 I learned to cook from my mother. She is the original inspiration for vintage savoir faire. Mom is a country girl transplanted to the east coast with a bit of 1960’s organic/crunchiness about her. I grew up with homemade baby food, weekly bread baking, lots of playing in the woods and garden, and an endless supply of creative crafts and projects. Mom also has a big love of old things. At one point in my life (oh, between age 11 and 17) I thought this was just totally embarrassing, and that she should modernize things! Every summer we’d go back to my grandparent’s farm in Iowa, and come home with assorted old books, glass bottles, fabrics etc from the local fairs. I thought it was such a waste of time and energy when we could be doing fun things – like going to the Mall! (*Groan*) But everything comes full circle, doesn’t it? And now I wish I still had the chance to talk with my grandmother about her earlier life on the farm and sort through the treasures in the attic.
 In my classic cooking repetoire, I think the key main course is a roast chicken. It’s looks impressive to serve to guests, but is also very homey and comforting. A few years ago I found a recipe called “engagement chicken” in a US women’s magazine. Apparently if you make your boyfriend a roast chicken, he will be unable to restrain himself from proposing because it conjures up images of a doting wife. Hmmm… Ok back from the 1950s. Boyfriend or not, if you’ve never made one before, it’s SUPER easy. It’s not even really ‘cooking’ – just rub the chicken with seasoning and put it in the oven!
I also love roasting a chicken because of all the options for the leftovers. In particular, I love making homemade chicken stock. And then using that stock in soup, or freezing it in smaller containers to use in cooking. Stay tuned, because in future posts we’ll learn all the ways that grandma might have used up every last bit of that chicken.
Continue reading Classic Roast Chicken
 Knitting. What does that make you think of? Little old ladies sitting in rocking chairs? Your elderly relatives gossiping and knitting at family reunions? Itchy, unfashionable sweaters that you received for Christmas?
Well if you haven’t heard, knitting is making a comeback, and there are lots of updated patterns and designs out there for inspiration.
I started knitting about 6 months ago because it’s a classic vintage skill (ok, and I have a scarf addiction. And what could be better than an unlimited supply of one-of-a-kind scarves?!) After a couple weeks of really slow-going and lumpy, holey scarves, I finally figured it out. So if this is something you’ve been wanting to try, hang in there!
Continue reading Get your knit on!
 Breakfast crisis on Saturday morning: no sausages or bread in the house for a Proper English Breakfast! What to do?!
I usually eat a bowl of oatmeal with cinnamon for breakfast … but on the weekends when Zak and I eat together, we like to have something a little more interesting. So this weekend, with sausages nowhere to be found, I dug through the pantry and found the ingredients to make these yummy muffins.
Apple and Blackberry is such a British Autumn combination for me. Apples are easy to find year-round, but the blackberries I had stashed away in the freezer a few months ago after Zak’s mom came to visit (she always brings a supply of home-grown produce in-season. For a city-dweller like me that’s such a treat!).
Continue reading Apple Blackberry Muffins
 Tincture. To me the word seemed like something out of an 1800’s pharmacy advertisement.
But after my herbal medicine class this spring, I realized that tinctures are a great way to preserve and take herbs. They also feel more like you are taking traditional ‘medicine.’ They keep a long time, are easy to mix in combinations based on your needs, and end up creating a nice herbal ‘apothecary’ in your house (with your stash of glass bottles.) Or, you can forget that they’re ‘tinctures’ and just make some tasty herbal liquors to serve to your friends!
Tinctures are super easy to make. You just need a few weeks of waiting time.
Continue reading Stock your retro apothecary with homemade tinctures
 The definition of cooking has changed in recent years. Is reheating a can of soup cooking? How about putting a frozen pizza in the oven? Or making mac&cheese from a box? I suppose technically, yes, you are “cooking” the food, however, our grandmothers would not recognize this as “cooking”.
I really believe we all need to learn how to cook. Each and every one of us. Feeding ourselves with healthy food is crucial to our well-being and survival. Food that we know where it came from. We know what’s in it. (“What’s in it” is a huge problem nowadays – have you read the ingredients on a prepared food package recently? Yikes.) Food we can tailor to our taste. And that won’t cost us an exorbitant amount. It all comes down to cooking.
