Souvenirs VII:
The View From Here
by L. Joyce Mundy
The concept of the summer kitchen is largely unknown today. Because early cooking was done over open fires, it was desirable to keep smoke and heat away from the main dwelling, especially in summer. Another purpose of a separate kitchen was to prevent house fires, which could wipe out homes and entire villages.
Affluent Colonial Americans had separate kitchens where servants prepared food for them the year round. Later, southern plantation owners built kitchens behind their homes for cooking that was done by slaves. Some of these structures can still be seen at historic mansions.
1 cup water
1 1/2 sticks butter or margarine 1 cup dark molasses or sorghum 3 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons soda
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 eggs
In a saucepan, heat just to a boil, water, butter or margarine, and molasses. Mix dry ingredients together well in a large mixing bowl. Pour boiling mixture over dry ingredients and beat by hand until smooth. Add and beat in eggs. Bake in a 9 x 13-inch pan for 30 minutes at 350 degrees or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. (Bakes in a relatively short time because batter is already warm.) Serve warm with butter or cool with whipped cream topped with a dash of cinnamon.