Seneca Falls Historic Dinner
We planned to travel back to the year 1848 at this year’s Historic Dinner Benefit. On July 19-20, 1848, the first Woman’s Rights Convention 
was held in Seneca Falls, New York. Led by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott, the convention set in motion a 72-year journey to secure for women their full rights as American citizens. In August 1920, the ratification of the 19th Amendment guaranteed women their right to vote with the words, “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.”
We hold our Annual Historic Dinner Benefit in April, so the pandemic got in the way of this year’s dinner. To celebrate this important milestone in our nation’s history, we thought we would share our menu and recipes on the anniversary of the Seneca Falls Convention that opened on this day 172 years ago.
These recipes are based on historical sources from period cookbooks and periodicals. When you make one of these dishes, we hope you will, as Abigail Adams reminded her husband John in 1776, “..remember the ladies.”
1848 Seneca Falls Historic Dinner MenuLettuce Potage Brown Soda Bread Herb Curd Cheese Bread Poached Whitefish with Lobster Sauce Root Vegetable Gems Dressed Spring Greens Strawberry Trifle |
Lettuce Potage2 heads of iceberg lettuce, chopped32 oz. vegetable stock 1 onion, chopped 2 tablespoons flour 2 tablespoons butter Salt and pepper Sour cream garnish 1. Bring stock to a boil and add chopped lettuce and onion. Boil for 20 minutes. 2. Puree the mixture. 3. Mix the flour with about a 1/2 cup cold water. Stir until smooth and with no lumps then stir into soup mixture. 4. Add butter to soup and salt and pepper to taste. 5. Serve hot with a garnish of sour cream. |
Brown Soda Bread2 1/4 cups whole wheat flour2 1/4 cups all purpose flour 1 teaspoon salt 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda 2 cups buttermilk 1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 2. In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients then stir in buttermilk to form a dough. 3. Knead dough for 5 minutes on a floured surface. 4. Divide the dough in to, shape into two round circles, and cut a shallow “X” in the top using a sharp knife. 5. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes. |
Herb Curd Cheese Bread1 tablespoon honey2 1/2 teaspoon dry yeast 1/2 cup warm water 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour 1 cup cottage cheese, small curd and drained 1 egg, beaten 2 scallions, minced 1 tablespoon sugar 1 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon basil 1 tablespoon rosemary 2 tablespoon butter, melted 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 2. Mix honey, yeast, and water and set aside for a few minutes. 3. In a large mix rest of ingredients. 4. Stir in dissolved yeast mixture. Cover the bowl and let rise in a warm area for 2 hours. 5. Spoon dough into a greased and floured loaf pan. Cover and let rest for 30 minutes. 6. Bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees. 7. Remove bread from oven and brush the top with the melted butter. Return bread to oven and bake for another 35-40 minutes. 8. Remove bread from oven. Cool in pan for 10 minutes then continue to cool on wire rack. |
Poached Whitefish with Lobster Sauce2 pounds fish (most any whitefish will work) |
Dressed Spring GreensAssorted greens (spinach, Swiss chard, dandelion, purslane, lamb’s quarters, lettuces) Dressing: |
Root Vegetable GemsAssorted root vegetables such as potatoes, carrots, turnips, parsnips, and beets.Butter Salt and pepper 1. Peel and chop all the vegetables into about a half-inch dice. The more uniform you can dice the vegetables, the better the finished dish will look. 2. In small batches, saute the root vegetables in butter in a large fry pan. Saute the beets in a separate pan in order to maintain the individual colors of the vegetables. The goal is to get some brown on the vegetables as they are cooking. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 3. Just before serving combine the sauteed beets with the rest of the sauteed vegetables. |
Strawberry TrifleMilk Cake
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