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.

National Cheese Pizza Day Take 2

All right, so I'm not quite over National Cheese Pizza Day. I'm declaring it a week right here from my little corner of Massachusetts.

Today's version doesn't include hot dogs, which may relieve you. It comes from Betty Crocker's 1967 New Outdoor Cookbook (reprinted in 1973.)

Here's the title page, which includes an illustration of a groovy patio that I'd like to own some day.

And here's a photo of the finished result.

  

It looks pretty amazing, doesn't it? Reminds me of the grilled pizza fad from the last few years. Plus it looks like simple, classic, "real Italian" pizza, the kind I imagine enjoying in an osteria in Naples.

Sadly, looks can be deceiving. Take a peek at the recipe and you'll see what I mean.

Yep, you read it right. Catsup. Or Ketchup, if you prefer.

And bisquit mix. Again.

The page itself is bumpy and dimpled from some sort of exposure to water. Perhaps it was left open on a picnic table in the rain, while Mom fried bacon for Squaw Corn. Or perhaps they are the marks of tears, shed from a heart that yearns for cheese pizza.

Real cheese pizza.

Impossibly Easy Update

I just had a piece of the Impossibly Easy Pumpkin Pie mentioned yesterday.

Here's what I think.

It was easy. And it is very much like the traditional stuff but firmer and less custardy.

Unfortunately I don't think I can evaluate the recipe objectively; the canned pumpkin I used was quite grainy. The grit interrupted the velvety smoothness you expect from pumpkin pie.

I'll be honest; the three of us who tasted it missed the crust. But I think we would have missed it less if the creaminess had been there.

I'm guessing most people would choose traditional pie in a taste test. But the Easy version is handy if you:

a) Don't have time to make crust.

b) Forgot to buy refrigerated crust (like me).

c) Want to cut back on the fat level.

One big advantage is that you can make it on the spur of the moment if you just keep pumpkin and Bisquick in the pantry.

Thanks Bisquick. This year, you saved Turkey Day.

Happy Impossibly Easy Thanksgiving!

For the sake of nostalgia I'm making Impossibly Easy Pumpkin Pie for tomorrow's feast. I've always wanted to try it, and since I forgot to pick up some refrigerator pie crust, I figured there's no time like the present!

And what does one need for Impossibly Easy Pie? Bisquick!

Luckily there are gigantic boxes all ready to help.

Here are some vintage Bisquick boxes, ads, etc.




These are fun, though I have to admit that the item below confuses me.

Apparently it is from the 1930s, and is a collection of recipes from stars as told to Betty herself.

But the name? That I don't get. "Turn a trick" I understand, but I don't think it fits in this case. And if it does? For biscuits, you should pay extra.

While trying to find out when Betty Crocker began marketing through their "Impossibly Easy" pie concept, I came across this page:

http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodpies.html#impossible

The site is a gem! Take a look at this timeline when you have a minute:

http://www.foodtimeline.org/

I haven't researched who writes the site or how accurate it is, but my first reaction is COOL!

Back to the pie. It is out of the oven and looks pretty.

(Ok, so this shot comes from the Betty Crocker website, but why make you look at my shoddy photography when you can see the work of pros instead?)

I'll let you know how it tastes tomorrow. Unless I'm too drunk on tryptophan to log on blogger once the feasting is done.

In the meantime, I hope that your holiday be filled with thanks, that your family be on good behavior, and that all your cooking be done with love.

Happy Father's Day: Dad Cooks Out!

The main reason I'm including this recipe is the nifty illustration at the top of the page.

Doesn't this look just like your dad when he's grilling? It sure looks like mine.

The Hearty Green Bean-Sausage Casserole doesn't seem exactly like a cookout dish, but whatever. It was right below the picture of your dad, so be quiet.

It's probably a good idea that they didn't include a picture of the dish itself. Consider the combination of sausage, tomatoes, and green beans in a gravy base. Gordon Ramsay might say it looks like a dogs dinner, which is more polite than the comparison I would have used.

Despite the potential appearance, let's not be hasty. It may well be delicious.

Ask your dad to make it at the next family cookout. But maybe he should lose the pipe.

Hearty Green Bean-Sausage Casserole

Tomatoes and green beans add garden-fresh flavor and appealing color to this tempting supper dish.

1 lb. bulk pork sausage

1 cup sliced onion

3 to 4 tbs. unsifted Gold Medal Flour

2 1/2 cups cooked tomatoes (1 lb. 4-oz. can)

2 cups cooked fresh green beans

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

Biscuit Topping (below)

Heat oven to 425 degrees (hot). Brown sausage and onion over low heat. (Break up sausage with fork.) Drain off excess fat. Stir in flour; stir in vegetables and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Pour into 2-qt. baking dish. Immediately top with Biscuit Topping. Bake 20 min. 6 to 8 servings.

Biscuit Topping: Add 1/3 cup milk all at once to 1 cup Bisquick. Beat hard 20 strokes; knead 8 to 10 times. Roll into 9" circle; cut in 8 wedges.