November Thrifty Finds - Week 4 Desserts and Church Suppers

Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade Desserts, published in 2005. Updated version of a previous title with light & healthy treats and gift goodies added to the mix. The chapters include From Packages - dishes that are enhanced using cake mix as a base, Chocolatier - all the recipes contain chocolate, American Classics, Light & Healthy, Bake Sale, Cookies, and Special Occasions  - with many elaborately decorated cakes, including a Tiffany box cake!. Other sections touch on Holiday sweets, Celebrity Sweets and Gift Goodies. There are special hints listed at the beginning of each chapter and of course lots of pretty photos of the finished product.

The last chapter showcases ideas for party planning - from decorations to table settings. I did find a few possibilities - the first is a cookie, Crispy Orange Coconut Balls, made with Coca Rice Krispies - while the second is for a Cinnamon Pecan Strudel, a simple dish prepared with refrigerated cinnamon rolls.  There was also a super creepy Halloween recipe for Dough-nut Eyeballs!

Taste of Home - Best Church Supper Recipes, published in 2009.  Church ladies always break out their best dishes for gatherings, and this book is filled with over 500 yummy recipes gathered from readers across the United States.

Topics include Classics, appetizers & snacks, casseroles, slow cooker favorites, breakfast & brunches, salads & sides, hearty main dishes, soups & sandwiches, desserts, seasonal fare, feeding crowds (up to 50 people) and quick & easy dishes.

I bookmarked MANY recipes for future taste testing! One dish I plan on making soon is a Broccoli & Apple salad - a twist on the ubiquitous Broccoli salad found in many community cookbooks. I did find a recipe for Fried Cinnamon Strips, the same treat I used to make in high school when I was an employee at a fast food chain (Taco Time) which was sold under the moniker Cinnamon Crustos.  It's just flour tortillas cut into strips, deep fried and dusted with a cinnamon/sugar mixture.

November FB Purchases ~ Vintage Cookbooks: Every Woman's Cookbook and The Day by Day Cookbook

Every Woman's Cookbook, published in 1951. This copy is a binding of the American Woman's Cook Book, with numerous publications beginning in 1939.  The book is large consisting of 856 pages and filled with over 100 color and black & white photos. The opening chapters focus on how to buy food, meal planning & menu making, table service & settings, carving and garnishes.

The chapters cover the ENTIRE spectrum of cooking and baking, with a few exceptions. There are sections on cereals, toast(!!), soup accessories (croûtons, force meats, noodles and egg balls), food for invalids and unusual for the era - vegetarian recipes.

The last chapters focus on entertaining, including a section on how to throw a party without the help of a maid!

The Day by Day Cookbook, published in 1939. Filled with 1,047 recipes and balanced menus for an entire year. The menus are set up on a weekly basis - making easy on the homemaker to compile a shopping list for groceries needed for each meal. There are a few photos in black & white illustrating step by step instructions for a few dishes, with the balance depicting the finished product.

The first chapter starts in January (of course) and offers menus for breakfast, luncheon, supper (Sunday lunch) and dinner. All the menus include a beverage for each meal and a dessert for dinner. There are only 2-4 recipes for each day with the balance of the meal consisting of canned, packaged or frozen foods.

The book was heavily used by the previous owner as evidenced by handwritten notes on recipes and many a stained page. An unusual recipe I spotted was for Mock Duck, a flank steak filled with a chestnut stuffing.

The supper menu for today (a Sunday, as I write this entry) is for Beef Tenderloin Enrico served with baked potatoes, squash, artichokes Hollandaise and a Nut Crumb Cake for dessert. The suggested accompanying beverages include tomato juice, coffee and milk. For dinner, the fare is lighter , featuring Shrimp Curry with chutney, a tossed salad and brownies for dessert.

November Thrifty Finds - Week 3 #2 ~ Perfect Cakes and Mom's Desserts

Perfect Cakes, published in 2002.  As the title implies, recipes for all make and manner of cakes! The first chapter covers coffee cakes, followed by pound & butter cakes, cakes with fresh & dried fruit, nut cakes, sponge & foam cakes and meringue cakes. Rounding out the book are sections on cheesecakes, layer cakes, rolled cakes, molded cakes, chocolate cakes and individual cakes.  The last chapter is filled with many variations on frostings, fillings and glazes.

