Shaker Cooking is Simply Wonderful!
By Sherril Steele-Carlin
The Shakers were a religious sect that settled in several areas of New England and the Eastern United States, as far west as Ohio, in the 18th century. They came to America in 1774 from England, led by Mother Ann Lee, the woman who first envisioned the group. They came, as many other religious sects did, because their beliefs were persecuted in England, and they wanted to begin a new way of life. The Shakers were a splinter group from the Quakers, and believed in celibacy, fasting, signs from heaven, and the “mighty shakes” which came over them when they were under a religious “trance.” Originally called the “Shaking Quakers,” their name was eventually shortened to Shakers.
The Shaker community dwindled down to a very few practitioners in the early 20th century, mostly because of their strong belief in celibacy. Many of their villages still exist, like Shakertown, KY, Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village, ME, and one of the most famous, Hancock Village, MA. Hancock Village is now a historical museum, where visitors can go back to a simpler time, and see how the Shakers lived their uncomplicated lives.
Shakers were famous for their cooking, and their plain and simple furniture with straight and pleasing lines. They used fresh ingredients in their cooking, grown in their own gardens, and used quite a few herbs to season and spice up their recipes.
Thriftiness and inventive are two words often used to describe the Shakers, and these words apply to their cooking, too. As you’ll see from the links to recipes below, their recipes are as rich and varied as their history. Their cooking depends on the flavors of the ingredients to make them delicious, and usually, they are quite simple to create in the kitchen, too.
Shaker cooking may not incorporate gourmet ingredients, but it is hearty and tasteful fare, inspired by their simple lifestyle, and the love of good food, enjoyed simply.
There is a renewed interest in the Shakers today because of their lifestyle, and their love of good food. Bed and breakfast inns are springing up around their former villages, so visitors can experience how they lived and worked, while enjoying authentic Shaker cooking in the inns where they stay.
This renewed interest is also showing up in several cookbooks that have hit the market lately. Some of the best are listed below. You can also find out more by visiting the Hancock Shaker Village Web Site.
