FLOUR
     I told you last time about our recent trip to Virginia, especially Colonial Williamsburg.  On my first trip there with my parents, I bought a copy of The Williamsburg Cookbook, published by The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, which is still sold today.  It contains "traditional and contemporary recipes adapted from the taverns and inns."  I was 14 at the time and already interested in recipes and cooking.  I can't tell you what I thought I would find interesting, except for maybe the cakes, pies, and cookies.  However, the one recipe I tried recently and want to tell you about is Williamsburg Inn Chicken and Dumplings.

My version of Williamsburg Inn Chicken and Dumplings

     It is a simple dish, very much what many of you probably already do.  Stewing a chicken is involved using the standard aromatic vegetables of carrots, celery, and onion.  The chicken or hen is simmered with the vegetables and a little seasoning in just enough water to cover it all.  Then the meat is removed from the bone, which takes some time because it naturally has to cool enough to keep you from burning your fingers!  The one aspect of making the dumplings is the reason I chose this recipe.  I can only imagine that many of you roll out, cut, and drop your dumplings in broth.  Well this recipe is all about dropping the dough directly from a teaspoon into the broth.  
     I have never made drop dumplings!  As a matter of fact, I never ate chicken and dumplings until I was grown and lived on my own.  I have no idea why my family did not partake of this meal that remains favored by many.  But nonetheless, I made them and considering it was my first attempt, they were really good as far as flavor.  Some had a pillow-y consistency that melted in the mouth with the stewed poultry loveliness.  That's what you want.  Others were a little chewier and a few tough.  It would appear that my dumpling-making skills would need improvement!  These dumplings came from a biscuit-type dough incorporating the all important flour, salt, baking powder, shortening and milk.  I think now I overworked the dough which resulted in some less than quality results.  But we live and learn, right?  Here is a link I found to the recipe.  As always, I gain nothing from sharing this other than the exchange of knowledge.
www.gratefulprayerthankfulheart.com/2011/10/williamsburg-inn-chicken-dumplings.html

     Esther and Olivia Walton.  Does anyone recognize those names?  These are the character names of the grandmother and mother, respectively, of the long-time popular television show, The Waltons.            
     On our recent trip to Virginia, my husband and I took the time to visit Schuyler, the home town of the show's creator and executive producer, Earl Hamner Jr.  We visited the local school that has been turned into a museum honoring Hamner, his works, his life, and the town.  Classrooms are staged as various rooms one would see in the TV show, like John-Boy's bedroom, the family living room, kitchen, Ike Godsey's General Merchandise Store, and the Recipe Room at the Baldwin sisters' home. 
     We also saw Hamner's home, which appears from the outside very much like the Walton home in the show.  While visiting a souvenir store nearby, which was decorated similar to the time period, I found and purchased copies of Grandma Walton's Apple Dumpling Cake and Olivia Walton's Applesauce Cake Recipe.  Fans may remember when slices of the applesauce cake were served to company like the Baldwin sisters, or that the cake was supposedly John-Boy's favorite.  I understand how this cake could have been appreciated during the Depression because the apples were readily available.
      However, I was not aware of the Apple Dumpling Cake, so I decided to make it first, especially since it is in keeping with my dumpling theme.

Grandma Walton's Apple Dumpling Cake

     You can see the finished product at left.  The taste is very much like a pan of apple dumplings one can make with refrigerated crescent rolls.  The top browns nicely and has a slight sweet crunch when you take a bite.  I sliced five apples, two large and three medium, into an 8 inch by 12 inch pan.  I hardly ever stick with one kind of apple for any recipe because I enjoy the varied flavors. I used three different ones for this cake.  I can imagine a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream would be a welcome addition, but my husband and I just couldn't wait!
     Since I purchased this printed recipe and it has no documentation for me to attribute its origin, I will give you another option.  Try following this link I found instead.  The recipe found on this website is very much like Grandma Walton's Apple Dumpling Cake.  Again I am only sharing what I found, so you can try this cake as soon as possible.  www.allrecipes.com/recipe/13831/apple-dumpling-cake/



& FLOWER 
   

PURPLE HYACINTH BEAN - This picture is a Purple Hyacinth Bean.  Isn't it a beautiful plant?  I have heard of it before, but had never seen one until our Virginia trip.  Naturally I will attempt to locate seeds to grow this next year.  Now I just have to come up with a ladder for it to climb on.  Do you think my husband will miss his?

