Armistice Day Tea in honor of American veterans!

In 2006 I gave an Armistice Day Tea for the South Bay Ladies' Tea Guild, and we had a wonderful time remembering and telling stories about the fathers, husbands, grandfathers and, in some cases, mothers and grandmothers, who had joined the war effort during World Wars 1 and 2, and the sacrifices made by those at home in support of that work. Armistice Day, November 11th, was a holiday established for the purpose of honoring the veterans of World War 1. Now called Veterans' Day, the holiday has been extended to cover all those who have served in the United States armed forces, during any war, but especially the wars since World War 1.

Digging through my grandmother's vintage cookbooks, and the others in my collection, was a really interesting walk through another time that is becoming increasingly relevant to our own. With our current economy going through a recession, and the nation at war -- although a smaller, if more drawn-out, one than World War 2 -- many habits of thriftiness and conservation that were widely-known and practiced during the 1930s and 1940s will be useful to us at the end of 2008. Having a "Victory Garden" is not so far off from the current fashion for organic gardening and the locally-grown-food movement, and finding new ways of using leftover food from previous meals is a useful addition to the habits of recycling that are urged upon us all. Our menu featured Cold Chicken Sandwiches and a simple bowl of winter apples, oranges and pears, as well as Cinnamon Bread from my grandmother's cookbook, and a few sweets like Hershey's chocolates (like those sent to "our boys" during World Wars 1 and 2) and old-fashioned ribbon candy. Here is the recipe for Cinnamon Bread that appeared on our Armistice Day Tea table:

Cinnamon Bread:
1 egg
1 cup sugar
1 cup flour
½ cup milk
4 tablespoons melted butter
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon cinnamon

Bake in shallow pan 30 minutes or in small muffin pans.
-- Olive U. Martin. (from Burnt Toast Recipes, ca. 1942.)

An easy, one-bowl recipe that makes a nice loaf of sweet bread, ready for slicing, toasting and serving with homemade jam or butter.