A Taste of Childhood

Well, it's been a long time since I last came across these recipes. In fact, I had conception them lost forever.

As young kids, we spent a great deal of time with "The Aunts"; that's because Dad was a farmer and Mum ran a guest house.
In the summer months, we stayed with Auntie Marjorie (Am) and Auntie Barbara(Ab). They lived a mile away in a lovely old house. Unmarried, their three nieces were their pride and joy.

When they were young ladies, in about 1917, they spent a year at Atholl Crescent in Edinburgh - where they were taught all they would ever need to know about running a home. The training included cooking and baking - and this skill stood them in good stead in later years when they had to prepare meals for three energetic young girls.

Am and Ab were supreme for their cooking and baking; it was plain but delicious. I still can't match Am's skill at cooking cabbage to perfection. It was always crisp, tasty, buttery .... Mouth-watering. Ab was the baker. She could turn out the most marvelous meringues, her chocolate cake was to die for and she had a repertoire of buns, cookies (biscuits) and gingerbread which sometimes accompanied us to school as a treat.

Mrs O's Biscuits

Put 4 oz butter into a pan along with 1 tablespoon of syrup not
heaped and allow to melt but not get hot

Then stir into 6 oz of self-raising flour

Form into balls and flatten slightly with a fork

Bake in a moderate oven till nicely browned

Place on a wire rack to cool and sandwich together
with butter icing when cold

Crispies

Put into a pan 3 oz butter, 1 dessertspoon of syrup, 2 oz of sugar, 1 oz. Quaker oats and 2 oz of rice crispies

If you like, adding a handful of salted peanuts makes a tasty alternative.

Mix well and spread evenly in a swiss roll tin

Flatten with a knife and bake in a moderate oven till nicely browned

Cool for a minuscule and cut into fingers

Ginger snaps
Put 3 oz butter and 4 oz of syrup into a pan and allow to melt but not get hot.

Mix 6 oz self-raising flour with 3 oz of sugar and 1 tsp ground ginger and add to butter and syrup

Form into small balls and bake in a moderate oven

Allow to cool on a wire rack.

These recipes are as popular today as they were with us 40 years ago! I can taste them as I type.

I hope you enjoy them as much as we did.

published here A Taste of Childhood published here