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I am definitely, absolutely interested in the ’63 Frigidaire refrigerator.  I can drive up on any day to pick it up.

I don’t remember any New Year’s traditions when I was growing up.  People would mention that black-eyed peas and collard greens meant good luck because they looked like dollar bills and pennies, but the idea that anyone would actually cook that combination for a party seemed like an urban myth. ...

My grandmother used to tell me that the Christmas after my grandfather died, she decided she wouldn’t decorate that year.  But then, she thought of exactly what he would say: “I’d be ashamed.”  She knew he would want her to pick up and move on and live her life, so she decorated the house, and...

FDA = LCD (lowest common denominator)   They really are under an obligation to tailor all instructions to the most stupid consumer they can find.  No “if ... then” clauses, no exceptions, no variations.  They always choose the most extreme end of possible outcomes, simply because they have...

One more thing.  I always use Muscat raisins for my Christmas baking.  They are so much better than seedless raisins, all of which are from the same grape, no matter how they’re labeled: Sultanas, Thompson seedless, or simply seedless raisins.  The green ones are different only in how they are...

If you’re really adventurous, you can boil the pudding in a cloth.  I’ve done that only twice, and it was kind of messy, but not difficult.  I loved the look of the ‘cannon ball’ pudding, and both times I got the wonderful ‘crust’ that the boiled puddings are famous for.<!-- [if gte mso 9]><xml>...

If you haven’t made yours yet, you better get cracking.  They’ve got to age at least a couple of weeks.   My family insists on Trifle as the Christmas dessert, but some years I also make a Christmas Pudding, and some years I make a Christmas Cake for Twelfth Night (which makes it technically a...

I have steamed many solid puddings in my crockpot, which is a modern Rival 6½ quart, SCVT650-PS.    I don’t use a trivet; I fold a little napkin and put that in the bottom.  Then I boil some water in the tea kettle, add a few inches to the crock, and turn it on high.    While the crockpot...

Fantastic!

Okay, I veered way off topic with those two posts.  I hope that’s okay.  I had forgotten this started as a post on flour, not cornmeal.

I also found this interesting insight into Southern cooking 100 years ago.  It’s from a bulletin put out by the Department of Agriculture, published in 1915.<!-- [if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/>...

Even in Mexico, white masa is much preferred over yellow masa, so the bias is obviously widespread.  I use white corn meal, but I prefer yellow corn grits.  Honestly, there’s not too much difference between white and yellow, but there is a slight difference.   Even more significant in cooking...

I love yeast rolls made with soft-wheat flour, but it is inherently different from hard-wheat flour, no doubt.  For one thing, it has very little body, which is exactly why those rolls at the Colonnade are so light.  For another, soft-wheat bread goes stale while you look at it, which is why...

Fanny “Kitchen Kraken” Cradock.  Scaring the Bejeezus back into Christmas since 1955.  

One thing I have always wondered about a Chambers is how hot the burners get.  I think the published power is 9k BTUs, a shockingly low number.  But I have read that users say the design of the daisy burner gives a hotter heat than the published number implies.  Does anyone here have an opinion...

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The annual tradition of hog-killing had died out in our family a few years before I was born, so I missed out on what is probably one of the most important cultural events in rural America.  I’m really sorry I never got to be a part of it.   Through the years, there were some neighbors who...

I have the 1954, and it is not that bizarre shade of blue inside.  Not at all.  I can’t imagine 1953 was much different.  But I guess my monitor could be showing the color incorrectly.

That interior has been repainted, hasn’t it?  Was it done correctly?

Thank you, Mr. Lefever.  Your link made my day.