The Dakota Farmer Magazine, is one of the 18 state and regional publications put out by Farm Progress Companies, Inc. intended for the North and South Dakota agricultural community. Others include the Nebraska Farmer for Nebraska (surprised?) and the Prairie Farmer for Illinois and Indiana.

From their website: "Our rich history, tradition and reputation for quality and editorial integrity date back nearly 200 years to 1819 with AMERICAN FARMER magazine. Additionally, PRAIRIE FARMER, first published in 1841, holds the distinction of being the nation’s oldest, continuously published magazine." It looks like Dakota Farmer started in 1880.

I have a 1963 cookbook: The Dakota Farmer's "help one another" Cook Book, a compilation of recipes sent in to the magazine's Help One Another column by the readers, which led me to track down the history of the publication.

The recipes all start out: 'To Dakota Farmer:' It starts out with an Old Country Recipes chapter, and I'm sharing this particular recipe for the entertainment value.

Old Holland Recipe
"To Dakota Farmer: I have never known a person who did not relish this dish when properly made. Fine for winter eating and cheap. If you have no meat scraps left from previous meals, boil a hog's cheek or any pork trimmings.

You can also add beef scraps; when tender, grind all together then return to water in kettle and add sufficient water so kettle is 2/3 full. When boiling, have someone stir with long stick while you sift in 2/3 buckwheat and 1/3 white flour.

For seasoning use salt, pepper, allspice before adding flour. Use sufficient flour to make it quite stiff, so one has to hold the kettle from sliding off the stove. Next turn it into molds 3 to 4 inches deep, let cool over night and then fry well done. Well rendered cracklings added to the meat scraps improves the flavor. -- Mrs. A.J.C., Grant County, S.D."

Serve with syrup, like scrapple.

Yum! Wink, wink, roll eyes! I am picturing the hard life that led to the invention of this recipe, and worse, the ever-optimistic farm wife who served it up to the family the first time with a big smile and words of encouragement. Not to mention her husband tucking in with a big wink at the family to show how much he had looked forward to this treat while slopping the hogs and worrying about the weather and this year's crops. I have to admit I can see that maybe it could be one of those comfort foods that a person could get a craving for maybe 40 years later when remembering helping mama by stirring with the big stick and keeping the pot on the stove.

I found a newer recipe in the on-line version in the "Hoosier Perspectives" blog, a nominee for the official Indiana pie consisting of 1 cup of white sugar, a half cup of brown sugar, half a cup of flour, boiling water, half-and-half, and vanilla topped with butter and nutmeg and baked in a crust.

You'll find the full recipe here: Old Fashion Crème Pie (From Virginia German, Huntertown)

I can just see the comments now - yes, it sounds like a lot of sugar, and no, it's not nutritious. That's pretty much the definition of a dessert pie if you think about it. And farmers burn a lot of calories.

Here's the link if you want more Hoosier Perspectives or views from Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska, or the Dakotas.