Contact Me.

I love to hear from you via the comments section, or by email. I particularly love it when one of my posts strikes a chord for you, and you tell me the anecdote or memory it provoked.

I try to answer your queries on food history topics, but please be aware that maintaining this blog is a hobby for me, and I must fit the rest of my life in somewhere - so please be patient in waiting for my reply. if I do not have the time to research your question, I will try to point you towards some useful resources.

If you do not want to leave a comment, you can email me at

theoldfoodie@fastmail.fm


16 comments:

Anonymous said...

Dear Old Foodie, Your blog is fascinating and certainly makes me aware of how precious foodstuffs were in time past and how every morsel was utilised. I am browsing through my grandmother's edition of "Everyday Cookery" with the supplement "Meal planning in War time" (WWII) which has such recipes as "Illusion Chops" made from vegetable pulp and thick white sauce shaped and crumbed, with a piece of macaroni for the bone. I am planning a family reunion lunch to celebrate the arrival of forebears in Bathurst NSW in 1850, but have now realised that as they were ag.labs. they would be unlikely to have access to much fresh meat except mutton and bunny, and hardly any fresh veg. unless supplied by the squatters for whom they worked. I'll probably resort to Colonial Goose and roast veg. with cabbage and sago and or rice pudding for dessert. Not very exciting. Best wishes Fran

Nick Trachet said...

Jeanet Clarkson, I fear your facebook-account is being hi-jacked by criminals?

Anonymous said...

Greetings from down under
Last year I cam across a reference to the phrase banger in relation to phrases used amongst the Norse settlers back when the was a Danegeld.
Banger to put it delicately referred to a horses thingy and the similarities are striking especially if you look at old style long sausages
Anyway thought I would share this possible historical alternate to the bursting sausage theory
kind regards
Peter

Peter Fryer said...

banger is old Norse for horses thingy a striking comparison you might say :)
Bursting sausage indeed :p

MillieR said...

Hi Old Foodie, Happy Christmas!
I was just reading about the edible menu cards and in particular Herr Willy- we are at the initial stages of looking into our family tree and I know Herr Willy was my great grandfather. We have a copy of his book and know about his school at 24 Francis Street but I just wondered if there is anything else you might know of him? We are interested in collecting any books or tools he has made but also very keen to know where in Germany he was from but can't find a birth or death certificate, just a wedding one. Any tips gratefully received!

Patti O. said...

Hi,
We have a special project going... the next Thanksgiving, we are only going to eat (and be thankful for) things we can grow or catch ourselves. We live in a city, so growing something like wheat won't be able to be done. I can however, plant potatoes. I see you have a recipe for potato flour which I thought I could make bread and stuffing from. However, I don't understand what some of your terms are... "Below is a quote of what you wrote. Rasp the potatoes into a tub of cold water and change it repeatedly until the raspings fall to the bottom like paste; then dry it in the air, pound it in a mortar, and pass it through a hair sieve." What is Rasp? Raspings? Hair Sieve? Thank you

Amit Rabin said...

Dear Blogger,

My name is Amit Rabin, I am the owner of Roots of Food and among other stuff - I enjoy reading your blog :)

Actually, I enjoyed reading it so much that I decided to nominate you to the Liebster Award.

Now, before you're going to scream from extreme happiness or scratch your head in order to understand what it the Liebster Award, I have put all the info (including me nominating you) in this post - http://rootsoffood.com/index.php/blog/stories/liebster-award-nomination-11-3-2015

Hope to hear soon from you and continue with the good work :)
Amit

Anonymous said...

Your blog is great! I love the stories. I am wondering if you have ever ran across a beet recipe with tapioca? My grandmother used to make a version of sweet beets with tapioca that I loved but there is no recipe that I can find. They were much like Harvard beets but with tapioca. I think they would have been around the 1930's era or so...I am not sure. Any way, please keep doing what you do.

Anonymous said...

Hello Old Foodie

I have a friend whose family [from Sheffield] always called jam roly poly 'Policeman's Foot' - do you think this was a family joke, perhaps, or have you ever heard of this?

best wishes Jane Lilly

Jane.Lilly@uwe.ac.uk

Anonymous said...

Grew up in Maryland and later moved to Missouri. Persimmons grow wild in both states. I have eaten them from the ground and off the tree. You MUST let them get dark brown and super "mushy" before eating or you get pucker face. If there are deer, wait a week after the deer start eating them and they will be extra sweet (no pucker). I have made candies and pies from them as well. Also, the big red ones from the store don't have the flavor of the smaller ones, I've tried several times. Another wild fruit in both those states is the paw paw. Same thing very bitter until gooshy soft then tastes like a sweet cream custard, gosh now I miss my old haunts.

Unknown said...

I'm not Danish but if the original has a typo (or was just an alternative spelling) it may refer to something like a chicken dumpling as boller are usually small round buns. I have seen some savoury versions on Google Images.

Unknown said...

I'm not Danish but I do know that Boller are small round bread rolls. Perhaps Buller was an alternative spelling or just a typo. I have found some examples of savory ones - http://spisestuen.dk/2013/08/boller-i-karry/ so perhaps the Hønsebuller are poached chicken dumplings, which would fit with the rest of the menu.

Cheers,

Bob

Unknown said...

Not forgetting those delicious cocktail skewers of cheese and pineapple cubes. Topped with a Maraschino? Go on then!

Gary said...

It’s not your birthday yet (here), but sending best wishes now:

Qu'ils mangent de la gateau!
(a little revisionist food history)

Celebrate royally, but don't lose your head over it...

oona.thorburn@gmail.com said...

hello! happy new year!! :) i search an old fashion recipe: it's an orange whipped cream , served in the gentlemen's clubs in the old times, but it's difficult to find a recipe now, and i forgot the name of the recipe... can you help me? many thanks!! :)
oona.thorburn@gmail.com

gmatammy said...

Dear Olde Foodie, I am looking for a recipe that would have been cooked during the reign of Henry VIII. I found an interesting one in a medieval cookbook of English cookery. It is fried fish pastries. I can OT find an exact or even close time period. If you could help I would be forever grateful. Thank you, Tammy Miller my email is: gramwithattitude13@gmail.com