Thriftlady's wartime experiment

Errata

Penelope_Penguin wrote: »

Thriftlady - congratulations on VW day!

You've done a great job, and I for one have been inspired to find out more about the period.

Really hope you win POTM.

Penny. x

Ditto, jolly well done old girl, as we used to say.

This thread has made me smile, laugh out loud, and groan. I'm now inspired to forget (again) all about WW2 Imagine having to eat all that rubbish for the best part of 6 years, and coming out of it too frightened to eat an apricot !
I think people could cope with the lack of variety and limitations because in many ways it wasn't too dissimilar to what they'd eaten before the war. Let's hope this country never finds itself in the same situation again, now that its natives have tasted ................your favourite 'foreign' food here

A couple of food reminisences:

in my home town after the war it was rumoured that a chippy had started using oil for frying, many people thought that was disgusting and avoided the chippy like the plague.

my stepdad was in a POW camp for 3 years. When he was liberated and arrived back home his mum spent the first year of his return coming across all kinds of food that he'd hidden in all manner of places.

Churchmouse

Have you noticed thriftlady, that while we all thank you for this entertaining, marvellous thread, not one of us is willing to take up the challenge to take over the wartime diet:D

I do think Errata has a point, that for the people then, it wasn't a drastic change in the type of food they ate, just quantity and availability. For those of us blessed with the wherewithal to purchase a very wide range of foods it seems just too bland and narrow. But you've proved that you could do it if we had to, I wonder if I could.:rolleyes:

Smashing

Churchmouse wrote: »

Have you noticed thriftlady, that while we all thank you for this entertaining, marvellous thread, not one of us is willing to take up the challenge to take over the wartime diet:D

I'll have you know I ate a crunchie the other day (s'honeycomb, innit?) WITH THE TV TUNRNED OFF - it was like the 1940's all over again! :A

thriftlady_2

Here it is, rabbit pie in pictures

1) The bunny as supplied by the butcher



2) Bunny jointed with heart, liver, lungs and 1 kidney removed -don't know where the other kidney went



3) Rabbit joints floured and ready to brown prior to casseroling.



4) Rabbit stew on the go



5) Cooked rabbit meat taken off the bones.



6) Meat combined with the rest of the stew.



7) Ingredients for suetcrust lid.



8) Pastry rolled out to fit casserole -I used the lid to cut round.



9) Pastry in place. Pop the lid on and simmer for 30 mins -it's like a flat dumpling.



10) Finally -finished pie -yum

redmandarin

My warmest congratulations thriftlady! Well done for sticking with the wartime rationing for two whole weeks!
You should be very proud of yourself and your family! :T

Are you having a VW day street party? http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/categories/c54817/gallery/index_5.shtml
If you scroll down, the last line centre pic (Fred Bowden) is in Worcester!

You could bring along your pineapple! And I'll bring my gramophone for dancing in the street (yes, it's sad, but true - I do own a gramophone - I bought it in 1983!). It's similar to this one: http://www.videointerchange.com/images/victrola.jpg

Anyone got any 78's? I rather fancy learning to jitterbug!

Sarahsaver

THis has been really great. Thought of this thread this morning when I bagged a HUGE colander full of lovely plums from the neighbouring house's garden - loads of branches overhang our garden. DS had great fun catching the plums as I plucked them off with the help of a garden rake Dad (who served in WW2 taught us as kids to look for things like this, hedgerow fruits, mushrooms, we did know how to snare rabbits although you are not 'supposed' to afaik, a friend's mum up the road did snare lots of rabbits.
I think it would be a good moneysaving hint for everyone just to read this thread if not make at least one meal a week in a WW2 style.
Next step - kids' clothes. Mum said her dresses were made from nanna's old ones cut down. I wonder what DD would say to that!

Smashing

thriftlady wrote: »

2) Bunny jointed with heart, liver, lungs and 1 kidney removed -don't know where the other kidney went

Maybe it was a very alturistic bunny.

The pie looks incredibly appetising, even with thumper crying in my conscience. :T

Errata

Perhaps the rabbit was on the organ donor scheme

I still buy rabbit from my local butcher and make a casserole. Sometimes I feel like I'm the only person in the UK that still does casseroles.

I use the heart, liver, kidneys to make gravy, bung it in the pot with some whatever veg and the rabbit pieces (which I don't pre-cook, brown, or do anything else with ). Bunny is still cheaper than beef - just- and better for my cholesterol level.

thriftlady_2

redmandarin wrote: »

Are you having a VW day street party? http://www.bbc.co.uk/ww2peopleswar/categories/c54817/gallery/index_5.shtml
If you scroll down, the last line centre pic (Fred Bowden) is in Worcester!

Wow, thanks for that Redmandarin -a bit of a coincidence as my maiden name happens to be Bowden, and as far as I know there aren't any Freds in the family or relatives in Worcester (we're from Brum ).

Errata I slung the organs into the chicken stock I used for the liquid in the casserole for extra flavour I did wonder if the bunny was a kidney donor

Linda32

Well, thank you Thriftylady for this thead. Its been very very good to read.

I've kept my in-laws up to date with this and they are in awe of you, that you didn't have to do it. They feel that it must have been very hard not to give into temptation and just buy whatever you need or want.


:T :T :T

I've printed off your declaration of war ending to show them how it all ended :T