FoodTimeline library
If you want to identify period recipes, menus, table settings & decorations
1900s
1910s
1920s
1930s
1940s
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
July 4th food celebrations
Party planning tips
Historic food prices
Morris County (NJ) Cooks! Eleven delicious decades
Need to plan a "decade" food event?
This is a very doable project. Once you figure out what you want to accomplish, the rest will fall
in place.
---1980s formal dinner? 1960s backyard barbecue? 1950s Vegas resort extraganza? 1940s teen party? 1920s Gatsby speakeasy
evening? Victorian garden party?
---1900s Texas chili parlors? 1930s Chicago soup kitchens? 1970s California cuisine? 1990s
Seattle cafes?
---excellent for social context, commentary, & selected recipes: 1920s-1980s
---good for popular fads & brands
---new food introductions, restaurant openings, cookbooks, technological advancements &
company news
This is the fun part! It's also time-consuming and labor-intensive. You need primary resources.
These are:
. Your librarian can
help you identify nearby libraries with historic culinary collections or try to borrow them.
2. Science & Technology
Advances in transportation, food preservation, and home storage began to equalize local food
availability and lessen dependence upon seasonal variations. Electricity was introduced to homes
beginning with urban areas. Electric appliances (refrigerators, stoves) were introduced but not
generally found in homes until the 1930s. About
Domestic technology
3. Home Economics & Nutrition Science
The Home Economics movement of the late 19th century continued full-force in the 20th.
College women studied the science of cookery and applied their knowledge to improving the
nutrition and health of their families. Some of these women became social workers who
advocated for the poor. They established soup kitchens and classes for new immigrants and low-income homemakers. Many visited tenement homes and worked one-on-one with families. Social
workers/nutrition experts taught their students practical skills regarding cooking safety,
sanitation, nutrition, and marketing. About Home Economics.
4. Company
New products flooded the American markets. Corporate giants such as the National Biscuit
Company (Nabisco), Campbells, Swift, General Mills, Quaker Oats, Kraft, Jell-O, and Hershey's
provided products, "invented" recipes and created a steady demand for a wider variety of foods.
5. Government intervention
Food & Drug Act (1906),
Popular cookbooks
Home menus
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
[1908]
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Restaurant menus
Fair fare
New food USA introductions
1900 Wesson Oil, Hershey bars, Hills Bros coffee
Popular USA brands
Advertised in the Washington Post, January 7, 1900:
Advertised in Sears Roebuck & Company Catalog,1902: mail order groceries
Advertised in the Washington Post, July 2, 1905:
Advertised in the Washington Post, December 26, 1909:
Need to make something for class? Fantastic!!! We recommend...
About the 1910s in America:
World War I had an interesting affect on American food. Some major points for consideration.
Home cooking & family entertaining
World War I: civilian fare
Notes from U.S. Army archives: I &
II.
Army bread baking. Doughboy Cook Book, Great War Society (modernized recipes with historical commentary)
Compare with British & German ration.
Planning a 1913 celebration?
Finger food
Popular American snacks: Oreos, Lorna Doons, Animal Crackers, Fig Newtons, & Cracker Jack. Peppermint Life Savers were introduced in 1913.
Lunch, 1913 style
"Luncheon No. 1:
Beef Bouillon, Fillet of Beef, Squabs, Artichoke, Potato Balls, Grape Fruit Salad with Pimentos, Lettuce, Mayonnaise, Roquefort Cheese, Fresh Strawberry
Ice Cream, Angel Cake." (p. 264)
Cocktail parties
Authentic period mixology text, published in St. Louis, 1917 contains most of the cocktails served by Mrs. Walsh. Coincidence? Ideal Bartender/Thomas Bullock
Popular American brands
[1910] groceries advertised by Simpson Crawford Co., in the New York Times, January 2, 1910: New Pack California
White Asparagus (cans), Royal Stuart (canned: orange marmelade, pereserved whole fruit, strained honey, salmon steaks, sardines, tomato catsup, small green tender beans, apricots, red raspberries, peaches, pineapple, asparagus, pickles), Cameron Fancy Fruit (cans, in heavy sugar syrup: peaches,
apricots, macaroni, coffee,), Del Monte (green gage, egg plums), Bevan's (table raisins), Dunbar's Okra (cans), Pinard's (canned spinach, carrots,
asparagus), Waverly coffee, Quaker (oats & corn flakes).
[1911]
Grocer's Encyclopedia/Artemas Ward (food varieties, packaging &c., no brand names)
[1915] groceries advertised by Macy's (department store) in the New York Times, August 22, 1915: Red Star Lunch Chocolate,
Lily White gelatine & grape juice, Wesson's Oil, Holbrook's Malt Vinegar, Tiger brand white wax cherries, Crosse & Blackwell's Scotch Oatmeal,
Red Star Hams, Duffy's Sparkling Apple Juice.
[1916] popular USA brands still available today (perfect for a birthday/anniversary celebration basket!):
Oreos , Coca Cola (bottles), Campbell's soups (tomato, chicken noodle, NOT cream of mushroom), Underwood Deviled Ham, Junket, Jell-O, Kellogg's Corn Flakes, Nabisco's Animal
Crackers (in the fancy little box decorated with zoo animals), Hershey Bars, Fig Newtons, Heinz Ketchup, Gulden's Mustard, Graham Crackers, Philadelphia Cream Cheese, Quaker Oats
C & C Club Soda, Hires Root Beer, Pillsbury Flour, Hershey's Cocoa, Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce, Wrigley's gum (peppermint), Good & Plenty, & Cracker Jacks.
