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Mother Hubbard Recipes

156K views 202 replies 45 participants last post by  wilderness_dweller 
#1 ·
A couple of recent threads got me thinking about old recipes designed to make a meal out of almost nothing to make a meal with. Thought it would be fun to ask what people's favorite something-from-nothing recipes might be.

Here are a few of my Mother Hubbard pie recipes:

Desperation Pie
(There are many variations on this in the form of chess, shoofly, buttermilk, and sugar pies, etc., but I think this variation on sugar pie may take the cake...errh, pie...because it even makes its own sorta-crust so you don't need enough ingredients for a crust.)

2 c brown sugar (which can be made from white sugar and molasses)
2 oz softened butter
2 eggs
1 t vanilla
1 t salt
1/2 c flour
1-1/2 c milk

Preheat oven to 350 F (175 C) and grease a 9-inch pie dish.

Cream brown sugar with butter until light. Beat in eggs one at a time. Beat in vanilla extract and salt. Beat in flour a little at a time and then beat in the milk to make a batter. Pour into the prepared pie dish.

Bake in preheated oven for 35 minutes. Remove from oven and cover rim with aluminum foil to prevent burning.
Return to oven and bake about 15 minutes more (until middle sets and the top forms a crusty layer).
Let the pie cool to room temperature and then refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.

Vinegar Pie
(Makes a slightly apple-flavored custard pie. You can add a few chopped dried apples if you have them...or not.)

Single pie crust in a 9-inch tart pan
2 large eggs
1 c sugar
1 T flour
1 c cold water
2 T apple cider vinegar
Cinnamon for dusting

Preheat oven to 400 F.
Blind-bake pie crust with foil and weights for 20 minutes, then remove them and bake until golden, 8 or 10 minutes more.

Whisk together eggs and 1/4 c sugar until well blended. Whisk together flour and remaining 3/4 c sugar in a 1-quart heavy saucepan, then whisk in water and vinegar. Bring to a boil, whisking until sugar is dissolved. Add to egg mixture in a slow stream, whisking constantly.

Pour filling into saucepan and cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until filling coats back of spoon and registers 175°F on an instant-read thermometer, 12 to 15 minutes. (Do not boil.) Immediately pour filling into a 2-cup glass measure. If pie shell is not ready, cover surface of filling with a round of wax paper.

Reduce oven temperature to 350°F. Pour hot filling into baked pie shell. Set in middle of oven and cover rim of crust with a pie shield or foil (to prevent overbrowning).
Bake pie until filling is set, 15 to 20 minutes, then cool completely in pan on a rack. Dust evenly with cinnamon.


Shoofly Pie
(A got-no-eggs-either pie)

3⁄4 c dark molasses (sorghum is good, and cider molasses or grape molasses would be interesting options)
3⁄4 c boiling water
1⁄2 t baking soda

1 1⁄2 c flour
1⁄4 c shortening, butter, or lard
1⁄2 c brown sugar

1 9-inch unbaked pie crust*

Dissolve baking soda in hot water. Add molasses.
Combine sugar and flour and rub into shortening to make crumbs.
Pour 1/3 of the liquid into the unbaked crust.
Add 1/3 of the crumb mixture.
Continue alternating layers, ending with crumbs on top.
Bake at 375 for approximately 35 minutes.

*Oil Pie Crust
(For when the lard tin or shortening can is empty. Also the only kind my mother could ever make :))

Preheat oven to 425F.

Whisk together
1-1/3 c flour
1/8 t salt
Mix in a cup until creamy
1/3 c plus 1 T vegetable oil
¼ c cold milk
Pour the oil mixture over the dry ingredients and stir with a fork until blended.

Pat the dough evenly over the bottom and sides of a 9-inch pie pan or roll it between sheets of wax paper and flip it into the pan. Crimp or flute the edge.
Thoroughly prick the sides and bottom with a fork and bake until golden-brown, 12 to 18 minutes.

If filling the crust with an uncooked mixture that requires further baking or if not prebaking it, you can whisk 1 large egg yolk and a pinch of salt and brush the inside of the crust with it. Place in oven for 1 to 2 minutes to set the glaze and then fill.

And a couple of Mother Hubbard soups:

Boiled Water Garlic Soup
(There are many variations on garlic and bread soup, most made with broth and more ingredients, including the delicious Galician Sopa de Ajo loaded with paprika, but this is the stone-soup version.)

