Cookbook of the Week: Mastering the Art of Outdoor Cooking on Your Gas Grill, circa 197?

 

The cookbook of the week is Mastering the Art of Outdoor Cooking on Your Gas Grill, just in time for a few more summer barbecues before the leaves start to change color.

While there's no copyright date in the book, we think it hales from sometime in the 1970s. Maxi skirts appeared in Paris in the 1960s, but didn't go mainstream until the next decade, and the cover model is sporting a particularly spectacular one:

Tune in to the Cookbook Love page on Facebook for pictures, commentary, and recipes from this book all week long!

Cookbook of the Week: Magical Amazing JELL-O Desserts (1977)

The Cookbook of the Week is Magical Amazing JELLO-O Desserts, circa 1977!

Here's the title page:

Here's a video preview:

Want to see more? Check in with the Cookbook Love page on Facebook to see photos and recipes all week. Enjoy!

National Cheese Pizza Day! (Plus Hotdogs)

Today is National Cheese Pizza Day! Yippee!

In honor of this day of all days, I offer you the following recipe for Polka Dot Pizzas.

OK, so it's technically NOT cheese pizza. But it is pizza, sort of. And it does have cheese on it, as you can see by the picture.

It comes from Betty Crocker's 1975 Cookbook for Boys & Girls. You can see these very chillins below, enjoying the fruits of their labors.

 

I like this early example of multiculturalism. And that the guy on the left wears an apron adorned with strange farm animals. And that the blond girl in the middle sports a half eaten banana.

Here is the recipe, so that you can make it at home!

Be sure to notice the use of "baking mix", aka, Bisquick.

In case this part is confusing, they've included a close up of Frankfurter positioning:

Now bake it, let it cool a tiny bit, and voila! Biscuit dough, cheddar, hot dog pizza, ready to eat!

Please to enjoy.

Toast! Photocopy style.

Check out this darling, yellow and yellowing paperback for kids, published by...

XEROX?

I love finding children's cookbooks because they take me back to my own childhood, and the books given to me as gifts. The ones I had contained recipes for things like handmade soft pretzels, ants on a log, and tuna boats.

This little guy came out a little later than the ones in my mom's kitchen. Look at the cuteness:

It is copyrighted 1972, and was given as a gift three years later.

Instead of handmade pretzels, ants on a log, and tuna boats, this book contains deviled eggs, pomanders, and Miracle Pie.

More importantly, it has multiple recipes for toast. Three to be exact, and none of them made in the toaster. Here are two, in case you are hungry. Something sweet, and something savory.

Now I'm off to Google why XEROX published a cookbook for kids.

Guest Post: Mom's Cinnamon Buns

A few weeks ago I asked my Mom to do a guest post about the cinnamon rolls she used to make when I was growing up. She agreed, and her recipe is below.

Thanks Mom!

It's funny how your mind plays memory tricks on you though. I could have sworn her rolls were made of biscuit dough, but apparently not. That just might explain why mine never turn out like hers... Ya think?

Cinnamon Buns 　

One of the things I enjoyed doing in the 1970's was, making homemade yeast cinnamon buns.

In order to bake something that took hours to make, involved a strategy on my part.

1. There would have to be enough uninterrupted hours
2. The laundry would have to be caught up
3. The antique kitchen hutch would have to be ready for bread making.

Editorial Note: Here's a picture of a hutch that looks a lot like the one we had:

I used to sit at the hutch with an old mechanical adding machine and pretend I was a secratary. Très glamorous!

I’m sure this list will seem strange (to the average baker) but, alas, as a working mother & wife (who also worked Saturday mornings). This is how I figured that... Sunday was The Day.

I think any yeast bread recipe would do for cinnamon buns; I just needed to make a sweeter dough, by adding 3 tablespoons additional sugar with the other ingredients. ( I used the recipe for bread from the Betty Crocker Cookbook.)

Here’s a tip for using the yeast. One package of yeast is dissolved in ½ cup of warm water 110-115 degrees; let this wait for about five minutes before proceeding.

After all the ingredients were mixed together, it was time to manually knead the dough for 10 to 15 minutes. Then, I shaped the dough into a ball, and place in greased bowl, covered by a hot, wet, clean dish towel. I needed a nice warm spot, for the dough to rise, so I placed it on the floor next to the floor furnace. Depending on how warm the spot was, the dough would rise enough between an hour to an hour and a half.

After the dough had risen to about double in size, it was time to punch it down. Then I rolled the dough into a large rectangle, about 24 inches long and 16 inches wide. Next I buttered the dough throughly with softened butter and sprinkled a mixture of brown sugar (about 1/2 cup) and cinnamon (about 2 tablespoons,) and raisins (about one cup) over the top (this is the time to add chopped nuts, if you like, although I never used any nuts.) I then rolled up the rectangle, starting with one long side and working toward the other long side. I pinched the edge, and the ends of the rectangle to keep the filling from falling out.

