More Favorite Old Timey Sweet Recipes from my Grandmother's Journal
By Peggy W
Here are five more "old timey" sweet recipes from my grandmother's journal. This hub is specifically being written for those of you who answered the poll in the last hub requesting additional recipes.
Now...I cannot promise any more...at least for a while. Although we are sharing the baked goods with friends and neighbors, we have to taste these recipes in order to aptly describe them for you, the readers.
Not sure just how much longer our waistlines will remain at the same circumference by doing this for you!
Does this sound as though we are sacrificing ourselves to this cause?
You can be the judge! ( Smile )
3 of my great aunts + cookies
Cookie recipes
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Aunt Alvina's Cookies ( Christmas )
Ingredients
1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
1 cup pecans (chopped)
1 cup dates (pitted and chopped)
1/2 cup brandy or wine ( I used brandy )
3 eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 to 3 cups of flour so you can drop from spoon. Must not run when baking...if so use more flour. ( I used 3 cups )
There were no directions with this old timey recipe, so this is how I proceeded...
Cream the butter with the sugar. Next add the eggs and blend. Continue to add the wet and dry ingredients and after well combined, drop a rounded teaspoon full of the batter onto a greased cookie sheet. I baked the cookies for about 10 minutes in a 350 degree Fahrenheit oven and when done (nicely browned on the bottom) transferred to a rack to cool.
These are soft cookies. The unbaked dough even had a frosting-like consistency.
These made about 5 dozen cookies and they are delicious! They win our taste test vote and we will be repeating this recipe in the future.
My grandmother + spice squares
Spice Squares
Sift together
1 1/2 cups of sifted enriched flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cloves
Cream
1/2 cup shortening with
3/4 cup brown sugar until light and fluffy
Add
1 egg yolk and
1/2 teaspoon vanilla and beat together well.
Combine
Flour mixture to the creamed mixture alternating with
3/4 cup of sour milk or buttermilk. ( I used buttermilk )
Spread into greased 7 by 11 inch pan.
Topping
Beat 1 egg white until stiff and add 1/4 cup of brown sugar gradually and mix well. Spread onto batter. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup chopped nuts . ( I used pecans )
Bake
375 degree Fahrenheit oven for 30 minutes. When cool, cut into bars. Yields about 22 bars, 1 by 3 inch.
This is a cake in reality and could be sliced any way one wishes to present it. I was expecting it to be more of a cookie consistency for some reason...I guess because of the directions which said to slice it into bars. It is tasty! No name was attached to this recipe in my grandmother's old journal but the directions were carefully hand-written.
Baking with spices
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Square baking pans
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Cookies + grandmother photo
Hickory Nut Jems
Ingredients
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup sour cream
1 egg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cup flour, not sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chopped nuts
Drop by teaspoons on greased cookie sheets. Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 to 15 minutes.
Many of you bakers know to cream the butter and sugar together and then add the sour cream and egg and vanilla before adding the dry ingredients, but for those that might not know...I thought that I would add this bit of information.
It is interesting that these were called Hickory Nut Jems. Undoubtedly hickory nuts were used in this recipe, perhaps from someone's own trees. I substituted chopped pecans as hickory nuts are not a commonly found ingredient in our grocery stores. Probably any kind of chopped nut would work. To our taste these soft cookies tasted much like a butter cookie with added nuts...which makes sense, given the ingredients. There was no name attached to this recipe.
Great-grandmother photo
Cookies called Rocks
Favorite Christmas Cookies
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This cookie recipe was labeled "Mother" meaning that it was from my great-grandmother who had died when my grandmother and her siblings were quite young. When my grandmother hand wrote these recipes into her journal, I am sure that each and every one from her mother had special meaning.
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup butter
3 eggs
1 cup walnut meats (chopped)
1 1/2 cups chopped raisins
3 tablespoons cinnamon
1 tablespoon baking soda dissolved in a little boiling water
3 cups flour
As per other recipes in this old journal there were no further instructions except to "Drop on buttered tins." I creamed the softened butter with the sugar, added the eggs mixing well and then added the cinnamon, baking soda and flour. At this point the batter becomes pretty stiff so I manually mixed the nuts and raisins into it stirring until combined.
