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Saturday in Betty's Kitchen

I want to show you some of my 'old things' for this Saturday in my kitchen. I  actually use some of my old things and don't just have them on display. Each item brings back memories of long ago.



Top left corner. the blue enamel coffee pot used to belong to my grandmother. I remember her making coffee on the old wood cook stove. I still use the kettle to boil water.The strainer was a wedding gift and although it is a bit chipped I still like to use it. The cookie tin belonged to my husband's mother and she always had cookies in it, stored in the freezer. I loved to see her opening up this tin knowing we would be treated to delicious cookies. Every once in awhile I fill it up to store cookies in my freezer. The syrup tin is also from long ago when we used to purchase syrup in these tins. Oh it was so good to dip freshly baked buns in a saucer of syrup.
Top right corner, a cookie recipe page from my husband's Mom, I like the splattered and tattered look. Many of the recipes handed down did not have proper instructions but most of the time I can figure them out.
Bottom left corner, I received this tea set as a gift from my Mom and Dad when I was just a little girl. I spent hours having little tea parties with my dolls. Before I had any grandchildren I had already earmarked this for my first born granddaughter, as it turns out I only had one.
Bottom right corner, the tall pitcher with the bird belonged to my great grandmother, the smaller pitcher from my Dad's side of the family and the butter dish was a gift from my mother long ago. The embroidered spread was made by my Mom and I use that as a cover over my mixer when whipping cream.



These aprons are handed down from my mom and grandmother. The one with the little yellow flowers was my Mom's and was worn when serving at different functions. The red floral was sewn by mom and I remember her wearing it often as she cooked and baked. The green checkered apron was sewn by my grandmother, was used by both my grandmother and mom, and now it hangs in my kitchen and yes I do use it as well. It has yellowed with age but that only makes it more precious.




I had to mention chocolate cake as an 'old thing', it was a favorite in my growing up years and it was baked most every Saturday. Once my youngest brother was old enough to bake he would whip up this cake on short order and it was always delicious. My older brothers would deem the cake a success if they could squeeze it in their hands into a bar shape!

It is a simple recipe and so moist and delicious. I have changed it up a wee bit from the old recipe.

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1/4 cup cocoa
  • 1 cup flour
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 egg
  • Buttermilk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  1. Melt butter and stir in cocoa till blended. Set aside.
  2. In a medium sized bowl, whisk together dry ingredients.
  3. Break egg into a 1 cup measuring cup and fill  with buttermilk.
  4. Pour egg mixture and cocoa mixture into the dry ingredients and whisk until well blended.
  5. Pour into a greased 8" pan and bake in a  350º F oven for 30 minutes.
  6. Serve warm with whipped cream. Add a few berries and chocolate shavings and you have a most wonderful dessert.

25 comments:

  1. Hello Betty,
    your little tea set looks like the "Ostfriesische Teerose" (east-frisian tea rose), a favourite traditional design in the North of Germany.
    Thank you so much for the beautiful view in your kitchen - and in your familiar memories.
    Blessings, Siret

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  2. Betty, your old things post is wonderful to see. I love my old things too and maybe you will have started a new trend here again.
    And now I am hungry for that simple chocolate cake too.

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  3. Hi Betty ,Have a question, Can one substitute buttermilk with something else to get the same texture and flavor, It looks really delious ,but I don't bye buttermilk very often because one can only bye it in liter containers and it goes bad on me because I don't use it very often. thank you for all the recipe you girls send I open up your page every morning to see what you have for us to try. God bless you all.Helen

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    Replies
    1. Helen, I often freeze buttermilk I can;t use right away in half and one cup measured containers so to pull out and use in baking another time. Just stir it up when ready to use. Kathy , another reader.

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    2. For buttermilk, I usually, pour about 1 Tblsp of vinegar into a measuring cup and add milk to the desired amount of buttermilk.. Let set a while, you can even microwave it for a few seconds to get it to curdle. Works every time. OR buy powered buttermilk.

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    3. The above replies are great. You can also use milk instead of buttermilk.

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    4. I had the same set of little dishes, my daughter has them now. She has a son, no daughters so not sure where they will go from her. So pretty.

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  4. Ohhhh - the sight of that very same size exact syrup tin brings back the memory of when I was just 4 or 5 when I put the can upside down on my head as I was waiting for my mom to use it and the lid came off - I remember my head hurting as she tried to wash and rewash my hair to get the sticky gooey mess out !!
    I have a larger tin of that syrup on my shelf as does my sister - sure reminds us of our dear mom and her baking and using it over panckes and crepes. The sweetestness now would give me a headache for sure!!
    Thanks for the great posts and recipes I check daily. Kathy

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  5. I LOVE your blog and, not to mention, your recipes! I've tried several and they are all delicious!! Thanks for sharing :)

    Just a note....have you changed your font??? My senior eyes are having a hard time reading your posts :(

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  6. Lovely post today of all the vintage kitchen things and sweet reminders of past years. The cake recipe looks so yummy!

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  7. Thanks for this post - very enjoyable. I wish I had more family treasures from grandparents, but my parents left their home provinces to settle in Ottawa. So many of the treasures went to family members who stayed nearby.

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  8. Betty - I love your "old and charming" things!!! It brings back many memories for me too - the aprons, the embroidery, the enamal wear pieces and the little Tea Set. I have many of my mom's precious old things too and love to use them and display them. Have a great Saturday and thanks for sharing yours with us!

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  9. Betty, this is a great post of the now and then. I love it. And yes, we too had chocolate cake every weekend. It was part of the Saturday prep work for Sunday.

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  10. Has the print button been deleted?

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    Replies
    1. We will work on getting the print button up and running again.

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  11. Amazing! I do believe you've created a newer, better, quicker, less-expensive Black Forest Cake. I pretty much think wild strawberries grew in the Black Forest, not cherries. So, authentic, too.

    I love the pix of your cherished treasures. xxx

    Sharon

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  12. Oh I just now see the question.

    Helen I use plain yogurt instead of buttermilk, which I loooove and drink standing at the fridge out of the bottle .... ahem. I always have plain yogurt in the fridge. It's a staple on my oatmeal, desserts and a dessert of its own with fruit.

    Sharon

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  13. I am pinning this - I wonder if you could use a different flour type product to make it gluten free? YUM. sandie

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  14. I love using old treasures from my Mom and Grandma, too. Thanks for sharing yours! I have a similar tea set from my childhood but it sadly is missing a few pieces.

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  15. Such a heart warming post, I just loved it.

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  16. I have that rose pattern in adult size for a breakfast set...and I love it! Although it was not handed down from my grandma or mom, it was someones - I found it at my favorite antique store and brought it home to make new family memories

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  17. The Rogers Syrup can brings back memories. My grandma and mom used them to go picking Saskatoon berries. They were tied around the waist with nylons or bailer twine.....good times :)

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    Replies
    1. We did the same! Thank you for bringing back that memory!

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  18. I just reread your post Betty and that colander in the top left corner is identical to the one I use every day. I want to say I got it from my Mother in Law but I'm really not sure where it came from. I know that it is my favourite colander. From the picture it looks like the chips on yours match those on mine.

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  19. I just reread your post Betty and that colander in the top left corner is identical to the one I use every day. I want to say I got it from my Mother in Law but I'm really not sure where it came from. I know that it is my favourite colander. From the picture it looks like the chips on yours match those on mine.

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