I must have inherited my copy of Patricia Wagner’s Depression Era Recipes from my grandmother.  She was in grade school during the Great Depression and had a small collection of what I can only describe as “hard times” books with titles like We Had Everything But Money.  They were probably mail-ordered from a catalog or magazine ad and usually have an amateurish, vanity publisher quality to them.

And Depression Era Recipes fits right in.   It’s a small spiral-bound volume that looks like it came from a church group or Rotary club fundraiser.   The cover art is simple and stylish.  Recipe text is peppered with simple illustrations and some black and white reproductions of vintage 1930s advertisements.  But appearance can be deceiving, I guess.  Despite the basic presentation this book got six printings in the first six years of publication and is still in print over thirty years later.  This appears to be a passion project that caught fire.  Wagner started out compiling recipes from family and friends and turned it into a minor hit.

Readers looking for Hoover Stew or vinegar pie may  be disappointed; this is a collection of treasured family recipes rather than improvised dishes.  There’s certainly an undercurrent of austerity and simplicity, but this is hardly a voyeur’s collection of poverty cuisine.  For every hamburger stew or  soup there’s a healthy helping of special occasion recipes for beef stews

Truth be told this book has more value as a time capsule than a cookbook.  The recipes are fascinating, but not really tuned for the twenty-first century kitchen.  Modern cooks will want to spruce these recipes up a bit.  Besides salt, pepper, and the occasional bay leaf there’s not much in the way of herbs and seasonings.  (Unexpected exception:  a handful of recipes call for curry powder)   There’s also a heavy emphasis on game meats or mutton that may not be readily available, plus a couple of recipes that involve squirrel or raccoon.  The section on homemade cleaners and household products is terribly entertaining, but I probably won’t be making my own ant poison anytime soon.

One of the more bizarre entries in Depression Era Recipes is “Peanut Soup”.   It’s probably the one that comes closest to the hardscrabble improvisation that the title suggests, and it’s a stretch to even call it a recipe:  it’s just peanut butter mixed with boiling water, salt and pepper to taste, and a little swirl of canned milk before serving.  It comes recommended as a “very nourishing soup” that “children are especially fond of”.  

Nourishing or not, it’s depressingly unattractive – the consistency of canned tomato soup but an off-putting light tan color.  The pictures I took were terrible, so I will regale you with an AI rendering of the recipe.  It is much more attractive.

And while I’m not going to pretend it’s a hidden culinary gem, it’s surprisingly not awful.  I guess this isn’t surprising: it’s got fat and protein and a creamy texture:  all the components of a good, hearty winter soup.    I wouldn’t recommend rolling this out for company, but with a few extra ingredients it becomes a nice palate cleanser or high protein snack.

I’ve provided two options to dress up Peanut Soup.   The first adds a little bit of acid and smoky heat, stealing some cues from Thai and North African cuisine.  The other adds a sweet balsamic vinaigrette and fragrant fresh herbs.

You may purchase a copy of Depression Era Recipes via my Amazon Affiliate link here:  https://amzn.to/2JuPHEB