Back In Time: Williamsburg 1948

  I love to collect old recipes and I’ve found a gem in the Favorite Foods of
Williamsburg Kentucky, assembled in 1948. Dr. Thomas Eugene West, noted by many as a very distinguished Southern gentleman, entertains us with Boiled Eggs for Breakfast. The Sweet Potato Puffs contain a surprise and make a nice addition to a holiday meal. 

  I remember my grandmother talking about scrapple and how she loved to fry strips of it for breakfast. This one is quick and easy. Williamsburg can boast a great cooking tradition, and we can be thankful this month for all the dedicated cooks who contributed to our rich culinary tradition. Happy Thanksgiving!

  If you’re interested in a copy of this great bit of nostalgia, send $12.50 to Thelma Brown, 349 S. 3rd St.,
Williamsburg, KY 40769. Thelma should be a Williamsburg historian. We talked a blue streak the night I called her.

BOILED EGGS FOR BREAKFAST

Take 2 eggs a customer, laid by good, proud, aristocratic hens with high soprano cackles. Place them in a small (saucepan) with cold water to cover the eggs, less 1/4 inch. Bring water to slow boil and allow to simmer for 1 minute. Remove container from heat but allow eggs to remain in the hot water for 81-1/2 seconds. Then pour cold water into container, crowding out the hot water. Place butter, salt, and pepper in a cup (no measurements indicated in recipe, so use amounts to your taste). Cut the eggs quickly crosswise with a firm knife, pouring the eggs, minus the shell, into the cup. Mix with butter, salt, and pepper by using a spoon. Place the cup on the “customer’s” plate-use smaller plate on service plate if fancy show style is desired, and serve with buttered toast, unburned.

SWEET POTATO PUFFS

4 cups cooked sweet potatoes, mashed

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 egg yolks

8 (large) marshmallows

Dash of nutmeg, ginger, and mace

2 Tablespoons brown sugar

2 egg whites, beaten stiff

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

3 Tablespoons melted butter

Mix potatoes with seasonings, sugar, spices, and yolks. Add whites and mix lightly. Form into 8 balls and insert a marshmallow into each. Sprinkle with flour. Dip in butter and place puffs on a greased baking dish or cookie sheet. Bake 20 minutes in a slow oven (325°). Nuts may be used instead of marshmallows. Makes 8 servings.

WHIPPED CREAM WAFFLES

1 cup heavy cream, whipped

2 eggs, beaten

2 Tablespoons sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup all-purpose flour

Fold beaten eggs into whipped cream. Sift together dry ingredients and fold into egg and cream mixture. Heat on waffle iron according to directions. This is good with sweetened fruit. Makes 5 waffles.

SAUSAGE SCRAPPLE

1/2 pound pork sausage

2-1/2 cups boiling water

1 cup cornmeal

Salt and pepper to taste

1 teaspoon poultry seasoning

Fry sausage until done and drain. Add boiling water and slowly stir in cornmeal. Add salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning and cook over low heat for 15 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour into pan and chill. When ready to serve, slice and fry in a small amount of shortening or vegetable oil.