Calvin and Grace Coolidge had simple tastes when it came to dining and they cherished anything related to their home of New England. One of the delicious items you could always find with one of their meals (including breakfast!) was New England Corn Muffins.

In honor of our former First Lady from New England’s birthday today, we decided to whip up some New England Corn Muffins to celebrate the fabulous Grace Coolidge.

Today in American History…former First Lady Grace Anna Goodhue Coolidge was born on January 3, 1879 in Burlington, Vermont.

In 1902 she graduated from The University of Vermont with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Teaching and is the very first First Lady to have earned a traditional four year undergraduate degree. After graduating from college, she taught at the Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech in Northampton, Massachusetts. She would remain loyal and dedicated to helping the deaf community for the rest of her life.

Mrs Coolidge was very social, extroverted and cheerful unlike her husband who was often silent and reserved.

In his autobiography, President Calvin Coolidge wrote about his marriage to Grace “For almost a quarter of a century she has borne with my infirmities, and I have rejoiced in her graces.”

She was a very popular First Lady and received a gold medal from the National Institute of Social Science. In 1931, she was voted one of America’s twelve greatest living women.

Another Christmas Cookie favorite..Snowball Cookies are fresh from the oven tonight. I always use this recipe from Land O’Lakes because well…I literally just LOVE their butter 😋

Snowball Cookies are also often referred to as Russian Tea Cakes and Mexican Wedding Cookies. Either way you call ‘em – they are so delicious! And so simple to make 👍

https://www.landolakes.com/recipe/20055/snowball-cookies/

It’s starting to feel like Christmas especially in the kitchen! Tonight I started making our family favorite Christmas cookies and of course will be making a few historical recipes. The first one made tonight was Laura Bush’s famous Cowboy Cookie.

You can find the recipe right here:
https://www.tasteofhome.com/article/laura-bush-cowboy-cookies/

We made Warren Harding’s favorite Almond Cookie in the kitchen tonight.

The almond cookies were very popular during the Harding Administration. The White House grounds had been closed during World War 1 and when the Harding Presidency began in 1921, The White House and the magnificent grounds were re-opened to the American public after being closed for so long.

It was a joyous occasion to have The White House open again and President and Mrs Harding loved holding socials on the White House lawn – especially on Sunday’s. Everyone would wear their “Sunday Best” and enjoy the beautiful landscapes of the lawn. The food was always delicious and there were plenty of lemonade, punch, cookies, cakes and sandwiches. One of the most popular cookies was an almond cookie – which was an absolute favorite of Warren Harding.

Recipe

Ingredients

3/4 Cups of Sifted Flour
2 Eggs (used separately)

1 Cup Sugar
1 Cup of butter (2 sticks), softened to room temperature
1/2 Tsp Baking Soda
Grated rind of one lemon
Just a dash of salt
1/2 Cup grated and blanched almonds (we used slivered almonds)
Blanched almonds for garnish (we used slivered almonds)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a bowl. sift the flour and set aside.

In another bowl. mix thoroughly I whole egg, sugar, butter, baking soda, lemon rind, salt, and grated almonds (we used slivered almonds)

Add the sifted flour to the mixture and mix thoroughly.

Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least an hour.

Place sliced cookies on an ungreased baking sheet

Brush the cookie dough with the other egg that has been beaten

Bake for about 10 to 12 minutes or until the edges are browned.

Cool on a cooking rack for a few minutes before removing.

Makes about 2 to 3 dozen cookies. All depends on how you slice them. We got 2 dozen from the ones we made tonight.

It was a beautiful day to enjoy the Fall foliage at the State Arboretum of Virginia and walk through the wonderful Ginkgo Grove which consists of 300 Ginkgo trees that sit on 3.3 acres.

I hope you are enjoying the beautiful colors of Fall 🍁 this weekend. It’s amazing, isn’t it?

The recipe I used was directly from a Betty Crocker cookbook – the same recipe my mother used many years ago.

Ingredients

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/4 cup shortening

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) margarine or butter, softened

1 large egg

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour or whole wheat flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees

Mix into a large bowl with a wooden spoon the following: granulated sugar, brown sugar, peanut butter, shortening, margarine or butter (softened) and egg.

Stir into the mixture: all-purpose flour or whole wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

Shape the dough into 1 1/4 inch balls. Put the balls about 3 inches onto a cookie sheet. Flatten balls gently in cross cross pattern with a fork dipped in sugar.

Bake 9 to 10 minutes or until light brown. Cool cookies 2 minutes on the cookie sheet, then remove with spatula to a wire rack. Then cool.

Recipe from: Betty Crocker’s Best of Baking cookbook, 1997.

Have you ever wondered what former First Lady and President Kennedy enjoyed eating? Besides the usual favorite of President Kennedy which was his recipe for Fish Chowder or Mrs Kennedy’s famous waffle recipe. the White House chef often made this delicious dessert composed of fruit – baked in the oven. I envision fruit best served as a cold and refreshing dessert but Mrs Kennedy often served this Hot Fruit Dessert to her guests and family.

For the recipe just click here.

It was a simple recipe to make and is something you can make in your own kitchen and dine like President and Mrs Kennedy!

Happy 76th wedding anniversary to Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter. Married today on July 7, 1946 in Plains, Georgia ❤️
(Photo Credit: Jimmy Carter Library)

We found this delicious piece of history while researching today and stumbled across it while looking online here