What worked for me was to drop the batter by rounded teaspoon onto greased baking sheet and in a 350 degree Fahrenheit oven the cookies were finished baking in 9 minutes. Anywhere from 8 to 10 minutes should work...just watch that first tin carefully to determine the best timing for your oven.
Anyone liking cinnamon is sure to really like these cookies. The batter is dark because of so much cinnamon being added. ~ I am speculating that any number of spice combinations might also work. Perhaps a little cinnamon combined with some ginger or allspice would also work? Worth experimenting! ~
These Rocks are very good! What a unique name for a cookie! Makes about 5 dozen.
Need some good cookie sheets?
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Oatmeal cookies
Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
3/4 cup shortening soft
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla
Sift together 1 cup flour, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups Quaker oats
Directions
Place shortening, sugars, egg, water and vanilla in bowl and beat. Then add dry ingredients and mix. Blend in oats. Drop by teaspoon on greased (baking) sheet and bake 350 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes. For variation add chopped nuts, chocolate chips or coconut. ( I added chopped nuts and baked these cookies for 15 minutes. Of course it all depends upon each person's oven so what worked for me...may or may not for you. These are thin and crisp cookies which freeze well.)
My grandfather
Where my grandparents lived...Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee, Wisconsin - This Oatmeal Cookie recipe may well be the most interesting recipe because of what it was written upon!
I have no idea how old this recipe is but perhaps there are some doctors still alive who would remember the days when notes regarding a patient were taken on a piece of paper measuring approximately 5 1/4 by 8 1/4 inches?
This Examination Blank had room at the top for the Name, Street, City, Phone and Referred by. The History and Remarks had only 10 lines on this small page for notes on a patients condition. Of course more could probably have been written on the blank back of this page. Still...this is laughable compared to the pages and pages of information that a prospective patient has to fill out before ever seeing a doctor in this day and age.
This loose sheet was kept with the other bound pages inside of my grandmother's recipe journal.
My grandfather had managed what was (at the time) the tallest commercial building in downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin many years ago among other things. Many of the occupants were doctors and dentists and my grandfather often had lunch with them on different occasions. Did he taste these oatmeal cookies and ask for the recipe? Is that why it was written on this old time Examination Blank? There is no one left alive to answer that question so this is mere speculation.
Still...finding this recipe on this examination blank in my grandmother's old timey journal certainly places a date going back many years and several generations ago. I thought that readers might find some humor in this as did I upon discovering it.
Oh...by the way...the oatmeal cookies are good!
Old doctor's examination blank used for cookie recipe
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From recipes called Rocks to recipes written on doctor's Examination records...here is hoping that you enjoyed reading about and viewing these additional old timey sweet recipes from my Grandmother's well worn journal.
Which of these recipes do you think that you would wish to make?
See results without voting
My Grandmother
Other hubs about my grandmother and family by Peggy W...
- Dog - Story of - Jiggs
The great family dog!
- Pictures of Farming in North Dakota in the early 1900's
My grandmother's sister and brother-in-law lived here.
- 30 Minute Recipe ~ Chicken Mozzarella with Italian Flair
Who would believe that with only 3 ingredients plus salt & pepper this easy chicken entree could become a favorite company dish! Directions & photos.
Other related food hubs...
- Treasured Old Timey Sweet Recipes from my Grandma's Past
- Old Grocery Store Ads Prices from 1957 in Corpus Christi, Texas
- Healthy Oatmeal Cookies Recipe ~ Quaker Oats Oatmeal Cookies ~ Baking ~ Gifts
- Live Crawfish, Crayfish or Mudbugs ~ Cooking Crawfish ~ Crawfish Season
- Scrumptious Quinoa Side Dish - Recipes Perfect for Picnics or Anytime
- My Mother's Sour Cream Coffee Cake Tube Pan Recipe
- Easy Gazpacho Cold Soup Recipe that will WOW your Family and Friends
- Roasted Vegetables as Delicious Recipe - Appetizer or Entree
- Recipe - Wonderful Steak - Eggplant Casserole
- Easy Jello Salad Ring Molds - Some favorite family recipes
- Sweetheart Heart Shaped Cookies for Valentines Day Gifts or Anytime
- Ice Box Cookies ~ Family Recipe with Step by Step Photos
My mother remembered the days of ice boxes & this family cookie recipe goes back to those days or posssibly even further. Enjoy!
