Colonial cooking

On a cool April morning 10 years ago, I climbed a long flight of steps, entered a vast hallway and discovered a young woman on a high stepladder. She was wearing a surgical mask and was painstakingly sandblasting the ceiling. The City Tavern was set to open on July 4, 1994, and there was still work to be done.

Chef Walter Staib, a native of Bavaria, knew something had to be done to save the site, an exact replica of the colonial tavern at Second and Walnut streets where John Adams met George Washington. The building was in desperate need of repair and had been closed since Dec. 31, 1992. Two years later, Staib won congressional approval to operate the City Tavern, which is under the auspices of the National Park Service.

While doing research for his Pulitzer-Prize-winning biography of John Adams, author David McCullough made frequent trips to Philadelphia and met with Staib at the City Tavern. Staib asked the historian to write the foreword to his new book, City Tavern Baking & Dessert Cookbook: 200 Years of Authentic American Recipes From Martha Washington’s Chocolate Mousse Cake to Thomas Jefferson’s Sweet Potato Biscuits ($29.95, hard-bound, full-color photographs).

"Of all those worthy patriots who gathered for the first Continental Congress in Philadelphia in late summer of 1774 — and of those who later fixed their signatures to the immortal Declaration of Independence — none wrote so fully or candidly about the setting of the historic drama, or the human side of life for the protagonists, than did John Adams of Massachusetts," wrote McCullough.

"And quite fitting it is that Adams, describing his arrival in Philadelphia for the first time, on Aug. 29, 1774, singled out City Tavern for lavish praise. Indeed, to judge by Adams’ diary, the then-new hostelry on Second Street was the only thing about Philadelphia that made an impression that first day.

Adams and the others traveling with him had been on the road since early morning, and ‘dirty and dusty and fatigued’ as they were, they received a ‘fresh welcome, a supper … as elegant as ever was laid on a table.’ For his part, Adams decided that here was the finest tavern in all America.

"It was an endorsement few would have disputed, and it came from a man who dearly loved to eat, who all his life loved and appreciated good food, good drink, good talk around a convivial table," added McCullough.

When you leaf through and prepare meals from this historically accurate cookbook, you will discover the colonists loved sweets and good bread as much as we do today. Colonial bakers were artisans, forming each loaf, roll and biscuit by hand. They, like good home cooks, never used additives or preservatives in their delicious creations.

The book is a perfect Mother’s Day gift.

Here are recipes from City Tavern Baking & Dessert Cookbook by Walter Staib.

Thomas Jefferson’s Sweet Potato Biscuits

Ingredients:

5 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1 cup vegetable shortening
2 large sweet potatoes, cooked and mashed
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, ginger and allspice. Stir to combine.

Add the shortening and cut in with two knives until crumbly.

Add the sweet potato and mix well with a wooden spoon. Add the cream and pecans and stir just until moistened.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll out the dough to 1-1/2 inches thick. Cut out biscuits with a 2-inch floured biscuit cutter. Place the biscuits 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets.

Set the baking sheets in the oven, reduce the temperature to 350 degrees and bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm or let cool on a wire rack to room temperature.

Makes about 2 dozen biscuits.

Plum Fool Parfait

Ingredients:

9 Stanley or Rosa plums, pitted and thinly sliced
1/2 cup red currant jelly
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons grated orange zest
1 stick cinnamon
1-1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 fresh mint sprigs for garnish

Directions:

In a 2-quart saucepan, cook the plums, jelly, sugar, orange zest and cinnamon over medium heat for 20-30 minutes, or until plums are tender. Remove the saucepan from the heat and let the mixture cool to room temperature. Remove and discard the cinnamon stick.

In the chilled bowl of an electric mixer with the chilled whip attachment on high speed, beat the cream until soft peaks form. Add the vanilla and whip for a few seconds more.

In six parfait glasses, make alternating layers of the plum mixture and whipped cream. Chill for two hours.

To serve, top each parfait with a sprig of mint.

Serves six.

Note from Phyllis: If you do not have an electric mixer, you can whip the cream using a hand electric mixer.

Coconut Cookies

Ingredients:

1-1/4 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
1-1/2 cups grated, unsweetened coconut, toasted

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Lightly grease a cookie sheet with butter.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment on medium speed, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl often. Add the egg and beat well.

Slowly add the flour and coconut and beat well until the dough becomes stiff. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes, or until chilled.

Shape the chilled dough into 1-inch balls. Place them 1 inch apart on the prepared cookie sheet.

Bake about 15 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack and let cool.

Makes 3 dozen cookies.