Recipes featured in Grace Walton Novels
Holister's Choice
Recipe for Maggie's Red Bean Pie
Ingredients:
- 1-cup cooked and mashed pinto beans
- 1-cup sugar
- 1-teaspoon vanilla
- 3-beaten egg yokes.
- 1-teaspoon nutmeg
Preparation:
Place combined ingredients in an uncooked piecrust. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Make a meringue with the leftover egg whites. Spread over baked pie and return to oven to brown. This is wonderful served warm with vanilla ice cream.
Hope's Reward
Recipe for Hope's Willow Bark Tisane
White willow can be used to help break a low grade fever, and to relieve the body aches that accompany colds. A daily cup or two of willow bark tea would probably provide the equivalent of the low aspirin dose recommended for heart attack prevention. One very good thing about willow bark tea is that it is easy on the stomach, unlike aspirin.
Ingredients:
- 1 four-cup pot of hot water, not boiling, Run it through the coffee pot or use microwave
- 4 teaspoons very well chopped-up bark. A coffee grinder is helpful for this step. If you don't want to harvest your own bark, buy willow bark tea bags, they're available on both Amazon and Etsy
- honey (natural tranquilizer) or other sweetener & maybe a little ginger and cinnamon for taste
Preparation:
Have the hot water ready. Put the willow bark & spices in your favorite tea brewing holder, I use a little metal tea ball with holes in it. Put the tea ball into the water. Steep 15 minutes. Pour into favorite cup. Add honey to taste. Sip and relax. You should feel some relief from your pain in about 20 minutes.
The Last Broken Promise
Recipe for Savannah Trifle
Trifle was a very popular dessert during the Regency era. It is quite simple to make. If you don't want to go to the trouble of making custard, whipped cream, & pound cake, you can use instant vanilla pudding, Kool Whip, commercial jam, and Sara Lee frozen pound cake. Though the taste of the real thing is far superior!
Ingredients:
- 3 C milk
- 3/4 C sugar
- 1T corn starch
- 3 eggs
- 1/4C cream sherry, rum, or a non-alcoholic, flavored coffee syrup like Toriani
- 3/4 lb sliced pound cake
- 1C whipped cream
- Fruits of your choice or a jar of good jam
- Nuts of your choice
Preparation:
Scald milk. Combine sugar & cornstarch, stirring well. Add eggs to sugar mixture. Beat well until blended. Stir some of the hot milk into egg mixture, this is to temper the eggs so they don't curdle. Add to remaining hot milk. Cook, stirring constantly, until thick & custard coats a metal spoon. Cool completely. Add sherry/rum/coffee syrup. Put cake, custard, and fruit in layers w/ whipped cream & nuts on top. Garnish with cherries. Fruits that may be used: peaches, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, crushed pineapple; really any fruit/jam that is your favorite. Or even a combination of fruits is nice. I let my trifle sit in the frig over night to develop a nice flavor. This dish is best made in a tall, clear glass bowl so your guests can see the pretty layers. I use a footed Pyrex bowl. But I've seen huge trifles made in crystal punch bowls, served in crystal punch cups for Southern wedding dinners. So beautiful!
Birdie Saves the World
Recipe for Savannah Cinnamon Biscuits
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup chopped pecans
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 cups biscuit mix (Bisquick, etc.)
- 1/2 cup cold water
- 3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
Preparation:
In a small bowl mix sugar, pecans and cinnamon and set aside. Prepare mix according to package directions, using the cold water for liquid. Shape mixture into a ball and place on a sheet of lightly floured waxed paper. Press down slightly, then cut in 12 equal wedges. Shape each in ball, roll in melted butter, then in cinnamon, sugar, and pecan mixture. Arrange dough balls in 8-inch round layer-cake pan, pressing down slightly. Bake in preheated 400 degree oven for 15 minutes, or until lightly browned. Serve cinnamon biscuits warm.
