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In the early winter on the way home from school, I would often stop by Aunt Bett's house at the mouth of the holler. Sometimes when I walked in I could smell the sweet aroma of baking gingerbread, and I knew Christmas was on the way! Aunt Bett and my Granny Ninna could bake the very best gingerbread, and I always got to make my own gingerbread man from the last pieces of the dough.
"Run, run, fast as you can, You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man"...from an old Folktale
The lowest area between two mountains might be called a canyon in some places, but in Southeast Kentucky where I grew up it was called a hollow (pronounced holler by those who make their homes there). Many years ago some of our ancestors were given land grants, and they were passed down from one generation to the next, and as families grew, often a holler was a dividing line. One brother lived on the left side of the holler and another brother lived on the right. So it was with the land where I grew up. I lived on the right side of the holler with my parents and Granny Ninna. My dad's cousins and their parents lived on the left side of the holler.
My cousins were all girls, the oldest one was near my parents' age, and the youngest was only eight or nine years older than I was. I looked very much like them, and for as long as I remember they have been a part of my life. I thought I was as old as they were, as big as they were and I followed them around like a puppy, until Aunt Bett came along and took me off their hands. My cousins moved to Savannah, Georgia when they grew up and became teachers there. A few years ago I got a little homesick for them and my husband and I drove from our home to Savannah and on to Tybee Island where they have retired. We had a wonderful time as close cousins will do, and before I left one of the sisters gave me a package wrapped and tied in a bow, with strict instructions to open only when I got back home. I waited, but only because she told me to, and I always did whatever those cousins told me.
When I started opening the package, I got a whiff of an old scent that brought back memories so quickly my eyes flooded with tears. It was gingerbread, and oh, do I ever love gingerbread. Sixty years of Christmases floated through my mind, and I was right back in the mountains with Aunt Bett and Ninna making gingerbread men. There has never been a gift that meant more to me than that Tybee Island Gingerbread. My cousins know me very well.
Back in those days following WWII, we had to make do with a lot of things. Ginger root, or ginger, as we know it today was not readily available in the local grocery. Of course we rarely went to the grocery store anyway, most of the time we "made do". But sometime in May or June you could always find Aunt Bett and me making our way up the mountain sideways on a search for one thing or another.
On this particular morning, we were looking for the wild ginger plant. We were only going to find the plant and mark its location because we only used the root and it was not gathered until late summer. My Granny Ninna had made me a bonnet to wear. It was just like Aunt Bett's bonnet, its brim starched to within an inch of its life. Aunt Bett's was made of fabric with little blue flowers, but mine was bright pink. I loved that bonnet, and still have it framed under glass, a gift from my mom after I had grown up.
So there we were, me in my jeans, climbing shoes, pink gingham long sleeved blouse, and pink bonnet, asphidity bag on a string around my neck. I had insisted on wearing my hair down that day since I had a new bonnet, and I brought a length of pink hair ribbon to use to mark the wild ginger we might find. Always the fashion plate! Aunt Bett wore her long dress with a long white apron over it. She carried a couple of stakes that we would pound in the ground near the wild ginger.
The first thing that happened was that a low branch grabbed my bonnet and jerked it right off my head. I managed to untangle it from the brambles it landed in, it was a little grass stained, but I tied it on a little tighter. Sometime along the way, my pink gingham sleeve got caught in a briar, and I was left with an uncovered elbow, but Aunt Bett remained pristine. We found the wild ginger.
Wild ginger, Asarum canadense, is an interesting plant. It grows in partially sunny wooded areas, and it is a lovely groundcover with its heartshaped leaves. But it sure does bloom funny. There is a pair of heart shaped bottom leaves, and hanging between the two leaves is a 3 parted deep purple brown flower. I thought that was the strangest place for a flower. Aunt Bett told me that it was there low on the ground because it was pollinated by ants. She also told me that I might be allergic to the plant and she didn't want me touching the leaves or the bloom. So Aunt Bett staked the wild ginger, and I tied my pink ribbon really tight to the top of the stake. It looked right pretty, and I knew we could find it when we came back for the roots in late summer.
