• Boston Brown Bread •

"Molasses is the common ingredient in the go-together recipes of Baked Beans and Boston Brown Bread. It came in gallon crocks and poured over griddle cakes or just on bread as a snack. Molasses was used to sweeten many Island recipes as neither corn syrup nor maple syrup were readily available."

- 1 cup graham or whole wheat flour - 1 cup yellow cornmeal - 1/2 cup once-sifted flour - 1 tsp sale - 3/4 cup seedless raisins - 1 tsp baking soda - 1/2 cup dark molasses - 2 cups thick buttermilk

*Note* Results may vary

1) Combine the first 5 ingredients. Mix the soda and molasses together, then add the buttermilk. Stir slowly into the dry ingredients, combining until smooth.

2) Spoon batter into greased baking powder tins until they are 3/4 full. Tie on a double layer of waxed paper with a pleat in it for expansion.

3) Place on a rack in a deep kettle and pour boiling water to fill 2/3 of the way up the tins.

4) Cover kettle and steam rapidly for 2 hours. Add more boiling water as required.

Yields four 12 oz. cylindrical loaves.

Reference: Crawford, Elaine and Kelly Crawford. Aunt Maud's Recipe Book. 1996.
McCabe, Kevin and Alexandra Heilbron. The Lucy Maud Montgomery Album. Markham, ON: Fitzhenry and Whiteside Limited, 1999.

Last updated: December 25, 2005
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