[1918] groceries advertised by Macy's in the New York Times, March 17, 1918: Ballard's Graham Flour, Goodman's
freshly baked Tea Matzohs, Manishewitz Matsoths, King-Ko brand California seeded raisins, Curtis Supreme California Ripe
Olives, Van Camp's Pork and Beans with Tomato Sauce, Lily White (molasses, tomatoes, kidney beans, concentrated soups), Del Monte California Spinach, Duco Red Beans,
New American food introductions & related events
[1911]
Battle Creek, Mich., plans produce cornflakes under 108 brand names, but Kellogg's and Post Toasties lead the pack,
Crisco, introduced in the spring by Cincinnati's Protor & Gamble, is the first solid hydrogenated vegetable shortening,
Mazola salad and cooking oil--the first corn oil available for home consumption is introduced by E.T. Bedford's Corn
Products Refining Company,
Domino brand sugar is introduced by American Sugar Refining Co.,
the first canned chili con carne and tamales are produced in San Antonio, Tex. by William Gebhardt.
[1912]
First self-service grocery stores open independently in California,
California Associated Raisin Co (later renamed Sun-Maid) starts,
California Walnut Growers (later renamed Diamond Walnut Growers) starts,
Ocean Spray Cranberry Sauce is introduced by the Cape Cod Cannery Co.,
Morton's Table Salt is introduced,
Hellmann's Blue Ribbon Mayonnaise is introduced by German-American New York delicatessen owner Richard Hellmann,
Prince Macaroni Co. launched,
Oreo Biscuits & Lorna Doon cookies introduced by National Biscuit Company,
Whitman Sampler introduced by Philadelphia's Whitman Chocolate Company,
Royal Crown Ginger Ale introduced
[1913] Quaker's Puffed Rice and Quaker's Puffed Wheat introduced, Peppermint Life Savers introduced by Cleveland, Ohio, chocolate manufacturer Clarence Crane
[1914]
[1915]
Corning introduces Pyrex baking dishes,
Cortland apple is created in upstate New York by crossing a Bert Davis with a McIntosh,
Kellogg's 40% Bran Flakes are introduced,
The Singapore Sling is invented [cocktail]
[1916] Streit's matzohs introduced by New York entrepreneur Aaron Streit,
Coca-Cola adopts the distinctive bottle shape that will identify it for years,
Nathan's Famous frankfurters established in Coney Island, N.Y.
[1917]
French Sardine Co. (later renamed Starkist Seafood) established, Del Monte's canned fruits and vegetables advertised
nationally, Clark Bars introduced by Pittsburgh's David L. Clark
[1918]
Ronzoni brand pasta founded, Old El Paso brand Mexican foods established in New Mexico
[1919]
Fleischmann Co. lauches a national advertising campaign to urge housewives to buy bakery bread instead of baking at home,
Eskimo Pie begins as the "I-Scream-Bar," Nestle introduces the Nestle Milk Chocolate Bar
1920s America was a fascinating time for food. When else would it be possible to juxtapose
Prohibition (popular no alcohol sentiment co-existing with underground speakeasies), exotic culinary experimentation (Chinese food was
popular),
opulent wealth (Delmonicos & 21), extreme poverty (tenement kitchens), social nutrition
movements (home economics & Ladies Aid Organizations) and vegetarian alternatives (Dr.
George
Washington Carver was creating recipes for mock chicken made from peanuts).
What effect did Prohibition on American the food and dining habits in the 1920's?
"Prohibition, with its tremendous impact on the eating habits of the country, also had a great deal
to do with the introduction of Italian food to the masses. Mary Grosvenor Ellsworth, in Much
Depends upon Dinner, (1939), said this about Prohibition and pasta: "We cooked them
[pastas] too much, we desecrated them with further additions of flour, we smothered them in
baking dishes and store cheese. Prohibition changed all that. The Italians who opened up
speakeasies
by the thousand were our main recourse in time of trial. Whole hoards of Americans thus got
exposed regularly and often to Italian food and got a taste for it. Now we know from experience
that properly treated, the past is no insipid potato substitute.
The food served in the speakeasies--with Mama doing the cooking and Papa making the wine
in the basement--was not quite the same as the food the Italians had eaten in the Old Country.
Sicilian cooking was based on austerity...But America was rich, and protein rich country, and the
immigrants were happy to add these symbols of wealth to their cooking--and happy that their new
American customers liked the result. Meatballs, rich meat sauces, veal cutlets cooked with
Parmesean or with lemon, clams stuffed with buttered herbed crumbs, shrimp with wine and
garlic, and mozzarella in huge chunks to be eaten as appetizer were all foods of abundance,
developed by Italian-Americans..."
What kind of impact did Prohibition have on American cookbooks in the 1920s?
Every Womans Cook Book, Mrs. Chas. F. Moritz [Cupples & Leon:New York:1926]
devotes several pages of its beverage chapter to making wine at home. Here the 1920s cook
found instructions for blackberry, strawberrry, grape and cherry wine, sherry, sauterne and plum
liquor and home. These wines were generally fermented for 10 days. We have no idea how strong
(% alcohol) they would have been. This book also has a recipe for brandied peaches (without
brandy), claret punch (with 1/2 gallon of claret wine). (p. 616-619), and Welsh rarebit (1/2 cup
cream, ale or beer). (p.631)
The 1923 edition of Fannie Merritt Farmer's The Boston Cooking School Cook Book,
lists 2 tablespoons brandy in a recipe for rich coffee cake (p. 637).
The President's fruit cake listed in Mrs. Peterson's Simplified Cooking, American School
of Home Economics [Chicago, IL] 1926 (p. 185) lists grape juice as an ingredient, no mention of
alcohol.
"Brandy used to be a common addition to fruit cakes. The taste cooked out, but it gave richness
to the cake, and probably added to the keeping quality. In the recipes here given, cider, lemon
juice or other fruit juice is substituted for it."
About speakeasy dining & cocktails
"For one speakeasy with pretensions to any sort of elegance, there were dozens of drab cellar or
tenement bars where no money or thought was wasted on decor. When a speakeasy of some
standing as a restaurant as well as a bar emerged, such as that well known New York repair, still
legitimately flourishing, Jas and Charlie's 21 (sometimes referred to as "The Twenty-One Club,"
although it never had official club status), it was because discreet official protection had been
guaranteed to it which made the investment gilt-edged."