In the pound cake section there are two recipes culled from antique cookbooks dating from 1747 and 1875 respectively. 

Mom's Best Desserts, published in 2002. Recipes are the good old-fashioned sweets served by moms over the years.  Chapters include cookies, cakes, pies, fruit desserts, and puddings & ice creams. Many vintage recipes make their appearance on the pages, including a Baked Alaska, which has it's own "day" in the United States, February 1st, as well as grunts, slumps and buckles. There is a dish for a Raspberry Trifle, also known as a Tipsy Parson ( I am now seeing this particular recipe in a few of the books I have recently purchased).

There are hints and tips on baking, tidbits on the history of apples in the Americas, maple syrup and information regarding the invention of the chocolate chip cookie. Another interesting fact is about the Brownie,  with the first recipe being printed in the Sears Roebuck catalog in 1897.

November Thrifty Finds - Week 3 #1 Cajun Kitchen and Italian Farmhouse

Eula Mae's Cajun Kitchen, published in 2002.  Subtitled cooking through the seasons on Avery Island. The island is located in Iberia Parish about 30 miles south of Lafayette, Louisiana. Avery Island is home to the McIlhenney family who have resided there for nine generations and are best known for producing the Tabasco brand of hot sauce.

The author has lived on Avery Island for 50+ years and was employed in the island commissary. While working at the store, she started making sandwiches for the workers and eventually a restaurant was added to the commissary building. Now retired, Eula Mae mainly cooks for family occasions and special events held on the island.

The book is chock full of delicious Cajun recipes and the chapters are based on seasonal ingredients. Dishes include entrées, vegetables, sides, desserts, beverages, omelets and several variations of seafood boils. Scattered among the recipes are stories, anecdotes and photos of life on the island.

A few stand out recipes include tamales, often served on holidays, and are a curious anomaly in the South. There are restaurants in the Delta region of Mississippi that have served the dish for generations and their inclusion in the local cuisine is a bit murky. There is an easy recipe for orange wine that takes just two days from start to finish and is also used as an ingredient for Deep Bayou Punch (basically wine, fruit and bourbon).

Italian Farmhouse Cookbook, published in 2000.  Rather large treatise on farmhouse cooking in the Italian style. There are 250 recipes and kitchen secrets gleaned from cooks among the various regions that make up Italy. The introduction focuses on the history of agriculture in Italy - both past & present -and traces the roots of farm foods to city dishes. Many differences between regional delicacies are examined with a dividing line separating the North (white sauce, cream & olive oil) from the South (red sauce, frittatas  and dumplings).

The first chapter concentrates on Antipasti - with recipes for appetizers & snacks, salads, and soups. The second chapter covers the 2nd course of the meal which is basically entrées including meats, pasta and pizza with a few vegetarian options. Some of the more unusual choices for meat include boar, lamb, guinea hen & rabbit. Desserts follow with many delicious variations on cakes, cookies & sorbets.

The remaining topics run the gamut from basic sauces, stocks & dough to pantry staples (oils, salts, jams & liqueurs). Filling out the rest of the pages are stories and anecdotes on farmers and other persons the author met while writing/researching her book.

November Thrifty Finds - Week 2 #2 Sophia Loren and Low Country Cooking

Sophia Loren's Recipe & Memories, published in 1998. There are 110 favorite family recipes as well as over 100 photos showcasing Ms Loren from childhood, her movie career and many of her making the dishes in the book. Alongside her recipes are anecdotes about the dish and reminiscences of her childhood.

The recipes in the collection include anti-pastas & small dishes, soups, pasta, rice & polenta, meat, fish, vegetables and of course desserts.  The meat section features many veal dishes as opposed to beef usually found in most cookbooks. All the recipes are identified by their Italian name followed by the English translation. 

The book was a gift to the previous owner Phyllis and appears to be signed Sophia!

