Recipes

• Vintage
• Baking & Desserts

New England Apple Dowdy (1920)

Thin apple slices coated in flour and cinnamon, covered with brown sugar and a little cold water, baked under a single pastry crust and turned out onto a platter, from Mrs. Wilson's Cook Book.

Makes

1 dowdy (one 9-inch deep-dish pie plate)

Total

1 hr 45 min

Total includes 30 minutes of cooling in the dish before the dowdy is inverted. Baking can run to 50 minutes; go by the doneness cues.

• Vintage
• Drinks & Cocktails

Picador (1937)

Tequila, Cointreau and fresh lime in a 2:1:1 balance, adapted from the Picador in the 1937 Café Royal Cocktail Book.

Makes

1 cocktail

Total

5 min

Estimated active and elapsed time, including squeezing the lime and chilling the glass while measuring.

• Vintage
• Baking & Desserts

Popovers (1931)

Tall, hollow popovers with no baking powder, lifted by steam in a preheated iron muffin pan and baked at 425°F, then finished at 350°F to dry the centers.

Makes

8 to 12 popovers

Total

1 hr

Baking takes 40 to 45 minutes; go by the color and firmness cues. The pan heats in the oven while you mix the batter.

• Vintage
• Drinks & Cocktails

Savoy 50/50 Dry Martini (1930)

Equal measures of gin and dry vermouth, shaken with orange bitters, follow the balance of the Savoy's 1930 Dry Martini.

Makes

1 cocktail

Total

5 min

Estimated active and elapsed time, including chilling the glass with ice while measuring.

• Vintage
• Baking & Desserts

Small Carrot-and-Potato Plum Pudding, Adapted from Beeton (1861)

A small eggless suet pudding with raisins, dried currants, candied citrus peel and plain mashed carrot and potato, cooked in a covered basin.

Makes

One small pudding in a 1-liter basin, divided into 4 dessert portions

Total

4 hr 40 min

Planning estimate from already cooked, drained, cooled and mashed vegetables; allow extra time to prepare them from raw. Includes 15 minutes resting. Four hours is the source-based steaming baseline; continue if the center is not set.

• Vintage
• Main Dishes

Walnut Loaf with Brown Sauce, Adapted from Lowney (1908)

A small walnut-and-soft-bread-crumb loaf, basted with butter and served with a milk-based brown sauce containing more chopped walnuts.

Makes

One small loaf with walnut brown sauce, divided into 4 main-course portions

Total

1 hr 35 min

Planning estimate includes 15 minutes resting. Make the sauce during the final 15 minutes of baking and the rest. Baking can take longer if the center is not set or has not reached 74°C (165°F).

• Vintage
• Drinks & Cocktails

Clover Club (1930 Adaptation)

A raspberry Clover Club adapted from the 1930 Savoy recipe, with gin, lemon and pasteurized egg white. Shake and fine-strain into a chilled coupe.

Makes

1 cocktail

Total

5 min

About 5 minutes with chilled glasses, prepared syrups and ice ready; advance preparation is additional.

• Main Dishes

Harissa Chickpea and Tomato Skillet

Cooked chickpeas simmer with tomatoes and harissa, then spinach and parsley finish the skillet. A four-serving dinner with adjustable chili heat.

Makes

4 servings

Total

40 min

Cooked, drained chickpeas are the starting ingredient; simmer until the tomato sauce has thickened.

• Main Dishes

Lemon Chicken and Orzo

Chicken thigh pieces and orzo cook in one pot with lemon and spinach, finished with parsley.

Makes

4 servings

Total

50 min

Allows for browning, simmering and a 3-minute rest; check pasta texture and chicken temperature rather than relying on the clock.

• Vintage
• Drinks & Cocktails

Mary Pickford (1930 Adaptation)

Rum and pineapple juice form the equal-part base of this 1930 Mary Pickford adaptation, with measured grenadine and a small maraschino-liqueur accent.

Makes

1 cocktail

Total

5 min

About 5 minutes with chilled glasses, prepared syrups and ice ready; advance preparation is additional.

• Main Dishes

Miso-Glazed Salmon Rice Bowls

Oven-baked salmon with a white-miso glaze, short-grain rice and vinegar-dressed cucumber, finished with scallions and sesame.

Makes

4 servings

Total

45 min

Rice cooking and its 10-minute covered rest overlap with baking the salmon; fish thickness and rice instructions can change elapsed time.

• Main Dishes

Mushroom, Leek and Barley Pot

Pearled barley simmers with browned mushrooms, leeks and thyme, finished with parsley and lemon.

Makes

4 servings

Total

1 hr 15 min

Pearled barley is the baseline; allow for two mushroom batches and simmer until the grain is tender with a little bite.