"Salty hams and pretzels were offered at free lunch counters to whet customers' thirsts"
What kinds of drinks were served?
[1925]
Great Gatsby Dining
Two of the best sources for learning about 1920s American restaurant dining are:
If you are trying to recreate the menu/ambiance of a speakeasy on par with the famous
"21 Club" ask your librarian to help you find
these books:
Need menus?
The Waldorf-Astoria, New York City
"With the passing of the war, America settled down to begin an era of onrushing prosperity. But it
was also
the era of Prohibition. I glance into menus, from 1921 on: Menus for dinners to honor such
figures as
Charles M. Schwab...Another significant change was evident in this era, as my menus show. The
banquets
became less sumptuous--more, shall I say, utilitarian? Certainly, the courses had been pared down.
For
instance, a dinner in February, 1924, for President Coolidge. (Note the "Appolinaris" and "White
Rock" but
no mention whatever of any wines or liquors.) Here is the menu:
Home cooking & family entertaining
Conversely? Modern vegetarianism also began the 1920s. Peanuts were promoted as healthy
protein alternatives to animal meat. Raw foods were likewise promoted. Ladies Aid Societies and
Domestic Scientists worked hard to introduce balanced, nutritional meals to poor, laboring people
and help newly arrived immigrants adjust to American markets.
Need recipes & menus?
Mrs. Allen's party menus
[Suggested table decorations: Daffodils, pussywillows, and individual pots of white or yellow
crocuses to bear the place cards.]
(If desired omit the cocktail and add a salad, as French artichoke canape or Jane Oaker.)
[Suggested table decorations: White narcissi, pink carnations, asparagus fern, and individual
old-fashioned bouquets of the two made up with a carnation in the centre surrounded by the
narcissi,
then with violets.] (p. 874)
"Parties
Chicken Broth Whipped Cream Rolls
Fruit Cocktail or Strawberries in Halves of Melons
Appetizers & hors d'oeuvres
Fannie Farmer's canape recipes from the
Boston Cooking School Cook Book [1918] are almost identical to those offered in her
1923 edition.
Buffet suppers from Mrs. Wilson's Cook Book, Mary A. Wilson [J.B.
Lippincott:Philadelphia] 1920
No. 1
No. 2
No. 3
Popular foods and snack fare
Molded/fruited Jello-salads, fruit cocktail, sliced pineapples & bananas
(maraschino
cherry
ok)
Popular American brands advertised in magazines & newspapers
[1920] New York Times, August 17-24, 1920:
[1921] New York Times, August 17-23 1921:
[1922]Daily Record (Morris County NJ newspaper), May 1-15:
[1925]American Cookery Magazine, Boston Cooking School Magazine Company, May issue:
[1927] American Cookery Magazine, December 1927:
[1929] Woman's Home Companion, September issue:
ADVERTISING COOKBOOKS
Story of a
Pantry Shelf, Butterick Publishing Co., 1925. Popular American brands and their histories.
Need to make something simple and interesting for class? We recommend Ice Box Cake!
New American food introductions:
In times of famine, war, and extreme hardship people have been known to eat things they might
not consider during "normal" times. According to the food historians, the Great Depression was
not such a period. Why? There was an ample, inexpensive food supply. People struggling to make
put food on the table had the option of purchasing lesser grades of meat (chuck instead of sirlion
beef), cheaper cuts of animal (heart, brains, feet), and manufactured substitutes (Crisco instead of
butter). Folks who needed help were served by private soup kitchens and government programs.
These services were in place throughout the country. This was a decade of cutting back; not
starvation.
"Though the depression did not have any immediate impact or obvious effects on American
cookery--the food sections of popular magazines never mentioned the terrible plight of many of
their readers and only occasionally ran a feature on economical meals--still the effects were there,
subtle but pervasive...when, and if, Americans did eat out in the 1930s, it was much more likely to
be at an inexpensive place, serving familiar, American food, than at a fancy restaurant. And those
Americans were much more likely to order coffee or a sweet, inexpensive soft drink rather than
unfamiliar and expensive wine to wash down their food. The Depression also changed the way
many Americans entertained at home. Except for the upper echelons of society, most families
were now maidless, which made grand, formal dinner parties impossible. Instead, hostesses gave
luncheons, teas, and cozy Sunday Night Suppers around the chafing dish...The Thirties aslo ushed
in an era of women's clubs--whether dedicated to charitable activities, gardening, or the fine art of
bridge--perhaps as a reaction to the individualistic Twenties, perhaps as a kind of atavistic
huddling together against the harsh realities of the new age. And what was eaten when the clubs
got together...was women's food: dainty, light, frothy, sweet, creamy, and decorated...But
weren't many Americans starving in the Thirties? Not really. There was hunger, of course, but it
was primarily concentrated in the poorest rural areas...And while Dust Bowl housewives might
have had to make their bread inside a drawer to keep the drifting dust out, at least there was
bread. Relief agencies and make-work jobs helped some of the worst off, and low food prices
made everyone except the food companies happier. Sugar prices, too, were low, and in the
Thirties Americans consumed more sugar per capita then they have done before or since..."
"...while the Depression brought bread lines, soup kitchens, hoboes begging for food at
middle-class doors, and thousands of hungry families in devastated parts of rural America,
starvation was
unheard-of. Persistent hunger was more common, but it was localized, affecting mainly
marginalized populations who played a small role in politics or the marketplace. After the initial
disocation, when local and private relief agencies were bankrupted, enough federal and state
resources seem to have been mobilized to provide enough relief and/or jobs to head off serious
threats to the nutrition of most of the poor and unemployed, particularly in the cities. In any
event, there is no indication, in mortality and other statistics, of an overall deterioration in the
health of the nation. Falling food prices seem to have helped. Studies of low-income families in
five northern industrial cities during the tough spring of 1933, when the nation's economy was in
ruins, presented a bleak but by no means horrendous picture. Those whose incomes were over
three dollars per person per week (not a handsome amount) consumed an average of over 3,000
calories per adult male per day. Those with incomes of two to three dollars per person per week
still averaged 2,800 calories per adult male per day while only those on the very bottom, the
relatively small proportion living on less than two dollars per person, lived near the margin of
hunger, averaging 2,470 calories per day. Even in southern mill-towns...the poorer workers still
ate better than their counterparts of twenty years earlier. While they did cut back on meat, fowl,
fish, and fresh fruit, they still ate adequate amounts of vegetables, fresh and canned...This does
not mean that the Depression did not scare Americans. Whether hungry or not, economic hardship
was ever-present in most Americans' minds: they either experienced it, feared it, or were
concerned about others living through it. But unlike the food crises which used to rack the
pre-industrial world, this one took place among food surpluses, not shortages."
