Don’t be a spec-tater! Make dinner like it’s 1915

It’s time to ring the dinner bell.

For the past two weeks, Lost Recipes has reclaimed a bunch of thrifty breakfast and lunch options from 1915. We’re back for part three of our stroll through the “Low Cost of Living” Menu, the Montgomery Advertiser’s daily list of meal suggestions on Adelaide Kennerly’s Women’s Magazine page. These were meant specifically for women, who in that time had just about all the responsibility for keeping their families fed.

While the breakfast and lunch options are more about simplicity, they took dinner to another level — while still relying on low-cost foods and reusing leftovers. It’s all about making the most out of what they had. Quite often that involved potatoes, either as a side or part of the main dish.

More:Lost Recipes: Low-cost lunch in 1915? Bean there, done that

• Duchess Potatoes — If you get these at a restaurant these days, they come out looking like the icing tops of cupcakes, and with good reason. Duchess Potatoes are potatoes that have been squirted into a fancy design using the same method as you would for icing. Apparently they did it a little differently in 1915. Boil and mash enough potatoes to make two cups. While they’re still hot, beat in an egg. Form the potatoes into small balls. Dip them into a mixture of one beaten egg and a half cup of water, and then place them onto a greased baking sheet. Let them brown in the oven at 350 degrees.
• Potatoes O’Brien — Melt a tablespoon of butter in a frying pan. Cut three slices of bacon into small pieces, and put into the pan. Add two cups of cold boiled potatoes that have been cut into cubes, plus two tablespoons each of chopped sweet and green peppers. Fry until it’s a golden brown.
• Chicken Hollandaise — Start with the chicken, which unless you’re using leftovers you’ll need to boil until done, take out to cool and debone. Cut the chicken into cubes and then set aside. Hold on to the chicken stock, because you’ll need it later. In a separate pan, cook three tablespoons of butter with one teaspoon of finely chopped onion and a cup of diced potatoes, until the potatoes are done and the onion is caramelized. Add two tablespoons of flour, then gradually pour in one and a half cups of your chicken stock. Stir it until it thickens, then add half a teaspoon of lemon juice, a little salt, paprika, half a cup of chopped celery, and one and a half cups of your chicken cubes. Get it boiling, and add the beaten yolks of two eggs. Cook for another minute, and it’s ready.
• Boiled Dinner — Boil beef until nearly done. They don’t specify, but I’d think stew beef would be appropriate. Add a small cabbage, a large pared turnip, some potatoes (all of which you’ve diced up), and boil for half an hour. Then you just throw in whatever veggies you’d like, or happen to have on hand. They don’t mention it, but this recipe cries out for some seasoning, especially some salt and pepper to taste. When the veggies are all soft, it’s ready to serve.
• Tripe a la Creole — Cut honeycomb tripe into two-inch pieces to make three cups worth. Put it in a pan and put in oven until the water is drawn out. Meanwhile on the stovetop, cook one tablespoon of finely chopped onion on two tablespoons of butter until it’s slightly brown. Add one eighth tablespoon of green pepper that’s been finely chopped, a tablespoon of flour, half a cup of cooked and diced potatoes, half a cup or stock, a quarter cup of strained tomatoes, and a fresh mushroom that’s been cut into slices. Add in the tripe and cook for five minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
• Atlanta Potatoes — I’m not sure what makes this dish “Atlanta,” but it sounds amazing. Boil sweet potatoes until they’re nearly tender. Cut the potatoes into lengthwise slices. Place strips of bacon between each sweet potato slice and fasten with a toothpick. Dip them in maple syrup, then put them into the oven at 350 degrees to let them brown. It might be a little overkill, but I’d suggest adding some sprinkles of brown sugar in with your bacon layers.
• Bean Loaf — Soak a cup of your favorite dried beans in cold water for three hours, and boil in the same water until tender. Drain and mash the beans. Add a cup and a half of bread crumbs, a cup of milk, a cup of cooked tomatoes, quarter teaspoon of celery salt, and pepper. Mix it well, then turn it into a buttered baking dish. Bake it for an hour at 350 degrees.
• Fried Carrots — Think pancakes, with carrots inside. Grate a cup of carrots into a bowl, then add a beaten egg, half a cup of milk, half a teaspoon of baking powder, and enough flour to make it into a batter thin enough to run off of a spoon. Fry them in small, flat cakes.
• Peanut Soup — Put half a cup of water on to boil, and add half a cup of chopped celery, a tablespoon of chopped onion, and two tablespoons chopped red and green peppers. Then add a cup of peanut butter. I’d go for the chunky peanut butter, so you’d have some chunks of nut in it. Add three cups of milk and a tablespoon of flour. Let it boil for a minute. Season and serve.
• Baked Stuffed Onions — Peel and scrape out the centers of the onions and set the scrapings aside. Parboil the onion bowls for about 10 minutes. Chop the onion scrapings with a cup of nuts, and put into a bowl. Add a cup of bread crumbs and half a cup of butter. Fill the onion bowls with the mixture, and place them on a baking sheet. Drizzle them with soup stock or water, and bake at 350 degrees. Baste often.
• Italian Roulade of Beef — This is another dish to make with leftovers. Cut thin large slices of cold roast beef, and put a teaspoon of highly seasoned bread-crumb stuffing on each. Fold the roast beef over and fasten each with a wooden toothpick. Put them on a baking sheet and put into the oven at 350 degrees. Baste frequently with a mixture of a half cup of hot water, half cup of melted butter, and a teaspoon of kitchen bouquet. You can also use a cup of mixed brown gravy and water. When done serve with a sauce made of brown gravy and half a cup of chopped olives.