Ginger Gems: 1935 Edmonds Cook Book

It was ‘sure to rise’ then as it is ‘sure to rise’ now. Edmonds Cook Books have been around for more than a century and yesterday I got my hands on a slice of the pie, 1935 Edmonds 6th edition.

Ahh, the little gems you find. This one was simply fate. I was poking about in a Paeroa antique shop called Arkwrights, a great little store on the main road that has simply EVERYTHING from vintage gardening tools, dresses to any old household item you can imagine.

I was drawn to some cast iron items that I remembered from my childhood back when water was heated and everything was cooked on a wood burning Shacklock’s Range: a cast iron iron (one that sits on top of the coal range to heat); heavy old pans and some gem irons. My mouth drooled! Ginger gems! Crickey, I haven’t tasted those homemade since I really was a kid. They just don’t taste the same if they are not cooked in a cast iron griddle.

Then, as luck would have it, there was a number of old cookbooks for sale too. I spotted a 1935 Edmonds cookbook and sure enough, there was a gem recipe inside so it sold me on the spot.

Now, Gems aren’t the same as Ginger Gems I know, but it doesn’t take a genius to work out how to tailor them to taste. Edmonds website not only has a bunch of delicious recipes, it also has a long history of their Edmonds cookery books which they first started publishing in 1908. Those were the days when housewives could get a free copy by writing in, and young engaged couples were sent a free copy on announcement! Oh how times have changed.

But in this 6th edition, 1935, featured the very first Jelly Desserts section!

If you are not already salivating, it would be very cruel of me not to sure the Ginger Gems Recipe, so here goes!

Ginger Gems

Ingredients

• 1 cup standard flour
• ¼ cup sugar
• 1½ tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 50g butter
• 2 Tbsp golden syrup
• 1 egg
• extra butter

Method

1. Put ginger gem cast iron griddle in the oven and preheat to 200°C.
2. Meanwhile, combine sifted flour, sugar and ginger together in a medium sized bowl; set aside.  In a cup, add baking soda to milk and stir until dissolved; set aside. Heat butter and golden syrup together in a small saucepan until melted. Add butter mix to dry ingredients, along with beaten egg and milk. Stir all ingredients well to resemble a runny batter.
3. Take hot cast iron gem pan from oven. Add a dab of butter into each cell (it should sizzle). Add a spoonful of batter into each cell, then bake for 10 minutes.
4. Take out of oven, allow to cool for a few minutes, then turn onto cooling rack. Serve warm with butter -or any way you fancy.

Note: This recipe makes around 16 gems although my gem cast iron griddle was only 12, so it that’s the same for you prepare to put some extra mix into muffin cases, rather than waste batter!

How to look after cast iron griddles or pans:

• Don’t let it soak nor use soap! Wash the still-warm pan with hot water, scraping off any food. For harsh baked on food, apply coarse sea salt and with a paper towel, rub. This should take off any stubborn food. Rinse pan in hot water.
• Don’t allow the pan to retain any water or it will begin to rust. Dry completely, put it back in the oven on low for a few minutes, rub with vegetable oil and heat slowly for a further 5-10 minutes, then wipe off as much oil as you can before storing. The oil will help it from drying out or being susceptible to rust.
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