Family Recipe Friday: (Old-Fashioned) Salad Dressing

Benita (McGinnis) McCormick (1889 - 1984)

This recipe was written in Benita (McGinnis) McCormick's hand on a back page of Congregational Church Recipes.  The book, first published in 1916 in Conneaut, Ohio, was a gift to her in 1921, presumably as a wedding gift, from her maternal aunt, Delia "Di" Gaffney.

The cookbook eventually made its way to my mother, Joan (Schiavon) Huesca and then to me.  It is now in the possession of my cousin, Suzanne, Benita's granddaughter.

"To My Dear Detty," reads this
inscription from Delia Gaffney,
on the inside first page of 
"Congregational  Church 
Recipes," dated 1921.

Salad Dressing 

To one scant cup of vinegar, add a lump of butter the size of a walnut, 1 cup of sugar, and 1 tsp. salt.  Set on stove in a glass.

Put in a dessert spoon full of cornstarch and ½ spoon flour, 1 tsp dry mustard and mix well.  Add enough water to make a smooth paste.  Beat egg and enough milk to fill the glass.  Stir well and add to vinegar mixture.  Cook till thick.

Being a good no-nonsense midwesterner, Benita titled the recipe simply, "Salad Dressing."   Presumably, she used this recipe often, because the page on which it appears is mildly stained.  Her descriptions of the ingredients ("a lump of butter the size of a walnut") are amusing yet typical of the time.

I wonder if she got the recipe from her mother?

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Copyright ©  2014  Linda Huesca Tully

Family Recipe Friday: Aunt Di's Millionaire Steak

Delia "Di" Gaffney
     (1864 - 1952)

Delia "Di" or "Deal" Gaffney.  This is part of 
a group portrait of the six Gaffney sisters.  
There seems to be an impish expression behind 
those innocent eyes, as if Di  had to stop whatever
 mischief she was up to to pose for this portrait.

Of the six Gaffney sisters of Conneaut, Ohio, Delia was the joker. There were several explanations for this.  

One story went that when Delia was a toddler, one of her sisters (no one would say who) was carrying her around in the field when she stumbled into a ditch and fell, dropping the baby. Delia's back was injured, causing her to walk with a limp all her life.

The other story was that she was deaf in one ear, a possible result of childhood scarlet fever.

Due to one or both of these incidents, Delia, variously nicknamed "Di" and "Deal," turned to humor as a way of deflecting attention from her physical challenges.   She loved playing practical jokes on her family and many of the townspeople of Conneaut.  She told colorful stories and had a wicked sense of humor that kept people wondering what she would be up to next.  

Di was born at home in Conneaut on June 23, 1864.  She used to say she was born "during the dog days of summer." She attended Conneaut High School as far as her freshman year.  For reasons unknown, she seems to be the only one of the sisters who never held a job outside home throughout her life.  One would think that as a single woman, she would have had to support herself.  She, did, however, contribute a significant amount to the household by cooking and cleaning while her sisters worked. She also looked after their mother, Bridget (Quinn) Gaffney, when Bridget became too old to care for herself.  

She followed the same pattern her sisters had, living first in Conneaut and then moving to Cleveland, where all the sisters bought a house on Rocky River Drive.

In October 1952, Di was diagnosed with uterine cancer.  It progressed rather quickly over the next month, and she entered Longview Hospital in Kingsville, Ohio, in mid-November.  She died there, two days after Thanksgiving.  She was 88 years old.

This cookbook, given to my great aunt Detty in
1921, made its way to my mother, Joan (Schiavon)
Huesca and then to me.  It is now in the possession
of my cousin, Suzanne, Benita's granddaughter.

Di left behind a small memento for us to remember her.  It was a cookbook published by a women's group from the Congregational Church of Conneaut.  Aptly called Congregational Church Recipes, the hardcover book, published in 1917, measured about 6" x 9" inches and contained about 100 pages.  The aged-gray cover is simple with black writing. The inside first page has two inscriptions, both dedicated simply:

       

August 25, 1917

Deal -

With love and kisses

From Mary. 

I would love to know who "Mary" was.  She might have been Di's eldest sister, Mary Jane Gaffney, or she could have been a friend.  

In 1921, Di gave the book to her niece, Benita "Detty" (McGinnis), as a wedding gift for her marriage to Phillip C. McCormick.  Her own dedication is as simple as the one made to her a mere four years earlier.  

To My dear

Detty

1921

The cookbook itself contains advertisements from local businesses and recipes compiled by the women's club of the church.  The recipes are simple and encourage thriftiness; some of the cakes are "eggless, sugarless, and butterless."  Delia herself handwrote some of her favorite recipes on the back pages of the book, including the one below for "Millionaire Steak." 

Wait - Millionaire Steak in a cookbook that encouraged thriftiness?  Maybe it is not so odd.  After all, as a Chicago millionaire once said to one of my ancestors, how do you think the rich get that way?

Millionaire Steak

1 ½ - 2 ½ lbs. sirloin steak, cut thick

1 cup carrots

1 cup celery

1 cup peas

1 can mushrooms

3 tbsp. butter

1 lg. tbsp. ketchup

3 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

Cook carrots, celery, peas, mushrooms, butter, ketchup, and Worcestershire sauce together in a sauce pan for 20 minutes.  Pour vegetables and sauce over meat and bake in oven for ½ hour.  Serves 6.

