Spin-off: Molasses and other ingredients you don’t hear of much anymore

[Pea-n-Me]

Growing up poor in the 1920s, my mother was given a spoonful of blackstrap molasses regularly. It contained vitamins and minerals, and she always credited it for helping keep her and her siblings healthy.

What is molasses?

Where I grew up, going back to colonial days, molasses was plentiful, and used in commodities such as rum and baked goods, among other things, so we still see remnants of that locally today (such as in the B&M products like baked beans and brown bread).

It dawned on me, though (in the things local to your area thread), that maybe people aren’t as familiar with molasses as they used to be.

Some products containing molasses:

candy (Mary Jane’s, molasses sponges)
baked goods (brown bread, shoofly pie, gingerbread)
baked beans
BBQ sauce

Does anyone still use it? What about other ingredients you don’t see much of anymore?



For those who enjoy history:

The Great Molasses Flood in Boston Kills 21

 

[luvnwdwgal]

I make sour cream molasses cookies with dark chocolate chips quite often. They are so soft and delicious. It’s one of my husband’s family recipes from years ago.

 

[RedAngie]

As soon as I saw who posted this I intended to mention the molasses flood.

I’ve only seen unsulphured molasses. Did others contain sulfur in the olden days?

Many moons ago I bought molasses as an ingredient for some baked good. It didn’t turn out as well as the recipe promised.

As far as I know, molasses is a “junk” byproduct of sugar manufacturing that found many uses.

 

[Schneewittchen37]

I use it occasionally for candied yams, pecan pie, shoofly pie or bran muffins.

I've noticed people don't cook with canned fruit, cool whip, Campbell's cream of soups, or jello like they used to. (Child of the 70's here)

When I was a kid, every other starchy side dish involved cream of chicken/celery/mushroom soup. And about every dessert contained some combination of either cool whip, jello or canned fruit.....

 

[FlightlessDuck]

We make molasses cookies occasionally, and yes, we use Grandma's brand. I think our gingerbread recipe (actual bread, not cookies) uses molasses. Our gingersnaps recipe for sure has molasses. Come to think of it, our gingerbread cookie recipe might have molasses in it too.



Ginger Snaps

3/4 cup vegetable shortening
1 cup sugar, plus more for rolling
1 large egg
1/4 cup molasses
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
(and a secret ingredient )

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or nonstick baking mats. Using an electric mixer at low speed, cream the shortening and sugar until thoroughly combined. Add the egg and molasses and beat until completely incorporated. Sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and salt and add to the mixture. Stir until combined. Roll the dough into balls about 1-inch in diameter. Roll the balls in sugar. Place 1/2-inch apart on the prepared cookie sheets. Flatten the balls slightly with your fingertips. Bake for 12 minutes. Cool on wire racks.

 

[RedAngie]

Dream Whip powdered topping mix. It’s still available, but I don’t think many buy it.

There were plenty of 60s recipes featuring it.

 

[prairie_girl]

I have molasses in my fridge right now. I used it to make gingerbread cookies at Christmas.

 

[Pooh2]

I have 2 bottles of molasses in my cabinet, one will expire next month so going to use it up to make Hermit cookie bars this weekend.
It is a must ingredient for Christmas baking!

 

[barkley]

we have it on the shelf for when dh makes baked beans.

 

[barkley]

Dream Whip powdered topping mix. It’s still available, but I don’t think many buy it.

There were plenty of 60s recipes featuring it.

View attachment 596670

View attachment 596671

the only reason it's on our shelf is we found a recipe for 'butter beer' and when it's used with a particular soda (that i only found for a couple of weeks last halloween-stocked up so we still have some) tastes identical to the stuff they sell at universal.

 

[TippyThomas]

My mom used molasses all the time. I have no idea what she used it for but I remember always seeing it growing up.

 

[LuvOrlando]

I use it in Pecan Pie and it is delicious!

the only reason it's on our shelf is we found a recipe for 'butter beer' and when it's used with a particular soda (that i only found for a couple of weeks last halloween-stocked up so we still have some) tastes identical to the stuff they sell at universal.

Please share the name of this magical soda because it doesn't look like I am going anywhere anytime soon & it would be fun, PM if you don't want a stampede to buy up all your soda, I won't spread the word

 

[Meriweather]

I always have molasses in my pantry.
Gingerbread, gingersnaps, and some sauces use it.
DD can't eat it so I have to be careful with that. Now that she is allergic to wheat, makes all the cookie, cake products easier today since she can't eat them anyway.