• Drinks & Cocktails

New York Sour

A contemporary New York Sour with whiskey, lemon and one-to-one syrup, served over ice with a red-wine float. This version has no egg white or garnish.

Makes

1 cocktail

Total

5 min

About 5 minutes with chilled glasses, prepared syrups and ice ready; advance preparation is additional.

• Main Dishes

Singapore-Style Hainanese Chicken Rice, Made with a Slow Cooker

A whole chicken cooked in ginger-scallion stock, with separately cooked chicken-fat rice, chili sauce and ginger sauce.

Makes

4 generous servings

Total

5 hr

Allow roughly 4–6 hours, including 3½–5 hours for the chicken and about 30 minutes for the rice afterward. Sauce preparation overlaps the chicken cooking; check doneness from 3 hours.

• Vintage
• Baking & Desserts

Sous-Vide Caramel Custard, Adapted from Farmer's 1918 Recipe

A spoonable milk-and-whole-egg custard with caramel dissolved throughout, cooked in small jars and served with separate caramel sauce.

Makes

8 small jar custards

Total

7 hr 30 min

Allow about 7½ hours including bath heating, 2 hours at the target temperature, brief cooling and at least 4 hours of refrigeration. Make the sauce during the bath stage. Overnight chilling also works.

• Vintage
• Drinks & Cocktails

South Side (1930 Adaptation)

A mint and lemon gin cocktail adapted from the 1930 Savoy South Side, finished with its dash of soda and served without ice in a small stemmed glass.

Makes

1 cocktail

Total

5 min

About 5 minutes with chilled glasses, prepared syrups and ice ready; advance preparation is additional.

• Vintage
• Main Dishes

Victorian Oxtail Soup, Adapted for a Pressure Cooker

A brown oxtail soup adapted from Beeton's 1861 recipe, with strained aromatic broth, light flour thickening, mushroom ketchup and port.

Makes

4 substantial servings

Total

2 hr 45 min

Allow 2½–3 hours: preparation and browning, 15–25 minutes to pressurize, 60 minutes at pressure, full natural release and finishing. Large pieces may need another 10–15 minutes at pressure.

• Main Dishes

White Bean and Rosemary Soup

Cooked white beans simmer with onion, carrot, celery and rosemary; a small mashed portion gives the soup body without cream.

Makes

4 servings

Total

45 min

Starts with cooked, drained beans; vegetable softening and a 15-minute soup simmer are included.

• Vintage
• Drinks & Cocktails

White Lady (1930 Adaptation)

Gin, Cointreau and lemon in the 2:1:1 proportions of the 1930 Savoy White Lady. This measured adaptation is shaken and served without egg white or garnish.

Makes

1 cocktail

Total

5 min

About 5 minutes with a chilled glass, strained lemon juice and ice ready; glass chilling and juice preparation are additional.

• Vintage
• Main Dishes

Abby Fisher's Chicken and Ham Jumberlie (1881)

Chicken thighs, cooked ham, and rice simmered with tomatoes and black pepper in a modern adaptation of Abby Fisher's Creole dish.

Makes

4 main-dish servings

Total

1 hr 20 min

Planning estimate includes tomato preparation, up to 50 minutes of cooking, and a 10-minute covered rest. Follow the rice and chicken checks if cooking takes longer.

• Vintage
• Snacks & Dips

Abby Fisher's Fresh Corn Fritters (1881)

Small skillet-fried corn fritters made with fresh kernels and scraped corn pulp, adapted from Abby Fisher's 1881 cookbook.

Makes

About 24 small fritters; 6 side-dish servings

Total

55 min

Planning estimate allows four frying batches. Smaller pans or additional batches will take longer.

• Vintage
• Main Dishes

Abby Fisher's Ham-Stuffed Eggplant (1881)

Eggplant shells filled with cooked eggplant, ham, butter, and bread crumbs, then baked until tender and golden. Adapted from Abby Fisher's 1881 recipe.

Makes

4 stuffed eggplant halves; 4 side-dish servings

Total

1 hr 5 min

Planning estimate includes an initial shell bake and a final bake. The filling cooks during the initial bake; larger eggplants may take longer.

• Vintage
• Baking & Desserts

Abby Fisher's Orange-Scented Sweet Potato Pie (1881)

A single-crust sweet potato pie with orange juice and zest, adapted from Abby Fisher's 1881 filling and butter-and-lard pastry.

Makes

1 standard 9-inch pie; 8 slices

Total

3 hr 30 min

Allow about 3 1/2 hours, including pastry chilling, cooling the potatoes, and at least 1 hour of cooling after baking. Some preparation and cooling overlap.

• Baking & Desserts

Black Sesame Cookies with a Soft Center

Large black sesame cookies with roasted sesame in the dough and a sweet sesame-paste filling.

Makes

6 large cookies

Total

1 hr 42 min