C OLONIAL B AKING By Fionna Du 7A2

W HO D ID THE BAKING ? Women were expected to clean, look after children, garden, mend and make clothes, milking cows, starting the fire in the mornings, cook, and bake. Families who were wealthy had slaves to work.

W HAT DID THEY USE ? MILK! Milk was milked from the family’s farm. It was also turned into butter and cheeses. CORN! Corn was a major part of baking. Corn was ground down to made into flour for various goods. WHEAT! Wheat was also ground down to made into flour. The flour was also used to make goods. EGGS! Eggs were collected from the household’s farm. It was used to made different goods rise. SUGAR! Sugar was bought in blocks or cones and had to be cut when needed to be used. SUGAR CUTTER! A sugar cutter was used to slice the sugar cones instead of the granulated kind we have today.

While the cooking was done in a kitchen, baking was done outside in a clay oven. In order to tell the temperature of the oven, the baker would stick their arm in the oven and count until the heat was unbearable.

W HAT WERE THE DANGERS ? The obvious: There could be a fire. Women’s skirts were very capable of catching on fire. Kettles and pots were extremely heavy and could fall on one’s foot. All tools were made out of iron. Ouch. Food poisoning. Milk and eggs could go bad, especially with refrigerators not being invented. Meal worms and other bugs could be drawn to flour. And of course, there could be dangerously tasteless food.

W HAT WERE SOME FOODS THEY BAKED ? They baked: Pies. Cobblers. Molasses cookies. Gingersnaps. Bread. Muffins. Cakes. Cobblers. And even… ICE CREAM

S PICES ? Salt-They would have a bucket of sea water and wait for the liquid to evaporate. Nutmeg. Rosemary Thyme Sage Mint Marjoram Flavors were limited compared to the thousands we have today.

A L ITTLE A BOUT M OLASSES We’ve all heard of “slow as molasses,” but what ARE molasses? Molasses are a derivative of the processing of sugar canes, sugar beets, or grapes into sugar. It was used as a sweetener since it was cheaper than refined sugar until the 1880s. It was used as a basis of rum in the West Indies.

GINGER SNAPS! What you need to make them… 1-1/3 cups vegetable oil 2 cups white sugar 2 egg 1/2 cup molasses 4 cups all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon baking soda 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 2 teaspoons ground ginger 1 teaspoon ground cloves 2/3 cup white sugar Recipe from allrecipes.com Serves about 48

H OW T O M AKE G INGERSNAPS Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). In a large bowl mix oil and 2 cups of sugar. Add eggs, beat well. Stir in molasses, 4 cups flour, baking soda and spices. If necessary, add more flour to make a firm dough. Shape dough into 1 1/4 inch balls. Roll in 1/3 cup sugar. Place 3 inches apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until tops crack. Remove from baking sheet and cool on rack. Recipe from allrecipes.com Serves 48 HINT: If you want to make your cookie’s flavor stronger, add ¼ teaspoon of black or white ground pepper and/or use “dark” molasses instead of “light.”

B IBLIOGRAPHY self-help-books-DRINKS-RECIPES-Medieval-Feast.html gK97g tm tm Colonial Cooking by Susan Dosier ; consultant, Melodie Andrews.