Tombstone Cookbook: Recipes and Lore for the Resilient

From the Publisher

During its heyday, Tombstone glittered with gaslit restaurants that were beautifully decorated and often compared to the finest in San Francisco. Tombstone's restaurants advertised "the most elegantly appointed restaurant in the city" and the "best cooking and polite attentive service." Many were decorated with shimmering crystal chandeliers, plush Brussels carpets, and shiny walnut tables that were adorned with imported china, sparkling cut glass, and stylish silver cutlery. Imagine Doc Holliday or Ike Clanton sitting down to a meal of salmon with hollandaise sauce, ribs of beef, chicken fricassee, baked oyster pie, gumbo, potatoes, green peas, tomatoes, or blackberry pie. The meals themselves reflected the trends of the 1880s and did not include today's popular Southwestern fare. This was, after all, the Victorian era, when classic French cuisine was trendy and the menus were often printed in French. In late 1881 Tombstone's Grand Hotel restaurant finally changed the menu to English, and the Epitaph newspaper reported, "They have taken a new and very sensible departure by publishing its bill of fare in English, instead of French."

Not all of Tombstone's restaurants served French food. Many restaurant owners hailed from Europe because Tombstone's mines attracted a large influx of immigrants. The owners and cooks were from various ethnic backgrounds, and their cooking often reflected their heritages. Tombstone's restaurants and chophouses also served English, German, Italian, Irish, Creole, and New England cuisine. Even back in the day, a restaurant's chef made all the difference, and it was common for a restaurant to brag that their new cook was from the Pacific coast, San Francisco, or New Orleans. Tombstone's nineteenth-century restaurants, recipes, and meals were as sophisticated as the town itself. Despite being in a remote desert location, residents and visitors alike ate well. I think the only thing better than reading about its history is being able to taste it! Forks up!

Delicious Recipes from Tombstone's History

Buckwheat Cakes Whenever I think of these pancakes, I remember my childhood days when my family visited my parents' hometown in upstate New York. This recipe is from my grandmother, Anna Louise White-Teeter, from the early 1900s. She taught her daughters how to make them, and my Aunt Myrtle shared the recipe with me. Her recipe calls for a thinner batter, but modify as you like. Recipes like these were lovingly carted across the frontier by eastern pioneers and appeared on Tombstone's menus.

Chicken Pot Pie Inexpensive to make and easily transportable, potpies were a popular dish in Tombstone at restaurants for miners, and were often featured at charity events. Some recipes called for two traditional piecrusts; others were simply covered with a biscuit or puff pastry topping. This recipe, adapted from California's Lompoc Record, February 3, 1877, includes a double piecrust, but feel free to use any type of crust.

Strawberry Shortcake Strawberry shortcake is always a successful dessert, as the ladies of Tombstone's Methodist church could have attested to. This version was adapted from One Thousand and One Useful Recipes and Valuable Hints About Cooking and Housekeeping.

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