My friend Liz loaned me a recipe book so long ago that I am embarrassed to admit I still have it! (Please remind me to give it back to you the next time we meet, Liz!)
It is really a neat book. It is called Frontier Formulas by Bess A. Cleveland with a copy write date of 1952, Juneau, Alaska. Amazing to me that this book was printed before Alaska even achieved statehood in 1959!!!!
It is filled with good sounding recipes, including a section on preparing wild game such as bear, caribou, moose, reindeer, wild duck, grouse, ptarmigan, wild rabbit and squirrels.
In addition, there is a whole section devoted to "Frontier Formulas".
Having the convenience of a grocery store on every corner, we have lost many of the skills that pioneers and homesteaders used over the years. These things always interest me and I have an insatiable desire to learn how to do things the "old fashioned way". I don't always do things the old way, but I like to try them and at least have that information and knowledge should I ever need it.
Excerpts, examples, formulas and recipes from the book:
One pint of potato yeast, one cup of hop yeast, one dry yeast cake two inches square, two-thirds cup yeast crumbs, two teaspoons fast rising dry yeast granules, and one half ounce cake of compressed yeast are equal to each other in strength.
Baking Powder:
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp soda
1 tsp corn starch
To Keep Eggs:
Be sure to have strictly fresh eggs. Put a two-inch layer of salt in the bottom of a stoneware crock or jar, then a layer of eggs, placing the large end down; another layer of salt, then eggs. Repeat until eggs are all used or jar is full, having a layer of salt on top and no egg showing. Cover and put in place that is cold but not cold enough to freeze. This is a simple, inexpensive way which has been tested for many years. There is a difference of opinion as to whether the large end or the small end of the egg should be down. The air chamber is in the larger end and if this end is placed down the yolk will not break through and touch the shell.
Lacto Bacillus Buttermilk
1 cup milk
1 cup lukewarm water
1 tablet Bacillus Bulgaricus
Combine the milk and warm water, add the bacillus tablet and let stand in a warm place two days. Whip with an egg beater and chill. Salt may be added to taste. One tablespoon dried starter may be used instead of the tablet.
Buttermilk Starter
To make a starter that will keep indefinitely, pour a small amount of buttermilk on a glass platter. Allow it to dry at room temperature until it forms a crust. Scrape the crust form the platter and place the flakes in a jar with a tight cover. Use the flakes as a starter instead of a tablet Bacillus Bulgaricus.
Home Made Vinegar
14 pounds of coarse brown sugar
6 gallons water
1 cup yeast
Boil the sugar with four gallons of water and skim while boiling. When it has boiled ten minutes, remove from fire, add the remaining two gallons of cold water and strain into a keg. Spread the yeast, which should be lively and fresh, on small pieces of toast and toss into the liquid. Stir every day for eight days. On the ninth day stir well, tack a piece of gauze cloth over the bunghole, place the keg where the sun will sine on it and let stand six months. It is best to make vinegar in the spring of the year.
A dry yeast cake or brewers yeast may be used. It will shorten the time when the vinegar will be good for use if a "Mother" from a former keg of vinegar is put into the liquid just before placing the keg in the sun.
I will post a few more formulas and recipes in the days to come!