4 to 12 thin slices of stale bread (1 to 3 per person,*enough to cover the bottom surface of your soup plates)
4 T olive oil
4 c water
salt
24 garlic cloves, sliced lengthwise
2 bay leaves
1 sprig sage or 1 t dried sage in a cheesecloth bag
(grated gruyere or other hard cheese if you've got it)

Brush the bread slices with olive oil and toast until dry.
Combine the water, salt, garlic, bay leaves, and sage in saucepan.
Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce to medium low, cover, and cook for 20 minutes or until garlic is very soft.
Remove the bay leaves and sage sprig, and puree the soup.
Pour it back into the pan, cover, and let steep until you are ready to serve, at least 10 minutes.
Heat your soup plates in the oven for a few minutes or by putting a little boiling water in them for a few minutes and draining. Cover bottoms with toasted bread slices.
Sprinkle the toast with the cheese and any remaining olive oil.
Reheat the soup to a boil, ladle it over the toast, and serve.

Avgolemono Soup
(This is delicious enough for a fancy meal if made with homemade chicken broth, but its still good no matter what you are reduced to using.)

Any broth (even from bouillon cubes or a few dried veggies cooked in salted water if that's all you've got )
Eggs
Lemon juice
Any grain/starch (rice, barley, cracked wheat, grits, small pasta, whatever you have)
(Optional diced carrot)

Bring broth to boil.
Add enough grain/starch of your choice to make anything from thin soup to thick stew according to your need of the moment. (Try 1/4 c rice per pint.) Add optional carrot or other optional veggie if you want.
Simmer until starch is cooked.
For each pint of broth, whisk 1 egg together with 1 T lemon juice until foamy.
Turn heat off under soup.
Gradually whisk a ladle of hot soup into eggs and lemon so eggs don't curdle. Whisk in a second ladle.
Whisk egg mixture into soup.
Taste and adjust lemon juice/seasoning.
Put lid on pot, let sit a couple of minutes, and serve.
If you reheat, be sure not to heat to a boil or you'll have egg drop soup instead of avgolemono.

Being part Scots, of course I have to add the simplest goodie in the world: Shortbread.

Martha Walker's Shortbread
(circa 1840)

1/2 lb (8 oz) cold salted butter (chilled Red Feather works great)
1/4 lb (4 oz) fine-ground raw or light-brown sugar
(1 to 2 T good Scotch whiskey if you have it)
Cream together butter and sugar until very light and fluffy, beat in whiskey, and then add a cup at a time, mixing well with a strong fork:
1/4 lb (4 oz) fine oat flour (you can grind oatmeal fine in a blender)
1/2 lb (8 oz) whole wheat flour
Or you can use all oat flour if you want to taste the original Scottish recipe or don't have any wheat flour. A combo of oat and barley flour can also be used.
(don't try to use the mixer for this--it's much too thick a dough)

Pat the dough into a round, square, or oblong pan.
(I prefer using a couple of small 7-inch round glass pie plates to make petticoat tail wedges, but you may not have such. You can use a 9 x 9 square pan or an 11 x 7.5 oblong pan, which will make it about 1/2-inch thick, and cut it into rectangular shortbread fingers instead. If you like thicker shortbread, you can use an 8 x 8 square pan--just watch that the bottom doesn't brown too much before it bakes through.)
Prick with a sharp fork all through, top to bottom, in a pretty design.
If making petticoats, press up a slight edge and mark it with the fork tines going all around the pie plate for a decorative border.
Bake in 325 degree (very slow) oven for 45-60 minutes. Don't let shortbread get brown on top.
Mark and cut into pieces while still warm.

Okay, what have the rest of y'all got for offbeat recipes using few ingredients or that can be made when you don't have one or more usual ingredients?
 
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#3 ·
I see no processed grain unless you choose to use white flour (I never do). But yep, lots of sugars and fats in those desserts. By the 2nd week chopping trees for the woodstove, grinding wheat, hauling water, and washing clothes by hand, you're going to want them. Not to mention coming up with some dessert, any dessert, to get the kids to stop whining. Besides, that garlic soup will probably counteract sugar rushes along with scaring away vampires.

As long as it's healthy fat, I've got no problem with fat. As to the sugar, if you cut your pies in eigths, you'll get 2 to 4 T in a slice of pie and only 1 T in a big wedge of shortbread. If that's your sugar for the day, you can have a piece of pie or shortbread per day without going over the current recommendation of an average of 3 T added sugar per day for an adult male. (If you're female, eat more shortbread and less desperation pie to keep it down to 2 T per day. Or just go beat a few rugs and scrub a floor by hand to burn the extra sugar up.) :D:

However, you are more than welcome to post your healthier contributions to the pot. You got a recipe for a good nomato sauce, a no-clams chowder, soda cracker pie, or even a nice 19th-century calf-head mock turtle soup?

There ought to be some resourceful cooks on here with some good make-do, find a way to use it, or do without recipes.
 