Now it is time to cut this dough into the cinnamon buns. I found that a long thin bread knife, makes a nice clean cut. I made the cuts about one inch wide, placing the cut side down touching each other on a large cookie sheet. The buns are now ready to rise for another hour, so I covered them with a hot wet cloth, as before, and then down next to the furnace to rise for the last time.

When the rolls had risen for an hour, I lightly touched a roll to check to make sure it does not dent in when touched. Time to bake. 425 for 20-25 minutes.

As the buns baked, the smell in the house and outside the house was so wonderful; voices were often heard asking, "Are they done yet?"

Time to eat cinnamon buns!

Creamy Green Beany Oniony Goodness

One word:

Green bean casserole!

Just a few simple ingredients plus pepper and you are good to go!

Three great tastes that go great together.

Make some for your next holiday gathering. Throw in some chopped water chestnuts or canned mushrooms if you feel the need to switch it up.

But do it. You won't be sorry.

The Most Beautiful Oven I've Ever Seen!

A toy which transformed Christmas gifting for girls forever! A way to bake their very own cakes without the danger of getting burned! 

(Wait. I managed to burn myself. And my survey of one other person proves that this is a statistically significant occurrence.) 

With Easy-Bake's advent, training for being the perfect little wife could start earlier than ever before.

Enjoy these pictures of Easy-Bake ads from the past. Then rush out and buy your little trainee one. 

Special Guest Blogger: Mama K on Boiled Dinners!

I wanted my Mom to write a guest blogger post, and thought about the dishes that most represented the cooking from my childhood during the 1970s. What came to mind? Boiled dinners!

While Googling about these culinary creations I stumbled across a cool cookbook mentioned in the Cookbook of the Day blog:

Now it's on my wishlist.

My memories of these dinners was that they were simple but had complexity of flavor (not that I knew what that meant at the time). Mom's versions were very straight forward. No Old Bay or garlic. No herbs. The smell would be enticing, filling the house with the promise of something good to come.

But let's hear what Mama K. has to say.

As a young girl growing up in California, I had no idea what a boiled dinner was. Eventually, a person from the East showed me his version of a Boiled Dinner. It consisted of a piece of beef, vegetables, lots of liquid and cooked in the oven.

Several years later, I was married with two children. The four of us arrived in Hornell, New York, from France, after my husband (at that time) was discharged from the U.S. Army.

There were many differences for this California girl to get used to, after landing in New York. Boiled Dinner was my favorite.

So, this is what I learned about a Boiled Dinner:

The ham (at that time) was so salty, that it was ALWAYS boiled in a large pot on the the top of the stove for a few hours, until the ham was falling off the bone. At that time, chunky cut-up vegetables such as, cabbage, carrots, turnips (optional), and onions are added. When vegetables are about half done, the potatoes are added; as they cook fairly quickly, they will totally fall apart if added too soon.

The ham provides a lot of flavor (and salt) to the vegetables. Each person at the meal can decide if butter, pepper and salt needs to be add to the dish. This dish can be served with or without the liquid.

(Editor comment: I don't remember a single turnip.)

I hadn't realized that the hams of the day were saltier than the ones we find now, but it helps explain why you'd want to boil the daylights out of it. Today's hams are so lean and tender that I hate to think what a few hours in bubbling water would do to the texture. I'll have to try it with a smoked picnic shoulder, assuming I can find one.

The other style of ham I remember from the era is canned.

Fortunately for me, time heals all memories, and my recollection of them was significantly more appealing than this.

(BONUS LINK: Turns out canned ham is strongly associated with camping trailers, at least according to Google images. Click here to check it out.)

New Haul!

Check out my finds from this afternoon!

It includes:

• Two Better Homes and Gardens magazines from the 1940s
• A trippily illustrated "fast food" book from the 1970s
• A hardcover book of "Electric Refrigerator Recipes and Menus" from the late 1920s
• A 1955 community cookbook published by members of the Women's National Press Club
• 2 pamphlet's from the 1930s published for Calumet Baking Powder.
• A campy 1950s cookbook
• A gold covered, index tabbed general cook book from the 1960s

Can't wait to start going through them!

Calling Outdoorsmen! Coot Stew!

I don't think I need to say much about this, other than to say that this guy is clearly a manly man/artist.
You can tell because there is only one butterfly in his gun-centric still life. Not to mention his recipe humor.

Down East Coot Stew

My father had, what he always claimed was a recipe for the finest stew a man could sit down to:

Pluck and singe four or five white winged coot (mud hens).

Marinate the skinned and dressed birds, along with a block of pine wood (needed to remove gaminess) in a solution of water and vinegar for a period of two days, or at least overnight. After marination period; place birds in a large kettle. Add salt, pepper and herbs to taste, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer along with pine block.

When nearly tender, add several large potatoes, carrots, turnip, parsnip, onions, and continue cooking until all is properly succulent. Then throw away the Coot and serve vegetables along with the pine block.

