Wartime recipes, substitutions and other related austerity hints

Brambling

Thanks Mrs LW I've just swapped my SR flour with my sister for eggs seems better for me than cakes, but i'm going to book mark this for later.

I was given this 1980s Blue Peter tea loaf recipes years ago and I've missed out the egg (by accident) before and it did work, just a slightly different texture

The cup used is not a typical kitchen measuring cup, but is a teacup (not mug) size.  But I think you could use a standard measuring cup and a large egg 

Ingredients
2 cups raisins  or any dried fruit
1 cup sugar (soft brown is best, but you can use normal granulated sugar)
1 cup of hot strong black tea
2 cups self-raising flour
1 egg

Put the sugar and raisins in a bowl. Pour over the hot tea, and soak for 15 minutes.
Stir in the flour. Beat in the egg. Pour into a greased two pound loaf tin and bake in a preheated oven at 190C (or equivalent) until a skewer comes out clean - about 50 minutes.

Lovely sliced with butter. Try adding mixed spice, or using earl grey tea for an alternative. 

Brambling

Also a way to use up stale bread is to make glamorgan sausages a similar idea of cheese and bread - I don't have a recipe i tend to google one when I need to. But you can tweak it, i add whatever cheese as i tend not to have Caerphilly cheese (usually cheddar) and you can use onions if you have no leeks.  I also either bake in the oven or use my air fryer which makes it a little healthier than frying 

Siebrie

Brambling, I was told that as long as you use the same cup for all ingredients, the size of the cup doesn't matter.

Brambling

Siebrie - thats how i usually do it I'm wondering with this recipe it's because of the egg or it could because it's a 1980s recipe as it was Blue Peter it was aimed at kids 

basketcase

MrsLurcherwalker said:

They are usually tiny little black moving specks like mini thrips and do you no harm if you eat them.  I'm not sure many of us own a sieve fine enough to separate them from the flour.  I've inadvertantly used flour in baking before I've realised they were in it and I'm still here with no ill effects.

Thought that might be the case. 

I was wondering if they affected the flavour more than anything!

May mosey to the cupboard and make something.   Maybe the Barm Loaf... *drool*

[Deleted User]

Made one which is cooling on the rack, looks OK, smells nice but took 15 minutes longer to cook than the original recipe said.  Will report back when we've tried it!

[Deleted User]

Well, we've been out for a country walk and feel great deal better for it and we've just had a cup of tea and a slice of the loaf when we came back.  It's lovely! more of a bread than a cake and almost bread like in consistency and texture.  I used currants for the fruit and having no marmalade that I can find used apple jelly instead and it's not overly sweet and I think will toast very well for the next couple of days.  It's a find and nice enough to make anyway let alone as a bread substitute,

basketcase

I was thinking that I had no marmalade but, coincidentally, I also have some apple jelly.  Not sure what fruit, we're not actually vine fruit fans.  Maybe apricots.  I'll make it sometime this week and let you know...

[Deleted User]

Morning folks, it occurs to me that at some point we might be out of butter/marge etc. and need something to spread on bread/toast/crackers so I'm going to post a couple of my own recipes that have been useful over the years when we've been broke to give some bean based     spready things that keep for a couple of weeks in a screw top jar in the fridge.


Creamed bean dip
4oz white beans (haricot/cannellini/butter) soaked and cooked or 1 tin of white beans, drained
1 tablespoon mayonnaise for savoury spread/2 tablespoons oil for sweet
1 tablespoon lemon juice (from a bottle or squeezy lemon is fine)
1 teaspoon dried basil for savoury spread
seasoning/sweetening/honey for sweet.

Just liquidise everything together for either a sweet or a savoury spread, you may have to add in a tiny bit more oil or juice and blitz it until it's perfectly smooth,  put into a sterilized screw top jar and store in the coolest part of the fridge.  It gives a base to a sandwich or is nice on it's own.

a slightly more flavourful definitely savoury spread that we use as a pate replacement

Piquant Bean Dip

4oz red kidney beans soaked, boiled for 10 minutes and then cooked on until they are soft or a tin of kidney beans drained and rinsed.
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon red wine
1 teaspoon wholegrain mustard
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon honey
+ I extra teaspoon wholegrain mustard to stir through at the end.
salt and pepper

Liquidise all together until as smooth as required (takes a few blitzes) and stir through the teaspoon of wholegrain mustard when it is smooth,  season with salt and pepper to your taste.  Put into a sterilized screw lid jar and store in the fridge.

Sweetcorn Balti Bread     this is one of DD1s invented as a broke uni student   Makes 1

2 tablespoons tinned sweetcorn (the cheapest of the cheap is fine)
some of the liquid from the tin
self raising flour or plain flour and baking powder (1 teaspoon of powder to each 4oz flour)
vegetable oil
seasoning

Mix all the ingredients    adjusting to form an elastic dough, knead for a couple of minutes and roll out 3/4 inch/1 1/2cm thick, fry in vegetable oil in a frying pan until brown on both sides (approx. 4 minutes each side) rubbing a little bit of extra oil on the top side as the bread cooks.

These all work and won't waste valuable resources needlessly.  Feel free to adjust flavouring quantities to taste.

PipneyJane

MrsLurcherwalker said:

I got out my wartime cookery books yesterday afternoon to have a little browse of the recipes because the fresh supplies won't last forever and we are trying to make them go as far as they will so as not to have to go out shopping and am really pleasantly surprised at finding many tasty sounding recipes made with an ounce of meat/cheese  per person so I shall be giving some of them a try in the coming weeks.  I think to start with to a modern palate they may sound (in the reading of the recipe) very dull fare but I've tried quite a few over the years and have never had that 'bland' taste I've anticipated in fact all the recipes I've tried have actually been tasty.  If I do would you like the recipes here to try? or would that be a step to far for many of you? I'm happy to post them if they work for us in the first place.

Yes, please, @MrsLurcherwalker.

May I say that I think browsing the wartime cookbooks for inspiration is an excellent idea.  I shall copy you.

- Pip