Latest Historical Articles
Victorian Jelly: Fruit Jellies
Nineteenth-century recipes for fruit jellies–the kind spread on toast or between cake layers. Vintage details instruct cooks on jellies (and jams) made of raspberry, cranberry, apple, strawberry, quince, three hues of currant, peach, plum, cherry, gooseberry, and more. How they capped their jelly tumblers might surprise you…
Victorian America’s Marble Cakes
German immigrants brought Marmorkuchen–marble cake–to the United States. Vintage cook books and newspapers show spice-and-yellow cake batters swirled together. Late-nineteenth-century bakers began to swap spice cake for chocolate. Delicious vintage baking!
Victorian-Era Hair Care
Victorians took their hair seriously: “Want Good Hair?” asked Godey’s Lady’s Book (1861). Throughout the nineteenth century, much advice circulated in magazines, newspapers, and cook books regarding how to cleanse hair (long before shampoo was invented), use of combs, whether or not to cut kids’ hair and more!
Victorian Jelly: Molds
Fancy jellies graced 19th century tables, molded in dishes made of tin, zinc, copper, and various ceramics. Photographs of antiques, together with vintage advertisements, illustrate this Victorian kitchen staple.
Victorian America’s Gold and Silver Cakes
Victorian America mined for gold and silver–and named two types of cakes after the precious metals. These two popular cake recipes appeared in multiple nineteenth-century cook books and newspapers.
Victorian Jelly: Blanc Mange
Blanc Mange (blancmange) was a favorite throughout the nineteenth century, in the UK and in the States. Victorians thickened this favorite gelled dessert with a wide variety of articles, old and new. Vintage recipes gathered from era cook books and newspapers, along with newspaper advertisements, show the wide range of blanc manges in Victorian dining.
Kristin Holt | USAT Bestselling Author, Sweet American Historical Romance
Kristin Holt | USAT Bestselling Author, Sweet American Historical Romance
