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From the circa-1920s Kitchen of Ada Nash Stevens



There is a brittle little book sitting among my family papers and photos, containing the many recipes of Ada Helen Stevens. It is filled with her scribbles and notes, and was clearly an invaluable tool for her to manage her household. I have transcribed her many recipes here, mainly for your amusement. 

 

 

Transcription notes:

All abbreviations, spellings, punctuation, and capitalizations were kept identical to the original handwriting. The misspellings are not my own! I swear. Because the book was well-used over several decades some text is smudged or scribbled out, and pieces of pages are torn out. As a result, any missing or illegible text is noted with brackets and a question mark. 

​

The primary contributor to this book, and its steward for many decades, was Ada Nash Stevens. The earliest dated entry in the book is from 1918, when a running chicken/egg count was recorded in the back of the book for a period of several months. There is a newspaper article referencing the new release of the 1921 silent movie, The Sky Pilot, on the reverse side of a clipped recipe for “Tamale Pie.” More than one recipe has notes in the margin indicating the 1925 prices of ingredients. Additions were made to the book as late as 1963, when a dated Plum Pudding recipe was hand-written on white paper and tucked into the book. There was also a Certo jams and jellies recipe booklet from 1961 placed inside the book.

 

In addition to food recipes, there are entries for medical remedies and household concoctions. There are also the aforementioned chicken egg/slaughter counts listed in the last couple pages of the book. One page in the center of the book is a tally of what appears to be expenses paid—including costs for things such as lumber, cement, and payment to various people. The inside of the front and back covers are littered with many numerical additions; no context is provided for these figures, and there are no words are written among them—except for one phrase: “Ada used 200”.

 

For the sake of this transcription, only hand-written or hand-typed recipes are being included here. Recipe booklets or clippings from newspapers and magazines have been omitted, but can be viewed in scanned copies of the book. 

 

DISCLAIMER: Recipes and/or ingredients below may not be safe for use, handling, or consumption. If you're hungry or in need of cleaner or medicine, please consult a modern professional, for pete's sake. 

 

The entire recipe collection below is ©2018, Katie Schumm--do not reproduce or publish without express permission.



Grandma Ada's Recipe Book

War Cake

 

1 lb raisons

2 cups Brown Sugar

2 “ boiling water

2 heaping table spoons Butter

½ tsp. cinnimon

   allspice & 1 tes nutmeg

1 tsp. nutmeg

1 table spoon Cocoa

boil for 5 minutes when cool

add, heaping teaspoon

B soda disolved in a

little hot water

 

 

Chocolate Cake

 

2 sq chocolate

1 cup sugar

1 “ sour milk

3 table sp butter

1 2/3 cup flour

1 egg

1 teaspoon Soda

Mix ch. ½ of sugar

butter & milk & let he[?, page torn]

then add well beaten [?]

& rest of sugar & [?]

& put in tins & ba [?—bake?]

 

 

Tarts

 

1 cup currents ✘

1 “ B sugar

1 egg

1 tsp Vinella

   butter size eggs

1 tablespoon milk

    pinch of salt

[end of recipe]

 

 

Brandy Smaps

 

1 lb flour

1 “ sugar

12 oz butter

1 pt mollases

1 oz ginger

 

 

Fruit Cake

 

[?] lbs raisons

1 “ currants

[?] “ mixed peel

1 “ Butter

[?] eggs.

¼ lb. [?] nuts.

2 teaspoons nut megs

2 “ sinniman

4 “ Backing powder

[?] quarts Flour

      bake slowly till done. 

[1 lb sugar is written sideways on right-hand side of page]

 

 

Spanish Bun

 

3 eggs save whites of two iceing

½ cup butter

1 “ sugar

¾ “ sour milk

1 tablespoon cinniman

1 teaspoon cream Tartor

1 “   “  Soda

      Iceing ½ cup iceing sug[?]

      whites of two eggs.

 

 
Fruit Cake

 

1 lb Raisons

1 “ currents

1 “ B Sugar

½ “ butter

6 eggs

[?] nut meg

[?] tea spoon [?]

[?] “   “  b[?]

½ lbs flour

[?] bake until [?]

[?] on slo[?]

