I really do need to make proper use of my rations.
Ration amounts were carefully worked out to give people the best nourishment possible during the times of shortage and as such they were designed to be used up in the time periods they were given for. For example the weekly 4oz margarine and 2oz of butter, along with the 2oz of lard were deemed the right amount of fats to go alongside the weekly cheese, milk, egg, sugar and meat rations to provide the building blocks of a healthy diet, and all these were designed to go with the bread and vegetable rations that were recommended in the all Ministry of Food pamphlets.
So me having food from the rations left over at the end of each week is not necessarily a good thing. This is what I am going to try and do something about over the next couple of weeks. This week is my fourth week on rations and although I am not too bothered about having sugar store building up ... it will be used to make jam ... I have been noticing that I have had my fats and oil leftover every single week.
So to get on a level playing field again I decided that I would use up the fat left over from last week and make some scones and some pastry ... and also a little of my dried fruit bought with points and up until now not touched at all.
Scones are a brilliant use of ingredients for a wartime diet and my go to recipe is really simple.
8oz SR Flour
2oz Butter or Spread
Pinch of salt
1oz Sugar
1oz Dried Fruit
Milk
Rub the butter into the flour, add the salt and then add the sugar and dried fruit.
Bring together with just enough milk to make it into a ball and tip out onto a lightly floured surface. Either roll out and cut with a cookie cutter or just shape into one large round and then cut into four quarters.
Place on a baking tray, brush with milk and cook in a hot oven for around 20 minutes.
(220/200fan, 425f or Gas 7)
Enjoy with butter and jam ... and of course a lovely cup of coffee.
I didn't eat them all myself, Alan was thrilled with his surprise snack to go with his afternoon coffee break.
While these were baking I weighed out what was left out of last weeks spread ration and used that with the correct ratio of flour to make a ball of pastry ... I had pies that needed to be made. Now I am up to date with the fat ration and just need to make sure that this week I actually try and use it all up.
Sue xx
I wasn't really aware that the rations were worked out according to health requirements....I thought it was all about rationing available supplies. So yes it does make sense to use all of your weekly ration. Scones and pastry are a very good idea, Sue - I've just made cheese scones to use up my homemade yogurt. I'm really enjoying your ration posts, thanks.
ReplyDeleteThe rations were carefully worked out nutrition-wise in the year or so before WWII, so that the nation could be in the best possible health for a reasonable cost, mostly from foods that we could produce for ourselves around the UK. The items on the main weekly ration were the things that the Ministry of Food knew that they could guarantee would always be available in those quantities for the whole of the population. They did have to reduce amounts sometimes, but by and large the ration stayed quite static throughout the war years.
DeleteLord Woolton gathered together a team of experts in nutrition as well as economists and strategists and agriculturalists etc to ensure the nation was properly fed. It was amazing how efficiently the Ration Scheme was delivered. (and no computers or photocopiers or mobile phones to speed things up) AND the nation was at war..... One hesitates to compare that enterprise with the chaotic behaviour of the recent government during the pandemic...
ReplyDeleteIt was really good that all this was carefully planned for, lessons had been learned after the fiasco of the home front food supplies in WW1. Our country was so much better lead and organised back then wasn't it. Imagine our Government having to organise all this in six months, they would be like a flock of headless chickens ... as would a good percentage of the population that wouldn't know where to begin with rationed food.
DeleteSounds like you found a very delicious way to use up the rations! :)
ReplyDeleteVery delicious, and now I am back on track ... and feeling a bit podged!!
DeleteWe have found the same with fats and sugar and Phil's tea. I think that maybe because he can't just dunk and neatly dispose of a tea bag, it's a little more effort to make it in the pot with leaves even though he admits it makes a better cup of tea, funny though if I ask him if he'd like a cup he has far more. I'm afraid our eating on the ration hit a blip at the weekend, my son came for 4 nights as he wasn't feeling good and suffered mood swings , it's something he can't help and is linked to his epilepsy but it can be hard work so I just went off piste and returned to the old ways for that time and as we have birthdays this week I have yet to get back on track which I intend to do . I feel guilty about " copping out " as on wartime rations they couldn't do that , they just had to make the best of a bad job but I was so stressed I caved in and I was so relieved not to have to think about and plan food ,keeping calm and not reacting to the mood swings can be exhausting so I'm afraid the motto of "Keep calm and carry on " changed to "Keep calm and run to Morrisons "
ReplyDeleteSometimes you just have to react to home life and put something like rationing on the backburner for a few days. Don't feel guilty at all for 'copping out', if anything it's like a little glimpse of what they couldn't do and it makes you appreciate all that you have now and all that you can do, all the more. Rationing teaches us things in all sorts of ways.
DeleteI do like 'Keep Calm and Run to Morrisons'. :-)
I think we probably do need fewer calories than they did then - our lives are more sedentary and, generally, we keep ourselves warmer. And people had more carbs than they seem to think we need nowadays, I believe. Fats, too, I think. The jury is probably out on both, mind you. :-)
ReplyDeleteThe scones sound and look absolutely delicious!! No wonder Alan was thrilled. xx
If I start to put on any weight I will definintely be going a lot lighter on the bread consumption. As it is I am consistently losing one pound a week at the moment. :-)
DeleteIt's interesting that with so much fat and carb you are actually losing weight. The scones look and sound delish.
ReplyDeleteI can only put it down to the fact that I am eating hardly anything that is processed at the moment. No junk foods of any description and hardly anything with sugar in it. I think my jam and the sweet ration, which I still have most of, are the only things with sugar in them.
DeleteScones are so quick and easy aren't they, and freeze so well, my only issue with them is that they taste twice as good with lashings of clotted cream on :-)
ReplyDeleteAlison in Wales x
Haha ... yes that's definitely a downside, they do need lots of anything on them to make them even more delicious. I used to add jam and dairy-free squirty scream, but that's not exactly available on rations. :-)
DeleteThe scones look scrumptious, thank you for posting the recipe. It's reminded me to make a batch once the weather cools a bit after the weekend. At the moment it's far too hot to do anything much, especially put the oven on 🔥😕 and my pastry skills leave a lot to be desired despite my mum making good pies when I was a kid.
ReplyDeleteI remember making up huge batches of scones when we lived on the farm and freezing them all uncooked, ready for popping into the oven at a moments notice. Wartime restrictions means only a few at a time for me now. ;-)
DeleteIt's much easier making pastry in cooler weather, when all the ingredients and your hands are cooler. Maybe you should have a go then.
The scones look so delicious and appear to be easy to make, I'm thinking that even I could attempt to make these:) I'm learning so much from your posts, many thanks Sue:)
ReplyDeleteIt's one of the easiest things to make ... and so tasty too.
DeleteOh, you Evil Temptress!
ReplyDeleteI want to go and make scones now.
Haha .... go on DO IT!!
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