Buffalo Cake and Indian Pudding

by Alvin Wood Chase

Travelling physician, salesman, author and self-made man, Dr Chase dispensed remedies all over America during the late nineteenth century, collecting recipes and domestic tips from the people he met along the way. His self-published books became celebrated US bestsellers and were the household Bibles of their day. Containing recipes for American-style treats, such as Boston cream cakes, Kentucky Corn Dodgers and pumpkin pie, as well as genial advice on baking bread and testing whether a cake is cooked, this is a treasure trove of culinary wisdom from the homesteads of a still rural, pioneering United States.

Genres: Food, Nonfiction, Cooking, Cookbooks, Food History, Food and Drink

77 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1887

About the author

1817-1885

Reviews

[Ape · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know if I'm getting food-excerpt-book-fatigue with these now. This is the sixteenth or seventeenth of the twenty book set Penguin brought out that I have read. Perhaps some of these more historical ones are getting a bit samey, so I'm not appreciating the later ones I read as much as the earlier ones I've read.

This one makes a bit of a change as it's about the USA in the 1800s, and every now and then has a bit of the travelling salesman voice about it. It's a collection of recipes Dr A W Chase picked up from different housewives during his travels, including the odd random little anecdote. There's a lot of ideas for different cakes here, so there are things to try, although I think you need to be a reasonable baker as blow by blow instructions for prep and cooking/baking aren't really there. But if you've baked a few cakes in your time, you should figure it out.

As with the old UK - USA recipe book non compatibility, we're off to the old instructions of measuring everything in cups. But you can easily get the comparative weights and measures off the internet these days, so it shouldn't be a problem.

I really love the front cover of this book.

[Ally · Rating 3 out of 5]

A brief collection of recipes and cooking advice from Dr. A.W Chase, a self-made man who traveled around the USA in the mid-1800's and collected recipes and cooking tips from the people he met on his journeys. Although he published larger works with information on all kinds of foods and health living, these pieces focus on breads and desserts. A highlight of the book was a poem about buckwheat griddle cakes!

[Amber · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collection of recipes from late 1800s America includes charming commentary. For example, "those who don't know anything more than simply to always confine themselves to, or follow a recipe, or receipt, as generally called, (never changing it at all) will never amount to much, to themselves, or to the world." Thankfully, Dr. Chase provided suggested variations for many of the recipes.

[Katherine Simmons · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some interesting recipes but he isn't particularly a witty writer... quite boastful.

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well I need to try these recipes before i can truly say what I thought of this book. It was very easy to follow though and the recipes seem delicious.

[Kaye · Rating 3 out of 5]

Charming in its way. Old-timey recipes and advice.

[Nabilah · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was interesting. I'd like to try the recipes someday