As we made our way back down the mountain, Aunt Bett told me that Native Americans used the wild ginger for many things. The most important to me was the fact that they used it to flavor foods, and I knew that meant we would have gingerbread. But they also thought it protected those who ate it from spoiled or poisoned meat, or meat that might have a spell cast on it. I wanted to know more about the spells but Aunt Bett thought I needed to know more about the plant, so she went on to tell me that it was used for treatment of digestive disorders and as a poultice on sores. She said they also used it to promote sweating when a person had a fever. They made it into decoctions and infusions, so it was readily available whenever they needed it. Somehow, Aunt Bett was of the belief that it was not a good medicine, so she rarely used it as one of her curative plants. She only used it for flavoring food. I just wanted the gingerbread.
Truthfully, wild ginger is not currently acceptable for medical practices, so again Aunt Bett knew what she was talking about. All parts of the plant are considered poisonous except the roots. It sure is a good thing because I would be as dead as a doornail considering how much wild ginger flavored gingerbread I consumed. We climbed the mountain again in late summer. We found the stake with my faded pink ribbon still tied to it and we filled a burlap sack half full of wild ginger root. I remember wearing my pink bonnet again, though by this time, it was pretty well worn and slightly shredded. That didn't matter a bit, because I had a new pink t shirt to match it. I think I made that trip intact, and so did my bonnet.
We hung the wild ginger root to dry on the rafters of Aunt Bett's porch. Sometime in early December Aunt Bett ground that wild ginger root to tiny particles and made it ready to use in hers and Ninna's famous gingerbread. With the first whiff I got when I opened the door, my mouth started to water and I broke out in song: "Run, run, fast as you can. You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man!"
And so it goes.
Here is Granny Ninna's world famous gingerbread recipe:
Almost 4 cups of flour
1 cup of sugar
1 cup molasses
2 teaspoons soda
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup buttermilk
2 or 3 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 or more tablespoons ginger
(Can use dark brown sugar in place of molasses, in case you don't have molasses)
Makes thick batter, punch with floured fists and shape into pones. Place barely touching in iron skillets.
Oven 400, 45 minutes to an hour.
Last 20 minutes, brush beaten egg over tops of pones.
Wrap in wax paper when cool, will last a long time.
All information is taken from the writings of my Aunt Bett and Granny Ninna.
The flavor of wild ginger root is not as strong as the ginger seasoning or ginger root you find on your grocer's shelf. It was used in my family for many years as a replacement for the real thing, but I would be cautious about using it now.
This article is for my cousins: Lou, Iny, Lucy and Carlene. They were my guardian angels.
Photos of wild ginger came from Plant Files, thanks to photographers Colquhoun, (thanks Robert!) Gabrielle, and dwarfconifer. The photo of the gingerbread men is from Wikipedia's Public Domain, and the drawing of the bonnet was also inspired by a drawing found there.
About Sharon Brown
I am a retired high school art and humanities teacher. I grew up in the Appalachian mountains of southeast KY and now I live with my two rescued cats, Jazz and Daisy, in far western KY. I am an artist often doing commissioned work, and in addition to writing articles for Dave's Garden, I also write boating stories for a nautical magazine. My greatest love is gardening, and learning the history of my state and its numerous wildflowers.
Posted by beebe (from Ambler, PA) on October 13, 2008 at 05:34 PM:
The ginger in my woods died off early this year because of the heat and drought. But it always comes back in the spring. Now I know I can enjoy it. I've always wondered if the roots would be good. Next spring I will mark it and maybe remember to dig some in the fall. Thank you for sharing another great story about your wonderful days with Aunt Bett. Beebe
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Posted by Sharran (from Calvert City, KY) on October 13, 2008 at 07:36 PM:
Hi Beebe,
Glad you liked it, and good luck with the wild ginger.
It's always nice to hear from you..
Sharon
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Subject: What are pones?
Posted by PerennialGirl (from Winnipeg, MB) on October 13, 2008 at 11:35 AM:
Thanks for the story and recipe. I've never heard the term pones before. Please explain.
:) Donna
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Posted by Sharran (from Calvert City, KY) on October 13, 2008 at 02:12 PM:
Hi Donna,
A pone is a hand made loaf made from a very thick batter, one that can be shaped without running together with another beside it.
Traditionally it can be baked in ashes, in an open pan in the oven, or on top of the stove.
If you glance at the comments attached to the end of the article, you will find that the one Hemophobic started explains all about pones.
Thanks for writing.
Sharon
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Posted by PerennialGirl (from Winnipeg, MB) on October 13, 2008 at 02:50 PM:
Thanks for the explanation, Sharon.
