THE ROOSEVELTS – PART I

The week before last, I watched a fascinating program on our Public Television station called The Roosevelts: An Intimate History.  I learned so many things I didn’t know about Teddy, Franklin and Eleanor.  And when it spoke of dinners at the White House, my mind began to race, wondering what these two legendary presidents actually ate at home.  So I began to search on the Web for their favorite dishes and came up with quite a few recipes from their wives. 

Today I’ll start with Teddy Roosevelt.  I knew he was a Rough Rider, but other than that, the only thing I knew was that I had grown up believing he was the man who invented the Teddy Bear! 

Theodore “TR” Roosevelt, Jr. was born October 27, 1858 in New York City.  He was a sickly child who suffered from Asthma.  He was an American politician, author, naturalist, soldier, explorer, historian and leader of the Republican Party who served as the 26th President of the United States.

His first wife Alice died two days after giving birth to their daughter (also named Alice) in February 1884.  His mother died the same day in the same house.  After  becoming a cattle rancher in the Dakotas for a few years, he returned to New York City politics, running and losing a race for mayor.  In the 1890s he took vigorous charge of the city police as New York City Police Commissioner.  He was the GOP nominee for Vice President with William McKinley.  Roosevelt became President after McKinley was assassinated in 1901. He was inaugurated at age 42, the youngest person to become president.

On December 2, 1886, he married his childhood and family friend Edith Kermit Carow.  They had five children; Theodore "Ted" III (1887–1944), Kermit (1889–1943), Ethel (1891–1977), Archibald (1894–1979), and Quentin (1897–1918).

On the night of January 5, 1919, he experienced breathing problems. He felt better after treatment from his physician Dr. George W. Faller and went to bed. Roosevelt's last words were "Please put out that light, James" to his family servant James Amos.  Between 4:00 AM and 4:15 AM the next morning, Roosevelt died in his sleep at his Oyster Bay, New York home, Sagamore Hill, from a blood clot detaching itself from a vein and entering his lungs.  Upon receiving word of his death, his son Archibald telegraphed his siblings simply, "The old lion is dead."  Woodrow Wilson's vice president, Thomas R. Marshall, said that "Death had to take Roosevelt sleeping, for if he had been awake, there would have been a fight."

Sagamore Hill -- Oyster Bay, New York

 Here are some of his favorite foods … Biscuits, which the family called Fat Rascals and Sagamore Hill Sand Tarts, cookies that he kept near at all times.

Fat Rascals

In Edith Roosevelt's most cherished cookbook, which now rests on a shelf in the parlor of Sagamore Hill, is this recipe for hot biscuits. Served right from the oven, with butter on them, they make a delicious coffee-klatch or teatime snack. One taste and you will see why Teddy Roosevelt enjoyed breakfast so much -- eggs, coffee, and rolls.

Flour
salt
Sugar
Baking powder
Butter
Currants
Milk

Sift 4 cups flour wtih 1 teaspoon salt, 1/4 cup sugar, and 4 teaspoons baking powder. Mix well. Cut in 1 1/2 cups butter. Then stir in 1 pound dried currants. Mix well again and add 1 cup milk, little by little. With each addition, mix with a fork until a soft dough forms. Roll the dough approximately 1/2 inch thick on a lightly floured board. use a 2-inch round cutter to shape the biscuits. Bake biscuits on an ungreased cooky sheet until nicely browned. Bake in a hot (450 degrees F.) oven about 12 minutes. Whe done, remove from oven, split and butter each biscuit, and serve piping hot. Makes approximately 2 dozen."

Sagamore Hill Sand Tarts

Sweets, especially cookies, were a Roosevelt weakness. The President gobbled cookies such as these sand tarts as fast as they appeared on the plate. This recipe, particularly cherised one in the family, was found on the inside cover of one of Edith Roosevelt's many cookbooks. The family offered these cookies to friends who dropped in Christmas morning. Served with hot coffee...

1 c. Butter
2 c. Sugar
2 Eggs, plus 1 egg divided
2 tsp. Vanilla
4 cups Flour

Cream 1 cup butter until it is as smooth as mayonnaise.

Then add 2 cups sugar and cream until light and fluffy.

Add 2 eggs, one by one, beating after each addition. Beat in one additional egg yolk and 2 teaspoons vanilla.

Stir in 4 cups sifted flour. Mix again well.

Roll the dough on a lightly floured board until quite thin. Cut with a 2 1/2-inch cookkie cutter. Them beat remaining egg white just enough to stir it up a bit. Brush the egg white on top of the cookies. Sprinkle with a cinnamon-sugar mixture and bake on a greased cookie sheet  at 350 degrees for about 8 minutes. Makes 6 dozen.