Cheap Eats At Home

Cheap Eats At Home 1950s Recipes

I grew up one of five in the 1950's, and my siblings and I didn't know we were poor.  We never went hungry and made do with hand-me-down clothing and toys.  My mother could sew anything, even though she had trouble understanding the pattern directions .  She made my favorite blouse from a chicken feed bag, which I would wear every day if allowed.  I usually went bare foot in summer, played outside,  and sometimes picked lunch right out of the garden.  Nothing better than a big juicy red tomato on a hot summer day eaten smash mouthed, followed by a wash down with the garden hose.  Tomatoes don't taste that good anymore.  My favorite Dish from back then we called Pea Soup.  It's very easy to make and very filling.  Basically it's little hard dumplings, a can of peas and water or chicken broth, salt and plenty of black pepper. The dumplings are made using a box grater.  They are a little bigger than rivals and harder.  To make them, start with cup of  flour, an egg, pinch of salt.  Work with your hand, adding more flour or water as necessary to make a very stiff dough ball that will hold its shape when grating on the large slots of a box grater.  Boil them like any pasta in either water or chicken broth.  You'll know when they're done.   To this simply add a can of peas (don't drain).  Heat through.  Salt and pepper.  Canned peas are better than frozen peas for this recipe for some reason.  It will fill an empty an empty for very little money, and my family loves it requests it a lot.