What foods did the Lincolns like to eat? Culinary series to cook up historic cuisine
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Conjuring up an image of Abraham Lincoln in his stovepipe hat or Mary Todd Lincoln in her hoop skirts is an easy exercise for most. Imaging the tastes and smells simmering in their Springfield neighborhood at dinnertime is likely a harder exercise.
And that was how “History Cooks: Food of Lincoln’s Springfield” came to be the newest entrant to the Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau’s History Comes Alive Series. The new series is a collaboration with the bureau, Lincoln Home National Historic Site and Lincoln Land Community College.
“We wanted to reach out to individuals with interests other than history,” said Sarah Waggoner, tourism manager for the bureau. “Most people really enjoy eating and trying new recipes.
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“It really merges the past and the present for the general visitor. History isn’t just people, but also the things they eat, do, their lifestyles.”
The 10-week culinary series runs June 3 through Aug. 5 with area chefs and Lincoln Land Community College’s culinary program conducting cooking demonstrations every Friday at 1 p.m. from a tent at the Lincoln Home National Historic Site.
Each session comes with a souvenir recipe card.
The 40-minute sessions will cover everything from the white almond cake Mary baked for Lincoln when they were courting to some of their favorite family meals, preparations for wild game to recreating dishes served at Lincoln’s second presidential inaugural ball.
Series presenters include a wide range of Springfield’s culinary leaders such as local chefs Michael Higgins, August Mrozowski, Sean Keeley and Kevin Sullivan, LLCC baking instructor Jolene Lamb and dietitian Charlyn Fargo Ware with the SIU School of Medicine.
Bob Bunn, whose great-grandfather Jacob Bunn ran the general store where the Lincolns shopped, will share recipes for a tea blend and lemon drops that were regular purchases for the Lincoln household, according to business receipts.
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Kathryn Harris will discuss the wide swath of ethnicities – and thus cuisines – represented in the Lincoln neighborhood, while Ian Hunt with the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum will discuss beer brewing during the era.
Although Lincoln was not known to be much of a drinker, he was famously quoted saying, “I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts and beer.”
Jay Kitterman, Lincoln Land Community College’s culinary and special events consultant, did a bulk of the research himself.
“We’re telling the story of Lincoln and how food related to him,” Kitterman said. “It’s more than just cooking. It’s all the wonderful stories surrounding the food of that time. It’s going to be a fun, fun series.”
The list of topics and presentors can be found online at https://visitspringfieldillinois.com/EventDetails/?id=23459.
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: What foods did the Lincolns eat? Culinary series to cook it up
