Recipe Rustlers

When I lived in Texas, I became fascinated with the Texas rose rustlers, who find and "rescue" roses that have thrived for many years, with little or no attention, in a forgotten place such as an old cemetery or outside an abandoned house or along an fence. One of my favorite rose catalogs comes from this nursery, The Antique Rose Emporium, which was founded with rustled roses.

Many of these roses are antiques, old roses from the past that have survived in spite of neglect. The idea of propagating these roses--bringing these survivors out of the past and into the 21st century, thus preserving the variety--is honorable, in contradiction to the negative connotation of "rustling". But what a great name--The Rose Rustlers.

Some of us have become recipe rustlers. We find an old recipe in a forgotten cookbook, recognize its value, and bring it into our contemporary kitchens, where it again becomes a treasure to share with others.

One such recipe is from one of my oldest cookbooks, Better Homes & Gardens Cakes and Pies, which I received as a wedding gift in 1969.


Recently I spotted my old treasure at the top of my bookshelves and started thumbing through the browned, familiar pages. Several pages are stained with use, evidence of happy hours spent poring over and trying the recipes as a young bride.

Unlike many of today's recipes, I found that most of the cake recipes specified shortening and/or shortening and butter. Although I love using butter in my baking, shortening does provide a tender crumb that is not always present with the use of butter alone.

The recipe I chose to rustle was one for Buttermilk Cake, and the result was such good old-fashioned flavor and texture. The instructions are different from the usual "add dry ingredients to wet" and employ the use of an electric mixer rather than the KitchenAid. And with 6 egg whites, it was a mile-high cake!

Buttermilk Cake

3¾ cup flour
2¼ cup sugar
1½ teaspoon salt
1½ teaspoon soda
1½ teaspoon baking powder
3/8 cup butter
3/8 cup shortening
2¼ teaspoon vanilla
1½ cup buttermilk
6 egg whites

Sift dry ingredients into large mixing bowl. Add butter, shortening, vanilla, and 3/4 cup buttermilk; beat 2 minutes at medium speed on electric mixer. Add remaining buttermilk and egg whites (I whipped until soft peaks formed then folded into the batter.); beat 2 minutes longer. Bake in 2 greased and lightly floured 8 X 1-1/2 inch round pans in 350F (177C) for 30-35 minutes. Cool and frost.

Spring Peas, Spudnuts, and my Beautiful Mother

My mother will be 96 years old in July. She lives with my husband and me and is still incredibly young. She is a petite beauty who reads large-print books, writes letters, walks around the house for exercise, goes to the hair salon every week, and amazes her doctors. She is my hero.

One of my favorite culinary memories is watching my Mom shell peas on our porch steps one spring evening when I was 11. My Daddy worked until 9:00 at night in our small town pharmacy, my oldest brother was married, and my teenage brother was probably on a date. Consequently Mom & I were alone many evenings.

She had planted a tiny garden and had a nice little "mess" of spring peas gathered in a bowl. As we sat outside in the growing dusk, she showed me how to shell peas and we quietly talked. When the peas were all ready, we went inside and I watched while she made creamed peas. I'll never forget the taste of those peas--little bursts of sweet starchiness in buttery, creamy sauce. On that spring evening, between the shared sunset, the shared task of shelling, and the shared plate of fresh, simple food, a cherished memory was born.

Another culinary memory is one of her making Spudnuts, which are doughnuts made with potatoes or potato flour; Spudnuts were the Krispy Kremes of the 1960s. My brother was home from college one weekend and requested that Mom make doughnuts, specifically Spudnuts. Although Mom didn't have internet access and had very few cookbooks in her kitchen, she somehow managed to come up with a "copy-cat" recipe made with mashed potato-infused sweet yeast dough. She rolled the dough on her tiny countertop, used a little red doughnut cutter (wish I still had it!) to cut doughnuts, and let them rise on top of the oven. Then she fried them one by one in melted shortening in a deep saucepan and immediately dipped them in powdered sugar glaze. Those doughnuts were better than any we had ever had or that I have had since--I still remember biting into that light, crisp, sweet tenderness with the still-warm icing.

Mom doesn't think she was an inspiration to me in the kitchen. She refers to my grandmothers as the cooks in the family and talks about their incredible cinnamon rolls, sugar cookies, and pies. And although replicating their recipes has been my goal for many years, watching Mom in the kitchen is what I remember; by observing her, I learned basic skills, good habits, and the desire to please. Now I remember those days with longing and a touch of sadness, wishing I had paid more attention to what she was doing, wishing I had offered to help her (or even to wash the dishes), and wishing I had told her what a great cook and a wonderful Mother she was.

So on this Mother's Day 2008, I honor my little Mommy, Ruby, and thank her for being my inspiration and for encouraging my passion for baking and my joy in the kitchen. I love you, Mom.

What Do Bakers Do On Their Day Off?

They watch their garden grow.


They beg their roses to bloom.


They make homemade ice cream.


Then they eat it.


They read other people's blogs!
Here's an interview with the delightful Julia
from A Slice of Cherry Pie

And they wish they could be Molly
of the beautifully written Orangette.

They search for recipes. As if they didn't have enough already.

They read books! OK, they read cookbooks.


And unbelievably, THEY BAKE!


A good vacation is over when you begin to yearn for your work. ~Morris Fishbein

It's nice to have a day off. But I know I love baking when, even on my days off, I can't stay out of the kitchen.