Faith's Keys
The MacAllister Keep Christmas Mead Recipe
Ingredients:
- 2 cups apple Juice
- 4 cups honey
- 6 cups water
- 1 tsp each cinnamon, cloves, and grated nutmeg
Bring all ingredients to a boil. Simmer 30 minutes. Cool and strain. Serve immediately or store in the frig.
Carried Away
Recipe for Mountain Cure-All Tea
Ingredients:
Equal parts dried Lemon Balm, Chamomile, & Mint in a tea ball- about a teaspoon each.
Alternative Ingredients for folks without herb gardens:
- 1 bag chamomile tea
- 1 bag mint tea
- 1 bag Lemon Zinger tea
Add your ingredients to a prepared teapot filled with boiling water. Let steep five minutes. Serve in your favorite vintage teacups. Honey & and slices of lemon are lovely options to add. This will clear you head and settle your stomach. It is what I give to my family when they are a little under the weather. Works every time!
The Last Rose Pearl
Recipe for Savannah Orgeat Punch
Syrup Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 6/8ths cup of almond milk
- 1/8 teaspoon almond extract or 8 drops
- 1/16 teaspoon Orange Blossom Water or 4 drops
- Lemonade
- Soda Water
Combine ingredients for Orgeat Syrup together. Store in jar in frig. When you want to make Orgeat Punch, fill a glass with half lemonade and half soda water, add Orgeat Syrup to taste. In Regency times this punch would have been served at Assemblies, Balls, and Gatherings for Ladies. It would have been served at room temperature. I prefer serving it over ice in a vintage stemmed iced tea glass. . It will look very cloudy which is part of its antique charm. A sprig of fresh mint looks pretty atop a glass of Orgeat Punch. This is a very sweet beverage! It does not take much Orgeat Syrup to prepare this drink. It was a frugal way for ladies to serve something other than alcohol to their guests. A less sweet version can be made by filling your glass with sparkling water. Stir in a scant teaspoon of Orgeat Syrup and top with the mint.
Magpie's Masque
Recipe for Magpie's Posset
This is a sort of medieval warm eggnog. It was served on winter feast days and to invalids all year long. It was considered very healthy and a good way to fortify the blood. Please keep in mind water sources were often unsafe during this period of history, especially in large metropolitan areas like London. Most wines, etc. were less spirituous than their modern day equivalents. Most folks drank ales, beers, and wines- even the children, for safety issues. This recipe is very rich and serves 8-10
Ingredients:
- 1 quart of whipping cream
- 1 pint of either ale, cider, beer, wine, or sherry [non-alcoholic substitutes are fine in this recipe]
- 10 medium egg yolks
- 4 medium egg whites
- 1 cup sugar (or less according to your preference)
- 1 tsp. grated nutmeg
In a large stew pan combine the cream and ale and whip them together gently with a whisk. In a mixing bowl vigorously whip your egg whites until very frothy. Add the egg yolks to the whites and continue to whip until very well blended and add to the cream and ale. Add the sugar and nutmeg. Over a medium heat cook the mixture, stirring all the while, until it thickens. This should not be runny and not a thick custard either. It can be served from a small punch bowl to individual bowls or in glasses. Garnish with a sprinkle of nutmeg or cinnamon.
One Nation Under gods
Recipe for Lily's Cambric Tea
Ingredients:
- 2 cups milk
- 2 cups water
- 2 Earl Grey teabags
- 2 or 3 teaspoons of sugar (to taste)
- Ground Cloves & Cinnamon to taste
Place the cold milk and water in a saucepan and bring just to the boiling point. Be careful and watch it, so it does not steam up and boil over the pan. Then add the teabags and cover with a lid. Let it steep about 5 or 10 minutes. Remove the bags and stir in the sugar. Pour into a teapot and enjoy. Makes several servings, especially if you're using the tiny porcelain tea cups from your Grandma.
