I have an old recipe from my late Mother-in-Law. It calls for Snowdrift. (I'm guessing it might be a type of shortening.) Was this a brand name? I would appreciate any help offered in telling me more about this ingredient; i.e. what it is and what it might compare to today? We are creating a family cookbook and want to include as many of the old recipes as we can while making them usable for those who choose to try them.
Per Wikipedia looks like it is shortening, however per an encyclopedia website it looks like cooking oil?:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wesson_cooking_oil
Wesson was originally a trademark of the Southern Oil Company, named after David Wesson (1861–1934), a food chemist at the firm who, in 1899 developed a novel process for deodorizing cottonseed oil, producing the first commercial all-vegetable shortenings from cottonseeds. This new product was marketed as Snowdrift. In the 1920s, the vegetable oil division was spun off as the Wesson Oil & Snowdrift Company. This firm merged with Hunt's Foods, Inc.
http://www.encyclocentral.com/10864-Wesson_Oil_and_Snowdrift.html
There is hardly any delicious cuisine that does not require any base, in which it is to be prepared. Thus we can remain certain of the fact that oil is primarily required as the cooking medium and acts as a lubricating agent in any food preparation. However, when excess of oil is put into any type of preparation, it is felt that it spoils the whole flavor of the food.
The Wesson Oil and Snowdrift are such names in the domain of oil as a cooking medium. Pure cooking oil varieties are available from Wesson that has been preferred in most of the kitchens in most households across the world. Over hundred years have been covered with the Wesson brand of edible oil in rendering some of the yummiest delicacies and trying out new recipes.
It was in the year 1899, that food and nutrition expert David Wesson made some innovative researches and discovered new avenues in the arena of cooking medium. He worked upon the cottonseed and tried to extract cottonseed oil from them. Not only had he developed a new process through which he deodorized the cottonseed oil by processing them and treating them under high-temperature vacuum process. The Southern Oil Company first marketed it as the ‘Snowdrift” brand of cooking oil. But later, the cooking oil was renamed after the man who was responsible for the discovery of the product. It came to be known as the Wesson brand of the cooking oil. Thus the two names Wesson Oil and Snowdrift has been intertwined from the beginning. After some time, in the decade of the 1920s, the vegetable oil division of the edible oil manufacturing company was turned out into the Wesson Oil and Snowdrift Company.
One of the forerunners in the history of the edible oil as a cooking medium, the name Wesson Oil and Snowdrift Company has been known as one of the most popular mediums among the cooking oil brands. The pure golden cooking oil from Wesson has to provide the food items an edge over the fried foods that have been made in some other cooking medium.
Most of the well-known chefs of the world help to add on the crispiness that is desired on any fried food. Even the Gold Medal from the American tasting Institute’s Taste Award was given in the year 2001. Among the edible oils that one gets from the Wesson Oil and Snowdrift is the Canola naturally low saturated fat oil, apart from the Corn Oil for the great taste of corn in it. There is also the vegetable oil, which is mainly soy-based oil, but the most popular among the different types is the Best Blend cooking oil that is enriched with the goodness of the Canola Oil. Conagrafoods
Hope that helps a little. Maybe try it twice, once with shortening and once with oil? lol!
Thanks, Jazzymoon, for your quick reply and your research. I'll add a note to the old recipe so the "youngers" reading the family recipes will know what Snowdrift is in today's vernacular.
Snowdrift is...........
18snowdrift.jpg
Early version of Crisco hard vegetable shortening. Do not use oil in the place of Snowdrift. The recipe will deflate.
Snowdrift is a brand name for shortening. My Grandmother used it too. I use it myself.
Snowdrift. ( definition) A large amount of fluffy frozen rain in Canadian to be avoided by tourists and sunbunnies!!! One inch of water equals 10 inches of snow. Sorry couldn't resist the obvious. It's cabin fever this time of year, eh!
good one, lmao Karenb, love the added accent..........lolOriginally Posted by KarenB
Snowdrift. ( definition) A large amount of fluffy frozen rain in Canadian to be avoided by tourists and sunbunnies!!! One inch of water equals 10 inches of snow. Sorry couldn't resist the obvious. It's cabin fever this time of year, eh!
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