The Bergen Record

Family recipes for chicken pie, cake, stew and more

We’re at part three of Lost Recipes, our four-part look at granny recipes that readers submitted to Alabama’s Montgomery Advertiser in 1940, and there are still so many delicious treats ahead.

Devil’s Food Cake

Mrs. W.A. Goolsby of Cherry Street in Montgomery sent in a Devil’s Food Cake recipe that’s just heavenly. You’ll need a cup of butter, 2 cups of sugar, 4 egg yolks, 3 cups of flour, 3 teaspoons of baking powder, a cup of sour milk, a cup of boiling water, 2 teaspoons of cocoa, a teaspoon of baking soda and a teaspoon of vanilla.

Mix the cocoa with boiling water, then add the baking soda. Let it cool. Cream the shortening thoroughly, add sugar and beat it until it’s fluffy. Add the beaten egg yolks and vanilla. Beat the mixture again. Add baking powder to sifted white flour, then add it to the mixture slowly, and add the sour milk also. Add the chocolate mixture to it, then add stiffly beaten egg whites, folding over into mixture. Do not beat again. Pour this into three layer cake tins that have been oiled. When the cakes are baked, ice them with white icing.

Delicious Chicken Pie

Mrs. J. Bolling Hall of Deatsville sent in a truly Southern take on chicken pot pie, with a biscuit crust.

First of all, this isn’t a quick recipe. It called for a fresh chicken, preferably a “nice fat hen.” You’d have to spend time one day dressing the chicken – getting rid of the stuff like head, feathers, and other inedible parts – and then salt the bird down. The next day, wash and boil it until it’s tender. Depending on how fat the bird is, you’ll need up to a half cup of butter, plus two tablespoon­s of flour, a cup of milk and four boiled eggs cut into small pieces. (Would it be weird to use eggs from the hen you’re cooking?)

Cut the deboned cooked chicken into small pieces and set it aside. Make a smooth paste from flour in a little water and add to the water in which the chicken was boiled, and then add the butter, milk and boiled eggs. This makes a rich gravy, into which you’ll next add the chicken, salt and pepper to taste. Line a deep pan with biscuit dough about a fourth of an inch thick. Pour the chicken gravy mixture into that. Use more biscuit dough to make a top crust on the pan, and prick it with a fork. Bake until the biscuit crust is browned.

Brunswick Stew

Mrs. W.C. Wingard of Selma has us ready to serve a big pot of Brunswick Stew in this recipe.

You’ll need four cans of tomatoes, 3 cans of corn, 1 can of okra, 3 pounds of Irish potatoes, 2 pounds of onion, 1 chicken, 1 and a half pounds of ground beef or pork, a stick of butter, chicken stock, red pepper, black pepper and salt.

Cook the chicken until it’s tender and remove the bones. Cook the potatoes and mash them smooth. Brown the ground beef and drain. Chop and cook the onions.

Then combine all ingredient­s and cook about two hours, stirring constantly until it’s very thick.

Tempting Vegetable Dish

Mrs. R.E. Mathews, who lived on Highland Avenue in Montgomery, was ready to tempt you with vegetables ... and bacon. Bacon makes everything better, and you’ll need a quarter pound of it for this recipe, plus a pound of new Irish potatoes, a pound of fresh snap beans, a lemon and two pounds of hard green cabbage.

Put the bacon in a pot with three cups of water. Place whole beans in with potatoes on top. Cook slowly for an hour. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. When done, remove potatoes. Cut the cabbage into thick slices and place them lengthwise on the beans in the pot. Squeeze half of a lemon over the cabbage, then cook for 25 minutes or until tender. Then arrange it all on a large platter, being careful not to break the cabbage. Place beans around in border form, potatoes in center. And, yes, somewhere in the midst of all these veggies is the bacon.

Onion Soup

Grace Thompson of Notasulga offered a fairly quick take on onion soup that will make you want to drink every drop.

You’ll need a cup of minced onions, 3 tablespoon­s of butter, 3 tablespoon­s of flour, 2 bouillon cubes, 2 cups of boiling water, a cup of milk and a quarter teaspoon of salt.

Brown the onions in butter until they’re nice and caramelize­d. Remove the pan from heat, then add the salt and flour and stir until blended. Combine bouillon cubes and the hot water and stir until they’re dissolved. Add the bouillon water to the onion mixture. Cook and stir constantly until thickened. Add milk. Heat to boiling. Then serve immediatel­y.