. . . one of the Founding cooks: Samuel Fraunces

As July draws to a close, we celebrate another of the Founders:  Founding cook Samuel Fraunces.  Fraunces came of mixed Caribbean ancestry which was a familiar strain among the many immigrant lines in the coastal cities of the Colonies.  Fraunces operated taverns in New York and Philadelphia, playing host to George Washington, the Sons of Liberty, and officers of the Continental Line.  From 1791 to 1794, Fraunces served as chief Steward of the President’s House.

From ample evidence in Mount Vernon cookbooks and other sources, we know the Washingtons were fond of hot breads:  waffles, hoe cakes, Lunns, and spoon breads.  3 p.m. was the dinner hour whether Washington was at Mount Vernon or in New York or Philadelphia.  One diarist reports a 3 p.m.  respast of several meats, a vegetable or two, and hot breads washed down by port and Madeira.  Samuel Faunces’s Spoon Bread was no doubt a favorite of America’s favorite General.

Samuel Fraunces’s Spoon Bread

3 cups buttermilk

2 eggs

¾ to 1 cup coarse-ground white corn meal

salt

Prepare a very hot oven (500 if possible)

Have ready a 12 to 14 inch iron skillet with a scant tablespoon of lard or bacon grease

Whisk buttermilk and eggs with a pinch of salt in the top of a double boiler and stir over boiling water until the mix begins to thicken

Place skillet and grease in searing oven and bring skillet to high heat

Stir corn meal into egg and milk mixture and pour into heated skillet.  (mix may spatter)  Reduce heat to 400 and bake for 30 minutes.

Turn out into pretty serving dish, serve with spoons and plenty of butter.

My family loves it with strawberry jam!

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