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Subject: I can still smell the gingerbread
Posted by gloriag (from Floyd, VA) on October 08, 2008 at 11:16 PM:
What a wonderful treat to hunt your own ginger. Charming article
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Posted by Sharran (from Calvert City, KY) on October 09, 2008 at 12:00 AM:
Hi Gloria,
And isn't the gingerbread scent one of the best!
Wild ginger doesn't have a very lovely blossom, but it surely does taste good.
I always enjoy your comments.
Thank you so much for writing.
sharon
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Subject: Sweet article
Posted by Raggedyann (from Lawrenceville, GA) on October 08, 2008 at 08:32 PM:
Your articles are always very informative and I appreciate them so much! Gingerbread cookies are one of my fave things to bake during the holidays. You are very lucky to have Aunt Bett and her traditions. Thanks for keeping them alive!
Susan
For some reason I've kept this book from 1953. It's falling apart but the colors are so vivid and my son loves the story.
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Posted by Sharran (from Calvert City, KY) on October 08, 2008 at 10:47 PM:
Oh my goodness, Susan....what a great keepsake you have. I have a few of my old books, but don't have that one. It would have been fun to use that picture in the article.
I am so glad you like the articles, and look forward to your comments. I think they bring back memories for a lot of folks.
My Ninna was named Susan, and so is my daughter.
Thank you for writing, where is Lawrenceville?
sharon
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Posted by Raggedyann (from Lawrenceville, GA) on October 09, 2008 at 05:30 PM:
The book is older than I am! lol
I also have a thing for gingerbread men/women Christmas ornaments, cookie cutters, so did my mom. Her middle name was Sue :) That is sweet to name your daughter after your Ninna.
Lawrenceville in northeast of Atlanta. We are a little over an hour from the mountains. Wish we were closer, there are too many people here and still more moving in, building houses...
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Subject: Ginger
Posted by hope43 (from Tulsa, OK) on October 07, 2008 at 09:50 PM:
I really enjoyed this article and i happened to get a little ginger to take hot bath in as i have been having fever. So was glad to read this and know i was right about Ginger. thanks lots.
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Posted by Sharran (from Calvert City, KY) on October 07, 2008 at 10:16 PM:
Hello, hope43, thank you so much for reading the article, and for commenting. I hope you are feeling much better.
Sharon
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Subject: Loved it!
Posted by Aunt_A (from Tulsa, OK) on October 07, 2008 at 09:27 PM:
Another great article. Thanks for sending some smiles; I can almost smell that brown bread w/ ginger. Mom used to make ginger bread in tin cans from soup and such. I wouldn't do that now, but love the smell. I might just try your recipe...
...unless, of course you said that you were sending out ginger bread to the first 19 posts, your posts included. In that case, looks like I'm #19. I've either got good timing or I can count really fine.
LOL
Thanks again!
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Posted by Sharran (from Calvert City, KY) on October 07, 2008 at 10:14 PM:
Well, goodness, April.....hmmmmmm....I don't remember making that promise, but I'll tell you what, if I get on a baking kick anytime soon, and if I can find some wild ginger, and if I also can find a big iron skillet, I will share for sure.
On the other hand, I would have to season the iron skillet for a while, so that might take some time, because it has to be really black and well greased. And of course I can't look for wild ginger this late because I didn't mark it earlier........By the time I get it ready to bake, it might be somewhere in late fall 09, so you can expect it then. OK?
You always make me smile. Thank you.
Sharon
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Posted by Aunt_A (from Tulsa, OK) on October 08, 2008 at 12:29 AM:
I'll be waiting by my mailbox; hubby and I camped out like folks waiting for the next donut shop to open. (Donuts yuck...I'd rather have ginger bread than donuts).
LOL
Thanks again for a wonderful article.
April
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Subject: Smiling Once again!
Posted by Seedtosser1 (from Glenview, IL) on October 07, 2008 at 06:47 PM:
Oh Shar,
I so love this story too.
Can you feel my smile, so big I know my eyes are just twinkling.
I can just hear you break out in the Gingerbread song.
What a fantastic memory.
and I just think it is so Cool, you still have the bonnett under glass.
Thanks for sharing the recipe too!
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Posted by Sharran (from Calvert City, KY) on October 07, 2008 at 07:02 PM:
Hi Judy,
Glad you enjoyed it. This is truly one of my greatest memories, and i do love gingerbread. Not the kind that you buy, but the kind that is homemade.
It is always so good to hear from you.
Thanks for writing.
