Boating up the Mississippi River in June 1854, Grand Excursion travelers dined on oysters and lobsters by the barrel, game and vegetables from the surrounding countryside, and the finest French pastries. On land, St. Paul citizens could enjoy similar cuisine. Summer’s bounty from fields and forest, year round supplies of fresh fish, and a great variety of game—from turkey to bear—filled household and hotel tables.

At St. Paul’s Winslow House, chef Christian Hartmann relied on ingredients brought upriver to create sophisticated desserts. Hotel guests from various states and countries as distant as Australia tasted confections rivaling those of the finest restaurants in New York and Chicago. Cream puffs, custard flavored with rare, costly vanilla, sponge cakes, molded jellies, and even several flavors of ice cream share the sepia pages of this nearly 150-year-old cookbook with desserts unfamiliar today: molasses lemon cake; cinnamon stars made from pounded almonds, egg whites, cinnamon, and cloves; and Countess de Vienna, or iced lady-finger cakes filled with jelly. All provide a taste of early St. Paul cuisine.

Other recipes hint at chef Hartmann’s background. He specifies European hartshorn as a leavening agent instead of the more common American saleratus (baking soda). A “Brodt torte” including black-bread crumbs, wine, citron, and almonds suggests that he, like many of Minnesota’s early citizens, was German.

Frank Erd, a young bookkeeper, must have enjoyed Hartmann’s desserts, for he created this book, punctuating several of the recipes with exuberant exclamation points. However, the flyleaf tells yet another story of pioneer Minnesota. Erd left the state as a result of the Dakota War of 1862 and copied this book in Washington County, southeastern Iowa. The Winslow House itself was destroyed by fire in October 1862.

Erd’s cookbook was passed down through family to Clarice Renfro of California, who donated it to MHS.

The following recipes were adapted by Rae Katherine Eighmey. Eighmey is the author of two cookbooks of adapted 19th-century recipes, The Prairie Kitchen and Hearts & Homes.

Molasses Lemon Cake

1 1/3 cup molasses
1 cup warm water
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 teaspoons lemon extract
2 teaspoons baking soda
4 cups sifted flour

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

In a large bowl, combine the molasses, water, and butter, stirring with a spoon. Add the egg and lemon extract. Resift the flour with the baking soda and stir into the batter. Batter will be fairly stiff.

Spray two regular-sized loaf pans with nonstick spray and divide the batter between them. Bake until the cakes are firm and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean, about 50 minutes.

Cakes from this era are denser and drier than cakes we eat today. They were often served with a wine or cream sauce poured over each slice.

Cream Sauce

1 cup rich milk (half and half)
1/4 cup sugar
2 eggs, well beaten
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 tablespoon butter

Combine the milk and sugar in a medium saucepan. Heat slowly until bubbles form around the edge of the pan.

Gradually stir about 4 tablespoons of the hot mixture into the beaten eggs. Pour this warmed egg mixture into the saucepan, stirring constantly, and continue to cook over low heat until the sauce thickens. Remove from heat and stir in the nutmeg and butter.

Sauce may be served warm or cold. Stirring the sauce as it cools will prevent a skin from forming on top. Refrigerate if not used immediately.

Cinnamon Stars

1 1/4 cups sugar
4 ounces almonds
2 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
4 teaspoons cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cloves
3/4 cup flour
Additional flour for rolling and topping

Topping

1 egg
1 tablespoon water

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a food processor, combine the sugar and almonds. Pulse until ground to a fine powder. Stop before the nuts turn oily.

Turn nut mixture into a small bowl and stir in the egg whites and almond extract. Add the spices and flour. Knead briefly until smooth.

Divide the dough into 8 pieces and roll out on a well-floured surface to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut with a star-shaped cutter. Place on lightly greased cookie sheet. Dust with flour.

For topping, beat the egg with water and brush on top of cookies.

Bake until lightly browned, about 12 minutes. Allow to cool on baking sheet for a minute or two, then remove to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Note: This stiff and somewhat non-elastic dough can be challenging to work with. If you don't want stars, the cookies are just as good if rolled into a circle and cut into wedges.