Because it's such a pain to do it by hand.

But wait - there's more

I'm a lucky girl. My sister purchased this book for me from the Brotherhood of St Lawrence on line. Who knew you could op shop on line?

Mrs Beeton's Simple Cookery in Colour from 1978 not only has glorious colour pictures of interesting foods. It is also in metric. No more tricky conversions - if I want to make something simple. This book was also published by Ward Lock & Co. which led me to some wikipeding to see what I could find about them.

Yep, there they are. Apparently publishing since 1854 when it was founded by Ebenezer Ward and George Lock (you just don't see enough Ebenezers about these days), Ward Lock & Co opened their Melbourne office in 1888. The company is still in existence and its imprint is still used by Penguin Books.

Ward Lock & Co boast such authors as Mrs Beeton, as well as Nigel Tranters early works, Dornfold Yates and Thomas Hugnes and published the revised edition of The Picture of Dorian Gray.

However, my copy of Mrs Beeton's Cookery Book was printed by Foy & Gibson. It's a special edition. Foy & Gibson (also known as Foys) was one of Australia's earliest department store chains, modelled on Le Bon Marché in Paris and other European and American Stores of the period. Interestingly, their first store was in Smith Street, Melbourne, which is not more than 3 major roads from my house, and their warehouse/factory was also nearby. So actually, my little book hasn't travelled very far from where it was created (well, sold at the very least.)

I presume it was some kind of collarboration between Ward Lock & Co and Foy & Gibson to release a special edition. But definitely requires further investigation.

Sadly, Foy & Gibson no longer exist.
But the warehouse in Collingwood still stands. So I can see it when I ride my bicycle up to the supermarket nearby.

Labour saving devices or used in the lunar module - You tell me

Eggs and Tomatoes

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Originally uploaded by weenie_elise

Pretty much as the title says EGGS AND TOMATOES...
It could either be a breakfast dish or a supper dish, seeing as it is listed in the BREAKFAST AND SUPPER DISHES section.

This recipe is out of Mrs Beeton's Cookery Book, which I got from the mother-in-law, and interestingly has an average cost for each meal for the housewife/cook on a budget. According to my rough internet calculation, using the approximate date of publication, allowing for inflation and converting into AUD, this meal for 6 persons, costs about $8.05 (in USD about $5.96) which seems pretty good value for money working out to be $1.35 per person.

Using internet shopping I can buy these ingredients from the supermarket for AUD$9.02 so I guess my calculations aren't too far off. Yay for me!

Anyway, back to breakfast and some scrummy eggs and tomatoes.

EGGS AND TOMATOES

INGREDIENTS. - 6 medium-sized tomatoes
6 fresh eggs
buttered toast
pepper and salt

METHOD. - Scoop out the centre of each tomato and with this pulp make a well-seasoned sauce.
In each of the cavities of the tomatoes break an egg carefully and season with salt and pepper.
Put the tomatoes in a well-buttered tin in the oven and bake till done.
Have ready some buttered toast, on which place the tomatoes, pouring the gravy round.

TIME, about 10 minutes. AVERAGE COST 1s. 2d. SUFFICIENT for 6 persons. SEASONABLE when tomatoes are in season


Very tasty and an economical breakfast (economy being the catchphrase of today)

Marketing - Mutton - Advertising slogans anyone?

One a penny, two a penny...

Hot Cross Buns!

A hot cross bun, or cross-bun, is a type of sweet spiced bun made with currants or raisins and leavened with yeast. It has a cross marked on the top which might be effected in one of a variety of ways including: pastry, flour and water mixture, rice paper, icing, or intersecting cuts.

In many historically Christian countries, buns are traditionally eaten on Good Friday, with the cross representing the crucifixion. They are believed by some to pre-date Christianity, although the first recorded use of the term "hot cross bun" is not until 1733; it is believed that buns marked with a cross were eaten by Saxons in honour of the goddess Eostre (the cross is thought to have symbolised the four quarters of the moon); "Eostre" is probably the origin of the name "Easter". Others claim that the Greeks marked cakes with a cross, much earlier. Cakes were certainly baked in honor of deities since very ancient times, although it is not known if they were marked.

According to some cookery writers, Protestant English monarchs saw the buns as a dangerous hold-over of Catholic belief in England, being baked from the dough used in making the communion wafer. Protestant England attempted to ban the sale of the buns by bakers but they were too popular, and instead Elizabeth I passed a law permitting bakeries to sell them, but only at Easter and Christmas.

English folklore includes many superstitions surrounding hot cross buns. One of them says that buns baked and served on Easter Sunday will not spoil or become mouldy during the subsequent year. Another encourages keeping such a bun for medicinal purposes. A piece of it given to someone who is ill is said to help them recover. Sharing a hot cross bun with another is supposed to ensure friendship throughout the coming year, particularly if "Half for you and half for me, Between us two shall goodwill be" is said at the time. Because of the cross on the buns, some say they should be kissed before being eaten. If taken on a sea voyage, hot cross buns are said to protect against shipwreck. If hung in the kitchen, they are said to protect against fires and ensure that all breads turn out perfectly. The hanging bun is replaced each year.

Although, Mrs B doesn't share any of this with you. Only the recipe.

HOT CROSS BUNS

INGREDIENTS. - 2lb. of flour
1/2 a lb. of sugar
1 0z. of yeast
1 pint of warm milk
1/2 a lb. of butter
1 lb. of currants
1/2 a teaspoonful of salt
1 teaspoonful of spice

METHOD. - Mix the flour, sugar, spice and currants; make a hole in the middle of the flour, put in the yeast and 1/2 a pint of warmed milk; make a thin batter of the surrounding flour and milk, and set the pan covered before the fire until the leaven begins to ferment.
Put to the mass 1/2 a lb. of melted butter, add the salt, and beat well together, make up into rather a soft paste with all the flour, using a little more warm milk if necessary. Cover this with a clean cloth, and let it once more rise up for about 1/2 an hour. Shape the dough in buns, and lay them apart on greased tin plates or baking-sheets in rows at least 3 inches apart, to rise for about 1/2 an hour.
Place a cross mould on them (this may be done roughly with the back of a knife), and bake in a quick oven from 15 to 20 minutes.

TIME. - From 15 to 20 minutes.

To market, to market...

To buy a fat...beef?

Trying making a rhyme out of that one.