File:Reminiscences of Newcastle, Iowa, 1848; a history of the founding of Webster City, Iowa (1921) (14596504609).jpg

Identifier: reminiscencesofn00clos (find matches)
Title: Reminiscences of Newcastle, Iowa, 1848; a history of the founding of Webster City, Iowa
Year: 1921 (1920s)
Authors: Closz, Harriet M. Bonebright Bonebright, Sarah Brewer
Subjects: Frontier and pioneer life
Publisher: Des Moines, Historical Dept. of Iowa
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: Sloan Foundation

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ost with diurnal persist-ence. We used for baking corn dodger an iron skillet eight-een inches across, with legs three or four inches high. Abed of coals from the fireplace was raked out on the stoneor clay hearth, and upon it the skillet was set. The ironcover, the edge of which was rolled upward about twoinches, was placed over the skillet and live coals wereheaped upon it. The top heat helped to brown the dodgeron the upper side; if one top-supply of coals died out anddid not suffice to finish the baking, another supply re-placed it. When there was company, which was nearly every day,one skillet of dodger was not enough, and we resorted to the more primitive method of baking. The desired num-ber of extra patties was prepared and placed on a smoothboard which was adjusted in a slanting position in frontof the fireplace near enough to the flame to dry and brownthe dodger. When dodger material ran low we mixed itwith crushed acorns, but the bread was not relished. Later WOMENS WORK 171
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172 REMINISCENCES OF NEWCASTLE, IOWA we made an oat cake but with more hulls than meal it wasnot a gustatory success. Corn, early in the fall before it was hard enough togrind in the coffee-mill, was reduced on a corn-grater—apiece of tin which had been perforated with a nail. Duringthe immature, milky period of corn the grated meal was asticky, pasty mass which soured very quickly and madefresh grating and baking necessary for every meal. Buckwheat biscuit and flap-jacks frequently were on thebreakfast menu. One pancake at a time was baked in thedodger skillet. So soggy were they that it was possibleto carry to the table a leathery specimen doubled over acase-knife without cutting it in two. Rolling Pin. Salt-risin and soda-biscuit were a better culinary suc-cess when baked in the cook-stove. For the biscuit, a newrolling-pin—a smooth pealed stick—was needed nearlyevery day. It had a way of disappearing known only to the smaller children. When it could not be found the bis-cuit

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