A survey of 1930s American cookbooks is full recipes that may appear strange/interesting to us
today. These were completely "normal" back in those days. We know they were "normal"
because the same recipes appear in books published in previous decades. The following recipes
were included in Aunt Sammy's Radio Recipes Revised, Bureau of Home Economics,
U.S. Department of Agriculture [1931]: baked bean sandwiches (mashed to a paste and served on
brown bread), beef loaf (aka meatloaf), fresh beef tongue (considered a delicacy!), liver and bacon
(favorite from the "Old World"), ox tail stew (a French treat), scalloped cabbage and apples (a
German recipe).
Modern American kitchens, 1932
"The Kitchen, A Workshop of Color and Charm.The kitchen should be the pleasant room in the house. There is not good reason for the millions of ugly kitchens in the world.
Nor is there any good reason for kitchens that look like white tile lunchrooms. In a kitchen that is gay, cozy, and pleasant,
half the labor of cooking seems to be eliminated. In many houses that have been restored and kept in memory of another day,
the kitchen is a most interesting and delightful room. When a tour of the house has been made and the kitchen is reached, there
is always a sigh of pleasure. A sense of comfort and jollity pervades the place. The mellow walls, the lovely old containers for
flours and spices, the gay platters, bowls and cups, the gleaming copper, the rocking chairs!...The modern housewife should try to
bet her kitchen the same jolly atmosphere, while preserving a convenient arrangement of furnishings and utensils. The best arrangement
for labor savings is one where all operations move from left to right: Refrigerator to work table, table to stove, stove to
serving table, and to sink...A visit to the kitchen furnishing department of a modern store sets the mind teeming with ideas that will
add charm and confidence to your kitchen. Most kitchens can be improved and whether you wish to add the largest or smallest item, ti
will be an inspiration to wander through these departments and get new ideas for the present or future shopping. The new iceless
refrigerators and new designs in gas and electric ranges are finished now in lovely plain or tiled effects and a variety of
colors. Since they are the most important and largest of single items their color will determine your kitchen color scheme to
a considerable extent. Kitchen cabinets have so many built-in conveniences they are well worth owning. Both the kitchen and
utility type cabinets give space with doors to hide whatever seems unsightly or is 'out of the picture.'...Keep the kitchen workshop
free from the confusion of too many things. Both types of such cabinets come in a variety of colors to match your kitchen plan.
Utility cabinets may be purchased in separate units and enlarged by adding units as they are needed. The there are the hanging
shelves that fit into odd space and make such a difference in the convenient arrangement of your supplies and equipment. They
might hold your cook books, for your should collect cook books if you wish to improve your cooking technique--and who
doesn't? Cook book collecting is one of the most fascinating hobbies in which a woman can indulge. The floor linoleum should be
considered as an essential part of your kitchen color scheme. There is a wide variety in this field and the modern oil cloth that
is useful to cover some shabby shelf or table also comes in patterns that are charming and beautiful. Shelving in string or delicate
colors and edging is another intriguing item of kitchen furnishing. The shelf edgings are made also in attractive paper
designs. The modern gleaming metal ware kitchen utensils are works of art in design and finish. Enamel ware comes in a variety
of colors. The color and shapes of waffle pitchers, sets of mixing bowls, containers for dry groceries and spices in metal and glazes
are painted tin are varied enough to suit every person's artistic instinct. Remember that the several metals and enamel finishes
as well as glass and china are each suited best to certain uses. One must not lose sight of utility while satisfying the desire
for color and charm...The size of the kitchen has nothing to do with its charm. My own kitchen is a small one, but it is so
pleasing to me that I never enter it without a glow of satisfaction. At the window hangs a gay India print in which blue
predominates. Shelves of assorted sizes are everywhere. Their edges are painted lacquer red. On the broad shelves are gayly
patterned serving platters, tureens, colored glass dishes, fat casseroles, blue and amber drinking glasses and pitchers. Jolly
flasks of Venetian glass contain vinegar and oil. Keeping these in the kitchen saves many steps...The tiniest set of
shelves holds the spices and colors for decorating and garnishing. Blooming plants line the window sill. Several decorative
trays hang on the walls...Above my stove I have hung a mirror in a green and gold frame. It reflects the jolly kitchen as well as the cook. A cook
should consult a mirror often. For what use is a decorative kitchen without a decorative woman in it!"
Who was Mabel Claire?
"'Shortcut Cookery,' by Mabel Claire (Greenberg). This is not only a list of recipes, but the reflection of a state of mind. 'Powder your nose' is the author's last word in the
instructions for preparing an appetizing dinner. 'The woman who serves roast bride with the roast lamb is not a thoroughly successful wife.' Flippant? Not at all. Efficient?
Efficient and decorative. The parboiled housewife, martyred , breathless, exasperated, has gone out. If not, this book will help to hurry her out. It contains exceedingly
useful pages of half-time methods for getting full-time results. Economical, too: long hours of cooking destroy food values, use too much gas. There is something
essentially modern in the point of view, especially in the chapter on kitchen aesthetics. The description of the brave and gallant kitchen with its gaily patterned honey
jars, and shelves with edges painted lacquer red--the kitchen of a woman with wit enough to enjoy cooking as well as wit enough to understand it. One finds oneself
mentally tagging at her heels, fascinated, enthralled, as she darts about, putting dabs of green angelica on lemon foam puddings, red cinnamon candies on cooked
apples. Oh yes, it is distinctly decorative cooking. 'All of these are the things that make a cook into an artist.'..."
