Here's a bit more!

Sugar and Coffee

Sugar was the first table food rationed during World War II; sugar rationing began in the spring of 1942. So many shoppers were purchasing hundred-pound bags that stores soon set a limit of ten pounds for each purchaser. The U.S. government issued War Ration Book One in early May 1942 to ration sugar and coffee. This first book contained coupons to present at each purchase. The sugar ration was eight ounces for each person per week. The amount was later increased to twelve ounces. Office of Price Administration (OPA) inspectors enforced the rationing restrictions as best they could.

The sugar shortage meant putting less sugar in drinks and foods and finding substitutes such as saccharin and corn syrup. Honey was another popular sugar substitute; beehives were reportedly stolen in California for their honey. Coconut kisses sweetened with honey and molasses replaced chocolate kisses. Restaurants put less sugar in their sugar bowls and asked customers to limit their use. People bought more goods from bakeries to avoid depleting their own sugar supplies at home.

Relatedly...

The rationing of coffee started in November 1942. The threat of looming coffee shortages and rationing led to much hoarding, which only caused shortages to occur sooner than expected. To combat hoarding, the government froze all sales of coffee in late October 1942. Citizens were allowed one pound of coffee per adult every five weeks. Coffee drinkers who wanted more than their rationed amount had to resort to the black market or rebrew their used coffee grounds. Many who were not coffee drinkers began drinking coffee to make use of their coupons; others gave coffee ration coupons as wedding presents. Rationing of coffee stopped in July 1943.

Coffee rationing wouldn't have been much of a hardship for my grandparents since they were Irish and inveterate tea drinkers. Sugar rationing would've been a MAJOR hardship for my sweet-a-holic Dad. NO more of his mother's pies, tarts, and cakes! Fortunately, he loved molasses and butterscotch cookies.

Found this WWII era recipe that Dad would've loved:

"War Cake"

1 c molasses

1 c corn syrup

1 1/2 c boiling water

2 c raisins

2 T solid shortening (that would've meant LARD to my grandma)

1 tsp salt

1 tsp grnd cinnamon

1/2 tsp grnd cloves

1/2 tsp grnd nutmeg

3 c flour

1 tsp baking soda

2 tsps baking powder

In largepot, combine molasses, corn syrup, water, raisins, shortening, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and cool to room temp. Preheat oven to 350. Sift together flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Combine with molasses mixture & beat well. Divide batter between two well greased 9x5" loaf pans. Bake 45 minutes or until done. Cake will be dense & will not rise much.

Most of the recipes were eggless also. Were the eggs going to feed our boys?

I'd think so.

M2

It sounds yummy. Maybe I will try it in the near future. Danka!

Here's a neat site I'm sure you will enjoy:

http://www.egullet.com/tdg.cgi?pg=ARTICLE-newmanwarrecipes

=============

This is from an ENGLISH site:

The Standard Rations

I read with great interest the article on this site from the Derby Telegraph Bygones WWII: Cabbage patch army beat the rationing blues during wartime[[1]] Eric Swales memories of that era and how people had to manage on food rations got me thinking just what sort of meals were made then – what recipes were created using only the standard rations?

I found the following details on what the standard rations were. The quantities are per week unless otherwise stated:

Food rations

1s 2d (approximately 1 lb 3 oz or 540 g) of meat (offal or sausages weren't rationed)

4 oz (113 g) bacon or ham

3 pints (1.7 l) of milk per week or 1 packet of milk powder per month

2 oz (57 g) butter

2 oz (57 g) margarine

2 oz (57 g) fat or lard

2 oz (57 g) loose tea (teabags were not used widely in the UK)

1 egg per week or 1 packet (makes 12 “eggsâ€) of egg powder per month

2 oz (57 g) jam

3 oz (85 g) sugar

1 oz (28 g) cheese (vegetarians were allowed a bigger cheese ration, as they gave up their meat ration)

3 oz (85 g) sweets

2 lb (907g) onions (onions were only rationed between 1942-1944)

plus, 16 "points" per month for tinned and dried food.

Non-food rations

67 (later 48) “points†for clothing per year (e.g. 2 points for a pair of knickers, 5 points for a man's shirt, 5 points for a pair of shoes, 7 points for a dress and 26 points for a man's suit). Clothing rationing points could be used for wool, cotton and household textiles. People had extra points for work clothes, such as overalls for factory work. No points were required for second-hand clothing and fur coats, but their prices were fixed. Before rationing lace and frills were popular on knickers but these were soon banned so material could be saved.