#6 ·
Well, I watched MIL #1 make cheese manicotti from scratch and remembered it. She started with a pile of 2-3 cups of flour on the table. Made a well in the center and cracked a couple of store bought eggs. Mixed with fingers until it was a nice dough incorporating the flour. No other ingredients. Rolled out very thin. The filling ricotta cheese, s+p, chopped parsley, half a cup of breadcrumbs and one egg. Mix together and make a roll of pasta dough filled with filling. They go in a baking dish. Put seasoned tomato sauce on top and bake. In the last ten minutes of baking put grated mozzarella, and continue baking til cheese is melted and perfect.

She bought the ricotta and mozzarella, but in the last year when I was learning how to make scratch pizza, I have learned that mozzarella and ricotta are stupid simple to make using whole milk. I love love spinach ricotta pizza with Italian sausage.

There is one recipe with flour, eggs, whole milk, eggs, tomatoes, and not much else. :) But more ingredients make it better... garlic, basil, etc...
 
#8 ·
She bought the ricotta and mozzarella, but in the last year I have learned that mozzarella and ricotta are stupid simple to make using whole milk, when I was learning how to make scratch pizza.
Equally stupid simple to make from powdered milk and canned butter made into whole milk. And you get 2 cheeses out of that batch of milk, one from the milk and another from the whey left over from the first. Everyone should learn how to make pasta from their ground wheat as well as bread. It's easier to make than bread or cheese.

There is one recipe with flour, eggs, whole milk, eggs, tomatoes, and not much else. :) But more ingredients make it better... garlic, basil, etc...
Spices make anything much better, which is why people should not forget to store a nice supply with their basics. And yes, yours is a recipe that can be made entirely from just some basic storage staples if you include tomato powder as one (I do).
 
#10 ·
No canned goods tonight.

I oven baked (6 hours) the heel of a brisket that wouldn't fit on the smoker, and while it was "resting" baked cornbread with maple syrup baked in.

Skipped the salad I was planning on and had to wait a while for my couple pieces of evening chocolate!

I'll probably eat a satsuma I picked off the tree a few days ago before I go to bed...
 
#13 ·
Pineapple Upside Down Cake (just a can of pineapple, egg, flour, sugar, shortening)

Ingredients:

14 oz can of chunked/crushed or sliced pineapple
3/4 cup pineapple juice (drained from can, add a little water if needed)
1 large egg (if your eggs are smaller maybe add 2, it will make for a fluffier cake)
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup shortening
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Optional -- Splash of Vanilla Extract

Grease bottom of 9" pan with shortening, sprinkle 2-3 tablespoons of sugar on the bottom of dish, add drained pineapple. Preheat oven to 350.

Blend all ingredients into a batter and pour on top of pineapple. Bake 50-55 minutes (roughly). May also work with canned peaches but haven't tried it yet.

Original recipe is from Betty Crocker, I modified it when I was out of butter/milk and made it a few times, I think it is a pretty good emergency cake when you are craving desert but don't have a lot of ingredients handy. Original recipe here: https://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/pineapple-upside-down-cake/a1c9a639-0748-4f2c-89f5-fd33cf138986
 
#17 ·
Chocolate Cake...no milk, eggs, butter...this one pops up around Veterans Day....

http://dyingforchocolate.blogspot.com/2011/11/war-time-chocolate-cake-veterans-day.html


“WAR TIME CHOCOLATE CAKE

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon white vinegar
5 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup cold water

Directions:
In large mixing bowl, mix flour, sugar, cocoa, soda and salt.
Make three wells in the flour mixture. In one put vanilla; in another the vinegar, and in the third the oil. Pour the cold water over the mixture and stir until moistened.
Pour into 8 x 8-inch pan.
Bake at 350°F. oven for 25 to 30 minutes, or until it springs back when touched lightly.”
 
#19 ·
Chocolate Cake...no milk, eggs, butter...this one pops up around Veterans Day....

WAR TIME CHOCOLATE CAKE
:thumb:
There were a lot of recipes published during both WWI and WWII rationing that are very good for limited-food-supply cooking.

Here's a small collection from WWII in the UK. Britain's rationing put ours in the shade, and it started in 1940 and didn't end until 1954.
http://recipespastandpresent.org.uk/wartime.php
 
#18 · (Edited)
Egg Noodles

2 Eggs
2 Cups Flour
2 tsp baking powder *optional

Mix the eggs with 1-7/8 cup of the flour, and baking powder. Combine into a ball.
Flour the table with the remaining flour.
Knead the dough.
Roll out the noodle dough to the thickness you want for your noodles.
Slice the noodles.

I usually let then dry for a short time at this point before adding them to soup.

The same recipe can be used for lasagna or spaghetti noodles depending on how fine you slices them.
 