Comments
Oh, that all doctors would write me a recipe rather than a remedy for my malady:-)
Hi Mark,
Ah yes...there is always the new year for diet resolutions! Haha! Happy to hear that you enjoyed reading these old timey sweet recipes from my grandmother's journal. How about that one written on an examination piece of paper. Amazing! Right? Thanks for your comment.
Great recipes and great connections with tradition. No messing about here with small baking amounts of 6 or 12 buns/cakes. I was delighted with the 'Rocks' recipe when I read 'makes about 5 dozen'. Ah, ladies after my own heart! I can always diet in the new year. Superb hub!
Hi Billy,
Sounds like you would be easy to satisfy regarding a sweet tooth. Hope you get your cookies and jam and have a Happy Father's Day tomorrow. Your boys will make it special, I am sure.
Some great ones here around Fathers Day Peggy - cookies and Jam sound perfect.
Hi RTalloni,
Thanks for commenting on these old timey recipes from my Grandmother's journal. The rocks are a favorite...so good choice! :)
It was difficult--Rocks or Hickory Nut Jems, but Rocks won because of the least amount of dairy substitution. I would "like" to make all of them! :)
Loved the photos with captions sharing info.
Super hub that I plan to refer to again. Voted up!
Hi KoffeeKlatch Gals,
Hope that you enjoy these old timey sweet recipes from my grandmother's journal as much as we and our neighbors did when I was testing them. Thanks for the comment. Let me know what you liked best if you come back to this hub. Thanks!
Peggy, what a wonderful collection of cookie recipes and family photos. I love it. Rated up, awesome and bookmarked. I just have to try your recipes.
Hello Springboard,
Yes, in many respects if we could step back in time I think that we might enjoy many of the simpler things in life that actually make life more enjoyable. Glad you liked reading these old timey recipes from my Grandmother's journal. Hey...you CAN get past chocolate chip cookies! I KNOW you can! Haha!
I just love these hubs. Man, to go back in time. What a different world, hey? I'm a great cook but a lousy baker, but I may have to try some of these cookie recipes in any event. Do I dare step outside of chocolate chip (you know, the kind of cookies you can't screw up TOO awful bad. lol)?
Hi TINA V,
You are most welcome for the recipes. General consensus so far is that the Rocks are a winner. Nice that cinnamon is actually good for one since that is a prime ingredient. Also darkens the batter...almost looks like chocolate, but it is the cinnamon instead. Thanks for the vote up on these old timey recipes from my grandmother's journal. :-)
The Hickory Nut Jems and Rocks cookies seem interesting to make. I’ll try it one of these days. I’ll bookmark this hub. Voted up! Thanks for sharing it.
Hello FirstStepsFitness,
Hope that you enjoy them. One thing is certain...they are old recipes! The Rocks seem to be a favorite among people who have tasted them. Enjoy! And thanks for the comment.
Thank you for sharing your family recipes ! Am going to make them one by one !
Hello epigramman,
Nice to hear that you enjoyed reading these old timey recipes and the tie to a bit of my family history. Thanks for the comment.
...well they don't make them like that anymore!!!!
Fascinating to say that every family has a history or a story to tell with good old fashioned home cooking and recipes - this is a lovely hub - there is much love here and that sentiment shows - bravo to you and to your family - this has been quite a story!!!
Hello Om Paramapoonya,
If you get around to making the Hickory Nut Jems or other sweet old timey recipes from my Grandmother's Journal...enjoy! Glad you also liked the photos. Thanks for the comment.
Hmmmm those Hickory Nut Jems have awaken my sweet tooth! I also like those old black-and-white photos of your family. Thanks for sharing :)
Hi frogyfish,
What a great comment considering you have not even baked the old recipes out of my grandmother's well used journal yet! Hope you enjoy them when you get around to trying these recipes.