Food, Folklore and Art of Low Country Cooking, published in 2010.  Recipes and tales from the Low Country (coastal South Carolina & Georgia) with contributions from regular folks, acclaimed chefs and restaurants. The opening chapters touch on the history of the Low Country and the influences on the culture and cuisine of the area from African, Caribbean, French, German & Scottish settlers.

Scattered throughout the book are essays on Carolina Gold (rice), the Gullah culture, eateries in the area, cooks and traditions as well as in-depth information on the three largest cities in the region, Savannah, Georgia, Charleston and Beaufort (both located in South Carolina).

The recipes begin with beverages and include both a dragoon and an artillery punch, followed by appetizers, sea food, rice & pilaus, soups/stews/gumbos, peanut recipes, pork - including hog's head cheese, vegetables, cornbread & grits and desserts.The entrées include poultry as well as local game ~ possum, racoon and gopher.

November Thrifty Finds - Week 2 #1 Neiman Marcus and The Masters

Pure & Simple, published in 1991. This is the second cookbook from Neiman Marcus, with the first being published in 1949 when there was only one store in operation. The recipes in this edition were solicited from their In-Circle customers, a select group of the most loyal and consist shoppers (i.e.  their big spenders). A portion of the book's proceeds were donated to a charity selected by each contributor. 

Recipes were gathered from around the United States and the world as there are now 25 store locations (at least at the time of publication). A few of the dishes originate from restaurants located inside  the stores.

In addition to the recipes which cover appetizers, soups & salads, entrées, pasta, vegetables, breads and desserts, there is also a section on menu planning.

One recipe I am excited to try is the Chicken Versailles, a chicken breast stuffed with sautéed eggplant and shrimp.

Second Round, published in 1988.  This is a follow-up to the wildly successful cookbook also put out by the Junior League of Augusta - Tea Time at the Masters - which was first printed in 1977 and has sold 190,00 copies  with 9 printings. The subtitle appropriately enough is Tea Time at at the Masters 2: A Gallery of Classic Recipes. 

The dishes represented include appetizers & beverages, breads, cheese & eggs, soups & salads, entrées, vegetables and of course, desserts.

I have earmarked a super easy recipe for Chicken Marsala as well as a Bread Pudding recipe from the Greenbrier Hotel (located in West Virginia). Weirdly there are TWO recipes for SWAN (!!) or if you are unable to obtain a SWAN, goose is an acceptable substitute.

More Amazon Shopping #2 ~ The Coronation Cookbook

The Coronation Cookbook, published in 2002.  A culinary and historical review of the four coronations that occurred in the 20th century. Each chapter showcases the background and provides tidbits of information on the last four monarchs of the United Kingdom. There are 100 recipes culled from royal banquets and coronation street parties, many of which are updated for today's palate. The earliest recorded coronation took place in 787 for Ecgfrith with all ceremonies conducted in Latin up through the 1559 ritual for Elizabeth I.

The first coronation discussed is for Edward VII (1901-1910). Also known as Bertie, he was the son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Curiously (or not) the menu is in French as are the menus for the two succeeding coronations.  Items on the on the bill of fare include soups and appetizers, with entrées consisting of trout, quail, chicken mutton and ham. The dessert choices were Champagne Sorbet or Princess Iced Pudding.

Up next we have George V (1910-1936) Again the menu is in French, but many of the dishes are now a nod to the bountiful array of English produce, livestock/game and seafood. The entrées for this coronation included fish, duck. lamb and quail with turtle soup as a starter. Dessert choices were Petit Fours and a strawberry mousse.

A few street party dishes are also mentioned. In addition to salads, fruit salads and tarts, there is a recipe for ox tongue.

George V's Silver Jubilee was held in 1935 and there are a few photos and lots of informative details on the ceremony and celebrations.

Making our way through history, we now have the coronation of George VI (1936-1952). The third monarch of the House of Windsor, George ascended the throne after his brother Edward famously       gave up the crown for "the woman he loved". George was also the subject of the film "The King's Speech" (Colin Firth) and is the father of the current monarch - Elizabeth II.

