Cooking is Love made visible.
I leafed through another of Granny's cookbooks today. This one appears to date from the 1930s. It is full of handwritten recipes, newspaper clippings, loose bits of paper, and an envelope bearing a 3 cent stamp with a recipe for cucumber pickles scribbled on its back. I photographed each page and hope to try the recipes, making a connection with my forbearers.
It is also full of wisdom that I hope I won't need, such as cures for bunions (iodine and sweet oil), arthritis (lemons, epsom salts, and cream of tartar), indigestion in cows (salts, ginger, and molasses) and swollen udders (white beans and plenty of bran).
I need to know - what did she do with the lemons etc for arthritis.
ReplyDeletePmc
Hi! You're too young for arthritis! This 'cure' didn't scare me, although I never thought of taking epsom salts internally.
ReplyDelete"Slice half dozen lemons into an earthenware dish. Pour over them one pint boiling water. Let stand overnight. Mix together one half pound epsom salts, two teaspoons cream of tartar. Pour over the mixture 1 pint of boiling water. Stir well. Add lemon water. Cool and bottle. Take a wine glass full before breakfast and at night. Also if effects are not too active, continue treatment for 7 weeks. Omit the remedy for two weeks, then resume as before."
I don't know what she meant by "if effects are not too active". Let me know!