Krysten Lindsay Hager (Inspired by Boston, Massachusetts; resides in Bellbrook, Ohio)
Serves 5
My grandma Lillian Bagrowski used to make Boston brown bread for every holiday and at my grandfather’s (or any other family member’s) request. She would serve it like you would a coffee cake, alongside breakfast and sometimes as a dessert. Grandma thought that it was best served with fresh butter, but my cousins loved slathering it with cream cheese. As a daughter of Polish immigrants, Polish cooking was her first love, but, through local church gatherings, she grew to appreciate and enjoy foods from other ethnic groups. Grandma remembered first having brown bread at church, where she met many Irish immigrants from Boston. She always taught us to be open to new experiences and how, sometimes, the door to exploring a new culture was through its food.
1½ cups water
1½ cups raisins (or dried cranberries)
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon shortening
1 egg, room temperature
3½ tablespoons molasses
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2½ cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
Preheat an oven to 350°F. Combine the water and raisins in a small saucepan, and boil for 1 minute. Pour into a large mixing bowl and cool. Beat in the sugar, shortening, egg, molasses, and vanilla.
Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt, and add it to the batter.
Mix thoroughly. Bake in five 11-ounce clean and dry soup cans, filling each can only half full; do not cover the cans. Place the cans onto a sheet pan and bake for 1 hour. Let the bread cool completely before removing it from the cans.