    

PASSIONFLOWER - I am sensing a theme here.  (purple??)  This purple beauty is a passionflower.  These blooms were on one of several plants twining their way up a wrought iron column supporting an outdoor portico.  I don't know what bucket my head has been under all these years, but I have never seen these blooms until this year.  How unique and very pretty - fragile-like.  Passionflower is a southern floral favorite, but some varieties can live up to Zone 5, which is above my area of Southeast Missouri and the part of Virginia where this was growing.  Passionflower is the state flower of Tennessee.  (Additionally, I have seen this plant spelled with two words and also with one.  You can see I chose the latter.)

 

BLACK EYED SUSANS - This photo was taken at the Colonial Williamsburg Garden Shop.  I did not ask while I was there, but after much research I believe these are a variety of Black Eyed Susans.  When I read that they can grow higher than three feet and spread far apart, I was convinced I was right.  But wow, what giants!  Mine have never been that tall.  Also, the CW website said Black Eyed Susans were grown there.

FLOUR --- On the Road

     Suppose you lived in Colonial America.  You have just finished a dinner of either chicken, lamb, or some sort of game with a carrot pudding and creamed onions.  Now what would you have for dessert?  Maybe something light like a Shrewsbury Cake! My attention was drawn to these little cakes, actually cookies, last week when my husband and I visited Colonial Williamsburg and I purchased a copy of Recipes from the Raleigh Tavern Bakery, A Collection of the Most tasteful and Approved Recipes in Virginia Cookery.
     This baking guide, published in 1984 by the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, presents instructions to make an assortment of 13 cookies, pies, and sweet treats.  The preface reminds the reader that diners from the eighteenth century enjoyed sweets then as we do now.  Each recipe has been modified for our tastes today, but includes the colonial version as well, for an interesting exchange of information.    

Shrewsbury Cakes (Sugar Cookies) and Molasses Crinkles

     I decided to make the Sugar Cookie recipe modified from the earlier one for Shrewsbury Cakes.  This prior version comes from England and received its name from a town there.  The recipe is very much like any other sugar cookie recipe you probably already have.  Common ingredients are sugar, butter, vanilla, salt, flour, egg, and cream of tartar.  I liked that the contemporary recipe included orange zest which gave the cookie a light citrus taste.  You roll this dough into small balls and roll them in sugar before baking.  I chose not to flatten the cookies because of  my personal preference of a softer center bite, even though you still experience the crispness on the outside from the cream of tartar.
     So I salute you Colonial Williamsburg and its Foundation for publishing this book of bakery sweets.  I appreciate learning more about our nation's history, even in the form of a dessert.
     For another person's view concerning this same cookie and its recipe, I am including a link to her story.  I do so only to reinforce the authenticity of the historic and amazing Colonial Williamsburg site.  I do not know the author nor does she know me.  www.sugarpiesfood.com/2009/09/williamsburg-shrewsbury-cakes.html
     Lastly, I included the Molasses Crinkles in my photo because I know this thick rich main ingredient has been used since colonial times.  I also included this recipe because it is wonderful this time of year to enjoy a few of these with a cup of tea in the afternoon.  These cookies were not included in the Raleigh Tavern Recipes, but molasses was used in its instructions for Gingerbread Cookies and Oatmeal Cookies.  Molasses Crinkles are also made in a similar way as the sugar cookies, rolled in sugar and flattened with a glass before baking.   There are several recipes for these on the internet.  The one at this link is very similar to what I used.  Again, I gain nothing for sharing this link. www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/molasses-crinkles/9cd5e260-bb56-4b41-baac-f42830d14f76



& FLOWER--- then and now

     I was walking down one of the streets in Colonial Williamsburg last week when I looked up and noticed this fruit tree pictured below.  I assumed the fruit was apples until I looked more closely and discovered they were instead pomegranates.  The lighter red color got my attention as well as their size.  I didn't think about finding such a tree in this colonial city until I learned Thomas Jefferson planted pomegranates at his beloved Monticello in 1771.  Then it made sense that Williamsburg could have pomegranates growing there as well.  I also read where an attempt was made to introduce pomegranates to England in the previous century, but they would not bear fruit there.  Fruit production was however successful in southern America, where Williamsburg, VA is located.

Pomegranate tree

     Below is a photo of a patch of purple asters growing in Colonial Williamsburg.  They would be hardy in my planting/growing Zone 7.  Two drawbacks would be their sensitivity to too little or too much moisture and their preference to cooler evening temperatures.  However I do like their dainty, daisy-like quality.

Purple Asters

     Here I am below seriously eyeing as many things as possible to purchase from the Colonial Nursery.  There are several things for sale: plants indicative of that era, seeds (which I bought), bulbs, clay pots, jams and preserves.  They do a great job of displaying how plants of that time were grown in neatly bordered beds.  Last week I saw the use of cloches or glass bell jars there, which help plants maintain moisture, heat and offer protection. 

Colonial Williamsburg Nursery -- That's me near the fence!