"When artist writes a book of recipes it indicates two things. The first is that the meals will be colorful and interesting, and the second, that being a sculptor and still
finding time to write such a volume, the author's cooking as been very carefully organized to achieve the maximum results in a minimum of time. Therefore, we are not
surprised to read the title of the book by Mabel Claire, 'The Busy Woman's Cook Book, or Cooking by the Clock.' (New York:Greenberg, Inc. $1.50). The chapter titles give
an idea of the manner in which the author has systematized the business of meals...With each menu is given a shopping list containing everything needed for the meal...
Below these lists the author gives directions for each according to its place in the schedule of 15, 20 or 30 minutes, and it is this scheduling that makes the book a
particular value to the inexperienced cook...Mabel Claire is one of those whom the world delights to dub 'modern women' although she says was born just long enough ago
to be an old-fashioned girl, which is to say that she learned to cook and bake as well as to model clay and hammer brass. She always wanted to be a sculptor but she put
it off until after she was married. She came to New York seven years ago and studied sculpture at the Art Students' League under Caldwell and Leo Lentelli. Miss Claire
found that it costs money to study art, and to solve the money problem, she began modeling add little ink wells and utility jars and boxes which she sold in the small gift
shops of Greenwich Village. As she progressed in her work, she evolved a family of wax candles in the form of Mother Goose characters. She christened her work the
Candlestick Family, protected by copyright, put it in the hands of a national sales organization and then found she had to organize herself into a factory that could turn out
in bulk the amusing little handmade people. When her business interfered with her being a housewife, her friends began to tell her that the easiest thing was to give up
housekeeping, but Miss Claire believed that two people can remain much happier if the dine pleasantly at home...So she searched out the ways in which her household
duties could be shortened. Her friends copied her methods and borrowed her menus, until Miss Claire decided to add to her duties as housewife, manufacturer and artist
those of an author."
"Mrs. Jack Bechdolt of the Hotel Margaret, Brooklyn, known as a writer under the pen name Mabel Claire, died in a Manhattan hospital on Thursday at the age of 43.
Mrs. Bechdolt recently returned home from the hospital where she had long been a patient. Her condition grew worse on Thursday and she was returned to the institution
shortly before her death. Mrs. Bechdolt was born in Aberdeen, Wash., a daughter C.J. Glasier, Superintendent of Schools there. She was the author of a book on
domestic science, a contributor to women's magazines, and also was known as a sculptor and water-color artist. She is survived by her husband, also a writer."
SOUP KITCHENS & PENNY RESTAURANTS
During the Depression (same as today) food/soup kitchen cooks were experts at maximizing whatever
they had on hand to serve that night. What they served, and how they served it, depended upon
the facility (how big was the kitchen?), local support (food donations?), and the number of people
who needed help (how far to stretch?). Sometimes the best soup kitchens could do was dole out
bread and and coffee. Sometimes they could offer other foods (cakes, cookies, casseroles)
donated by local charitable organizations, grocery stores or restaurants. More fortunate people
where encouraged to grow "charity gardens" so that the soup kitchens could offer fresh fruits and
vegetables. The most notorious of American soup kitchens was funded by Al Capone, in Chicago.
According to the papers, his consitutents ate better than most.
Food notes from the New York Times:
"Three meals are served each day, including Sundays. Breakfast consists of coffee and a sweet
roll, and dinner and supper of soup, bread and coffee, with a second or third helping
permitted."
"Dozens of jobless men today received food from "soup kitchens" as the city opened temporary
commisaries to care for hungry families. Mayor Hoan, a Socialist, ordered the old policy armory
kitchen thrown open tomorrow as a municipal kitchen. Temporary headquarters gave bread, milk,
cheese and coffee to the hungry today."
"...families will be supplied with tickets entitling them to soup, and probably bread, every day. The
meat and vegetables will be donated by other members of the district, and the funds to operate the
kitchen have already been provided."
About Chicago's
bread lines & food kitchens.
Why soup?
Penny restaurants
"Manhattan's newest mid-town penny restaurant is doing a rushing business...Ont he two upper floors there is a sevice change of three cents a meal, and a chance to sit down at the
gleaming white tables after the diners have collected the items of thier meal cafeteria fashion...But it is on the ground floor that
the penny meal plan devised by the Bernarr Macfadden Foundation is seen in its full benefits for the white-collar worker whose self-respect
will not permit him to beg so long as he can find occasional work. Of such men and women there are many thousands in New York City
today who obtain an occasional day's work that enables them to keep going...the Free Food Ticket Fund Committee...works in conjuction with
with the penny restaurants. Mrs. Sprague said that in the las few weeks donations enough to provide 75,000 five-cent meals had been
received. The organization hopes to provide 2000 meals a day for 250 days, which will require a fund of $25,000. Seventy-five per cent
of the patrons of the penny restaurants are unemployed, it is estimated. At one cent an order the diners may obtain soup, cracked
wheat, steamed cornmeal, steamed oatmeal, steamed hominy grits, bread pudding, stewed prunes, stewed raisins, honey, milk, tea,
raisin coffee, black coffee, whole wheat doughnut, two slices of whole wheat bread or whole wheat raisin bread. For five cents...it is possible
to obtain a filling lunch, for with soup, pudding and a beverage, accounted for at three cents, and order of creamed codfish on toast
may be had for two cents more. Omit the pudding or the beverage, and your nickel will buy one of the three cent orders; a meat cake,
fruit salad, half a grapefruit, sliced peaches, a whole wheat crumb cake, lettuce and tomates, tuna fish salad. To those who
hadn't a nickel, a total average for 1200 five-cent meals have been served without charge daily at the five penny restaurants now
operating in New York City. The total number of meals now being served in these restaurants averages more thean 10,000 a day.
