The housewife’s joys of her new adventure

I acquired a lovely little cookery book, of historic importance in many ways although it only cost me £2 in a second-hand book shop. It is the National Mark Calendar of Cooking. The National Mark was a standard set by the government in the 1930’s to try and ensure that the standard and quality and provenance of food sold in British shops should be of the same high standard. It seems quaint and old-fashioned in some ways, but take away the idea that only a woman would be buying, preparing and cooking meals, and that her role as a wife would be purely domestic, then the ideas behind it are very current; eat what is in season, eat what is grown locally if possible, be economical, choose cheaper options, don’t waste, use up left-overs, help your family to eat healthily and eat a variety of different foods.

The book was written by Ambrose heath and  Mrs D.D. Cottington Taylor, and beautifully illustrated by Blair Hughes-Stanton. Each month’s recipes are introduced, and in February, the housewife “will find, too, that the rather dull days of late winter can be enlivened by the summer sunshine stored in National Mark tins, and that a dish of green peas or some delicious summer fruit will evoke memories – possibly of those very gardens and orchards where they were grown.”

This was before the days of chilled or frozen foods, so tinned, bottled or preserved fruit and vegetables added variety and interest to meals during ‘the dull days’.

This isn’t butter onion soup, the first recipe for February in the Calendar of Cooking, but I will be making some later in the week!