I served Aunt Alvina's cookies and the Rocks to some girls (should probably call them ladies since most of us are waaaaaaaaaaaay beyond our teenaged years to say the least...ha!) at a luncheon this past week to rave reviews. Thanks again for the comment.
Thank you Peggy W for the delicious recipes - and the beautiful history you have! I was going to vote for my fav sounding one - Aunt Alvina's cookie- then saw the bottom vote and that got me! The cinnamon ones are calling my name also! Wow, what a delight you shared!
Hi Kaie Arwen,
Do you have access to hickory nuts or are you going to substitute pecans or another readily purchased nut from the grocery store? Hope that you enjoy them no matter which kind of nut you use in the recipe.
These look great.............. I think I'll be making a batch of those Hickory Nut Jems soon. They sound delicious! Kaie
Hello bayoulady,
Thanks and enjoy your holiday baking with these old time recipes from my grandmother's journal. Glad you enjoyed the pictures as well. :-)
Peggy , I am bookmarking this hub for my holiday baking. I think the photos of your grandmother add so much charm and personality to the hub. Rated up,awesome!
Hello thecelt,
I would have to agree that the oatmeal cookies offer the best nutritional value. Another recipe that I use...I add raisons and cinnamon to the oatmeal cookies. Even better! Thanks for the comment.
Hi Donna C,
Thanks for this informative response! I would imagine that the original recipe did indeed use hickory nuts...thus the name. Wish I knew what they tasted like. At least you do!
My favorites are the oatmeal cookies and they are very nutritious as well.
If you have access to and the patience to shell and dig out the nutmeats hickory nuts are truly an exceptional taste. I've never seen them in a commercial store but remember as a kid in Canada collecting bushel baskets of nuts from the hundreds of trees on my family's property and the hours it took to shell them.
Hi Michelle Day,
I appreciate your nice comment. It is my pleasure to share these sweet old time recipes from my grandmother's journal with you and others.
Great Hub. It's an amazing thing to share family treasure. Thank you so much!
Hello judydianne,
There really are some "goodies" in this old journal of my grandmother's. Hope you enjoy these recipes when you get around to trying them. Thanks for the comment.
I will bookmark this hub so that the next time I bake cookies, I will pull it out. Sounds wonderful!
Hello Pamela99,
Thanks for commenting so favorably on my grandmother's old journal with the recipes that she hand copied from family and friends. I have found some really good recipes among them!
This journal is so wonderful and the recipes are a real treasure. Excellent hub.
Hello sarovai,
Happy to hear that you enjoyed these additional recipes from my grandmother's old journal. Sweet comment! Thanks!
Thank u for sharing sweety recipe. Anytime I can refer Peggy W's hubs for this kind of recipe.
Hello AEvans,
Happy to be able to share these old recipes with you. I think that your kids will like them. Thanks for taking the time to comment.
I have bookmarked these! I will make these anytime, they sound scrumptious and the kids will love them. Thank you for the story and the recipes/.:)
Hello Merlin Fraser,
So glad that this hub about old timey sweet recipes from my grandmother's journal brought back this delicious memory! You could probably elaborate a bit more and make it into a hub of your own. What a great story! Thanks!
When I see Hubs like this it makes me wonder why we continue to buy the expensive imitation things from the supermarkets.
In my far off youth the local Game Keepers wife used to bake every Sunday morning. A no nosense woman who wore her hair dragged back from head in a tight bun to show too much of her weathered face for us kids.
We were convinced she was a witch, we'd been reading Hansel and Gretel at school, and she was luring us with her home baking.
If she was she would have snared the lot of us.. She lived in an out of the way farm a mile and a half from the village, quite a detour on little legs but we made the journey often.
The mere smell of home made cookies bring back fond memories of that dear woman.
Hi Lee B,
I would agree with you that often it is hard to improve upon those old timey recipes from our grandmothers and others. Sometimes the directions or amounts are hard to decifer however. They seemed to have a knack of what to do with just listed ingredients. :-)
Mmmmmm....COOKIES...my favorite food! And grandma's recipes are always the best!
