Unlikely Conversations Department

He: There's an estate sale at the Kieffert's.* Why don't you go down and take a look?

Me: Who are you, and what have you done with my husband?

(image used by permission from Chris Mullen's great site).

A Suffragette Recipe

Anti's Favorite Hash

(Unless you wear dark glasses you cannot make a success of Anti's Favorite Hash.)

1 lb. truth thoroughly mangled
1 generous handful of injustice.
(Sprinkle over everything in the pan)
1 tumbler acetic acid (well shaken)

A little vitriol will add a delightful tang and a string of nonsense should be dropped in at the last as if by accident.

Stir all together with a sharp knife because some of the tid bits will be tough propositions.

(From The Suffrage Cookbook, 1915)

Mystery Solved

Online friend and fellow needlewoman Gina has offered a reason why this would be called San Antonio Cocoa Cake. It seems that the Pioneer Mills in San Antonio used to produce Swansdown cake flour.

(She also volunteered to test the cake and said it was delicious!)

In Honor of National Physical Fitness Week

(ok, so National Physical Fitness Week was in May, I still think all of us desk-bound warriors should try this!)

Caturday!

Quote of the Day

"Now I've joined the amputees. It's a very expensive club to join. It costs you an arm or a leg." Sgt Mike Buyas, USA.

Knitting-3 Way Sweater from 1946

This is from (obviously!) Smart Knitting, the very first issue, Winter 1946-1947. The cover and two pages of instructions can be downloaded from my Flickr account.

Vintage Patterns-McCall's 1920's lingerie

That Wascally Wabbit

Salmon Rabbit Pie

1-1b. can salmon, drained, boned and flaked
1 cup cooked peas (8 oz can)
2 T. finely chopped green pepper
1 cup grated cheese
½ cup milk
2 T. mayonnaise
1/3 cup milk
1 cup Bisquick

Heat oven to 450 degrees. Mix salmon, peas, green pepper; spread in greased 10x6” baking dish. Blend cheese, ½ cup milk; pour over salmon. Mix mayonnaise, 1/3 cup milk, Bisquick with fork. Drop with spoon on salmon mixture. Bake 10 to 15 min, until browned. 6 servings.

I can’t begin to count the number of things wrong with this recipe. I think the cheese is supposed to make it a rarebit.

Caturday! (late post)

(Photo from the LOLCats. Sorry about the tardiness but I just got back from yet another wedding, my third this summer. Who are these people and why have they all decided to get married now?)

Quote of the Day

"Guns have little or nothing to do with juvenile violence. The causes of youth violence are working parents who put their kids into daycare, the teaching of evolution in the schools, and working mothers who take birth control pills." Tom Delay.

(clipart courtesy of Bucaro TecHelp).

Obsolete Information Dep't-An Economical Petticoat

"An inexpensive and serviceable petticoat. Buy a short knit petticoat (usual price twenty-five cents) and one yard black sateen, fifteen cents. Cut a bias ruffle of sateen, ten inches deep and hem. Stitch the ruffle onto lower edge of petticoat, stretching edge of petticoat tight. When complete the knitted edge will draw together, casing the flouce to ruffle. One may use silk, in place of sateen, if desired, and plain white ones made in this way are fine to wear with evening dresses. N.S."

(from Modern Priscilla, April 1917).

Crochet-Pattern for a 1923 Summer Hat

This comes from Needlecraft magazine, July, 1923. Three pages of instructions are on my Flickr page.

Another project that makes me want to learn to crochet.

Vintage Book Covers-The Last of the Legions

For those who don't believe that history repeats itself, please read the title story.

(Doyle wrote this before WWI. Long before).

As a Corollary to the Video in the Last Post

I couldn't resist.

(Vintage recruiting poster image from Dover Publications).

Never Underestimate the Importance of Armor as a Combat-Multiplier

http://view.break.com/293055 - Watch more free videos

Baker's Chocolate and the Lone Star State

For reasons that they do not explain, the writers of this delicious little booklet called this San Antonio Cocoa Cake. The cocoa part is obvious. Where does the San Antonio come in?

1/2 cup Baker's Cocoa
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups buttermilk or sour milk
2 1/4 cups sifted SwansDown cake flour
1 t. soda
1 t. salt
1/2 cup shortening
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla

Combine cocoa and 1/2 cup sugar. Stir in 1/2 cup buttermilk. Set aside.

Measure sifted flour, soda and salt and sift together. Cream shortening, gradually add remaining 1 1/4 cups sugar, and cream together until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flour mixture alternately with remianing 1 cup buttermilk, a little at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla. Blend in cocoa mixture.

Pour batter into two 9-inch layer pans, lined on bottoms with paper. Bake in moderate oven (350 F) for 30 to 35 minutes. Cool layers in pans on racks for 10 minutes. Then loosen from sides with spatula. Turn out, remove paper, and cool on racks.

(They recommend seven minute frosting and maraschino cherries as decoration).

This is for T-Mom

Warning: two and a half dozen sappy puppy pictures.

Caturday!

(Picture from the LOLCats).

Quote of the Day

"Any authentic work of art must start an argument between the artist and their audience." Rebecca West