#30 ·
I have been using the "Buddha Bowl" formula for a while now. It's a good way to use your pantry and/or fresh food, depending on whatever you have on hand.

Essentially, you cook up a carb like rice or noodles. Add something for protein and a veggie or two. You can mix and match whatever's in your fridge. Top with some hot sauce or soy sauce, and you easily have a meal for 1. You don't have to use the same combos more than once if you don't want to (unless you don't have much else in your pantry). On the weekends, I'll cook up a batch of rice just so I can throw together some meals during week nights when I am more pressed for time.

Also, I recently discovered popovers, which are a great snack if you don't have a lot on hand except some flour, eggs, salt, milk, and butter. Add a little sugar or serve them with jam or peanut butter, and you'd probably make kids happy.

http://www.moderndomestic.com/2009/01/popovers-take-two-joy-of-cookings-low-tech-popovers/
 
#35 ·
Min there are 2.2 lbs per kg. Now if you are told your bull will be 450 kilos that would mean 990 lbs full grown. That is what I was led to believe. Imagine our shock when he weighed 1600 lbs at slaughter. He was grass fed, no, zero grain. His meat is lean as could be.

I am warning people not to be misled by claims of mini cattle sellers. Caution on the mini cattle.

Let me know when you get a Zebu.
 
#36 ·
Now if you are told your bull will be 450 kilos that would mean 990 lbs full grown. That is what I was led to believe. Imagine our shock when he weighed 1600 lbs at slaughter.
You apparently missed a word in the fine print, "can weigh more than 450 kilos." And yours did. ;)

IDK, if I had it to do over again I would get a regular size Jersey, but I don't cull animals either.
Technically, the mini Jerseys are the "regular-size" ones. They bred them up to be much bigger than the original Jersey breed to increase milk production. So a mini Jersey is your original ur-Jersey. A mini Jersey would be my 3rd choice after Highland or Indian mini. Jersey's are so pretty and sweet, and their milk is extra-rich and lovely.

Zebus are hard to find here, and some other Indian miniature breeds impossible, but there are several of those that are true minis. I've seen pics of them full grown with their owners.
Vechur cows:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vechur_Cattle
Average one is 35 inches tall, 290 pounds, and gives 3 quarts of milk a day. Now that's a miniature cow. And it's an old, old breed. :)

But I won't be getting any of them. Even the Highland minis only shared the house with their owners in the winter.
 
#37 ·
Rice and kimchi makes a pretty quick meal and ferments like kimchi are easy to make. Over the years I’ve gotten quite fond of Korean food although when I make any, I cut back the gochugaru (red pepper flakes) called for. So I’ll call it a recipe from a Korean Mother Hubbard!

Kimchi can be made with whatever kinds of greens, radishes, turnips etc you have in the garden. Some vegetable, salt, garlic, onion and hot pepper flakes are bare bones ingredients for making it but if you have any ginger or fish sauce to add it makes it more complex. It’s one of those “love it or hate it” kind of foods, I guess, but I love the stuff. I had one person who had been stationed in Korea tell me “I ain’t eatin’ no half rotted stuff that’s been buried in the backyard.” Well, mine ferments in the refrigerator. But if the SHTF and the lights went out, I darn well could make it by burying a crock of it in the ground to keep it cool like they used to do in Korea.

Yesterday I made ‘French Breakfast’ radish kimchi as it was a recipe in a kimchi book I have. This one only takes one day to ferment but must be eaten in a week. Other kimchis can last up to a year in the reefer. The recipe called for a pound and a half of radishes but ¾ lb was all I had so I made a half recipe and it made about a pint.

Brine:
¾ lb French breakfast radishes or table radishes with stems on (stems optional)
4½ tsp kosher salt

Seasoning Paste:
2 TBS water
1 TBS Korean chili flakes
½ tsp finely grated fresh ginger
¼ tspminced garlic
¼ tsp sugar

Thoroughly wash radishes in 3 to 4 changes of water. Drain and cut radishes in half lengthwise. In a bowl, toss the radishes with the salt and let stand 20 minutes. To make the seasoning paste, combine the water, pepper flakes, ginger, garlic and sugar a small bowl and set aside. Here are my radishes and seasoning paste:



Drain the radishes and save the brine juice. Rinse any excess salt off the radishes and drain again for 15 minutes. Then combine the radishes with the seasoning until evenly coated and pack into a jar. Use the saved brine to swish around in the seasoning bowl to collect any remaining seasonings and dump it all into the jar with the radishes. Cover the jar with a lid, let sit on the counter for one day and then refrigerate. Consume within one week. The final product:

 
#88 ·
Rice and kimchi makes a pretty quick meal and ferments like kimchi are easy to make.
I meant to comment on this post way back there, but forgot.