         Goo[?]

 

 

Rocks

 

1 cup sugar

2/3 “ Butter

1 ½ “ flour

1 “ chopped raisons

½  “     “ currants

1   “     “ nuts

2 eggs

1 tsp cloves & cinniman

1 “ Soda dissolved

      in hot water

      more flour if necessary

         Drop in greased pan

 

 

Lemon Butter

 

6 eggs

¼ lb butter

½ lb sugar

4 lemons rind

of two lemons grated

 

         method

butter and sugar

juice four lemons

and grated rind of

two beat eggs

and mix alltogether

put in double

boiler and cook

till thick. bottle

and use as spread

for bread or sandwich

also as filling for

tarts.

 

 

Lobster Cocktail

 

1 can Lobster

2 lemons juce

1 tablespoon sugar

2  “   “  Worcestershire sauce

6  “   “ catchup

         Dash of Tabasco salt & pepper

 

 

 Carrot Pudding 

 

salt  One cup grated carrots, 1 cup grated

potatoes, 2 large apples grated, 1 cup

of sugar, 1 cup of raisins, 1 cup of cur-

rants. 1 ½ cups suet, 1 ½ cups flour, 1

teaspoon baking soda. Steam three hours.

 

Cheap pound Cake
   or
White fruit Cake
 

*[Original recipe was written before 1925, and Ada came back later to add a column of 1925 costs for all of the ingredients]

 

cost 1925*

25                     5 eggs

5                       1 cup  g sugar 

                        1 tsp B powder

                        5 pieces peel

8                      1 orange 1 lemon

17                     ½ citren          

35                     ½ lbs almons

                        1 tsp vanilla

5                      2 cups flour

23                     ½ lb butter

                        15 cherries

                        19 pine apple   

 

Bran Muffins
 

1 egg

1 cup sour milk

½ “    B Sugar

¾ teaspoon soda

1 handfull bran

enough flour to make

a good batter

 

[Right-hand sidebar has additional pencil-written notes horizontally scrawled that read:

¼ cherries

white raisons]

 

 

Kisses

 

3 eggs [crossed out]

5 tablespoons sugar [crossed out]

 

1 eggs beat stiff

2 teaspoon icing sugar

            little coconut beat all

            into egg white greace tin

            drop little from spoon

            this makes about 18.

 

 

Aunt Sarah Nash’s Plum Pudding

 

✓ 3 cups Raison

       3 cup suet

 âœ“ 3 “ Brown Sugar

✓ 3 “ currants

      Salt to taste

✓ 1 cup mixed peel

✓ 3  “ Bread crumbs

5  eggs

4 cups flour

½ cup lemon ext  milk

3 teaspoons lemon ext

2 teaspoons spices

   brandy

1 sespoon  B powder

 

 

Orange Marmolade

 

To every lb Fruit add

[?] quart of cold water

[?] let stand over night

[?]en boil till the peel [?]

[?]ansparent put [?]

[?] till next day: then i[?]

[?]gain & to each lb [?]

[?] sug[?]

 

 

5 hour bread

 

1 pint milk or milk &

  water

2 teaspoon butter

2  “  “  Sugar

½  “  salt

1 Yeast Cake

6 cups flour

Scald milk, put in a

mixing bowl with butter

sugar salt to cool to

luke warm reserving ¼

cup to mix with yeast

cake when luke warm

Add 2 cups flour to milk

Then the yeast mixed with

Milk & beat batter till very

Smooth. Cover the bowl

With clean towl & [?]

In a warm place for 1 hour

Then add flour to make a

Soft dough turn on well floured

Bord & make into loves &

Let rise 1 ½ hours bake 45 or 50 minu[?]

 

 

Ginger cookies

 

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

1 table spoon Soda

1 “     “ ginger

1 cup Black strap

    flour to thicken grease

    pan & brush water over

    tops of cookies before

    baking

 

 

Date Oatmeal Cookies

 

¾ cup Butter

1 ½ “ G Sugar

2 “ oat meal

2 “ flour

1 egg

1 tsp soda

   Sour milk to roll thin

   Dressing for cookies

1 lbs dates

½ cup G Sugar

1 “ water cook then spread

 

 

Pepper sauce

 

1 doz red peppers

1   “   sweet  “

1   “   med sized onions

3 pints vinegar

2 cups white sugar

2 tablespoon salt

   Scald peppers 12 minutes

   again 15 min

   chop mix cook 15 min

 

 

Chill a Sauce

 

30 tomatoes

10 onions

16 table spoons G Sugar

3  “   “   salt

1 pt vinegar

3 green peppers

1 tea spoon cinniman

1 nutmeg

   boil 1 ½ hours.

