DAR Recipe
We typically feature just one recipe in this department, but for the first issue of The Daughters’ Portico, we wanted to offer a spread—light, summery fare that would be perfect to enjoy with friends out on the portico. You’ll find a sandwich spread, a raspberry dessert, and a refreshing punch. These recipes are sourced from DAR fundraising cookbooks. Community cookbooks like these are fascinating historical artifacts and have played an important role in the history of women’s service organizations. One of the first such American cookbooks was The Poetical Cookbook by Maria J. Moss, published in 1864 and sold to cover medical costs for injured Union soldiers.
Cucumber Open-Face Sandwich Spread
Jean Tate Davis, Cumberland Chapter, Tennessee
INGREDIENTS
- 1 (8-oz.) package cream cheese, softened
- 1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt
- Dash of onion or garlic salt to taste
- 1 cup finely chopped cucumber
- 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
NUMBER OF SERVINGS
36 cocktail or tea sandwiches
INSTRUCTIONS
Bring cream cheese to room temperature in a large bowl. Stir in the seasonings. Peel the cucumber, then slice it open lengthwise and remove the seeds and membrane. Slice the cucumber, then chop finely. Dice the onion. Roll the cucumber and onion in paper towels to remove excess moisture, then combine in the cream cheese mixture. Put in a tightly closed container and refrigerate; it is best after one day. Use as a spread served with pumpernickel cocktail bread. For tea sandwiches, it can be spread between slices of thinly sliced white bread and cut in fourths or left open face with a thin slice of cucumber on top.
ABOUT THIS RECIPE
This recipe comes from Jean Tate Davis, the late mother of Vice President General Emily Robinson (and a national vice chair of the DAR Magazine Committee). The recipe appears in Season and Taste, published in 2020 by the Tennessee Society Daughters of the American Revolution during the administration of State Regent Cecile Sliger Wimberley. Proceeds funded the Wimberley Military Service Scholarship for active-duty military personnel, National Guard members, or veterans pursuing further education.
Wedding Punch
Lorene Kennamer, graduate and staff member, Kate Duncan Smith (KDS) DAR School
INGREDIENTS
- 15 cups (3 qts.) freshly drawn cold water
- 1/3 cup instant or loose tea or 7 tea bags
- 1 cup fine granulated sugar
- 1 can (approx. 6 oz.) frozen concentrated orange juice
- 1 can (6 oz.) frozen concentrated lemonade
- 1 can (approx. 6 oz.) frozen concentrated limeade
- 3 bottles (30 oz. each) chilled club soda
NUMBER OF SERVINGS
6 quarts or 24 cups
INSTRUCTIONS
Measure water into large saucepan. If using instant tea, make it up according to directions. If using loose tea or tea bags, bring water to a full rolling boil; remove from heat at once and add tea. Stir. Cover and allow tea to steep five minutes, then stir well and strain out loose tea or remove tea bags. Add sugar to tea infusion and stir until dissolved. Cool hot tea. Add the concentrated juices and stir until melted and well blended with tea.
Pour an equal amount into each of two clean 3-qt. milk bottles or other suitable containers. Cover and chill. Close to serving time, pour chilled tea mixture into a large punch bowl; add club soda; stir just enough to blend. Add a big block of ice or an attractive ice ring such as herein described. Serve in punch cups or small glasses.
ICE RING
Choose a ring mold which will fit into the punch bowl and fill mold to about 1 inch from top with water. Freeze until firm. Meantime, serrate rind of two large oranges, lemon and green lime; cut fruit into slices, and cut each slice in half. Arrange over ice in mold, and gently cover with cold water. Freeze until firm. As the ice melts, the fruit will float on the punch and present an attractive picture.
ABOUT THIS RECIPE
Lorene Kennamer graduated from KDS in 1942 and attended Massey Business College on a DAR scholarship. She served as a WAVE during World War II and eventually returned to KDS, where she worked in the administrative office until her retirement. This cookbook, Dedication Day Recipes, was published in 1969 as a joint project of the KDS PTA and administrative office. A later edition was also published.
Rota Zora Raspberry Dessert
Sherrill Koken, Palatinate Chapter, Germany
INGREDIENTS
- Approximately 2 pounds frozen raspberries
- 6 to 8 vanilla cookies (or lady fingers)
- 2 cup vanilla quark (or creamy vanilla yogurt) Note: Vanilla quark is not widely available in the U.S., but a good substitute is a mixture of cream cheese and sour cream, or a thick, creamy vanilla yogurt. Greek yogurt with a bit of vanilla extract also works well.
- 1 package vanilla sugar (or 1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring)
- 2 cup whipping cream
- 1 1/4 cup brown sugar
NUMBER OF SERVINGS
6 - 8
PREP TIME
10 minutes
INSTRUCTIONS
Whip cream and vanilla to stiff peaks. Carefully fold whipped cream into quark/yogurt. Line bottom of baking dish with frozen raspberries. Crumble cookies over raspberries. Spread creamy quark/yogurt over top. Distribute brown sugar generously on top. Cover and refrigerate for two days before eating.
ABOUT THIS RECIPE
This recipe is included in Palatinate Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution: 373 Favorite Recipes From Our Kitchens to Yours, published in 2021. The Palatinate Chapter, Germany, was organized April 15, 2000, at Ramstein Air Force Base. The cookbook supported the chapter’s many service initiatives.
CORRECTION
The recipe for cherry blossom cake in the March/April 2026 issue of American Spirit misstated the amount of butter in the vanilla buttercream. The correct amount is 2 1/2 sticks of unsalted butter, softened. The DAR Magazine Committee regrets the error.
JULY/AUGUST 2026