Continue reading Why you should cook more
I practically fell over the first time I read that you could make yogurt. I love yogurt. I’ve eaten it since I was a kid. But I thought yogurt was made in some mystical process that required lots of special equipment and knowledge. (You may notice a theme around here – demystifying things. So many things we eat, drink and buy are just given to us without any explanation of HOW they’re made. Turns out, most of these things are really easy to recreate yourself!)
When I first read that you could actually make yogurt yourself, I didn’t believe it. Then, I was slightly grossed out – you’re supposed to leave milk slightly warm for 12 hours?!?! (This is my germ-phobic American side showing…) Wouldn’t that give you food poisoning?!?!
My first attempt at yogurt-making was while I was living in Paris. I bought a special yogurt making set on Craigslist. Turns out it was a faux-yogurt powder that you put in milk, and are supposed to ferment in little jars with individual lids. After 12 hours I had … milk in little pots.
Continue reading The lazy way to make yogurt
 Image from Schnittke Walking down the household cleaning aisle (or aisles!) in a big box store can be overwhelming. Not too long ago, I too had a cabinet full of cleaning supplies for every situation imaginable. Glass & mirror cleaner, kitchen cleaner, bathroom cleaner, degreaser, kitchen scrub, bathroom scrub, toilet cleaner, shower cleaner … the list goes on! Until recently, all of these specialized products didn’t exist. How did our grandmothers keep their houses so sparkly and clean?
Continue reading Get a Clean Home with these Vintage Tips
As winter drags on (February is always the worst for me!), here is an old fashioned recipe that can really brighten things up.
Hot honey, lemon and ginger is quick & easy, and uses ingredients you probably have in the kitchen. Don’t keep fresh ginger root on hand yet? You can always use some powdered or dried crystal ginger too … but fresh is best! In traditional usage, honey, lemon and ginger were used to help get over a cold. However, I like the fresh citrusy/spicy taste from the lemon and ginger, and I just like it as an easy warming drink (you can also add a shot of whisky and have a nice hot toddy!)
Continue reading Honey, lemon and ginger tea for a cold (or anytime you need a lift!)
 My mother would be proud – I’ve definitely inherited her inability to throw away anything that ‘might be useful someday.’ Especially if that thing involves chocolate!
Going through my pantry the other day (full disclosure: My pantry is really one small kitchen cabinet crammed to the brim – ahh the joys of apartment living!) I found unopened dark chocolate Easter bunny that I had stashed away last year. Since Easter is just around the corner, I figured I should really use this one up before the new season of chocolate bunnies appear on my doorstep.
OK, I could just eat the chocolate bunny. But it was the weekend and I was feeling more adventurous. I’ve been having a wicked craving for 7-layer bars recently, but haven’t quite made the effort to figure out substitutes for graham crackers etc. here in England. These blondie brownies have that toffee-coconutty goodness of the 7 layer bar, with a very dense chewy consistency. Don’t be discouraged by the super thick batter (mine was basically a dough) of this recipe, just press it into the pan like a cookie dough.
Plus, you get the added enjoyment of chopping up an easter bunny, if you have a little pent-up frustration to get out 
Continue reading Easter Bunny blondies
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What do YOU want to learn? Have a question, or really want to learn a certain vintage skill? Let me know! Email me:
Amanda {at} VintageSavoirFaire {dot} com
Friendly Reminder Please remember that I'm not a doctor or expert practitioner of anything we discuss here on Vintage Savoir Faire. I'm still learning and trying these traditional skills and remedies like you are. So please, speak with your doctor or a qualified herbalist before trying any traditional remedies. All the information on this site is provided on an as-is basis. Thanks!
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I learned to cook from my mother. She is the original inspiration for vintage savoir faire. Mom is a country girl transplanted to the east coast with a bit of 1960’s organic/crunchiness about her. I grew up with homemade baby food, weekly bread baking, lots of playing in the woods and garden, and an endless supply of creative crafts and projects.
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