Day 117: Salad Dressing

Today I was able to witness the induction of some local people into the Waterloo Region Hall of Fame. Then after work I helped someone move. It is now 9pm and so I’d like to make something interesting but not too challenging. I’m going to make Salad Dressing. There are three dressing recipes in The New Galt Cook Book (1898) and this one was contributed by Mrs. Pattinson of Preston.

I followed the instructions which are quite straight forward. I cracked a medium egg and put the contents in a small bowl. I added 1 heaping tablespoon of white sugar and 1 tablespoon of butter. I skipped the salt since my butter is salted. I had some Keen’s prepared mustard so I put 1/2 teaspoon in with the other ingredients. I’m assuming mixed mustard would be mustard made at home using dry mustard powder or else you could purchase prepared mustard. Keen’s dry mustard powder has been around for over 200 years and the prepared version is only a little “younger”. I added the final ingredient 1/2 cup of vinegar. A coffee cup and a cup are only slightly different measurements.  I beat everything as well as I could and then poured them in a saucepan. The butter didn’t incorporate very well. Perhaps I should have melted it first? I put the saucepan on the burner and  turned the heat to low stirring all the ingredients. I gradually turned up the heat once the butter had melted and kept it on medium until it was boiling. I kept stirring while it boiled since I was afraid it might burn. It took about five minutes for it to thicken enough to resemble cream. I removed the pan from the heat and left it to cool before using it.

As usual the Waterloo Region Generations website was helpful in finding out a bit more about Mrs. Pattinson of Preston. She is probably Mary Elizabeth Erb who was born about 1853 in Preston. Her father Abraham was also born in Preston while her mother Margaret was from Scotland. Mr. Erb had a flour mill called A. A. Erb and Brothers. Mary Elizabeth (24) and George Pattinson (25) married in Mildmay Ontario in 1878. George was born in England and came to Canada as a teenager.  He eventually owned a woollen mill in Preston. Ironically George Pattinson is in the Waterloo County Hall of Fame for his contributions to Preston and the county. He was a member of the provincial parliament, worked to bring hydro electricity to Preston and was involved in prison reform and the development of the workman’s compensation act. Mary Elizabeth and George had six children but unfortunately their oldest daughter Alice died before her tenth birthday of congestion of the lungs brought on by a Remittent Fever. Mary Elizabeth didn’t see many of her husband’s accomplishments as she died in February 1898 of septicemia (blood poisoning).  Their oldest son died in 1915 as a soldier in the First World War.

This version of a boiled salad dressing is okay. Mine ended up with a bit of “scrambled” egg in it. It is a bit sweet so I might ease back on the sugar a little. Otherwise it is an acceptable boiled dressing. My prepared mustard was a hot one so that might have helped offset the sweetness.

 

SALAD DRESSING
Mrs. Pattinson, Preston

Beat together one egg, one good tablespoonful of sugar, one piece of butter size of an egg, one pinch of salt, one-half teaspoonful of mixed mustard, one-half coffee-cupful of vinegar. Put all into a saucepan and gradually come to a boil. Boil until the thickness of cream.

Day 74: Salad Dressing (good)

On Monday night I will be speaking at the annual general meeting of the South Dumfries Historical Society. The meeting will be in the community of St. George and a surprising number of the recipes in The New Galt Cook Book (1898) were contributed by women living there. Many of their contributions are desserts but Mrs. W. W. Howels shared a recipe for salad dressing called Salad Dressing (Extra Good). I have part of a head of cabbage and this dressing says it makes a good cabbage salad so it seems a good fit.

Recipe for Salad Dressing (Extra Good)

I broke two medium eggs into a saucepan and lightly whisked them with fork. Then I added 1 teaspoon of black pepper, 1 teaspoon of salt (but not quite filling the bowl of the spoon), and 1 heaping teaspoon of dry ground mustard. Melting just enough butter is a challenge especially with such a small amount. I had more than enough butter melted but added just 2 teaspoons of melted butter. I put 1 tablespoon of my semifrozen cream before switching to milk that was more liquid. I added 1 tablespoon of the milk. I had a bottle of Crosse & Blackwell’s fish and chip vinegar but it proved to be a bit too old and probably would have added too much malt flavour. Instead I used 1 cup of plain unbranded white vinegar. Crosse & Blackwell was an English brand that still exists. You can find more about the company’s history here.

I turned the heat to medium and started stirring. I stopped to go and double-check the recipe and when I returned I realized why Mrs. Howels says “stir constantly”. The eggs had clumped just a tiny bit. I had tiny shreds of “scrambled eggs” starting to appear. I stirred from then on and it quickly became an oddly coloured salad dressing. The pepper made the dressing look a bit grey. I removed the saucepan from the heat and left it to cool while I prepared some chopped cabbage for a salad. Then I poured some dressing on the salad and it was ready to serve.

I think Mrs. W. W. Howels is Margaret “Maggie” McGregor youngest daughter of Phoebe and John. Her father was born in Scotland but her mother was from Ontario. Maggie was born in Nelson (Halton Region) Ontario around 1846 and lived with her family on a farm. She was 28 when she married 23-year-old William Waugh Howell in 1875. The couple moved to his home community of St. George in South Dumfries Township where William became a druggist. They lived near his family and had five children. Their third child Kate Marie died of whooping-cough and dysentery when she was 14 months old. Somewhere between 1891 and 1901 the family moved to Toronto where William continued his pharmacy business. He is still listed as a druggist in the 1921 census although he is 69. Maggie was 86 when she died in 1931 and William was also 86 when he died in 1935. Although they died in Toronto they are buried back in St. George.

Salad Dressing (Extra Good) on Cabbage Salad

Mrs. Howels salad dressing goes well with cabbage. It would probably overpower milder greens in a salad since it is very tangy. The sharp taste comes from the vinegar, pepper and mustard and if you don’t like those flavours than this salad dressing is not for you. It doesn’t appeal to me as much as some other boiled dressings but it is an acceptable dressing.  I might not agree with Mrs. Howels that it is “Extra Good” but it is quick to make and I can imagine it with chicken or other chunky salads.

SALAD DRESSING (EXTRA GOOD)
Mrs. W. W. Howels, St. George

Two eggs, one teaspoonful pepper, one small teaspoonful salt, one large teaspoonful mustard, two teaspoonfuls melted butter, two tablespoonfuls cream or milk (or a little more if required), one small cup Crosse & Blackwell’s vinegar. Put on the stove and cook until like cream, stirring constantly. It is very nice for cabbage or chicken salad.