Aunt Jenny's Dumplings

It's apple season, so here's a blast from the past to get you started. It comes from Who Says We Can't Cook, and submitted by cookbook author Florence Brobeck of "Press Relations".

Florence writes:

My aunt Jenny was oen of the most famous cooks in central Ohio forty years ago. Her kitchen was a huge room dominated by a coal range from which came aromas which touched off a stampede of children from all parts of the house.

Best of all, especially in winter, were the big pans of apple dumplings, steaming at the top with apple jelly oozing out. They were supposed to be served cold, or nearly so. But we couldn't wait. We ate them hot with very cold, very thick cream.

Here is her recipe. (Today's busy housekeepers may use ready mixed pie crust.)

Ohio Apple Dumplings

6 cooking apples

Pastry for two pie crusts

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar (packed)

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 tablespoons grated lemon peel

1/2 cup dried currants (soaked and drained)

1/4 cup apple jelly

1/4 cup butter or margarine

Wash, pare and core apples. Roll pastry about 1/4 inch thick. Cut in circles large enough to cover apples. Mix sugars, cinnamon, peel, currants, and jelly. Spoon mixture into apples. Dot each with butter. Wrap each apple in dough, crimping edges togeter at the top. Place on baking sheet or in shallow baking pan. Bake in moderate oven (375 degrees) about 30 minutes, or until apples are soft and pastry golden. Serve warm or cold, with cream, lemon sauce, or hard sauce. Six servings.

Charlie Chaplan's Missing Nephew's Fear-free Swiss Apple Pie

The first thing that struck me about this page is the artist's resemblance to Charlie Chaplan:




Mere coincidence? I don't think so.

The second thing I noticed is that this pie is crustless!

Eureka!

Mom, we are saved!

Swiss Apple Pie

1 large egg, 3/4 cup sugar, beat well and add the following: 1/2 cup flour, 1 tsp. baking powder, 1/8 tsp. nutmeg or cinnamon, 1/2 tsp. vanilla, mix all together. Add 1 heaping cup of apple (chopped fine), pour into greased pie plate, bake 30-40 minutes at 350 degrees. Forms own crust, serve warm or cold.

Where have all the puddings gone? (Auntie's Date-Apple Pudding)

Something happened in the dessert world during the 1970s.

Something earth shattering. Pole shifting. Cataclysmic.

And yet something so subtle we didn't even notice it happening.

For some reason, we stopped making pudding. (If I was a betting woman, I'd wager that Bill Cosby had something to do with it.)

Pudding as an ubiquitous dessert option virtually ceased to exist in any form other than what comes from a box. Eventually you didn't even need a stove.

I've tried to fight the trend in small ways. I made tapioca pudding from scratch the other day, recognizing that it was a small splash of rebellion against a tidal wave of change. And I may grow even more daring, and try a recipe like the one below, despite having no knowledge whatsoever of who "Auntie" might be.

What's the worst that could happen? JELL-O brand takes a contract out on me?

Auntie's Date-Apple Pudding

A butterschotchy pudding rich in apples, dates, and nuts.

1 cup brown sugar (packed)

1/4 cup cornstarch

2 1/4 cups water

1 cup chopped dates

1 cup chopped apples

2 tbsp. butter

1/4 tsp. vanilla

1 cup broken walnuts

Mix brown sugar and cornstarch in 2-qt. saucepan. Gradually stir in water. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils; boil 1 min. Add dates, apples, butter, and vanilla. Remove from heat. Cool to room temperature, add nuts, then chill. Serve in sherbet glasses. Top with whipped cream, if desired. 6 to 8 servings.