If you make your kimchi with whole leaves, those can be used to take your boring stuffed cabbage recipes to a whole other level. Even just using plain fermented rolled cabbage leaves as put up by the Russians and Poles will result in a very nice extra zing in the flavor. Stuffed fermented cabbage leaves actually are almost as good as stuffed grape leaves. (Especially if the cabbage was fermented with chili peppers, or at least with hot Hungarian paprika.) :)

Fermented radishes and turnips are also often easier to get people to eat than the original raw article. Everybody loves a pickle.
 
#43 ·
I was searching for recipes online and found this recipe for oatcakes:

https://pennysrecipes.com/7324/recipe-traditional-oatcakes

They use oatmeal, butter, baking soda, salt, and water. Now I am going to have to try it.

Recently, I made a pretty good cheese & onion pie with a basic crust recipe like this: https://www.thespruce.com/easy-oil-pie-crust-recipe-304979

Flour, oil, and salt. That is it. I topped it with cheese and diced onions, put in the oven, and it actually tasted pretty good. Yeah, you can jazz it up by adding more veggies or seasonings, or make a pizza out of it, but for 5 ingredients that most people would have, it makes several servings. Not too shabby.
 
#44 ·
I was searching for recipes online and found this recipe for oatcakes:

https://pennysrecipes.com/7324/recipe-traditional-oatcakes

They use oatmeal, butter, baking soda, salt, and water. Now I am going to have to try it.
Another fine old Scots staple. :)

Oatcakes are delicious with cheese and with nut butters, can be turned into instant cobblers crumbled up with some fruit and sugar and optionally topped with a bit of cream, made into a graham cracker-style unbaked pie crust, and make an excellent replacement for breakfast toast--oatmeal you can eat with your hands for breakfast on the go. I always have some around.

It's unfortunate they are so little known in the US. Nairn also makes them in cheese and pumpkin seed versions as well these days, but just plain oats is the original.

Even the baking soda is optional (it's a modern addition), and you can use any oil/fat and in a smaller quantity. Although the traditional ones are made with Scottish oatmeal, which is ground, not rolled oats, ground-up American rolled-oat oatmeal will work. You just get a somewhat different texture.
https://www.theguardian.com How to Cook Perfect Oatcakes

A good ol' traditional recipe favored in my family--probably because it had oats to keep the Scot happy and bacon drippings to keep the Virginian happy. (A Scot would be as likely to have beef or lamb drippings as pork drippings. Use what you have. Tallow makes a longer-keeping oat cake than lard, and ghee or coconut oil also will give them a longer shelf life than polyunsaturated oils.)

Bannocks (Oatcakes)

4 oz (125g) medium oatmeal (Scottish ground oat meal)
2 t bacon drippings/melted fat
2 pinches baking soda
Pinch of salt
3 to 4 T hot water
Additional oatmeal for kneading

Mix the oatmeal, salt and soda and pour hot melted drippings into the center. Stir well with a wooden spoon and add enough water to make into a stiff paste.
Cover a board with oatmeal and turn the mixture onto this. Work quickly so it doesn't cool and stiffen.
Divide into two and roll one half into a ball and knead with hands covered in oatmeal to stop it sticking. Roll out to around quarter inch thick. Put a plate which is slightly smaller than the size of your cast-iron pan over the flattened mixture and cut round it to make a circular oatcake. Cut into farls (4 wedges) and place in the lightly greased heated pan.
Cook for about 3 minutes, until the edges curl slightly, turn, and cook on other side.
Get the next oatcake ready while the first is being cooked.

You can also bake your bannocks in a 375F/190C oven for about 30 minutes, until brown at the edges.
This makes 2 bannocks about the size of a dessert plate, 8 farls. If you want more, make up a new batch of dough for each 2 bannocks you want.
Store in a tin and reheat in a moderate oven when required.
 
#48 ·
Ok I will throw a recipe out there. Don't have a name for it and some of you will laugh and others will probably turn green but it's actually pretty good and it's true cupboard scrounging. In fact when you are 23 and single and two days before payday you had money for either beer or food when you come home with beer you find this stuff. Trust me I know :)

1 potato baked or nuked
1 can of tuna
1 can of corn (creamed or regular)

Mix the tuna and corn and put it on the tater.

Finding a bit af Lawry's knocking around in the cupboard along with some shredded colby jack or chedder that hasn't molded yet really sets this off. Actually it's good enough I still make it a couple times a year although with less questionable ingrediants. Wife and daughter really like it. Son can't stand the smell of tuna. He only eats the bluegills and pike he catches.
 