Today persons in need of one of these nickel meals must go to one of the 90 welfare organizations scattered about the city for a
ticket. As some of these needy ones still have sufficient pride to dislike applying for charity in any guise, it is hoped by
the penny restaurant managers that the city welfare department will soon see fit to relsease a license to permit applicants
for tickets to sand in line near the mid-town restaurant, waiting their turn when a generous passer-by makes possible, by a donation of
$1, for 20 of these men to eat. From 500 to 800 men have been in the Forty-third Street twice daily, satisfied to wait an hour or
more on the street for the pot-luck that will come to them in the crowd, a way of getting a meal ticket without asking sometone for it...
Why is the City Welfare Department holding up the license forr this line? According to the best explanation obtainable, it is thought
at City Hall that it "does not look well" at this time for such a line to be seen in a mid-town street." "At this time" may be
interpreted as covering vaguely a preelection period, during which Tammany would have the city wear as fair a face as possible. Thrusting a
congregation of hungry men into the public eye twice daily, even on such an unfashionable thoroughfare as Sixth Avenue, is
not precisely the best possible advertisment for the merits of the incumbent administration."
New Deal food programs
Family meals, general observations:
"For family consumption there is just at present, a vogue for the combination dinner, the main dish of which may be anything
from a one-pot recipe to an oven or grill colleciton including meat, green and starch vegetables and dessert all cooked at
the same time, over the one heat unit, and served as a unit, too. Whether the tendency is due to a cultivated taste for blended flavors
than to the modern cry for speed and 'efficiency' is hard to determine. But every thougthful home-maker is able to set several
reasons for this intimate service which not only brings variation to home tables, but more than cuts in half the serving and
washing dishes. Among the meals are such selections as noodles, cooked first, drained an baked with tomato sauce, mushrooms and
strips of bacon. This combination goes to the table in its pretty glass or porcelain baking dish garnished with parsley.
With it is served a simple salad, and for dessert a hot and sugary baked pear or apple with cream. A second one-pot dinner is the
veal or lamb pie, cooked with all sorts of vegetables and a top crust of biscuit dough, lightly browned. These pies can be made very
dainty served in individual ramekins or small deep-dish pie plates. So far as nicety goes, we are not as they say, getting
back to first principles of the caveman. For today's one-dish dinners are managed with much neatness and an appetizing flair.
But in simplicity and the wholesome ingredients coook in their blended habit of letting various juices the modern adapatation
has all the good points of its early ancestors."
[1931]
"Dinner menus for February
"Dinner menus for April
"Dinner menus for July
"Dinner menus for October
[1932]
"Wednesday Dinner: Cocktail of Mixed Melon Balls, Minute Steaks, French Fried Potatoes, Sauteed Mushrooms, Buttered Summer
squash, Vanilla Junket with Raspberries, Coffee or Iced Tea...
[1935]
Breakfast (fall menus) (p. 20-21)
Lunch (fall menus) (p. 20-21)
Lunch/School lunch box menus (p. 45-6)
Lunch/Lunch box meals for the worker (p. 48)
Dinner (fall menus) (p. 20-21)
Sunday: Breakfast--Sliced oranges, prepared cereal, fluffy omelet, toast, marmalade,
coffee, milk; Lunch--Tomato loaf salad, cream cheese and chives sandwiches, peach cream
dessert, tea, cocoal; Dinner--Stuffed shoulder of lamb, browned potatoes, buttered beets,
asparagus salad, frozen prune pudding, milk, coffee.
Tuesday: Breakfast--Applesauce, hominy with shredded dates, poached egg on English
muffin, coffee, milk; Lunch--Chopped lamb, green pepper, and lemon sandwiches; creamed
carrots and peas, sliced peaches, cookies, tea, milk; Dinner--Creole beef with noodles, summer
squash, perfection salad, lemon meringue bread pudding, coffee, milk.
Friday: Breakfast--Orange juice, flaked cereal, scrambled eggs, muffins, jam, coffee,
milk; Lunch--scalloped mixed vegetables (with cheese), fruit gelatin, fruit drop cookies, tea, milk;
Dinner--Baked salmon, parsley sauce, stuffed baked potatoes, spinach, orange and watercress
salad, pineapple topped pudding, coffee, milk.
Party menus
"Club Party Menu
Formal dinners
Gourmet fare?
Breakfast, International Yacht Race, 1930
Popular American brands
These items were advertised in Good Housekeeping, December 1930:
Good Housekeeping, December 1931:
Ladies' Home Journal, August 1932:
American Cookery, April 1933:
Ladies' Home Journal, June, 1933:
American Cookery, November, 1934:
American Cookery, November, 1935:
Nationally-known American candy brands circa 1935:
Good Housekeeping, September 1936:
McCall's, September 1937:
Women's Home Companion, January 1938:
Better Homes & Gardens, August 1938:
Good Housekeeping, March, 1939:
American food brands introduced in the 1930s:
[1931]
[1932]
[1933]
[1934]
[1935]
[1936]
[1937]
[1938]
[1939]
Snacking in the 1930s
"In these urban days it has become easier to buy than to make one's tidbits. Molasses taffy used to be made at every
god-fearing American home. A 'taffy pull' was a jolly form of entertainment, even if the candy did sometimes turn out to be rather
tough. After the 'taffy pull' had lost a little of its pulling power came the era of home-made fudge; in the earlier years of the
century every girl had--or is supposed to have had--a plate of this confection of her own making to offer the 'boy friend...
"Incidentally, changing domestic conditions have had much to do with shifting fashions in snack. The evolution of the kitchen of yesterday
to the 'serving pantry' of today has worked havoc with between-meals tidbits at home. A roomy cupboard or capacious pantry went with
every old-fashioned kitchen...The delightful part was that one rarely know just what one would turn up as the reward of
prowling...there was usually a jar of jam, already opened, or a crock of apple butter. A thick slice of home-made bread with a deep
spread of apple butter made a wonderful filling for the chinks in a hungry boy's stomach after school...
