This week's recipe is another from Josie Shearer, wife of John H. Shearer, publisher of The Marysville Tribune (more info here.) Because of their prominent role in the First Congregational Church of Marysville, compilers of the recipes in the Centennial Buckeye Cook Book, one of our main sources for historical Union County recipes, and the participation of Shearer descendants in our recipe collection process, we have already learned and shared a lot about the Shearer family.
We thought a nice change of pace would be to share some general information on the Union County Historical Society Museum. The museum, located at 246 W Sixth Street in Marysville, is currently open by appointment only and well worth a visit to learn more about the area's history! They have items ranging from Native American arrowheads to modern military uniforms. There is even a whole kitchen setup, shown in the video above. Some other highlights to be on the lookout for:
Turner car: Restoration is currently underway on this old car from the early 1900's. Volunteers have successfully gotten the old gal running - quite a feat for a crank style car - and are working on reassembly and aesthetics - also a complicated endeavor, as Richard Turner built the wooden car himself. The chassis and engine are manufactured by the Brennan Motor Manufacturing Company, making this car one of roughly three Brennans in the United States today. I have grown very familiar with this car over the past several years as I have helped with its restoration.
Noah Orr display: The larger-than-life chair and shoes of the famous Union County Giant are on display on the second floor of the museum.
Weller log home: The cabin is one of the oldest surviving homes in Marysville and has been transported to its current location behind the museum.
Coinola: This music machine was once owned by Walt Disney, and, yes, it still works!
All proceeds collected from the sale of our historical baked goods go to help fund projects at the Union County Historical Society. If you have historical recipes to share, please contact us at kitschenbakery@gmail.com. Our project will run through December 2020.
Our recipe this week is pretty straightforward. To make "Dripping Pan Cornbread," preheat your oven to 400 degrees with the pans inside. We used our antique corn stick pans, but any pan will do. Carefully remove the hot pans from the oven and brush with bacon grease. Pour the batter into the hot, greased pans; this creates a nice crispy, golden bottom on the cornbread. The corn sticks only took about 7 minutes to bake through, but baking time will vary depending on your pan size and shape. Another option: Fry bacon in an ovenproof skillet and, after removing the bacon from the pan, pour the batter in and bake.
Four-packs of these corn sticks will be for sale at our farm market the weekend of August 15-16 for $3. We are open Saturday and Sunday 12:30-5:00pm and by appointment.
NOTES:
The Centennial Buckeye Cook Book can be purchased on Amazon.