#49 ·
Actually it's good enough I still make it a couple times a year although with less questionable ingrediants. Wife and daughter really like it. Son can't stand the smell of tuna. He only eats the bluegills and pike he catches.
Tuna is awesome on just about everything, but never thought to try it on a baked potato! I often melt some butter, throw in a tablespoon of flour and a little milk to make sort of a cream sauce, then add the tuna. It is great over pasta or toast (or possibly a baked potato). With pasta it makes for a very warm/filling comfort meal.

Last night it was cream of chicken soup with leftover baked chicken chunks poured over rice. God it was good, I might have licked the plate if the dog's weren't staring at me and silently saying "You better not eat every last bite!". So I had to show restraint and leave a bit for them.
 
#61 ·
I don't have a proven recipe. Some folks use special pans, some recipes call for heating up the pan before adding batter etc... It is rather complicated and mistakes mean a flat little flour disk instead of a gloriously puffy popover.

Maybe NY Min can provide one? Otherwise I would probably use a basic recipe with a regular pan to start (and feed any failures to the chickens). https://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/popovers-recipe

ETA -- NY Min beat me to it!
 
#63 ·
Okay, some things you can do with oats when all you've got is oats, courtesy of the land of my foremothers plus a few other places.

First you can use oats in soup. For some reason, oats are the one thing most Americans don't think of putting in soup, but they make a fine poor-man's soup thickener--"cream" soup without any cream. The Scots call their basic version Boyndie Broth, but there are other versions of oatmeal soup around.

Boyndie Broth 1
Boyndie Broth 2
Scotch Oatmeal Soup

Irish oatmeal soup:
Oatmeal Leek Soup
Jacques Pepin's version of Oat-and-Leek Soup

Iceland:
Icelandic Vegetable and Oat Soup

Heading for South America,
Colombian Sopa de Avena
Tomato and Garlic Oatmeal Soup

Even India makes Oatmeal Soup:
Indian Oat Soup

You can also use oats as a stuffing or side dish. The Scots call it skirlie, and it's another thing best made with drippings.
Beef-Drippings Skirlie
Oatmeal Stuffing for Turkey

You can even add oats to your mashed potatoes to stretch them:
Oatmeal Potatoes

And 3 more savory recipes for oatmeal one-dish meals to get you thinking creatively, Cuban-Style Oatmeal with Black Beans, Steel-cut Oatmeal with Sweet Corn, Tomato, and Pancetta (or bacon/ham), and Oatmeal with Soft-boiled Egg, Turkey Bacon, and Parmesan:
Savory Oatmeal Recipes

Store some kilned (toasted) whole oat groats along with your rolled oats for long-storage oats you can turn into steel-cut oats or true oat meal at need, but in a pinch, thick rolled oats that are toasted and then ground coarsely will do in most recipes calling for those.
 
#64 ·
Wife noticed what I was reading. She is planning on trying popovers for breakfast in the morning. If they don't turn out she will try again. We all like homemade breads and wife can't stand for there to be one that looks good and she can't make.

If they don't turn out that's cool we have homemade bread and we have eggs kids will eat good and we will try again on the popovers.
 
#67 ·
If they don't turn out that's cool we have homemade bread and we have eggs kids will eat good and we will try again on the popovers.
We absolutely loved popovers/Yorkshire puddings when I was a kid. :thumb:

With all the eggs and milk and made with good butter and little or no sugar, they're a healthy breakfast smeared with some all-fruit lekvar--way ahead of Pop Tarts. (And yes, you can even make them with white wheat whole-wheat flour).
 
#65 ·
And here are a few variations on the oatmeal porridge and oatmeal cookie thing to stave off gastronomic boredom when its wheat, rice, and oats and more wheat, rice, and oats.

Give that boring oatmeal a kick in the pants with Indian sweet masala spices:
Chai Oatmeal
Gingerbread Oatmeal

Try some other oatmeal cookies recipes:
Anzac Biscuits (made to store and travel well)
Oat and Ginger Crisps
Oat Flour Gingerbread Cookies]
Crumbly Gingerbread Oat Bars

Utterly simple Scots oatmeal dessert:
Cranachan
And its spiritous beverage version:
Atholl Brose

And then there's plain old oatmeal bread:
https://hamlynsoats.co.uk/recipes/oatmeal-bread/

Once in a while, of course, the Scots use barley instead of oats, as in this barley pudding, in which either will work (or how to make rice pudding without rice :) ):
http://www.rampantscotland.com/recipes/blrecipe_barley.htm
 
#69 ·
Potato and cheese, or another filling?