Sharon
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Subject: Yum
Posted by phicks (from Lakeland, FL) on October 07, 2008 at 12:38 PM:
Nice Article Paul
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Posted by Sharran (from Calvert City, KY) on October 07, 2008 at 06:19 PM:
Hi Paul,
Glad you liked it. Made me hungry, too.
Thanks for writing.
Sharon
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Subject: Another winner
Posted by Hemophobic (from Kannapolis, NC) on October 07, 2008 at 05:22 AM:
Sharon, as usual, your article about Aunt Bett was thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated. I can just smell that fresh gingerbread!
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Posted by debilu (from Fingerlakes Region, NY) on October 07, 2008 at 06:55 AM:
Sharon, I too love all your stories, and love gingerbread. I make gingerbread cookies for all of my sisters every Christmas, and now will try this recipe and think of you and Aunt Bett.
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Posted by gloria125 (from Greensboro, AL) on October 07, 2008 at 08:16 AM:
O.K. Sharron. what is a "pone"?
I just bought me some real asian ginger to grow in a pot over the winter.
Now I have your recipe, Ill save a toe for ginger bread.
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Posted by youngershirl (from Orange Park, FL) on October 07, 2008 at 09:11 AM:
Great story, I can just picture you and your Aunt climbing the hill looking for the wild ginger. Thanks so much for sharing.
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Posted by joycet (from Franklin, OH) on October 07, 2008 at 02:29 PM:
I'm glad you asked what a pone is.....and you live in ALABAMA!!! At least I'm a yankee and probably aren't supposed to know such words!!!!
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Posted by gloria125 (from Greensboro, AL) on October 07, 2008 at 02:48 PM:
Well what is it? I grew up in Michigan, went to school in California and wound up in Alabama. I still don't know what a pone is!
P.S. My uncle lived in Ohio. We thought he and my cousins had a southern accent.
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Posted by joycet (from Franklin, OH) on October 07, 2008 at 03:11 PM:
I've heard that from friends in Wisconsin and Minnesota, too!
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Posted by gloria125 (from Greensboro, AL) on October 07, 2008 at 03:15 PM:
O.K. here is the definition of pone from thefreedictionary.com:
Quoted:
pone (pn)
n. Chiefly Southern U.S.
See johnnycake. See Regional Notes at johnnycake, light bread.
[Virginia Algonquian poan, appoans, cornbread.]
Regional Note: A staple of the early American colonies from New England southward to Virginia was pone, a bread made by Native Americans from flat cakes of cornmeal dough baked in ashes. Pone is one of several Virginia Algonquian words (including hominy and tomahawk) borrowed into the English of the Atlantic seaboard. The word pone, usually in the compound cornpone, is now used mainly in the South, where it means cakes of cornbread baked on a griddle or in hot ashesas the Native Americans originally cooked it.
End Quote.
I still don't get what a gingerbread pone might be.
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Posted by zhinusmom (from (Trisha) Olympia, WA) on October 07, 2008 at 03:52 PM:
The way it is used here is you take some dough and shape it into a biscuit type shape and place it the iron pan and cook it like you would biscuits......I am a misplaced Okie and sort of know the word......we had cornpone pie... a ground beef mixture with Cornbread (cornpone) batter poured over the top and baked!!! Was really good stuff!
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Posted by debilu (from Fingerlakes Region, NY) on October 07, 2008 at 04:27 PM:
I was going to ask about a pone too.
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Posted by herbalbetty (from Middleburgh, NY) on October 07, 2008 at 04:35 PM:
Sharon, as always, your story is a gem. I have wild ginger in the woodland area of my garden. I've only made gingerbread with Asian ginger, but you can bet I'll try your recipe. (With all the cautions understood) Thanks so much for including it!
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Posted by Sharran (from Calvert City, KY) on October 07, 2008 at 06:18 PM:
Well, now that you all found out what a pone is without me....Hooray!!!!
In the mountains it was a word used much the same as Gloria says. It was small handshaped loaves of any kind of bread, thick batter helped in the shaping. It's how gingerbread men were made, by hand. Aunt Bett and Ninna would put several small loaves in a large iron skillet and could bake several at a time that way.
Sorry to be so late in writing, but had to be out of town most of the day, so it was nice to come back and see all of you, and to find that one of the words provoked some interest. Maybe I should add a little dictionary at the end of each article.
Thank you so much for reading the article and for all of your comments.
