The Madison Valley History Association is starting to put together an Historical Cookbook for the Madison Valley containing old family recipes. We are looking for food recipes, drink recipes, and home remedies (such as those for health and beauty, cleaning solutions, etc.) Please send your old family recipe from mom, dad, grandma, grandpa, auntie, uncle, cousin, or yourself. With your recipe, include a photo and a written story about this person whose recipe it is. Remember, this is an historical cookbook, so we want a little bit of history about the person whose recipe it is.
Email the recipe, scanned photo, and historical story to Liz Applegate at liz.billapplegate@gmail.com and in the subject line type "Historical Cookbook" so Liz will know what it's about. Or you can mail the recipe, story, and photo to: Liz Applegate; 3 Hilltop Trail; Ennis, MT 59729. Original photos will be returned ASAP.
We would like to be able to have the cookbook for sale this summer, so if you want to be included in the book and haven't sent one in already, please do so as soon as you can!
Scroll down to see an example of a submission.
Piccalilli
(Piccalilli is a pickle of chopped vegetables and spices. Ingredients may include green tomatoes, cabbage, gherkins, cauliflower and onions, but virtually any type of vegetable can be used. The vegetables are cut to small pieces, blanched and covered with a mixture of vinegar, salt, sugar and spices.)
from the kitchen of Flora Effie Thompson (submitted by grandson Otis Thompson)
1 gallon green tomatoes
1 medium head of cabbage
2 large onions
2 red peppers (optional)
Grind all together. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of salt and let stand overnight. Squeeze and drain all the juice from the mixture. Add to this mixture enough vinegar mixture (to 1 pint of vinegar use 2 1/2 cups sugar) to cover. Add 1 package of mixed pickling spices tied in a cloth bag and cook with mixture until done. Seal in hot jars.
History of Flora Effie Thompson
Flora Effie Thompson, wife of Madison Valley rancher, Henry Otis Thompson, was born March 23, 1886 to Mark M. and Eliza Jane White near Bozeman in Gallatin County where she attended schools. She married Henry Otis "Ote" Thompson September 14, 1904 in Bozeman. They ranched three miles north of Belgrade until moving to the Madison Valley in 1910 where they each took up a homestead on Eight Mile Creek four miles west of Ennis. They later bought out several of the other homesteaders in this area and the ranch grew to 3000 acres where Ote raised horses, mules, and shorthorn cattle. The Thompson's also had a home in Ennis, where Effie lived after Ote died in 1951. To this marriage was born five children. Owenford, Lyal, and Ward were all born in Belgrade and Beulah and Ellis were born at the ranch in Ennis. In 1970, Effie entered Parkview Acres Convalescent Home in Dillon. In 1974, she moved to the Madison County Nursing Home in Sheridan. She passed away March 26, 1976 in the Ruby Valley Hospital in Sheridan. When she died, she had 13 grandchildren, 31 great grandchildren, and six great-great grandchildren.
Effie (1904) Effie (1966)