I have a small batch dough recipe for the outside, that I can look for.

http://www.survivalistboards.com/showthread.php?t=172768&highlight=easiest+pasta+recipe

(While I was searching I found potsticker filling, which isn't pierogi filling, but a meat filling. We like just as much as potato and cheese :) http://www.survivalistboards.com/showthread.php?t=172773&highlight=potsticker so a bonus included)

When I make pierogi, I fill with a mixture of mashed potato mixed with grated or crumbled cheese. Seal in a half moon shape using water around the edges. Drop in boiling water and cook until they float. Only a few minutes. Transfer to a skillet in which you have sauteed onions in butter. Toss a couple times and done.
 
#70 ·
Making good pierogis is like making good pie crust. It's best to have an experienced granny to teach you the right touch, in the case of pierogis, a Polish granny.

For the babcia-deprived, though, here's a dissertation on pierogis 101 with links to recipes for classic fillings and the basic dough recipe.
http://www.tastingpoland.com/food/pierogi_2.html
http://www.tastingpoland.com/food/recipes/pierogi_dough_1.html

And this is a recipe for pierogis with the classic potato-cheese filling. (If you were paying attention earlier in the thread, you already know where to go to find a recipe for making fast-and-easy farmer cheese/paneer out of nonfat milk powder, canned butter, and vinegar or citric acid, and you hopefully also have some plain, unadulterated Bob's Red Mill potato flakes in your food storage for dire emergencies, or much better, some Peruvian precooked and dried papa seca that you can rehydrate and mash up/your own homemade version of precooked dehydrated potatoes).
https://www.thespruce.com/potato-cheese-pierogi-recipe-1136822

This is a great list of fusion-cuisine pierogi variations with linked recipes:
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/04/27/pierogi-recipes-pierogies-photos_n_3180787.html
Whole-wheat sweet potato pierogis, anyone? Maybe cheddar pierogis with sage-butter sauce? Philly cheesesteak pierogis?

Okay, I'm ducking and running now before I get pelted with fried pierogis by some purist the-only-way-to-make-pierogis-is-my-babcia's-recipe Pole. :D

Various filled pasta dough and pastry recipes are a classic ploy for turning small amounts of odds-and-sods of food into a tasty and filling dinner. All the stuffed leaf and stuffed vegetable recipes are the inside-out approach to the problem--they usually incorporate cheap and otherwise-blah grain into their stuffing to fill people up.
 
#71 ·
Some recipes that we use at home that we got from WII Rationing. Measurements are metric.

Country House Cake

12 oz plain flour
3 oz sugar
4 oz margarine
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon of mixed spice
6 oz dried mixed fruit
1/2 pint warmed milk

Method

Cream margarine and sugar together.
Add all dried ingredients making sure the flour is sieved and everything dry has been well mixed.
Stir in warm milk and beat well.
Place in a 7 inch deep tin.
Bake in a moderate 180 C for 1.5 to 2 hours.






Welsh Cakes

6 oz plain flour with 3 teaspoons baking powder added (or use self raising flour)
2 oz margarine, butter or dripping
2 oz sultanas (or mixed dried fruit)
1 small carrot grated
2 oz sugar
1 fresh egg or 1 dried reconstituted egg
1 tablespoon milk
1/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg

Method

1. Rub fat into the flour and baking powder mix until resembles bread crumbs
2. Stir in nutmeg, sugar and dried fruit
3. Mix the egg and milk together and add to dry mix to form a stiff dough (add more liquid or more flour as needed)
4. Treat mixture as pastry and roll out on floured surface to 1/4 inch thick
5. Use 3 inch rounds to cut out
6. Pre-heat griddle or heavy frying pan
7. Grease
8. Put in Welsh Cakes and cook until golden brown on both sides over a moderate heat (about 4 minutes)
9. Set aside a cool
10. Sprinkle with a little sugar
11. Serve with butter/jam and a nice cup of strong tea or coffee if you prefer.

Enjoy.
 
#72 ·
Some recipes that we use at home that we got from WII Rationing. Measurements are metric.
Thanks! :thumb:

I think Paula Deen and Pioneer Woman have convinced people these days that you simply can't make tasty desserts without using pounds of butter and cups of sugar, but it's not so. A little fat will do you, egg can add richness in place of butter, and fruit, especially dried fruit, will let you make something that satisfies the sweet tooth using little or no added sugar.
 
#73 ·
Crepes are another good simple recipe. Fill with veggies/meat in a cream sauce and it makes a nice "elegant" change of pace from pasta/rice. Great as a desert with some jam and cream on top. Even better filled with ice cream with a fruit/chocolate sauce on top.

Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar (only for desert recipes)
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
1 1/2 cups whole milk
4 large eggs
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Blend until batter is smooth, batter will be very thin. Let sit for 15+ minutes so the air bubbles rise to the surface. Pour a little puddle on a greased non-stick pan and roll pan to create a thin layer. Cook one side then turn and cook the other.