"...among the causes that have brought changes in our between-meal eating and drinking habits much importance must be conceded to the
astounding developments in preserving and packaging goods which have occurred in this century and especially since the
World War. The new technique of wrapping and packaging has brought about the spectacular development--largely within a decade--of the
5-cent candy packages now ubiquitous at news stands, drug stores, tobacco shops and the cashier's counters of restaurants. Undoubtedly
the constant proximity of such mouthfuls has increased the amount of between-meals munching, at least among city people. What more
natural, when waiting for a subway train, than to leave a nickel and pick up a package of Aurora Borealis gum drops? What woman,
even when trying to take off a pound a week, can resist the appeal on every hand to buy a 5-cent bar of Angels' Delight milk
chocolate? The increased offering of snacks of carious sorts in public places has, in the space of a generation, revolutionized
the American attitude toward eating in public places. Formerly, a grown man or woman considers it undignified to munch while walking
along the street, but today almost anybody from college professor to errand boy will make away with a bit of candy as he strolls
Broadway; and some people think nothing of whole-heartedly cramming down a large-sized banana.
"Packaging has been extended to nuts as well as sweets...Peanuts, like candies, are mostly offered these days in 5-cent packages, shelled,
hulled and salted--salted far too much for the taste of the true peanut gourmet, but necessarily so, dealers say, to repel
insects. One of the latest comers among packaged nuts is the cashew...Symptomatic of, change in our between-meal eating habits is the
metamorphosis of the soda fountain. A generation ago a soda fountain was an inconspicuous affair where there was carbonated
water, half a dozen syrups and practically nothing else...Today, when one calls for a 'soda,' ice cream is put in as a matter of course,
and in order to get a plain drink one would have to tell the attendant how to make it...A rival to the soda-water fountains in
serving between-meals foods and drinks has appeared in the past decade in the spectacular prolifertion of cubby-hole counters for
the sale of orange drink and more recently of pineapple beverages; and the 'hot-dog' grill, once limited to Coney Island and other
excursion resorts, has within the same period spread like measles all over the country...
"The school boy or girl coming down the street with a once-cent piece...receives most respectful attention from candy factories
which spread over blocks as well as from retailers...The hand that holds the penny still rules a considerable part
of the candy world...The tastes of childhood seem to have remained more conservative and constant in this century of upheaval than
those of their elders. The old-time rock candy has gone...and probably one would have to go far today to discover those delightful
motto candies that we knew when we were very young--the heart-shaped disks with such frank avowals as 'I love you'...
But the licorice drops and 'shoe strings' of the Age of Innocence still abide. Lollypops...as also the traditional red-and-white
peppermint candies, are other childhood favorites which have survived...After-dinner mints...are for grown-ups who do not
understand the subleties of candy or much of anything else. Even though made anemic white, they have become enormously popular of late
years. One factory recently turned out seventy tons in twenty-four hours.
"Traveling carts still bake and sell sweet potatoes on the east side in Winter; and other carts in season dispense corn boiled
on the cob. Best of all, the perambulating vendor with his charcoal fire and sweet-smelling pan of roasting chestnuts still
pervades even the busiest streets of New York. For him the century has brought only one change. The disappearance of American
chestnut trees has made it necessary to substitute Italian nuts for the smaller and...sweeter native variation...
"A generation jaded with 'cocktail teas' may return with zest to the kaffeeklatsch,' or late-afternoon repast of coffee
and cakes, once traditional among New York's German families. And who knows but that the perverse younger generation, blase
with hip-flask parties, would welcome as a hilarious novelty an old-fashioned 'taffy pull.'"
Dietary concerns
"Food Lessons from the Depression", Henrietta Rippinger, New York Times, April 8, 1934 (p. SM14)
What were Heinz 57 varieties in 1930?
Cocktails & hors d'oeuvres
[1933]
Prohibition ended December 5, 1933. Almost immediately, newspapers, magazines and cookbooks generously poured recipes for
perfect cocktail parties.
[1934]
"Now that every one may drink with a clear conscience, many hostesses are wondering what to serve with the various beverages. With cocktails before dinner,
very dainty canapes should be served. These an be made with caviar decorated and flavored with chopped hard-boiled egg, cooked mushrooms, lemon juice or a
little minced onion. Canapes of anchovy paste or other fish pastes are appropriate. Little pearl onions, stuffed olives, or sweet pickles can be served. Toasted
crackers with little dabs of Welsh rarebit, served hot, are delicious. If one is entertaining in the afternoon or evening at a so-called 'cocktail party' when highballs
are served, the drinks may be accompanied by sandwiches. Thin slices of buttered bread, with a layer of chopped water cress seasoned with a little lemon juice or
mayonnaise are rolled up and tied with a green ribbon. Cucumbers marinated in French dressing and flavored with a tiny bit of chopped onion makes an excellent
sandwich filling. Another good filling consists of a cup of finely chopped celery with a tablespoon each of chopped apples, nuts, or olives, mixed with mayonnaise.
All sandwiches should be daintily prepared. No sweet sandwiches are appropriate...Don't try to entertain you guests. If they are interesting and interested they will
entertain themselves. Try to appear as if the entertaining was the easiest thing in the world. You may suffer qualms and trepidations about your party , but never let
it be known. With respect to the drinks, Americans are becoming more and more European in their attitude toward highballs. They should be mixed to taste well,
and to be enjoyed...using the best materials you can afford...you need have no qualms."
[1935]
[1936]
"Tea-parties--the good old-fashioned kind--seem to have vanished into thin air, which is rather a pity. I still think it would be very cozy and restful to
sit around the fire in the living-room, or around the dining-room table, and eat paper-thin bread and butter and wild strawberry jam, and coeur a la
creme, and drink cup after cup of hot fragrant tea, and talk and talk. Instead of which we give a big cocktail party and everyone comes. There are a few hours of
dense smoke--and great confusion--and then it's all overk and you really haven't seen or enjoyed anyone. Still, come to think of it, a sherry party of a
cocktail party, is fun too. Anyway, this chapter is dedicated to them both. Take your choice."
