Recipes Wartime Rationing

Wartime Rationing

whole vegetable suet pudding on a plate

Pathfinder Pudding

Pathfinder pudding is a classic British suet pudding but with a leek and parsnip filling instead of meat. As you might guess from the name, the recipe appears to originate from the Royal Air Force kitchen.

two corned beef rissoles on a plate being drizzled with gravy

Welsh Corned Beef Rissoles

Corned beef rissoles became popular during wartime as fresh meat was severely rationed. Corned beef or bully beef as it was sometimes known was imported from the USA as part of the vital trans atlantic convoys lifeline. You can recreate these little Welsh gems using the wartime recipe from the […]

wartime carrot cake on a serving platter with a slice removed

Wartime Carrot Cake

During the Second World War, when sugar was rationed to 8oz (230g) per week, carrots were used to naturally sweeten cakes and biscuits. The
sweetness of the carrots replaced some of the sugar used in the original recipes.

wartime national loaf partly sliced on a bread board

British National Loaf

The National Loaf was introduced in Britain in 1942 as part of the rationing scheme during World War II. White bread was banned and this rather grey, crumbly loaf made with National Flour, a type of ‘wheatmeal’ flour was the only bread available to buy or make at home.

rabbit stew in a cooking pot with sprigs of rosemary and bread on a worktop

Rabbit Stew

Rabbit fell out of favour in the UK perhaps because we began to consider rabbits as pets rather than produce. Recently though rabbit is becoming popular again and this warming stew is an old classic.

bread and butter pudding in a baking dish

Nanny’s Bread and Butter Pudding

As you might expect, bread and butter pudding was created to use up stale bread, and was first made as early as the 11th century.

wartime rationing banner showing a ration book cover and various cooked items on a table

Cooking in Britain During Wartime Food Rationing

Preparations for food rationing during the Second World War began in November 1936 when the Ministry of Food was set up. Registration began in November 1939 and food ration books were issued. At the beginning of November 1939, families were instructed by the Ministry of Food to register with a […]

lord woolton pie in a pie dish with one serving removed

Lord Woolton Pie

Woolton pie or Lord Woolton pie, was a substitute for meat pies filled with seasonal vegetables and topped with potato or wheatmeal pastry. Created by Francois Latry, the head chef at the Savoy Hotel in London in 1941, it was named after the then Minister of Food, the 1st Earl […]

spam fritters

SPAM Fritters

History of SPAM Let’s go back in time to World War II. Fish was unavailable so we Brits made SPAM fritters instead for our weekly deep fry with chips. SPAM is canned pork luncheon meat made in the USA by Hormel, introduced in 1937. It became popular during WW II […]