More Billy - Old West - Food

## Food

Food and what you ate in the Old West largely depended on where you lived and what food was in season. Unlike these days you couldn't just pop down to your local supermarket or food store and buy what you fancied. You pretty much ate what was around whether you had a fondness for it or not. The main diet would involve meat such as chicken, pork and beef and this would be bulked up with corn, bread and potatoes. Mexican and Native American cuisine also had an impact on diet and many recipes were adapted to suit the townsfolk's tastes. The most common way of cooking was either frying, using a dutch oven or boiling food in a large pot over a fire. A lot of the food at this point was cooked in lard or butter and contained rich fatty sauces or gravy. Just like today three meals a day was the normal occurrence, the three meals were breakfast, dinner and supper. Dinner came at mid-day and the word lunch was never used.

A lot of meat was preserved using smoking or salting. Many people raised their own live stock or bought it locally and the same applied to vegetables and other staples. Refrigerators did not exist at this point so an ice box was used or a cold room or pantry. Tin cans made it possible for fruit and other preservable foods easier to keep and gave a wider range of food during the long winter months. Beans, beef, Chilli and green chilli were and still are staples for New Mexican cuisine.

## Recipes

Below you'll find some safe old recipes to try. The may have been tweaked a little for modern day eating.

### Corn Bread

* 1 cup white flour
* 1/4 cup sugar (don't add this much sugar if you dislike sweet cornbread 1 tsp is enough if you want it purely savory)
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 cup of grated cheese (only add cheese if you want it savory)
* 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
* 1 cup corn meal
* 1 beaten egg
* 3 Tablespoons melted shortening
* 1 cup buttermilk (or sour cream if you can't find buttermilk)
* 3/4 teaspoon soda

Sift together flour, sugar and baking powder. Put in pan with corn meal. Mix well and add egg, shortening, cheese and buttermilk, to which the soda has been added to make it foam. Mix well and pour into greased 9 inch square pan/dish. Bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes or until you can slide a knife into the corn bread and it comes out clean. Goes great with stew or can be eaten with butter and honey for a sweeter treat.

### Cowboy Stew

* 4 medium potatoes, sliced
* 4 large carrots, sliced
* 1 green pepper, cut into strips
* 1 onion, roughly chopped
* 2 cans of chopped tomatoes
* 1lb lean mince beef
* 1/2 cup milk
* 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
* 1 slice bread, crumbled
* Salt & pepper

Arrange the ingredients in layers in a crockpot or slow cooker, beginning with the potatoes. Add seasoning of a bit of salt and pepper to each layer. Add 1 can of chopped tomatoes on top. Mix together in a bowl the mince, milk, Worcestershire sauce, crumbled bread and a dash of salt and pepper. Mix well until combined. Press the mixture over the vegetables in the pot to form a cover. Add the other can of chopped tomatoes over the top. Sprinkle the top with oregano leaves or mixed herb if you wish. Let it cook for most of the afternoon until the meat is cooked and vegetables soft.This dish can also be baked in a 350 degree oven for one hour.

### Honey Drop Cookies

* 1 pound margarine
* 1-3/4 cups honey
* 6 eggs
* 5-1/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
* 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
* 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
* 1-1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1-1/4 teaspoon baking soda
* 1 cup seedless raisins
* 1 teaspoon vanilla essence

Preheat your oven to 375F and grease a baking tray with butter. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the margarine and honey. Add eggs to the honey mixture. In a bowl, sift together flour, nutmeg, baking powder, salt, and baking soda into a bowl. Add flour mixture to honey mixture and mix well. Add vanilla and mix well. Drop the mixture by teaspoonfuls onto prepared baking trays. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes.