Today is the 193rd anniversary of Izannah Walker’s birth, September 25, 1817 – February 15, 1888.  Happy Birthday Izannah!!!

You made exceptional dolls and I think about you whenever I look at my own dolls that you made.  Even after all this time and all the loving hands they have passed through, they still have the power to enchant everyone who encounters them.

The girls and I decided that we needed to have a celebration today in honor of Izannah.  I baked a Birth-day Pudding and plan to spend the day making a new batch of molded heads.

In case you would like to celebrate with us, here is the recipe for the pudding:

Birth-day Pudding

Butter a deep dish, and lay in slices of bread and butter, wet with milk, and upon these sliced tart apples, sweetened and spiced.   Then lay on another layer of bread and butter and apples, and continue thus till the dish is filled.  Let the top layer be bread and butter, and dip it in milk, turning the buttered side down.  Any other kind of fruit will answer as well.  Put a plate on the top, and bake two hours, then take it off and bake another hour.

This receipt (aka recipe) is from Miss Beecher’s Domestic Receipt-Book by Catherine E. Beecher.  Catherine Esther Beecher was born in 1800 in East Hampton, Long Island.  She founded the Hartford Female Seminary in 1823 as well as other schools for young women in Ohio, Illinois, Iowa and Wisconsin.  She wrote A Treatise on Domestic Economy (1841) and Miss Beecher’s Domestic Receipt-Book (1846).

Notes:

After buttering my dishes I dusted them with sugar, before layering in the bread and butter.

I cut the crusts off my bread, as the pudding was for a special occasion, but you certainly don’t have to.  I saved the crusts as a treat for the wild birds in my yard.  You may also save them to make  stuffings, bread crumbs, or croutons.

I chose cinnamon, mace and nutmeg as my spices.

I baked my doll sized pudding in a custard cup, which would also be nice if you want to bake yours in individual portions.

I preheated my oven to 350 degrees and baked my puddings for 15 minutes, then I reduced the oven temperature to 250 degrees and continued baking for the remaining 2 hours and 45 minutes.  I removed my doll size pudding from the oven after 30 minutes of total baking time.  Your baking time is going to depend a lot on the size of your dishes and the thickness of your pudding, so check your oven fairly frequently.  It’s also a good idea to put a cookie sheet under your dish, because my pudding bubbled over as it was baking.

For any of you that would like to celebrate Izannah’s 193rd birthday by learning how to make dolls like Izannah made hers, I am having a special sale on my Izannah Walker Reproduction Doll Making Class by Mail. The class is on sale through tomorrow, Sunday September 26th at midnight, for $193.00. Its regular price is $250.00.

If you would rather celebrate by buying a finished doll, please contact me this weekend, September 25 & 26, to order your own custom-made reproduction Izannah Walker doll.  I will give you a discount of 30% off of my normal prices, for any doll that you order today or tomorrow.

Email me at paula@asweetremembrance.com or call me at 860-355-5709 to describe what you want your doll to be like (distressed, pristine, fully dressed, au natural, boy or girl, accessories, etc.) and I will be happy to give you an exact price quote before you place your order.  Because of all the variables that you may choose from it’s very hard for me to list prices, and I found out that people were getting confused, so call me or email me and I’ll talk you through the ordering process.  Remember lay away is an option 🙂 !