Key West Woman's Club Cookbook

LUCY BURDETTE: This isn't a traditional recipe post, but with the Key West Woman's Club celebrating their 110th anniversary this weekend, I thought this would be a perfect time to talk about the Key West Woman’s Club Cookbook, including the new edition which I edited last year, and is now out in the world!

The first iteration of the cookbook was published in the 1949. It’s a wonderful piece of history even if you wouldn’t go anywhere near most of the recipes. (Turtle steaks anyone?) It’s all written in the handwriting of various women who worked on the book and contributed recipes, and it has wonderful drawings like this one:

As we mulled over the new edition, we knew we wanted to retain the spirit of both the book published in 1949 and the one published in 1988. Although some of the recipes were the same in 1988, the handwriting was replaced by standard typing, and many of the quirky drawings were also removed.

My job was to figure out what should be retained from both versions and then to add in some modern day recipes from current members of the woman’s club. Luckily, I didn’t have to do the work of scanning or anything else technical. I had to choose, organize, and send it off. Here is T-bone helping me with the layout:

My suggestion was to use some of the hand written introductions and actual recipes as intros to each section. For example, we couldn’t possibly leave out this quote:

I had a spare copy of the second cookbook into which I could sandwich photocopies of the old sections that we did didn’t want to lose. I thought we would be overwhelmed with new recipe submissions, but luckily the number was manageable. I included the banana cream pie that I used in Key West food critic mystery number 12, A DISH TO DIE FOR. I wrote that before I got involved with the Woman’s Club, though there are several scenes that take place there. In fact, Hayley finds clues to the mystery in a box of old drawings that has been stashed at the back of a drawer for years and years.

The cookbook team is still working on marketing. As of today, there is no way to buy the cookbook online. However, there are copies available through our local bookstores, Key West Island Books ( 305-294-2904), and Books and Books Key West (305 320 0208). If you are a local or a visitor looking for a copy, they are also available at the Key West Art and Historical Society, the Woman’s Club, and also will be available at the brand new cooking school.

With fellow cookbook teammate, Marlene

We're so glad to have helped save this bit of Key West history. If you're lucky enough to be in Key West this weekend, check out the celebration!

Lucy Burdette writes the Key West food critic mystery series including USA Today bestselling A POISONOUS PALATE and A CLUE IN THE CRUMBS. 

Book 15 in the Key West series, THE MANGO MURDERS, will be in bookstores on August 12!

And the new trade paperback edition of A CLUE IN THE CRUMBS is out now!

Old Time Banana Cream Pie @LucyBurdette

LUCY BURDETTE: I’m working on the twelfth Key West food critic mystery, which will emerge from its cocoon in 2022. It's too early to have a title or a cover or even a well-developed plot. However, one of the plot strands in this book has to do with the Woman’s Club in Key West, which is a gorgeous old home on Duval Street. I took a tour of the building this spring, and happily received the 1988 version of their cookbook. I had also found an earlier edition of the  book published in 1949. 

Oh my, the recipes and stories in those cookbooks have my mind racing with possibilities! I decided I would cook some of them since Hayley Snow and her caterer mother will be using these books. This banana cream pie is the first I've tried. I chose to make a graham cracker crust, but any crust is fine.

Ingredients

For the crust

One package graham crackers (nine sheets)

2 tablespoons sugar

4 tablespoons butter

For the pie

2 ripe bananas

2 cups whole milk

3 eggs, room temperature, separated

4 tablespoons sugar

3 tablespoons cornstarch

pinch of salt

2 teaspoons water

1 tablespoon butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the meringue

3 egg whites (see above)

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

2 teaspoons sugar

Preheat the oven to 350. 

To make the crust, smash or whirl the crackers to crumbs. Melt the butter. Stir the butter and sugar into the crumbs and press this mixture into the bottom and sides of a 10 inch pie pan. Bake for ten minutes and let that cool.

For the pudding, separate the eggs and set the whites aside. Beat the yolks with the sugar, cornstarch, salt, and cold water. Heat the milk until it's about to boil, then stir in the egg mixture. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens. (About five minutes.) Let that cool a bit.

Slice the bananas into the pie crust. Spread the pudding on top of the bananas.

Beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar until soft peaks appear. Continue beating with the sugar until peaks are stiff and glossy--about 5 minutes. 

Mound the meringue onto the pudding, arranging it into peaks. (Mine weren't as photogenic as I'd hoped--I think I overdid the beating.)

Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes until the meringue begins to brown. Refrigerate the pie for three hours before serving.

Messy but so delicious!

Lucy Burdette writes the Key West food critic mysteries. A SCONE OF CONTENTION will be out on August 10! The paperback edition of THE KEY LIME CRIME will be published on July 13.