One of the hazards of writing historicals (at least for me) is my love of research books. I found The Original White House Cookbook 1887 Editi
on a few years ago on a list of clearance books. In it you can learn how to fix a tear in a lady’s silk gown, dye cloth, make Rose Water or Bay Rum, even fade freckles.
The recipes are the typethat would have been made in homes everywhere, including by settlers out west.
This Winter Vegetable Soup is made with ingredients that would be found in the root cellar of most frontier homes. Turnips, carrots, onions and celery were common vegetables grown in kitchen gardens throughout the west. The
leeks? They may not be as common, but I’ve found evidence they can be grown in Texas – plant them in late summer and they can be harvested fresh in the winter/early spring.
As an aside, the leek is a symbol of Wales. It’s even worn as a cap badge by the Welsh Guards. The vegetable would certainly have been brought over in the 1830s by Welsh immigrants to Texas.
The directions are exactly as they appear in the cook book.
WINTER VEGETABLE SOUP
Scrape and slice three turnips and three carrots, and peel three onions, and fry all with a little butter until a light yellow; add a bunch of celery and three or four leeks cut in pieces; stir and fry all the ingredients for six minutes; when fried, add one clove of garlic, two stalks of parsley, two cloves, salt, pepper and a little grated nutmeg; cover with three quarts of water and simmer for three hours, taking off the scum carefully. Strain and use. Croutons, vermicelli, Italian pastes, or rice may be added.
I hope you enjoy the soup!
Tracy – I bet that soup warmed up some mighty cold nights out on the prairie. Sounds like it could be used as a base soup for lots of meals.
Posted on September 28, 2009 at 9:32 am.
Tracy,
The soup sounds wonderful I will try it out.
Thanks for sharing
Melinda
Posted on September 28, 2009 at 10:14 am.
Charlene, you’re right. Add any kind of meat and change it into something else.
Melinda, I hope you like the soup.
Posted on September 28, 2009 at 10:18 am.
Sounds yummy. I can just picture it being made in a pioneer’s home. I’ll have to try it.
Posted on September 28, 2009 at 10:23 am.
Hi Jenny!
I went through the recipe, too, wondering how they would cook this. In a big iron pot, suspended over the fire or set just in front of it on the hearth. WIthout the “vermicelli” of course – they’d have used potates. :D
Posted on September 28, 2009 at 10:28 am.
Tracy, I can close my eyes and smell the fragrance of those vegetables cooking. Bet it makes the whole house smell wonderful. It’s definitely something to bring warmth inside a home during winter.
One of my fondest memories is coming home from school to the lucious smell of red beans cooking on the stove. My mother made the best red beans. Add a big slice of cornbread and you have a meal.
Posted on September 28, 2009 at 11:37 am.
Hi Tracy, this sounds perfect for a cold winter day. (I can’t wait for it to cool down around here LOL.) I love veggeies and as Linda says, to get a whiff of this summering on the stove. Thanks you!
Posted on September 28, 2009 at 11:40 am.
Linda, I love the smells of winter cooking. And I’ll bet the recipe for those red beans is a closely guarded family secret.
Posted on September 28, 2009 at 11:48 am.
Hi Tanya,
It was 50 degrees this morning, perfect soup weather. I’m thinking dinner will be root vegetable soup.
Posted on September 28, 2009 at 11:48 am.
Thanks for the heartwarming recipe, Tracy. What a find that book was!
Going to try this one of these chilly days.
:)
Posted on September 28, 2009 at 11:58 am.
It’s a wonderful book, Elizabeth. I’m fascinated by the instructions included, like how to get candle wax off a lady’s silk ball gown, or what to use if a guest is poisoned. Great stuff for books. :D
Posted on September 28, 2009 at 1:45 pm.
Soup sounds wonderful and will soon be an almost nightly meal. I love it when I stumble onto old books that tell us what to do if…… They can be so funny and I often wonder if they really worked.
Posted on September 28, 2009 at 4:39 pm.
Hi Tracy, I love homemade soups, especially in the winter. My favorite is potato soup, but cream of celery is close. Your recipe sounds delicious!
Posted on September 28, 2009 at 4:50 pm.
I covet that book. It sounds wonderful and so does the soup.
Posted on September 28, 2009 at 6:17 pm.
I don’t care what time of year it is I always enjoy eating soup.
Posted on September 29, 2009 at 12:38 am.
I LOVE turnips!
Posted on September 29, 2009 at 10:41 am.
Can’t wait to get home and try this recipe. We all love soups and now that Fall is setting in, they will be really good.
Posted on September 29, 2009 at 8:05 pm.