DOLLEY MADISON and her Infamous ICE CREAM!

Dolley Madison

In 1790, the first ice cream parlor opened in New York. In late June 1791, a notice appeared in the Pennsylvania Gazette announcing the details of that ear’s July 4th celebration. On the menu that year at Grays Gardens were the confections of Mr. de la Croiz, including “iced creams of a great variety.” Great estates, including Mount Vernon and Monticello, had their own “cream machines for ice.”

Dolley Madison, the first lady of the United States and wife of James Madison, fourth president of America, popularized ice cream in the White House. It was still a very impressive dessert because modern freezers were not introduced yet. To make ice cream, an estate relied on an ice house with large blocks of ice cut from frozen water, packed on straw and held in a cool place.

 

Dolley preferred oyster ice cream. She used small, sweet oysters from the Potomac River near her home to churn up an interesting dessert. In 18th century cookbooks, chefs didn’t stick to the basics. Recipes for parmesan ice cream, asparagus ice cream, chestnut cream and many other flavors that don’t grace our modern day tables were popular.

I couldn’t find her recipe for oyster ice cream, but she’d probably poach oysters in a cream base. The amount of oysters would dictate the intensity of the oyster flavor.

Here is Dolley’s Peppermint Stick Ice Cream.

3/4 c. sugar
2 tbsp. cornstarch
3 c. whole m ilk
3/4 c. light corn syrup
2 whole eggs, beaten lightly
1 c. cream
4 drops natural peppermint extract
2 drops red food coloring
3/4 c. peppermint candy, crushed

Mix the sugar and cornstarch in the top of a double boiler. Stir in the milk, syrup and eggs. Cook over boiling water, stirring all the time for 10 minutes or until the mixture has thickened. Chill. Stir in cream, extract and coloring. Freeze in a 2 quart ice cream freezer according to the manufacturer's instructions. When partially frozen, add crushed peppermint and continue frequently. Yields 2 quarts.

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http://www.pbs.org/food/features/ice-cream-founding-fathers/

http://www.cooks.com/recipe/ji23o1tr/dolly-madisons-peppermint-stick-ice-cream.html

MIDDLE SCHOOL READERS

 

Word to Pieces!

        Let's make Mary Lincoln young again to the young readers! I've completed the second round of editing and am anxious for the final completion.  Word to Pieces is the second in the series. It showcases a very important speech which Mr. Lincoln gave before his nomination for president.  The speech propelled him into the White House.

       So let's bring history to life for our youngsters. Let's teach them a little history while having fun doing it. Besides learning about the speech, there are other little bits and pieces of history that are brought forth for the reader to learn.

      Let's make history come alive!

      

                                 Barb Schlichting--history buff.

   

                     Barb's Books

A favorite First Lady, Betty Ford

First Lady Lady Bird Johnson

 

 

Born: December 22, 1912 

Birthplace: Karnack, Texas 

Died: July 11, 2007 

Claudia "Lady Bird" Johnson was First Lady of the United States from 1963 until 1969, during the presidency of her husband Lyndon B. Johnson. 

 

Second Lady of the United States

John F. Kennedy chose Lyndon Johnson as his running mate for the 1960 election. At Kennedy's request, Lady Bird took an expanded role during the campaign, due to Jacqueline Kennedy's pregnancy. Over 71 days, she traveled 35,000 miles (56,000 km) through 11 states and appeared at 150 events. Kennedy and Johnson won the election that November, with Lady Bird helping the Democratic ticket carry seven Southern states.

As the Vice-President's wife, Lady Bird often served as a substitute for Jacqueline Kennedy at official events and functions because of Mrs. Kennedy’s pregnancy. The Johnsons were accompanying Kennedy in Dallas when he was assassinated, and Lyndon was sworn in as President two hours later.

First Lady of the United States

 

As First Lady, Johnson started a capital beautification project (Society for a More Beautiful National Capital) to improve physical conditions in Washington, D.C., for both residents and tourists by planting millions of flowers. Her beliefs regarding the importance of national beautification can best be summarized in her statement that "where flowers bloom, so does hope." She worked extensively with American Association of Nurserymen (AAN) executive Vice President Robert F. Lederer to protect wildflowers and the planting of them along highways. Her efforts inspired similar programs throughout the country. She became the first president's wife to advocate actively for legislation when she was instrumental in promoting the Highway Beautification Act, which was nicknamed "Lady Bird's Bill" and sought to beautify the nation's highway system by limiting billboards and by planting roadside areas. She was an advocate of the Head Start program.

Johnson created the modern structure of the First Lady's office; she was the first to have a press secretary and chief of staff of her own and an outside liaison with Congress. Her press secretary from 1963 to 1969 was Liz Carpenter, a fellow University of Texas alumna. Carpenter was the first professional newswoman to be press secretary to a First Lady, and she also served as Lady Bird's staff director. Johnson's tenure as First Lady marked the beginning of the hiring of employees in the East Wing to work specifically for the First Lady's projects.

 

During the 1964 election, Johnson traveled through eight Southern states in her own train to promote the Civil Rights Act, at one point giving 45 speeches over five days. It was the first solo whistlestop tour of a First Lady.

Johnson continued her Whistlestop Tour in October 1964. However, this time it would be aboard a Braniff International Airways Lockheed L-188 Electra turboprop aircraft that would take her on a multi state aerial tour including the states of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Indiana and Kentucky. Braniff dubbed the Lockheed Electra "The Lady Bird Special" after the ground Whistlestop Tour Train. Besides the "The Lady Bird Special" script being painted on the sides of the aircraft a special route map of the tour was also painted on to the lower front part of the aircraft's fuselage near the main entry airstairs.

In 1970, Johnson published A White House Diary, her intimate, behind-the-scenes account of her husband's presidency spanning November 22, 1963, to January 20, 1969. Beginning with Kennedy's assassination, Mrs. Johnson recorded the momentous events of her times, including the Great Society's War on Poverty, the national civil rights and social protest movements, her own activism on behalf of the environment, and the Vietnam War. Johnson was acquainted with a long span of fellow First Ladies, from Eleanor Roosevelt to Laura Bush, and was protected by the United States Secret Servicefor 44 years, longer than anyone else in history.

 

http://www.ask.com/wiki/Lady_Bird_Johnson?o=2800&qsrc=999&ad=doubleDown&an=apn&ap=ask.com

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