Let’s Dish! 50th Anniversary Edition Then & Now Recipe Collection compiled by the Howard County Historical Society

Let’s Dish! 50th Anniversary Edition Then & Now Recipe Collection compiled by the Howard County Historical Society 2014

This is one of my personal favorite books. It has a good assortment of “now” contemporary recipes and “then” recipes from historic sites and previous Howard County Historical Society Cookbooks dating back to the 1960s.

There are photographs of items from the Society’s collection of items ranging from teapots to memorabilia from the Enchanted Forest, a long-closed but still beloved and fondly remembered children’s amusement park in Ellicott City, Maryland on the recipe dividers.

The recipes are clearly marked “now” or “then” and with the contributor’s name and other important details like the historical site they originated from or even a brief history. A good number of male contributors which I always find a little noteworthy because many community cookbooks have none.

There are a lot of regional recipes using crab meat, terrapin, and oysters, salads (with dressings), casseroles, baked goods (including bread), and many desserts.

I updated the snippy noodle cake and whipped cream cake from this book for my Maryland Folklife grant cookbook. You can find the snippy noodle cake recipe here and the whipped cream cake here for those who do not have access to either book.

As always, I’d love some information on some of the names of the recipes like Anne Clark Schoenhut’s “Lady’s Trusty Rusty Pelican Dressing” and Mrs. Edwin Gramkow’s Potato Salad a la Boots (which included some history but shed no light on the name) but overall, the notes are quite detailed and specific for recipes.