 

Spiced green tomatoes

peel 1 p[?] small green tom

drop in boiling salted water for 10

minutes lift out with a fork

& stick cloves in each. Cover

with syrup & put in crock

for one week

syrup 8   cups B sugar

         5 ½ “ Vinegar

   Drain of syrup & put tomatoes

in bottles with a few sticks

of cinniman in each boil

syrup till thick & pour over

tomatoes & seal.

Boston Cream drink
 

3 pints g sugar

3    "     Boiling water

    stir till disolved

2 oz tartaric Acid.

2 eggs whites beaten stiff

put all together & bottle

To Make Drink

1/4 glass syrup partly fill

with water then add a

little flavoring & a pinch

of soda

 

 

Salid Dressing

 

1 teaspoonful mustard

4   "      "      "  sugar

1    "     "      "  flour

1   "      "      "  Butter

1/2 "     "      "  Salt

1/2 "     "      "  pepper

1/2 cup full Milk

1/2 "     "      Vinegar

1    egg

Mix mustard Sugar

Flour sale pepper

and melted Butter

add milk & the beatten egg

place over fire add vinegar slowly, stirring

constantly untill dressing

[beg]ins to thicken remove

[fro]m fire & beat two minutes

[...] thick add a little

[...]

 

 

Divinity Fudge

 

4 cups g Sugar

1-1/3 "  water

1-1/3 "  Corn Syrup.

2 eggs whites only beaten

10 [ ] wall nuts.

 

 

Puree of Split Pea

 

Flavor the stock with a 

salt pork. When all ready

add some Vegetable all

kinds cut fine

Cook about three hours

then put through cieve.

& thicken with flour

season with pepper

​

 

Sponge Cake

 

Seperate 4 eggs

beat Yolks thick add

1/2 cup Sugar & Continue 

beating beat whites

stiff & beat into first

mixture add

1 teaspoon Baking Powder

1/2 cup potato flour &

sift into first Mixtur

Bake in a moderate oven

about 30 minutes

 

 

Bread

 

1 qt warm water

3 “ flour

2 table spoon sugar

1 “     “  salt

2 Fleshman Y C.

   Mix hard & let rise 1 ½

   hour make into loves

   & let stand ½ hour

   & bake.

 
 
Nut Bread

 

4 cups flour

1  “ chop nuts

1  “ w sugar

1 “ sweet milk

1  “ dates

1 teas salt

4  “ B powder

    let stand 20 minutes

    in tins & bake slow

    1 hour.

 

 

Drop cakes

 

2 eggs

1 cup B Sugar

1 “ Butter

½ “ Sour milk

1 “ chop raison

2 “ oatmeal

2 “ flour

1 teaspoon Soda

 

drop from spoon

 

Christmas Cake

                               (M[...]'s recipe.)

 

cost 1925

35                ½ lb. blanched almonds.

53                3 Lbs.Raisons

53                3 lbs.Currants

46                1 Lb.Butter

15                 1 lb.brown sugar (This is not                       enough sugar, try 1 1/2lbs.

                    1 Tablespoon cloves

5                  1    “      cinnamon

                   5 Small nutmeg

12                2 Oz.orge.peel

                   2 Oz.Lemon “

17                2 Oz.Citron”  

5                 1 Cup molasses

                  ½ Teaspoonful soda

3                 The juice of 1 lemon

10                “     “      “ 2 oranges

½  10           1 ¼ lbs.flour (This is not          
                   enough flour try 1 ½ lbs.

3.24

 

Take half of the flour and all the soda and

sprinkle over fruits and peels. Mix the other ingredients with the above.

 

Bake 3 ½ hours in slow oven.

 

             flour

             thread

             Dr. Chase.

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