Thriftlady's wartime experiment

thriftlady_2

Shirlei wrote: »

I don't know if this has been mentioned on Thriftlady's wartime experiment thread, but I loved "How We Lived Then: A History of Everyday Life During the Second World War" by Norman Longmate. It's an easy and fascinating read about the small details that went to make up people's lives then. I think it's still available to buy but my library definitely has a copy.

Shirlei

Thanks Shirlei, it is still in print -linky

mmm...steamed pud

Emmy L, how are the rations holding out?

Caterina

Justamum wrote: »

I am adapting it to our vegetarian/vegan diet though. What interests me more is being able to live on the quantities of food they had rather than having to be exactly precise about the authenticity of the actual food they eat. So I'm having soya milk instead of cow's, soya mince as part of the "meat" ration - and beans for the rest of it.

Thanks Justamum. I have been wondering if I could do anything like this being a vegetarian, and now after your post it makes total sense to me.

I might give it a go, family permitting (you never seen gannets like my two teenagers :rotfl: ).

Caterina

Justamum

Caterina wrote: »

Thanks Justamum. I have been wondering if I could do anything like this being a vegetarian, and now after your post it makes total sense to me.

I might give it a go, family permitting (you never seen gannets like my two teenagers :rotfl: ).

Caterina

My DH wasn't too impressed with my efforts :rolleyes: OK that's an understatement :rotfl:. He told me he wasn't "playing war" any more, so I've abandoned my experiement. :rolleyes: Just to warn you, if you've got the "We'll Eat Again" cookbook, do not try the semolina and marmalade mould! :rolleyes:

Caterina

I am half way through reading this thread, it is absolutely fascinating! My maternal family was in Rome during the war and they always told me of the cold and hunger they suffered.

One funny story my aunt tells me (but my mum is not amused LOL) was that my mother, then a child of 8 or 9, used to go to pick up rationed coal WEARING WHITE GLOVES!!!

On the other hand, my father's family lived in rural Sardinia and never felt any hunger at all, because the land and sea provided all the food they needed, they were truly self sufficient.

Justamum, I don't think I could actually manage to feed my family this way, I would have a total revolution on my hands. I already get "accused" of feeding them "hippy slop" (read: healthy rice, lentil, bean and veg variations of stews and casseroles :rotfl: ). Especially my DS would not give up his frozen pizzas and enormous amounts of cheese and other various bits and pieces that are definitely NOT OS or wartime foods!

So I am not even going to start this battle, but instead will keep taking many other OS measures, but I truly admire those of you who are managing to do it! It is something I could happily do with DH once the kids have left home.

I shall keep reading with great interest, though.

Caterina

Snowy_Owl

WOW!!! I can't believe i found this thread - and through googling it as well!!!!

Bascially I've been thinking about wartime rationing and recipes after seeing a programme a few weeks ago. I've got some basic recipes but looking for more ideas.

Kinda thinking about trying out "rationing" for a week of two - maybe even a month but researching it at the mo. This thread could take a while to sift through!!

Snowy

geordie_joe

thriftlady wrote: »

Neither flour nor bread were rationed although bread was rationed after the war for a while -don't forget that rationing lasted until 1954.

Sorry to quote an old post, but I understood that flour rationing ended on 25 July 1948, so it must have been rationed.

Also, saying rationing ended in 1954 is a bit misleading. Rationing was gradually phased out, and the last things to be rations stopped in 1954.

Restrictions were gradually lifted three years after war had ended, starting with flour on 25 July 1948, followed by clothes on 15 March 1949.

On 19 May 1950 rationing ended for canned and dried fruit, chocolate biscuits, treacle, syrup, jellies and mincemeat.

Petrol rationing, imposed in 1939, ended in May 1950 followed by soap in September 1950.

Three years later sales of sugar were off ration and last May butter rationing ended.

nicki_2

I'll be giving this a go...once I get my War time cookbook back from school :rolleyes: I loaned it to them to have a flick through for quick things for the kids to make since they're doing WW2 as this terms topic...its that good they've still got it :rolleyes::rotfl::rotfl: *put note in her phone to pick the book up on the 9th July*

jollymummy

What an interesting thread I'm going to read it at leisure My Mum maintains her family managed to eat pretty well during WW2. However my Grandad did have a big allotment and grew lots of veggies and they also had a pig and hens. My Dad used to tell me about his Mum going over to Hull to see his Aunt Ida after she'd written to say they'd killed the pig and they would makes mountains of mince,brawn,pies, you name it.
Another tale was from DHs Nana, his Grandad was stationed up in the Scottish Isles during WW2 and came home with a couple of bottles of whisky. He gave them to the local Working Mens Club and they were kept under the counter. His Nana would always say just an orange juice for me please, and it would be topped up with the illicit whisky. We always used to tease her and say just an orange juice for you Nana????

Justamum

nicki wrote: »

I'll be giving this a go...once I get my War time cookbook back from school :rolleyes: I loaned it to them to have a flick through for quick things for the kids to make since they're doing WW2 as this terms topic...

My DS has just finished doing WW2 - he's fanatical about it actually, and his favourite reading matter is all books WW2 (and even 1!)

I tried rationing a few months ago but DH was so unimpressed he refused to 'play' any more so I gave up!

Woman's Hour on Radio 4 yesterday was all about Margeurite Patten.

thriftlady_2

geordie_joe wrote: »

Sorry to quote an old post, but I understood that flour rationing ended on 25 July 1948, so it must have been rationed.

Also, saying rationing ended in 1954 is a bit misleading. Rationing was gradually phased out, and the last things to be rations stopped in 1954.

As this was a wartime experiment I wanted to replicate the rations available during those years. Rationing varied throughout the war with things coming on ration gradually and sometimes varying in amount- the cheese ration varied quite considerably at different times. I decided to follow the rations as described by Marguerite Patten in the We'll Eat Again book. It is very hard to be completely authentic and I made that point from the outset explaining where I was cheating (not using margarine for instance).

As for bread and flour rationing it was introduced, as I said after the war on 21st July 1946.

Rationing did continue after the war with things gradually coming off ration until 4th July 1954 when meat and bacon finally came off the ration book. I am sorry to be misleading (if indeed I was).