Wartime Cabbage Soup

Happy Saturday Lovelies..

Can you believe it’s November.. with a lovely weekend ahead.. starting with a lovely relaxed breakfast with my darling hubby.

So what does MrD do on his day off... Well he starts by saying..  "Day off!! What day off ??" and got stuck into continuing to fix the back door. The new frame is now on. It’s all watertight and just needs a cot of paint.. ready for whatever the winter throws at us. This man works so hard. He just can’t seem to rest, but tomorrow is Sunday and I’m sure a little snoozing in his chair will be in his cards.

I spent the afternoon finishing the new winter curtains for the living room and dining room They will keep the house, lovely and warm and help keep these old windows of ours draft free.   

For lunch today, I made a lovely Wartime Cabbage Soup served with some lovely toasted bread…. made with some stale bread I bought yesterday from Bettys Bakery. She always yesterdays bread at a reduced price... which is perfect for making Bread Pudding.. or drying to make a base for stuffing

So what can I say about this soup.. Its another WW2 Ministry of Food recipe that absolutely hits the mark. Warming... economical and incredibly easy to make.. this cabbage soup was surprisingly delicious.

The only amendment I made.. and I would advise you to do the same... is to check the seasoning. I used a homemade vegetable stock so I didnt need to add extra salt.

And I think any type of cabbage would work. Next time,  a savoy cabbage would be lovely. So yes.. I will be making it again

  

1 oz, dripping or cooking fat
4 oz, shredded cabbage
1 medium sized onion, chopped
3 oz. carrot, grated
1 oz. oatmeal
1 pint stock or water
2 teaspoons salt
Pinch of pepper
1 pint milk

• Melt the dripping or fat in a saucepan
• Fry the vegetables gently for about 5 minutes, without browning.
• Add the cabbage and oatmeal and cook for a further 3 minutes.
• Add the stock or water and seasoning.
• Boil gently for 20 minutes.
• Lastly, add the milk and reheat.

Eating For Victory
Collection of Official WW2 Recipe Leaflets

Dump Soup

Sunday Blessings from our Little Blue House

It was so lovely to step outside this morning to find that our old rose bush had burst onto bloom again. I guess that Autumn hasn't quite got her claws into us yet...

even thought the tree outside our church has definitely embraced the season

Its still not very cold.. but soup is always welcome on an October day.. This old recipe is no exception and I saved my old veggies to make it

During the war, food shortages were in full force so The Waste Not Want Not mentality became the norm. Recipes were stretched and nothing was wasted.. even the vegetables that were "on the turn" in the kitchen.

Dump It All In Soup...affectionally called Dump Soup.. is a recipe from my Nanas Kitchen that I still make. It is so easy...and you cant really call it a step by step recipe. You just start with a base of canned tomatoes, stock, onions and Worcestershire sauce... and just "dump in" any veggies that you have...no pre cooking or sauteing needed. Its great when you want to clean out your fridge. I ring the changes and sometimes throw in a bit of cooked chicken, pork or beef

1 can of diced tomatoes
2 pints stock.. Beef, Chicken or Vegetable
A few splashes Worcestershire Sauce
Tbsp Minced Garlic
Large onion chopped
1 can of Kidney or Black Beans, drained and rinsed (optional)
Assortment of vegetables .eg Potatoes, Celery, Carrots, Green Beans, Parsnip, Turnip/Swede,

Salt and Pepper to taste

• Peel and chop the vegetables
• Throw everything into a large pot 
• Bring to the boil ,then simmer until vegetables are tender.
• Puree if you like, but chunky is delicious
• Simple!
• Enjoy!

Creamy Potato and Celery Soup

I'm feeling a little better today.. although still very sniffly.

Not wanting to get anyone else sick.. we decided to  listen to the church radio broadcast and study from home. I must say... it made a cosy change but all being well.. we should be back there next week.

Taunton, Somerset, on a Sunday afternoon during 1942

Its a little chilly here at our Little Blue House... and with feeling under the weather I needed something warm and comforting. So, its officially soup season.  One of our favourites is my grandmothers recipe for Creamy Potato and Celery Soup. 

My Grandad had a Victory Garden which provided so many veggies during the war.. growing in the ground, tubs, window boxes, hanging baskets and his homemade greenhouse made from old windows. Plus he and Uncle Bill shared an allotment behind the village bowling green, created just before the war, where they grew onions and potatoes. 

So, vegetable based soups were often on my Nanas stove. She even made her own stock from all the vegetable peelings which she canned and stored in her large pantry. In Nanas house...nothing was wasted

Now...this recipe says creamy...but theres not a drop of cream in it. The creaminess comes from the potatoes which when cooked long enough breaks down. A quick blend in the mixer and it becomes thick, smooth..... and creamy

Absolutely delicious and filling. My hubby loves it with a bit of ham added. This soup freezes well... but make sure you whisk well when reheating

1 bunch celery, diced

3 large potatoes, diced (for best results use Russet)

1 onion, diced
1/2 teaspoon celery salt (or sea salt)
3 pints /6 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 tablespoon oil

• Heat the oil in a large frying pan.
• Saute onion and potato for 3 minutes or until the onion has turned translucent.
• Pour in chicken stock and bring to the boil.
• Once boiling, add celery.
• Bring back the boil and lower the heat.
• Add celery salt.
• Let simmer for 30 minutes.
• Puree the soup with blender, until smooth

Elmer’s Tune - 1941

Glenn Miller with Ray Eberle & The Modernaires

We're ending the day relaxing.. MrD working on one of his many projects... me working on my knitting and both of us listening to our favourite tunes including this one..

Thank you for popping by...

Enjoy your Sunday

Love and Blessings

Mrs D x

Pea Soup

The weather was decidedly cooler this morning and we had a packed church

Photo 1940s

We had a visiting pastor who was quite comical and gave us an interesting sermon

The walk home was quite damp.. I was so happy to get into the warmth and coziness

The Lily Wallace New American Cookbook
1945

I was so pleased to finally get my hands on a 1945 edition of The Lily Wallace New American Cookbook yesterday... I just had to try a recipe straight away.

So it had to be this lovely fresh Pea Soup. Its not quite soup season...or is it?.. but this was so quick and easy to make... I had to try. And I wasnt disappointed. It was very tasty! I used peas straight from the pod...but Im sure it would be just as flavourful using frozen or canned

Serving soup to the family

Early 1940s

I made no changes to the actual soup... but I used Kielbasa sausage because thats what I had on hand. And I dont think I would ever boil the sausage... I would.. and did.. brown in the pan first..

It was Lovely!

1/4 cups boiled peas 
1 cup chopped celery
1 chopped onion

4 cups water
2 smoked sausages
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

• Simmer peas, celery, and onion in 4 cups water until soft. 
• Rub through sieve. 
• In another pan cover sausages with boiling water 
• Boil 10 minutes and drain... or like I did ..
• Brown in a pan
• Slice into soup. 
• Add salt and pepper.

We settled down to watch a comedy/mystery movie from 1941

'Topper Returns' starring Joan Blondell, Roland Young and Carole Landis

1940s Peppermint Patties Box

My Darling Hubby had bought some delicious peppermint candy for us to eat while watching

Tonight.. after its been a chilly, rainy day.. I've ended up with the sniffles... 

so its an early night for me with a good book...

and a warming cup of Ovaltine.

Ovaltine Ad 1948

Sleep well Lovelies

Love and Blessings

Mrs D x