Outstanding collection of traditional eighteenth-century recipes are complimented by historical vignettes drawn from letters and journals of the fur trading village’s inhabitants. Many color illustrations.
from the book: ” ‘Did the voyageurs really eat bear grease and dried corn for dinner?’; ‘What are those dried things hanging over the fireplace?’ ‘Roast beaver and muskrat stew?’ ‘How did the women preserve food for the winter?’
These are the common, everyday questions and comments that summer visitors make as they wander into the reconstructed homes at Colonial Michilimackinac … Guests often smell the aroma of onions and meat stewing or bread baking and come looking for the source. … Why do we recreate these colonial foodways? The procuring of foods and staples was essential to the existence of the early inhabitants. By researching some of the foods, we can learn a great deal about the transportation and travel of those times. By studying the methods of food preparation, we discover many of the common cultural practices of the era. We learn about the intermixing of the Indian, French, and British cultures and how daily life changed and evolved as new people came into the Straits of Mackinac area.
This book is a result of [the] search for information. Since there is no known written cookbooks from the fort…information needed to be gleaned from a variety of sources. Fortunately, there are many diary accounts of travelers, explorers, missionaries, and traders who lived in or passed through the area….
This book is arranged in two sections. The first part deals with the history of the area as it pertains to the culture and food habits of the people who resided in or traveled through Michilimackinac. The second deals with documentation of foodstuffs and gives some examples of how foods were prepared. …”
Chapter 3: Soups – Fish, Chicken, Meat, Vegetable, Accompaniments Chapter 4: Main Dishes – Wild Game, Beef, Pork, Lamb, Poultry, Eggs, Dumplings Chapter 5: Fish Chapter 6: Breads – Starters, Corn Breads, Oat Breads, Potato Breads, Wheat Breads, Sourdough Chapter 7: Vegetables and Fruits – Corn, Beans, Pease, Cabbage, Beets, Garden Vegetables, Potatoes, Squash, Apples Chapter 8: Desserts – Cakes, Pies, Puddings, Other Desserts Chapter 9: Beverages Chapter 10: Miscellaneous Recipes – Jellies, Pickled Foods, Sugar, Soaps, Herbal Remedies
All recipes are designed to be cooked over a fire or in a fireplace. Recipes can be adapted for cooking in modern ovens.