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Copyright ©  2013  Linda Huesca Tully

Are you a member of the Gaffney, Huesca, McCormick, McGinnis, or Schiavon  families? Share your memories and comments below.

Wisdom Wednesday: Wise and Loving Matriarch

Mary Jane (Gaffney) McGinnis:  (1858 - 1940)

Friends and sometimes complete strangers often dropped by Mary Jane (Gaffney) McGinnis' home during the 1920s and 30s, hungry for a meal or even advice.  "Janie" gave both quietly and generously, never asking for anything in return.  She was a fervent follower of the Golden Rule:  Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

Mary Jane (Gaffney) McGinnis, at Bluebird Cottage in Wisconsin, late
1930s.   I think this may have been in the town of Berlin, where she often
 visited her maternal cousins, Patrick and Mary McGoorty.  The blue silk
 dress with white polka-dots was her favorite.  She sewed it herself, as
 she had all her clothes. 

Janie was not only the center of her immediate family but also was the darling of her sisters and brothers, who visited her often.  Other than she, the only other siblings who had married were Frances ("Frank"), who married James Cherry; and John Patrick, who married Elizabeth Cain. The others - Lyle, Maggie, Agnes, Delia "Di," and Thomas "Tommy," bought a home together at 17813 Woodbury Avenue in Cleveland, Ohio.   Lyle went to live with Janie in Chicago after Tom McGinnis died, where she remained  until her own death in 1934.

My mother, Joan Schiavon, went to live with her grandmother Mary Jane McGinnis and Aunt Lyle as a young child, when the challenges of the Great Depression made it difficult for her parents to feed and clothe their two children.  Sleeping with her grandmother every night and following her around like a puppy dog by day, my mother felt immensely loved and protected.  Years later, she would call this the best time of her childhood.

Janie McGinnis lived a long and happy life, living with her daughters Benita and Alice as the years passed and she began to feel the strains of old age.  When she turned  79, she was diagnosed with kidney disease and pernicious anemia, and she died quietly on July 13, 1940, at Benita's home, surrounded by her children and grandchildren.  She was 81 years old.

Though her death left a huge void in the McGinnis family, her children and grandchildren carried memories of Janie's gentle love, selflessness, and wisdom with them through their own lives.  I would venture to say that many of her qualities have trickled down through them to their own grandchildren and great-grandchildren, who may have been born too late to know her but who to this day continue to benefit from her legacy of love and good works. 

Copyright ©  2012  Linda Huesca Tully

Amanuensis Monday: A Grand Aunt

[Note:  Amanuensis is an ancient word meaning one who performs the function of writing down or transcribing the words of another.  Derived from the Latin root manu-  manual, or hand, the word also has been used as a synonym for secretary or scribe.]

Benita Elizabeth McGinnis (1889 - 1984)

From my Grand Aunt Benita Elizabeth McGinnis' scrapbook - written when she was a mere 92 years young.

Born in Conneaut, Ohio, 5 years after my parents’ marriage and 3 years after the birth and death of an older sister, Mary Margaret, who only lived 3 days.

It is plain even in this infant picture that I was striving for balance.  I suppose this is because I was born under the sign of Libra, the Scales.  I’ll do anything to stay on both feet!

Benita McGinnis, age 3, 
Conneaut, Ohio, 1892

            

About 1902*.  The dress I am wearing was a lovely blue.  The goods were given me by my darling grandfather.**  My mother made it.  The aunts gave me the pearls.  I recall that Aunt Deal** carried me in the blue dress to gaze down at my grandfather in his bed.  He had just died.  I cried because he could not speak to me and tell me how he liked my dress.

For my fifth birthday, I got this this lovely blue, brown, tan and gold plaid with a puffed neck yoke of gold silk.  My hair was getting very long and I wore it in 8 curls. Each day Aunt Delia curled it and brushed the curls over her fingers to make them glossy.

Benita McGinnis in her 
birthday dress, age 5,
Conneaut, Ohio, ca. 1894

The words above were written by my Grand Aunt Benita (or Aunt Detty, as my mother, sisters, and I called her) in a scrapbook about her life she created when she was 92 years old.  Aunt Detty was one of the most fascinating persons I have ever been blessed to know.  She was born on September 30, 1889, the eldest of four children born to Thomas Eugene McGinnisand his wife, Mary Jane Gaffney.   Her younger sister, Alice McGinnis, was my maternal grandmother.

Although there was an age difference of 66 years between us, I feel we were kindred spirits who shared a love for and interest in many of the same things:  writing and traveling, faith and family.  She also was a renowned artist (though I missed the boat on that one) who was always trying new media and finding new ways of looking at the world.  We spent many hours together, drinking wine, sharing stories, poring over photographs, and solving the problems of the world.  A loving wife and mother and friend to all, she was my mentor and, in many ways, the role model of the kind of person I hope to be. 

*      Though Benita showed the date of her two-year-old self as 1902, it was in fact taken in 1892.  She always did look young for her age!

**   The (maternal) grandfather to whom Benita refers here was John Francis "Jeff" Gaffney, who died on February 28, 1892.

*** Aunt Deal was Benita's maternal aunt, Delia Gaffney.  Delia went by several nicknames, including Di and Deal.  

There will be more – much more – to come about Aunt Detty in future posts.

Copyright ©  2012  Linda Huesca Tully

Did you know any of the people mentioned in this story, or are you a member of the McGinnis, McCormick, or Gaffney families?  If so, share your own stories below.