnip, carrots finely and potato into 1/2 inch chunks and add to a pint of boiling water in a saucepan with the drained split peas
  4. Cook until the split peas are cooked (about 40 minutes over medium) in a covered saucepan, stirring now and again
  5. Serve as is with a sprig of mint or liquidize for a smooth soup

Serves 4

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My favourite wartime recipes revisited- pt 1

I’ve had lots of recent comments left or sent regarding the wartime recipes so far re-created during the 1940s Experiment. Many people have expressed delight in finding out that wartime food was actually rather yummy! Here are some of my favourite ones I have re-created to date

 
Wartime Vegetable Turnovers: I am not sure whether there was a typo in the cook book for this one- it said serves 4 so I made 4 veggie turnovers out of the ingredients …they were each the size of 1/2 a dinner plate! BUT if Marguerite Patten tells me it feeds 4 then I will eat a whole one… click for recipe 
Wartime Pumpkin Soup: ALWAYS make pumpkin soup with the smaller, non carving variety! I had stocked up on some honey crisp apples (for pies) and some sugar pie pumpkins and butternut squash for soups from www.indiangardenfarms.ca  The pumpkin soup I made today nearly stopped me following through with our thanksgiving meal it was so delicious.. click for recipe
Glory Buns: This is a recipe for simple currant spiced buns that turned out so absolutely tasty and yummy and easy to make that I simply called them GLORIOUS.. They are not only economical but taste sooo good! …click for recipe
C xxxx
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Eggless Pancakes

Being vegan and immersing myself in the 1940s Experiment (to live on wartime rations for 1 year, recreate 100 authentic recipes and lose 100 lbs) is not without it’s challenges. Tonight I will recreate a 1940s recipe with meat in for my youngest daughter (Em) but I won’t be able to taste it… instead I will smell it and closely observe my youngest Hobbits face as she takes the first mouthful. Hopefully there will be no wrinkled up noses or horrified expressions..

But the real challenge is finding or adapting recipes from the 1940s to suit my new vegan lifestyle. Luckily many of the authentic recipes I am finding were eggless or meatless..

For lunch today I made 4 very tasty eggless pancakes and both Em and I gobbled them down. I totally recommend you try these!

Eggless Pancakes

  • 4 tablespoons of flour (UK)- 5 tbls (US) – 60 ml (Europe)
  • pinch of sugar and salt
  • milk and water to bind (vegans use almond milk)
  • lard or dripping to fry (vegans use Earth Balance shortening)

Method

  1. Mix the flour with the salt and sugar and add the water/milk to make a nice thick batter
  2. Heat the lard/dripping until smoking hot in the pan then lower the heat a little
  3. Pour in 1/4 of the mixture to make a medium sized pancake
  4. Cook until browned and then turn over and repeat
  5. Eat with jam, golden syrup or lemon juice (if being authentic)

Makes 4 pancakes

 

PS If you have a Kindle you can now take out a subscription for the 1940s Experiment on Amazon. This means the latest postings including all the photos etc are delivered automatically, as soon as they are available, to your Kindle, ready for you to read. Click here..

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Article in The Awl….

Stephany Aulenback has written a very enjoyable and interesting article in THE AWL about rationing in Britain during WWII and the 1940s Experiment is featured!

But that is only a small part.. she has found many interesting facts and references other articles and memoirs… you HAVE to read it. Fascinating stuff!

Diane Duane, for example, explains how C.S. Lewis’s experiences under rationing may have influenced his writing about food in the Narnia books…

Below is a snippet of the article and a link straight to it…..

Mock Goose And Other Dishes Of The War-Rations Diet

There is a website, called The 1940s Experiment, whose proprietor, Carolyn Ekin, who was born and raised in the UK but now lives in Canada, is attempting to lose a hundred pounds by following a wartime rations diet, specifically made up of the foods eaten by the British public during World War II. For every pound she loses, Carolyn will recreate one authentic wartime recipe and post about it. She has already posted recipes for Mock Goose (made with lentils), Potato and Carrot Pancakes(“delicious”) and an Eggless Fruit Cake (“looks curiously like meat loaf”), among many others. Carolyn has attempted—and succeeded at—this type of diet before; in 2006, she lost 57 pounds following the diet. This time, about six weeks in, she’s lost around 25 pounds.

