The Bonaparte (Iowa, USA) Historical Society's Museum in housed in the former home of John and Mary Haden Green who came to Iowa from the Black County in 1846. The village is having a Taste of Chocolate event in which the Historical Society will have a raffle basket as a fundraiser. I would like to include some chocolate related candies/recipes in the basket that were popular during the 1810-1840 time frame in England. I found an English Toffee recipe at cookingforengineers.com. What I wonder is if there are historic English recipes out there from this time period that use chocolate? Something that Mary Green may have cooked before coming here? Mike Miller, President, Bonaparte Historical Society

Hi, The only data I have is from the most quoted recipe book of the time Mrs Beeton dated 1861 (my version). In quoting it there are many strong caveats. The vast majority of people in the Blackcountry were desperately poor and their rations were survival fare. In the time frame you quote there was a massive cholera outbreak and hundreds died. Chocolates were not on the menu! If Mary Green went to the US to avoid poverty (as many did) she probably did not taste chocolate at all! (Not wishing to push the point, my Mother in Law has just died aged 103. She was from Lancashire and in 1910 she was buying bags of bones and dried beans for her Mother to feed a family of 12. Did her no harm!) Mrs Beeton's recipes were popular with the very wealthy and these would have been a very small % of the population (less than 1% at a guess). Mrs Beeton quotes recipes for Chocolate Almonds, slabs of chocolate served in fancy dishes, souflee, creams, puddings, sauces and cakes and the like. Mrs Beeton gives no references to Candies or Sweets. So if you are looking for something relevant to the Black Country I think you will find it difficult. The wealthy Victorian diet used chocolate as an additive to dishes often of French origin. Chocolate came then from the Empire mainly Jamaca. It was expensive and Mrs Beeton recommends 1/2 ounce for each person of cake chocolate when included in recipes. Hope this helps a little. Now, if you were raffling Pigs Trotters I am sure I could be more help! Hope the raffle goes OK Cheers Roger Thompson -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of BonaparteHistoricalSociety Sent: 07 August 2009 16:49 To: [email protected] Subject: [Black Country] Chocolate desserts from 1840's England The Bonaparte (Iowa, USA) Historical Society's Museum in housed in the former home of John and Mary Haden Green who came to Iowa from the Black County in 1846. The village is having a Taste of Chocolate event in which the Historical Society will have a raffle basket as a fundraiser. I would like to include some chocolate related candies/recipes in the basket that were popular during the 1810-1840 time frame in England. I found an English Toffee recipe at cookingforengineers.com. What I wonder is if there are historic English recipes out there from this time period that use chocolate? Something that Mary Green may have cooked before coming here? Mike Miller, President, Bonaparte Historical Society ------------------------------------- The only List that specifically covers the whole of the Black Country. Run by Black Country folk who were born and still live in the area. ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message