Hi akirchner,
Enjoy both recipes and happy to hear that you liked these additional old timey sweet recipes from my grandmother's well worn journal. Thanks for the comment!
The spice squares and oatmeal cookies are right up my alley! Amazing recipes and great presentation.
Hi Ethel,
Plan to take a break from making sweet recipes...old timey or new. My husband and I rarely eat sweets and have sampled more in the last couple of weeks (because of these hubs) than we have tasted in a long time. Can't afford to keep this up! Ha!
Happy to hear that you liked the photos and other information as much as the recipes. Thanks for the comment.
Fabulous Peggy. I loved this hub for the old photos as much as the words and recipes.
Hello wrenfrost56,
Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment. Now...go get something to eat! Haha!
Hi Mike,
If you lived around the corner, I'd happily put you on the tasting panel. :-)
My grandmother was not only elegant but the sweetest person on this earth! Thanks for the comment.
Great recipies you have here peggy, loved the pictures of both the food (very apatizing) and your grandmother, your great aunts, your grandfather and great grandmother. Plus I'm feeling rather hungry now. :)
I think I would be a good volunteer for taste-testing recipes from your journal.... I might gain a bunch of weight, but it seems worth it.
BTW, I loved the photos of your grandmother--she seems quite the elegant lady.
Mike
Hi agusfanani,
The Spice Squares are really good...not only in looks but in taste. Thanks for viewing and leaving a comment.
Great recipes !. I like spice squares best.
Hello nifty@50,
Think that you would like the oatmeal cookies. They are thin and crisp. Unfortunately in humid Houston, Texas most cookies do not stay crisp for long...but still taste good.
Hello Specialk3749,
Admittedly this journal from my grandmother is a special treasure indeed. Whether it is recipes or some other reminder...hope you find something special as a keepsake from your grandmother.
Hello North Wind,
Hope that you enjoy these recipes from the past written in my Grandmother's old journal. I had never tasted these prior to baking them. Some definite winners here! Happy cookie baking!
Those oat meal cookies look awesome!
You have found a real gem in this journal! I would love to find something like this from my grandma. I'm definately going to try some of the recipes because I love old recipes. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for the great recipes. I am always on the lookout for new cookie recipes!
Hi suny51,
Undoubtedly you could skip the liquor but you probably need to make up for the liquid component somehow (maybe a little extra vanilla in water, or milk to make that 1/2 cup?) so that the batter is not too dry. Hope that idea helps. My Great Aunt Alvina's cookies are really tasty! Thanks for reading and commenting.
Peggy would it be okay if we do not use wine or brandy,or the taste will be altogether different?
Hi Hello, hello,
I plead "guilty" to putting the old timey recipes hand written by my grandmother out there for all to see and drool over. As to eating all of them..."NOT GUILTY" your honor! Haha!
Right, the next time you hear of me is on the news as the fattest woman in the world and I name you and you will be prosecuted hahaha. Oh what a treat to bake oll these and eat them all. You are definitely my friend.
Hi billyaustindillon,
Actually my mother baked all kinds of cookies when we were growing up. My grandmother each weekend had coffeecake and pecan rolls baked as a regular treat. Sometimes she made 3 little coffeecakes in little tins special for my brothers and me.
I'm not sure if these older recipes were ever tried by my mother. Sure wish she was here for the research on this! She would have HAPPILY been on the tasting panel! She LOVED her sweets.
Have already shared much of this baking and will share more with friends and neighbors. After all...there is just so much that is reasonable to eat for just the two of us, my husband and myself. Will freeze some of these cookies to have on hand for company.
Thanks for the quick comment.
Lots of new cookies here Peggy - i will definitely be sharing this one with the family - my wife and sons love baking cookies together. You must have had fun at your gran's growing up - something of a cookie monster?
Peggy W 5 months ago
Hi again Mark,
So true! I got a kick out of how small that examination sheet of paper was back then. Not sure who wrote that Oatmeal Cookie recipe on it...but it is certainly an eye catcher. Ha!