Click here for the rest of the article!

http://www.theawl.com/2011/11/mock-goose-and-other-dishes-of-the-war-rations-diet

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Potato and Lentil Curry

I based this recipe on an authentic carrot curry recipe (which wasn’t very inspiring) which I have already re-created on my blog. This version however is totally awesome and I enjoyed a large plateful last night served with fresh broccoli and I have the same packed for my lunch today at work!
Lentils became popular in the UK the US and Canada during WWII and they are an excellent source of protein and fibre and are a very filling addition to soups and stews

Potato and Lentil Curry (serves 2-4)

  • 4 medium potatoes
  • handful of sliced mushrooms
  • 1 onion
  • 1 carrot diced small
  • 1/2 cup dry lentils
  • milk (or almond milk for vegans- coconut milk would be wonderful in a modern adaption)
  • curry powder to taste (or turmeric, cumin and chilli powder)
  • 1/2 cup of finely chopped canned tomatoes
  • salt and pepper
  • thyme
  • parsley
  • tablespoon of sweet chutney or raw sugar to add some sweetness

Method

  1. Dice washed potatoes (no need to peel), chop onion and mushrooms
  2. Put some margarine or butter in a pan (vegans can use vegan spread)
  3. Heat and add above ingredients and lightly saute
  4. Add a cup of milk (or half milk and half water), lentils, chopped canned tomatoes and mix well
  5. Add curry powder (or turmeric, cumin and chilli powder), salt and pepper, thyme, parsley and your sweet chutney.
  6. Mix well again and turn down to a low/medium heat and cook until sauce thickens and potatoes are tender to eat (about 20 minutes)
  7. Add more water or milk if you need too
  8. Add more spices etc to your own taste
I served mine with some lightly cooked fresh broccoli but you can serve with rice or anything you wish.
Serves 2-4 people
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Cold meat pasties

I often get my 1940s recipes from old cookbooks or through modern nostalgia publications, museum information, reliable sources on the internet and from listening to people who lived through the war…

However- sometimes the ingredients and quantities given can be quite wrong. I have discovered this as I cook my way through 100 authentic recipes… this means that the second or third time I cook a dish adjustments have to be made to ‘get it right’…

Here is a ‘cold meat pastie’ recipe from ‘Feeding the Nation’ by Marguerite Patten. The original quantity in the recipe called for 2 tablespoons of chopped cooked vegetables to make 4 pasties. There was no way this was enough- more like 2 tablespoons of chopped cooked vegetables per pastie. The recipe also originally called for 2 tablespoons of gravy or water- again not needed. Using this amount of liquid just doesn’t work…

Cold meat pasties

  • Shortcrust pastry made with 8 oz flour, 4 oz fat and cold water to bind
  • 8 oz cold meat minced (whatever you have spare- I use a mixture of sausage, bacon, minced beef or corned beef)
  • 1 small onion chopped
  • 8 tablespoons of cooked chopped vegetables
  • 2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 chopped tomatoes
  • salt and pepper
  • milk or egg to glaze

Method

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 200 C
  2. Divide pastry into 4 pieces and roll out each piece into a circular shape a little larger than a saucer
  3. Mix the vegetables, onion and minced meat, Worcestershire sauce and seasoning together in a bowl
  4. Spoon the mixture into the middle or onto one side (depending on how you like your pastie to look)
  5. Apply water to edges before bringing together, flute the edges or use a fork to press together
  6. Prick a couple of times with knife or form
  7. Apply some milk or beaten egg to pastie
  8. Place on baking tray and cook for around 30 minutes until golden brown

Serve with salad or gravy and mash

Makes 4 pasties

Ideal the next day cold in lunch box!

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