16 oz (454 g) of soap per month (household soap, beauty soap, and soap flakes, but not shaving soap)

How on earth would we manage today?

Here are some depression and WWII recipes!

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Poor-Mans-Cak...esLikeThis.aspx

I had to laugh when I opened this topic. I had JUST finished scanning the inside cover of one of my ration cookbooks to post here!!! I have several of these cookbooks and am planning a party after the Easter Holiday (I have a rather large herd for Easter, so I need to rest up before then and not do any real entertaining before__) that features all ration recipes.

The book I found today was put out by Betty Crocker and featured info on the point systems, how to stretch certain products (butter bread before brining it to the table, whipping gelatin into your butter)

I also found a small post war cookbook put put by some beef council that featured pot roasts the size of Belgium.....

-- attachment is not available --

Hail Betty Crocker! You be da woman.

This topic was rather timely, wasn't it?

As long as we are going into wartime recipies I recall the one us Infantrymen used to make in our foxeholes.

We called it Kraut Pudding. Crumble 3 C ration hard crackers in your canteen cup. Add a saved cocoa ration,

a saved fruit, date and nut bar, 2 packs sugar. Crumble the fruit bar. Add hot water and mix. No ration points needed. Quite delicious on a cold day. All enredients available from C and K rations packs. Ever hear of it Roque?

As long as we are going into wartime recipies I recall the one us Infantrymen used to make in our foxeholes.

We called it Kraut Pudding. Crumble 3 C ration hard crackers in your canteen cup. Add a saved cocoa ration,

a saved fruit, date and nut bar, 2 packs sugar. Crumble the fruit bar. Add hot water and mix. No ration points needed. Quite delicious on a cold day. All enredients available from C and K rations packs. Ever hear of it Roque?

Hi Joe! Hadn't heard from you in awhile, thought you were a POW. Kraut Pudding,

That's a new one on me, Joe. But we all had to make do the best

way we could. Roque

Hey Joe: Missed ya sweetheart. Good to see you here.

I never heard of that either. A little more Yankee ingenuity! Here's to Kraut pudding!

Here's a bit more!

 

I was only 11 when Pearl Harbor was bombed so don't remember too much

 

It's ironic but my Dad drank Postum all teh time uncil coffee was rationed!

Funny but I don't remember ever being without cookies and cakes etc.

We did use molasses. Ginger cookies etc

 

 

Sugar and Coffee

 

Sugar was the first table food rationed during World War II; sugar rationing began in the spring of 1942. So many shoppers were purchasing hundred-pound bags that stores soon set a limit of ten pounds for each purchaser. The U.S. government issued War Ration Book One in early May 1942 to ration sugar and coffee. This first book contained coupons to present at each purchase. The sugar ration was eight ounces for each person per week. The amount was later increased to twelve ounces. Office of Price Administration (OPA) inspectors enforced the rationing restrictions as best they could.

 

The sugar shortage meant putting less sugar in drinks and foods and finding substitutes such as saccharin and corn syrup. Honey was another popular sugar substitute; beehives were reportedly stolen in California for their honey. Coconut kisses sweetened with honey and molasses replaced chocolate kisses. Restaurants put less sugar in their sugar bowls and asked customers to limit their use. People bought more goods from bakeries to avoid depleting their own sugar supplies at home.

 

Relatedly...

 

The rationing of coffee started in November 1942. The threat of looming coffee shortages and rationing led to much hoarding, which only caused shortages to occur sooner than expected. To combat hoarding, the government froze all sales of coffee in late October 1942. Citizens were allowed one pound of coffee per adult every five weeks. Coffee drinkers who wanted more than their rationed amount had to resort to the black market or rebrew their used coffee grounds. Many who were not coffee drinkers began drinking coffee to make use of their coupons; others gave coffee ration coupons as wedding presents. Rationing of coffee stopped in July 1943.

"It's ironic but my Dad drank Postum"

My father drank Postum until the day he died. One day a friend of mine noticed it on the kitchen table. She started laughing. She had read the label quickly and thought it said "Instant Possum" . Having tasted it, I think that might have been one of the main ingredients.....

I went through rationing in the UK and could'nt wait, as a teenager, for sweets to come 'off ration' in the early

1950s!!

Please tell this limey what Postum is/was?

Colin.

I'm from the states and I had never heard of it. I had to look on Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Postum

Gee I learned something new too. I did remember the name (it rang a bell), but couldn't remember at all, what the heck it was.

I dont recall postum, the only coffe substitute i remember is some nasty sludge made from chickory root.

A good website with a lot of info on ration stamps:

http://www.genealogytoday.com/guide/war-ration-books.html