To make Ginger-bread

December 24, 2025December 24, 2025 Little DorritLeave a comment

I’m always fascinated by recipes that pop up over and over again throughout different cookbooks. Early cookbook authors copied from one another extensively, frequently reprinting recipes from other cookbooks word-for-word or with only a few minor alterations. The copied recipes are almost never attributed to their original authors, a practice that would be considered plagiarism today but was common at the time. I’ve found this exact gingerbread recipe in three 18th and 19th century cookbooks so far, and wouldn’t be surprised if it turns up in more.

Sir Robert Walpole’s Dumplings

April 18, 2021October 12, 2024 Little DorritLeave a comment

In the 18th century, naming foods after celebrities and political figures was still relatively rare. The practice became much more common in the 19th century, particularly with the myriad of foods named after Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. This recipe from Susanna Maciver stood out to me as an unusual example of an 18th century recipe named after a politician: Sir Robert Walpole.

Heart Cakes

February 14, 2021February 11, 2021 Little Dorrit5 Comments

These 18th century heart cakes are a variation on queen cakes, which were also often baked in heart-shaped tins. This recipe, from Charlotte Mason’s 1777 book The Lady’s Assistant, spruces up a basic queen cake recipe with the addition of candied orange peel and citron. You could certainly bake them in regular muffin tins, too – but as hearts, they are perfect for Valentine’s Day!

Mince Pye without Meat

November 22, 2020June 30, 2024 Little DorritLeave a comment

I still remember my first-ever mincemeat pie, served on Christmas Day at the Charles Dickens Museum in London. It tasted warm and Christmas-y, the perfect treat after a cold trek across the city in the snow. Since then, my mind has associated mincemeat pies with a Dickensian, Victorian Christmas – but mincemeat pies actually go back much farther than that.

History in the Making

recreating historic foods and crafts

Tag: 1770s

To make Ginger-bread

Sir Robert Walpole’s Dumplings

Heart Cakes

Mince Pye without Meat