The menu lists soups, salads, quiche, chicken, quail and ham with accompanying recipes. For dessert there was ice cream!

Menus for various tea parties held during the coronation celebration include lots of yummy sweets including cakes, éclairs and numerous French pastries, tartlets and a few sandwiches. All monies raised by the tea parties went to charity.

The last coronation is for Elizabeth II (1952-current). She kept the menu simple and British with asparagus, consumme and salad as starters. The entrées were rabbit and fillet steak.

The author supplies the menu she employed for her own coronation party that year and dishes include chips & dips, cheese straws, salads and cocktails. A much celebrated dish - Coronation Chicken - is a featured recipe.

Street party recipes are are included and range from chicken pie and homemade sausage to cakes, scones and tea bread.

The menu for the Silver Jubilee (2002)  mentions trout, Angus beef, vegetables with melons and raspberries for dessert.

More Amazon Shopping #1 ~ Treme Cookbook

Treme Stories and Recipes from the Heart of New Orleans, published in 2013.  The book features recipes from chefs who have appeared on the show as well as New Orleans area chefs. Of course many of the dishes reflect the Creole and/or Cajun cuisine from one of the most celebrated places to eat in the world (in my opinion) , but often with a contemporary twist. As an example there is a recipe for Crawfish Ravioli with a Sea Urchin Butter Sauce - which personally speaking is a bit of overkill and seems to be a far reach to grab the "coolness" factor many new chefs seek.

The chapters are arranged by chef and highlight their recipes as well as favorite dishes from other restaurants and/or chefs. Selections include pasta, seafood, appetizers, soups & salads, breads, egg dishes, veggies, desserts and a variety of entrées, some of which are comprised of local game/wildlife (rabbit, quail & duck). The last chapter is chock full of a variety of beverages - ALL containing alcohol  (this is New Orleans after all!!!)

Scattered among the chapters are photos reflecting everyday restaurant life along with essays extolling a myriad of subjects from the history of bread pudding, signature sandwiches of New Orleans, Creole versus Cajun and the Gumbo controversy. Also mentioned are the influence on food and culture by Vietnamese, Dutch & German immigrants.

As a tie-in to the TV show, there are character profiles and photos of many cast members.

November Estate Sale - Broomsedge ~ Vintage Community Cookbooks#1 Plains, Georgia and Blue Mountain, Mississippi

Plains Potpourri, published in 1977. Food favorites of Plains, Georgia with recipes compiled by the Junior Woman's Club. The is a separate section dedicated to the recipes of (then) Governor Jimmy Carter. In lieu of typeset recipes, the book published all the submissions in the contributor's own handwriting - a more personal touch!

The dishes include jellies & preserves, casseroles, beverages, salads, veggies, breads, appetizers, pickles& relishes, entrées and desserts. There is also a section on peanut recipes - a major crop of Plains. A few tips appear below the recipes and the cover art of each chapter are illustrations of local landmarks and houses.

The dessert section includes a whopping 8 recipes for pound cake as well as a Japanese Fruitcake - basically a spice cake with coconut frosting that takes up two entire pages of the book.

A standout recipe in the Carter section that I may try is for a Deep Chocolate Cake - made with 8 Hershey bars and 2 cans of Hershey syrup!


Blue Mountain College Centennial Cook Book, published in 1973.  Recipes were contributed by "Faithful Daughters, Vestal Virgins and trusted friends". Blue Mountain College is a private liberal arts college located in Blue Mountain, Mississippi and supported by the Mississippi Baptist Convention. It was founded in 1873 and only recently went co-ed in 2005. The oldest contributor was a member of the class of 1912.

The book covers the usual recipes for breads, casseroles, desserts, entrées, salads (of course most are congealed), vegetables and a few miscellaneous dishes. There are drawings filling the pages by current students (at the time of publication) and most depict buildings on campus.

The previous owner was a fan of the Strawberry Cake and and Hot Tuna Salad as evidenced by the stains on the pages. The most unusual recipe I found was for "Barbecups" which consist of biscuits filled with ground beef and BBQ sauce, topped with cheese.