1 cup of milk
1 level tablespoon of powdered starch
2 or 3 drops of vanilla extract
2 yolks of eggs
2 tablespoons of sugar

"Put all these ingredients together into a saucepan and mix together with a wooden spoon for a few minutes. Then put onto the back of the stove where it is not too hot, and cook until the mixture has become stiff. Cook for a few moments longer, stirring always, then turn out onto a bread-board and spread to a thickness of a finger and a half. When cold, cut into diamonds or squares the width of two fingers. Butter a baking-dish, and put the squares into it overlapping each other. Add a few dabs of butter here and there. Put another layer of the squares in the dish, more dabs of butter, and so on until the dish is full. Brown in the oven."

This recipe was taken from "Simple Italian Cookery" written by Antonia Isola (pen name for Mabel Earl McGinnis). It was published in the United States by Harper and Brothers in 1912. It is believed to be the first American cookbook that contains Italian recipes. For the complete copyright-free cookbook see www.archive.org...........P.S.P.S. I tried this recipe and found it almost impossible to carry out as described. I had to use a lot more "starch" than suggested to thicken the batter. This is a difficult recipe to do, and it's not worth the effort. Notes and photo: Mary Melfi.

Back to main list