 

[TwoMisfits]

Growing up poor in the 1920s, my mother was given a spoonful of blackstrap molasses regularly. It contained vitamins and minerals, and she always credited it for helping keep her and her siblings healthy.

What is molasses?

Where I grew up, going back to colonial days, molasses was plentiful, and used in commodities such as rum and baked goods, among other things, so we still see remnants of that locally today (such as in the B&M products like baked beans and brown bread).

It dawned on me, though (in the things local to your area thread), that maybe people aren’t as familiar with molasses as they used to be.

Some products containing molasses:

candy (Mary Jane’s, molasses sponges)
baked goods (brown bread, shoofly pie, gingerbread)
baked beans
BBQ sauce

Does anyone still use it? What about other ingredients you don’t see much of anymore?

View attachment 596656

For those who enjoy history:

The Great Molasses Flood in Boston Kills 21

I have that jar on my shelf. I bought it recently to try in a few recipes (and to let my spouse use it in his beer making). I don't hate it as much as I did as a child, but I haven't grown to like it as much as I have real maple syrup (as a kid, I hated both with a passion, but now love maple syrup, although I have that sparingly, too)...

 

[ronandannette]

Growing up poor in the 1920s, my mother was given a spoonful of blackstrap molasses regularly. It contained vitamins and minerals, and she always credited it for helping keep her and her siblings healthy.

What is molasses?

Where I grew up, going back to colonial days, molasses was plentiful, and used in commodities such as rum and baked goods, among other things, so we still see remnants of that locally today (such as in the B&M products like baked beans and brown bread).

It dawned on me, though (in the things local to your area thread), that maybe people aren’t as familiar with molasses as they used to be.

Some products containing molasses:

candy (Mary Jane’s, molasses sponges)
baked goods (brown bread, shoofly pie, gingerbread)
baked beans
BBQ sauce

Does anyone still use it? What about other ingredients you don’t see much of anymore?

View attachment 596656

For those who enjoy history:

The Great Molasses Flood in Boston Kills 21

Molasses is as common a baking ingredient for me as any other - it goes in lots of things, especially spice flavored ones.

DH and I were in Honolulu celebrating our anniversary during the molasses spill there a few years ago. It was a big, big deal. No people were hurt but it took out huge masses of sea life (deoxygenated the water apparently).
Honolulu molasses spill - Wikipedia

Dream Whip powdered topping mix. It’s still available, but I don’t think many buy it.

There were plenty of 60s recipes featuring it.

View attachment 596670

View attachment 596671

It's still available and I actually keep a box on hand most of the time. I've got a very quick cream-pie recipe (may even actually be the Dream Pie shown here - the printing is too small for me to read) that's always a sure hit and I make it if I need to roll something out on the fly.

 

[easyas123]

What about other ingredients you don’t see much of anymore?

I have two recipes that call for 2 somewhat hard to find (for me) ingredients.
Lard - cookie recipe
Saltpeter - spiced beef recipe

I've started to notice lard in the stores a bit more. Saltpeter I've managed to find at a Amish/Mennonite grocery store in Dover, De.

 

[tvguy]

It is one of the baking supplies my wife keeps on hand. That and things like Karo Corn Syrup, Cream of Tartar, Corn Starch, Baking Soda. Our container of Molasses is half empty, and expires in 2024 so it gets used in gingerbread cookies, pumpkin pie, and homemade granola.

 

[tvguy]

I have two recipes that call for 2 somewhat hard to find (for me) ingredients.
Lard - cookie recipe
Saltpeter - spiced beef recipe

I've started to notice lard in the stores a bit more. Saltpeter I've managed to find at a Amish/Mennonite grocery store in Dover, De.

Lard is in the butter section of the store here.

 

[_19disnA]

As someone else mentioned, it is a common ingredient if you do much baking and can find it in the baking aisle at the grocery store. White sugar mixed with molasses makes brown sugar so you don't have to keep two kinds of sugar around for baking. Many cookie recipes use brown sugar.

 

[easyas123]

Lard is in the butter section of the store here.

Once in a while I see it in the aisle w/oil in our local stores, not refrigerated.
In the specialty market, it's often refrigerated if they have it. If I think I'm going to use the recipe (which isn't that often, to be honest it's more tradition than good eats!) I start looking for it weeks or months ahead of time!

Like with many items, much of this stuff can be regional I suppose.