Tip -- When using a nonstick pan just shake it when you think one side is done, when it moves it is done (vs trying to peel it up with a spatula/fork which inevitably makes a big mess and an unusable crepe). Can store in the fridge or freezer.

 
#74 ·
Crepes are another good simple recipe. Fill with a creamed sauce/soup and veggies or meat for a meal it makes a nice "elegant" change of pace from pasta/rice.
You can also use your rice and lentils to make the Indian version of crepes, dosa, which can also be filled with all kinds of different fillings. With the rice and lentils providing balanced protein, you can make a filling, nutritious meal of dosa and seasoned veggies cooked in some oil/fat or with a bit of added tahini sauce.

https://indianhealthyrecipes.com/dosa-recipe-dosa-batter/
https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1017153-classic-masala-dosa
http://foodviva.com/south-indian-recipes/dosa-recipe/

Very good recipe to tuck away if you are storing lots of rice and lentils. With any luck, the family won't even realize it's rice and lentils for dinner again. :)



Nothing is needed to make these but lentils, rice, salt, a little fenugreek or other spice, and oil/ghee for greasing the cooking pan.

Variations on the theme, including rice and coconut flour, buckwheat, cream-of-wheat, mung bean, and finger millet dosas:
http://food.ndtv.com/lists/indian-fast-food-top-10-dosa-recipes-694722
(Colocasia/arbi is a taro root. You can substitute tapioca powder or even instant potato flakes)

There you go--a bunch of different no-egg, no-milk crepes/pancakes.

ETA: You fans of storing parboiled rice and lentils may also want to investigate idli recipes, which will let you use them both for breakfast or lunch as well.

http://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/idli-recipe-how-to-make-soft-idlis/
(Poha is flattened rice. Rice soaked overnight, rolled flat, and then dried.)



Since a a lot of Scots regiments spent time in India back when, there are even recipes for oats idli because...the Scots make everything with oats. ;)
http://hebbarskitchen.com/oats-idli-recipe-instant-oats-idli-recipe-masala-oats-idli-recipe/

 
#75 ·
Of course my problems with recipes is I normally only use them for inspiration then go to the kitchen and though something together. I as her if she wanted venison tonight before I left work. She let me know that we had hamburger thawed that needed to be cooked. Since grilling burgers in the dark when its 40 degrees didn't interest me I ask her to make eggs noodles while I started to drive home.

When I stepped in the door I cut up a red onion, and a poblano pepper (because it was in the fridge). I still had no idea what I was going to cook even after sauteing the onion, pepper, some fresh garlic, and a can of mushrooms, but if your going to brown hamburger its needs some extra flavor in the pan.

After the hamburger was browned and everything else started to caramelized I had a decision to make. Was this "whatever" going to have a cream base or a tomato base. Since I was being indecisive I ask my wife, tomato or cream, she had no idea what I was cooking either and gave me a smart aleck answer, "I don't know, both?".

At this point I decided I would take her decision and proceed. So I added a big can of stewed tomatoes, and a pint of sour cream:) At that point I was well underway to making something. Since it looked either Italian or Slavic I added a generic Italian seasoning mix and Hungarian Sweet Paprika.

Edit I almost forgot that I dumped a can of peas in before adding noodles.

We let that simmer for a bit and cooked the egg noodles about half way in salted water. Once the noodle were partially cooked everything went into the deep pan the hamburger and sauce were in to simmer for 20 minutes.

I still have no idea what I am eating but my wife likes it. Personally I added a few dashes of hot sauce to mine. I have been banned from using my Hot Paprika when I am cooking for everyone.

See how do you put together a recipe for something like that.
 
#76 ·
See how do you put together a recipe for something like that.
You just did--and posted it here. With chatty commentary--you're halfway to a recipe blog (you just need at least a dozen full-color closeup photos of each step), cookbook, and your own TV show. :)

If you go back to 17th, 18th, and 19th century recipes, this is how most of them were written.

They just give you the ingredients and the order and process in which they get combined. It is assumed that the reader knows basic cooking and can therefore season to taste and figure out quantities and baking temp/time, etc. for him/herself.

The above is a recipe--just not the kind of Woman's Day/Good Housekeeping/Betty Crocker detailed, step-by-step recipe with precise measurements, often now also with full-color photographs of every step, that 21st-century people expect to be given to follow if they cook at all and think a recipe isn't just put 1 can of prepared this, 1 can of ready-to-eat that, a jar of such-and-such, a box of whatever, and a packet of some mix in your crockpot and let it all cook together for 5 hours.

ETA: You can send me all your Hungarian Hot Paprika. It definitely isn't banned in my kitchen. :D:
 
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