Baked Macaroni d'Olive Oyl soeur

There is something troubling about this page.

Or perhaps "depressing" is a better word for it.

Take a look at the picture. Then couple it with the recipe below.

Then click here to cheer yourself back up.

Baked Macaroni

2 cups elbow macaroni

Large can whole tomatoes

1/2 lb. American cheese sliced

Place ingredients in casserole in layers finishing with cheese. Bake in 350 degree oven 10 to 15 minutes or until cheese bubbles.

Cheese "Fondue"

I'm a huge fan of cheese fondue. Who isn't? It's gooey, unctuous, rich, deliciousness.

But the kind I'm familiar with is kept warmly viscous in a heated pot, awaiting chunks of bread and veggies to be dipped. The recipe below sounds as if it could very well be slice-able.

What gives?

Cheese Fondue

(an often used old South Hampton Recipe)

1 cup milk

3 eggs

1/2 lb. grated cheese

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup soft bread crumbs

1 tbsp. butter

Pour milk over the bread crumbs, add salt, cheese and well-beaten yolks of eggs. Mix thoroughly. Cut and fold in the stiffly beaten whites and pour mixture into a greased baking dish. Bake in a moderate oven (325 degrees) until firm (20 min.). Serve at once.

Baked Chicken Not-so-Continental

This lady looks like a sophisticate to me. Check out her simple but chic hairstyle and circle necklace.

The artwork is also rather sophisticated. It has a certain elegant simplicity.

The recipe that follows sounds as if it would have a similar sophistication, but take a closer look. Can a recipe containing this many prepared American ingredients really be named "continental".

I think NOT.

Not unless you spell "continental" C-A-M-P-B-E-L-L-S.

Baked Chicken Continental

1 1/2 cups Minute Rice - put in buttered casserole.

Heat 1 can cream of mushroom soup and 1 can celery soup with 3/4 cups milk. Pour over the rice and mix well.

Lay chicken pieces on top (one chicken) and sprinkle with 1/2 package of onion soup mix. Cover with foil and bake 2 hours or longer at 325 degrees F. Serves four generously.

Hints: use a flat pan like a cake pan (large) or small roaster because it is better if the pieces of chicken are spread out and not on top of each other. If you double the recipe for a larger group, I suggest that you use two pans or one larger roaster so pieces can be spread out. For variety this dash may be prepared using only chicken breasts. This dish served with a vegetable and salad makes a very complete meal.

Newburyport Art Association's Artists Directory & Cookbook

Time for a new cookbook! Yippee!

The recipes featured in coming days will be from the Newburyport Art Association's Artists Directory & Cookbook from 1971.

I love community cookbooks of all kinds, and this one has a special twist. Each artist's page contains a photo or picture of the artist, a sample of their work, and a recipe. It's fascinating to connect the photo with it's choice of hairstyles and clothing, the artwork which often reflects the highly stylized era, and the recipe. Each one is evocative of its day.

While technically a 1970's book, most of the recipes have an older feel, as you will see if you follow along in upcoming posts.

Some the ads in the back of the book are a trip. Take the groovy example below:

Or the fantastic hairstyles in this one:

Imagine the cans of hairspray sacrificed in the making of those dos!

This ad is a favorite because it's for my bank, which still looks exactly like the illustration, right down to the curtains.

It's good to know that some things don't change, especially good things like this gorgeous old building.

Upcoming posts will highlight recipes that have changed, recipes that have remained the same, and recipes that have gone away entirely (perhaps for the better.) You be the judge of which is which.

Where have all the puddings gone? (Auntie's Date-Apple Pudding)

Something happened in the dessert world during the 1970s.

Something earth shattering. Pole shifting. Cataclysmic.

And yet something so subtle we didn't even notice it happening.

For some reason, we stopped making pudding. (If I was a betting woman, I'd wager that Bill Cosby had something to do with it.)

Pudding as an ubiquitous dessert option virtually ceased to exist in any form other than what comes from a box. Eventually you didn't even need a stove.

I've tried to fight the trend in small ways. I made tapioca pudding from scratch the other day, recognizing that it was a small splash of rebellion against a tidal wave of change. And I may grow even more daring, and try a recipe like the one below, despite having no knowledge whatsoever of who "Auntie" might be.

What's the worst that could happen? JELL-O brand takes a contract out on me?

Auntie's Date-Apple Pudding

A butterschotchy pudding rich in apples, dates, and nuts.

1 cup brown sugar (packed)

1/4 cup cornstarch

2 1/4 cups water

1 cup chopped dates

1 cup chopped apples

2 tbsp. butter

1/4 tsp. vanilla

1 cup broken walnuts

Mix brown sugar and cornstarch in 2-qt. saucepan. Gradually stir in water. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils; boil 1 min. Add dates, apples, butter, and vanilla. Remove from heat. Cool to room temperature, add nuts, then chill. Serve in sherbet glasses. Top with whipped cream, if desired. 6 to 8 servings.