Sharon
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Posted by gloria125 (from Greensboro, AL) on October 07, 2008 at 08:14 PM:
Thanks, Sharran. I really have never seen the individual loaves in an iron pan - my instructions were to heat the pan with the grease and pour in all of the batter when the grease started smoking - that was for corn bread of course.
Guess I still have more to learn about being 'southern'!
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Posted by Sharran (from Calvert City, KY) on October 07, 2008 at 08:32 PM:
They do bake together, but with little ridges between each "pone", so that they can be broken apart. My favorite was always the middle piece, because it didn't have any crusty edges from the pan. This recipe will make a batter so stiff it probably won't pour.
I think you doing a great job of being a southerner, Gloria.
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Posted by Riverwine (from Crossville, AL) on October 13, 2008 at 10:47 AM:
Gloria!
I am a lifelong Southerner, and on those cornbread instructions, look out!! You heat the pan with the oil in it until JUST before smoking, cause that smoking is the oil breaking down! I remember asking my Dad (my cornbread baking instructor) how do you know when its just before? And he just smiled..... ! Thanks for the memories, and yes, I have to bake cornbread that exact way now for my country boy husband, every few days.
but my gingerbread looked nothing like this! More like a pan of brownies? Must be a yankee recipe I am using *mutters*.
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Posted by gloria125 (from Greensboro, AL) on October 13, 2008 at 11:42 AM:
Riverwine: I learned to make cornbread in an archeological field camp in Franklin County, Al.
Our boss was an old Alabamian. the instructions were as above, but yes - - just before smoking is when you add the batter.
He and his wife (who was from Tennessee) always had an argument about whether a small amount of sugar should be added to the batter. She was a proponent of the sugar. He said, No Way!
Quite a ritual and you have to do it just right.
To tell the truth now I just heat the pan, spray with canola oil, and pour in the batter.
No one's watching!
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Posted by Sharran (from Calvert City, KY) on October 13, 2008 at 02:09 PM:
Nahhhh....no sugar in the mountains, no. Never in cornbread.
Unless you might be a transplant..
When y'all try out this recipe for gingerbread, well, it keeps a long time, so if y'all want me to sample yours to let you know if it is fit to eat, just wrap up a piece and put it in the mail, I'll be glad to help you out.
But don't send me any sweet cornbread.
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Posted by gloria125 (from Greensboro, AL) on October 13, 2008 at 03:55 PM:
They always had a fight over that issue - sugar or no in the cornbread. I think they stayed together though.
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Posted by Hemophobic (from Kannapolis, NC) on October 13, 2008 at 05:44 PM:
And no cinnamon in peach pie or cobbler! Let the taste of the peaches shine through.
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Posted by Sharran (from Calvert City, KY) on October 13, 2008 at 07:37 PM:
Absolutely!!
Yuck, whoever heard of that??
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Posted by Hemophobic (from Kannapolis, NC) on October 14, 2008 at 07:04 AM:
You'd be surprised how many recipes for peach pie/cobbler I see which call for cinnamon. I think it is not of southern origin. No self-respecting southerner would put it in. I also see it in blueberry recipes and I don't want it in my blueberries either. The only time I add cinnamon to a fruit dish is with apples and I absolutely want it there. Pumpkin pie, yes.
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Posted by Sharran (from Calvert City, KY) on October 14, 2008 at 09:44 AM:
Cinnamon covers the flavor of everything but apples and pumpkin, so I agree. I don't even like it on French toast!
Well, maybe on a donut!
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Posted by thering (from Clinton Township, MI) on October 21, 2008 at 04:00 PM:
Just now read this article, great stuff, especially for a Northern city girl like myself! Never gardened before two years ago, least not seriously, but I did get my curiosity for plants from my Mother who grew up in Iowa and spent all her summers on her relatives farms. One thing I have to admit is that I have no knowledge of Southern cooking! I don't really like cornbread, but my kids do, at least the sweet kind, I didn't know there was any other type! But I would never put cinnimon on French toast, only nutmeg! Your an excellent writer, Sharran, please don't stop. I read everything you write even if I'm not interested in the subject just cause you write so well and it's a joy to read!
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Posted by Sharran (from Calvert City, KY) on October 21, 2008 at 08:38 PM:
Thering,
my computer is in the shop but I have limited access with my phone, and I simply had to say "thank you".
Comments like yours make me crazy to write more. Oh, I just had to tell you that most true southerners hate sweet cornbread!
Thanks again.
Sharon
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