While attempting to restore the recipes in the original journal, I ran across some interesting measurements:

Butter the size of an egg

3 sifts of flour

10 cents worth of nuts

A waterglass full of honey

Fannie Farmer invented the dry measuring cup in 1896. Cooks before that and for many years going forward tended implement whatever kitchen tools they had to serve as a basis for measuring. How many times have we heard someone say, “my Grandmother never measured anything.” 

If a cook did measure anything, their “equipment” might include a teacup, wineglass, and most any type of spoon including a coffee spoon, dessert spoon, or cooking spoon. The baker’s hand was the most convenient measuring unit, and could be used as a fistful, a handful, or just a pinch.  

Here’s a quick guide to some of the more common vintage measurements:

Butter the size of an egg = ¼ cup

A “sift” of flour is approximately 1 cup of flour

A waterglass is approximately 8 ounces.

A fistful = ¼ cup

A handful = ½ cup

A pinch = 1/16 to 1/8 teaspoon

A coffee spoon= 1/2 teaspoon

A kitchen spoon = 1 teaspoon

A dessert spoon = 2 teaspoons

A cooking spoon = 3 teaspoons

A wineglass = ¼ cup

A teacup = ½ to ¾ cup