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A Victorian Passage has published 166 articles on a diverse range of subjects. Most of our growing archive of Victorian Era subjects are taken directly from 19th century sources to achieve a closer look into how our ancestors really lived. We have also been expanding our historical eras to include Early American from 1790-1839 and the Edwardian period of the early 20th century. Latest article added June 1, 2009

Listing all the Cooking and Recipes Articles

The Strawberry

June and Strawberries Half a dozen people, more or less, have been credited with the saying, "Doubtless, God could have made a better berry, but doubtless God never did;" and the declaration regarding this most delicious and wholesome of all berries, goes without questioning, no matter by whom it was first uttered. The strawberry, whose name is probably derived from the common and ancient...Continue Reading

Wooden Toothpicks.

Every eating-house visitor of this city and other leading cities of the Union has doubtless noticed a small tumbler of wooden toothpicks upon the counter of the cashier, for the use of customers. These toothpicks are a good feature of the present day. The wooden toothpicks have to a considerable extent superseded the gold, horn, ivory, and other articles of the kind formerly in...Continue Reading

The Lunch Table - Some Suggestions as to its Decoration

In the country, where the hostess does not depend on the tender mercies of the florist and the caterer, the decoration of the lunch table grows to be a kind of cult. One's wits are so sharpened by necessity, that what to a city woman would seem a great trouble becomes a pleasure to the country entertainer. Perhaps there may be some readers of...Continue Reading

Covering Jam.

Jam Jars, Glass Jars, Tumblers, and Pails from 1894 A SERIOUS JAR. If Jem is the same as Jim, And G sounds the same as J, Then between a Gem, and Jim, and Jem, What is the difference, pray ? We read about Gem Jars, -- Jars made for holding jam. Then, are these Gem jars jim jam jars? (Be calm, my mind, be...Continue Reading

Napkins; to Fold them.

One of the true luxuries of the modern dinner table is the table napkin; but the difficulty with most young housekeepers is how to fold it. Numerous designs have been adopted from time to time, but the following are simple and efficient. A napkin should be laid to every plate. To properly fold the napkins, they should be starched. Тhe Mitre. -- Fold the napkin...Continue Reading

Civil War Era Kitchen Utensils

A kitchen should always be well furnished; there is no necessity that it should be profusely so, but there should be a sufficiency of every thing which can aid in producing the dishes preparing, with the success which is so essential to the gratification of the palate. In furnishing a kitchen there should be everything likely to be required, but not one article more than...Continue Reading

Aluminum Cooking Ware.

This article from Manufacture and Builder March 1894 - From present indications, there is one important field which the metal aluminum has just fairly invaded, and which it will shortly occupy to the exclusion of all other materials. We refer to kitchen and cooking utensils. It has only been within the past year or two that any special attention has been directed to the...Continue Reading

The Dawn of the Egg Beater

AN advertisement in 1899 showing the coveted family size Dover Egg Beater. In the last half of the 19th century a new kind of egg beater came on the scene with the intent of reducing the time a cook needed to beat, whip or froth eggs. At first many of these devices were cumbersome, difficult and most didn't even live up to the claims...Continue Reading

In the Early Kitchen...Cooking Utensils

WOODEN WARES There was quite a variety of the kitchen items made from wood. A pretty good list includes wooden tubs, boxes, buckets, bowls, bread troughs, pans, sieves, sifters, potato mashing "beetles", meat "beetles", hickory egg-beaters, spaddles or round short hickory sticks flattened at one end, paste-boards, coffee-sticks, mush-sticks, clothes-sticks, spoons and ladles. Oak was considered a better choice over the cedar wood. Often...Continue Reading

Advice about the Woodburning Oven

The following from Jennie June's American Cookery Book 1870 - In nine out of ten kitchens, when there is any cooking to be done the range is made red hot; when the cooking is done, the fire is left to go down to ashes, and is then raised by means of a wasteful pile of kindling wood. When no cooking is going on, and...Continue Reading

TWELVE BILLS OF FARE

A Bill of FARE for JANUARY. First Course. 1 Cod's Head. 2 Soup Sante. 3 Roast Beef. 4 Scotch Collops. 5 Leg of Lamb. 6 Plumb Pudding. 7 Petit Patties. 8 Boiled Chickens. 9 Tongue. Second Course. 1 Roast Turkey. 2 Jellies. 3 Woodcocks. 4 Marinated Smelts. 5 Leg of Lamb. 6 Almond Cheese-cakes. 7 Minced Pies. 8 Larks. 9 Lobsters. A Bill of...Continue Reading

Loaf Sugar

The old loaf sugar came from wooden molds that were conical shaped. Thus they themselves were cone shaped and a cook would have to pound the loaf to get loose sugar for cooking. They had to use special tongs/cutters to break of pieces of the loaf for consumption. The Frugal Housewife. from 1830 says this about its wrapping, "The purple paper, which comes on...Continue Reading

Horsehair Sieve

A kitchen utensil often used in sifting bran. A man named Benjamin Gilbert was a tanner/currier/shoemaker by birth, but he percieved a market in making horsehair sieves for the common people who already used these in the making of meal. He began his business venture around 1818 and they did become quite popular....Continue Reading