Old Fashioned Boiled Milk Chocolate Frosting - definitely NOT from a can.

This is “unconventional” to say the least - but you won’t find a more fluffy and flavorful frosting.  The unusual methods used in this recipe may be puzzling - but the results will convince you.  Recipes such as this were common in the early 20th century because electricity or refrigeration were limited.

If you prefer popping the lid on a can of frosting to preparing your own - this won’t motivate you to change.  But old-time frostings such as this one are not a conglomeration of chemicals - and I appreciate that more every day.  

The basic ingredients are milk, sugar, and butter.  For thickening, a mixture of flour & cornstarch are used.  For flavor, good old semi-sweet chocolate and dutch-process cocoa.  Not entirely wholesome, but I feel better about this frosting than most I’ve tried.

I found this recipe on cookscountry.  I love their spin on old standby recipes because they test and tweak till they are perfect for use in today’s kitchen.  They did improve the original recipe by straining out the lumps from the milk/sugar/flour/cornstarch mixture before heating - and it worked well.

You will find this works best in a cooler kitchen.  I’m still waiting for that to happen - I can hardly wait for Fall.  It helps to refrigerate the finished frosting before piping, then store your frosted items in the refrigerator till serving.  In the winter months, this won’t be an issue.

So, if you want to experience a real Depression-era frosting - give this a whirl.

By the way:  I love “recipe history” - and thought you would enjoy hearing this interesting one:

During the Depression and the rationing of WWII, evaporated milk was a shelf staple and butter was a luxury.  Often boiled milk frostings were made with all Crisco, and you would sometimes hear them referred to as “gravy frosting” (eeew, gross!) - but think of the ingredients and method of preparation and it makes sense.  Few homes had refrigeration & air conditioning, so cooks used items they produced or had available in a rural area or farm.  These frostings were made with simple and inexpensive ingredients - but did require some time and skill.  They were marks of a good cook, and a woman would take a beautiful cake to a church social with enormous pride.  Of course, frostings in this country were also influenced by great French, German, Eastern European and other countries’ methods and skills - but good old ingenuity and necessity was the mother of this invention.

For the full recipe, with detailed instructions & photos - go to:

www.changeabletable.com

Hermits - funny name, wonderful cookie...

A “hermit” is basically made from a drop cookie batter, and they bake up dark, chewy, and spicy.  These are made in free-form strips, then cut after baking.  Using candied cherries adds more moisture to the dough - causing them to bake flatter than usual. Using raisins will yield a puffier cookie.  

I found a used book that has some great recipes - but I have to use them judiciously or it would be easy to go crazy.  Just the title makes your mouth water...  “Rosie’s All-Butter, Fresh Cream, Sugar-Packed, No Holds Barred Baking Book.”  

In Rosie’s own words, she describes how she can have her cake (staying thin) and eat it too...  “I lived on a strict diet of brown bread, cheese, fruit, nuts, and vegetables - sensible, healthy, balanced eating.  Then I’d polish the meal off with a fat slab of cheesecake... after all, guilty pleasures are still pleasures.”  Maybe I’ll try that diet...

I tried this recipe because it reminds me of a cookie that my sweet friend Irma brings to our shift at the LDS Conference Center.  (She’s almost 90 years old now, and she still comes bearing treats)  The cookie she brings is called “Fruit Bars” which they make at a little market in Bountiful, Utah called “Dicks Market”.  

If you’re interested in the origin of the name “hermit” - Martha Stewart’s Cookie Cookbook explains it this way:   “Hermits, which originated in colonial New England, supposedly gained their name because the flavor of the cookie improves after being stowed away - like a hermit - for a few days.”

These are not as “puffy” as I imagined they would be (probably a difference in altitude, but I’m checking that out...) but they were really yummy.  I made these last summer, and my soon-to-be son-in-law said he thought they were great.  Who knows, maybe that’s why he proposed?!

For this recipe and a photo tutorial, go to:

www.changeabletable.com

Mud Hen Bars - delicious deviation from the common cookie...

This unusual ‘cookie’ is similar to a Blondie - but dressed up on top with a layer of marshmallows and a baked meringue topping.  The chocolate & nuts keep it interesting - and sweet...  If you love deviations from good old ‘standby’ cookies - give these a whirl.  I enjoyed the surplus of textures and flavors you rarely see together in one cookie.

I originally found this strange combination of a bar cookie on foododelmundo.com - and I’ve been trying to find the origin ever since.  

The “Mud Hen” name has shown up in Mud Hen, New Jersey, Charleston, West Virginia, and finally Toledo, Ohio - with one of the finest minor league franchises in all of sports - the Toledo Mud Hens (originating in 1896 - team photo below...)

It seems variations of this recipe have been around since at least the 1950’s - it’s as old as I am!  It has turned up in church cookbooks, newspaper food columns, and passed from mother to daughter since then.

This is one of those “adventurous” types of sweet treats - that crosses the lines between a bar, drop, and meringue type of cookie.  I’ve never seen a meringue made with brown sugar, which gave it an earthy taste - not so refined.  

I thrive on nuts - especially when they are coarsely chopped, so you KNOW it’s a nut.  The marshmallows provide a barrier between the cookie base and the moist meringue topping.  That made it a little challenging to make a nice, clean cut - which is annoying when you’re trying to get a good photo!  

At first glance, you might not give these a chance.  But give them a try and see if you are a “MUD HEN” type.

For this cookie recipe of yesteryear - go to:

www.changeabletable.com