"Food recipes. The recipes which follow are not specifically classified for serving with any particular kind of drink. One's own taste will in most instances be a
sufficient guide to the fitness or desirablilty of food and drink combinations. Only the sweets may confuse or confound. Few recipes for sweets are given, as sugar
with alcohol is like carrying coal to Newcastle. Fruits or cakes may be served with sweet wines without hazard; with hard or 'dry' drinks the sweets should be avoided.
"Cocktail Parties:
Beverages: tomato juice cocktail, Dubonnet and sherry, ice cubes, charged water, ginger ale,
burbon, rye, and Scotch whiskey. Planner of hot appetizers: sardine snacks, rolled toast with
mushrooms, rolled toast with asparagus, cheese puffs, deviled olives, chicken livers in bacon
blankets, crabmeat or lobster, small canapes, sausage snacks or cocktail sausage in snack holder.
Platter of cold appetizers: rainbow rye bread appetizer, canapes of smoked salmon, stuffed celery
stalk with crabmeat, caviar sandwiches piped with cream cheese, rolled sandwiches, filled with
mock pate de foie gras or any spread, dried beef snacks.
[1937]
"Some 150 of the city's dogs, augmented by a pet raccoon and a Brazilian marmoset, took their mistresses and a few masters to a
cocktail party at Jack Dempsey's restaurant yesterday. It was all for a good cause, this first canine cocktail party in New York, for the
Bide-A-Wee Home for destitute dogs received and estimated $300 from the proceeds. Predominant among the guests were
Scotties and wire-haired terriers. The guests were exceptionally well-behaved, tirelessly posing and refraining from biting even
one of the numerous photographers who kept fash bulbs popping. They confined their refreshments to cocktails of warm beef broth and
canapes of minced meat and cottage cheese, tastefully stuffed in egg whites."
Want to recreate an authentic 1930s-style cocktail party? Several period mixology texts have recently been reprinted:
World's Fair Fare, New York City, 1939
Looking for recipes? We own a copy of the New York World's Fair Cook Book: The American Kitchen, Crosby Gaige, produced from the regional
American restaurant reference above. It contains regional and state-by-state suggested menus with recipes collected from local professional
home economists. We can send you sample pages. Book is also online.]
The 1940s were all about rationing, protein stretching, substitutions, rediscovering "grandma's foods", and making do with less.
Home cooks made sugarless cookies, eggless cakes, and meatless
meals. Cookbooks, magazines,
government pamphlets, and food company brochures were full of creative ideas for stretching
food supplies. Why the shortage? Food was needed to food soldiers fighting World War II.
Farmers and food manufacturers were tapped to supply growing military needs, thus creating a
shortage of foods available for domestic civilian consumers.
Food rationing
Why was chicken more expensive than beef in the USA during WWII?
USA food rationing ended in 1947. The last item lifted from this regulation was sugar:
After the war, many new products were introduced to the American public. These "convenience
foods" (dehydrated juice, instant coffee, cake mixes, etc.) were the result of military research.
Not all of these were embraced enthusiastically. Some traditional home cookes preferred returning to the
"old fashioned" way once rationed ingredients appeared on their local grocery shelves.
Other countries also faced similar shortages due to World War II. The United Nations created the
Food and Agriculture Organization
in 1945 to combat hunger around the world.
Recommended reading:
How did WWII rationing effect American restaurants?
Other foodservice issues included (1) price ceilings (OPA), (2) "meat fixing" (best cuts were directed to fancy hotels not
supermarkets) (3) labor shortages (cooks, waiters,
bar managers were now soldiers leaving other/newly trained staff to take their place (4) Fewer people in this "make do"
economy could afford to eat out. Many restaurants shuttered permanently.
Period newspapers chronicled these complicated issues: 1, 2 & 3.
The Culinary Institute of America was founded in 1946 to provide
WWII veterans with professional training.
Compare with rationing in England,
Germany & Australia.
Soldier mess
American home menus: 1944
Breakfast (p. 161)
Brunch (p. 894)
Lunch/school lunch box(p. 846-7)
Lunch/box lunch for factory workders (p. 848-9) Canapes & Hors D'oeuvers (p. 106-116)
Dinner/oven (p. 277-8)
Dinner/timesaving (p. 870-1)
Dinner/when living alone(p. 873)
American home menus, November 1943
"Monday
"Wednesday
Supper/Buffet
Buffet Suppers
Picnic basket menus
Casseroles, 1940's style
USO canteen fare
Below please find general descriptions of USO canteen fare served in two major US urban locations:
"The food here...is donated--some by businessmen, supplying milk, coffee, meat, candy, fruit and so on, and the rest by housewives or clubs, many of which
undertake to provide cookies, cakes or pies every week. This is a big-city adventure in small-town collaboration--the center is run exactly on the principle of a
small-town church social, in which Mrs. Jones bakes the cake, Mrs. Smith makes the veal loaf, and Mrs. Brown leads the dishwashing committee. The only
difference is in size--hundreds of Mrs. Joneses bake cakes for this one. It takes food in sizable amounts. On busy week end found the canteen serving 2300 cakes,
1250 pounds of hot dogs, 1475 hot-roast-beef sandwiches, 1700 pies, 450 pounds of cookies and 525 dozen doughnuts--all contributed. It took 185 pounds of
coffee to supply the demand, and in addition the boys drank 300 gallons of milk, which is a favorite tipple in this spot. On the side, they ate seventy-five pounds of
popcorn, potato chips and pretzels, 195 dozen ice cream cups, ten cases of oranges, fourteen boxes of apples and 500 pounds of candy...Mrs. Edward J. Kelly,
wife of Chicago's mayor, brought a cake to the canteen one day just after Pearl Harbor, and found the volunteer workers were running out of food...she threw her
mink coat on a chair, rolled up her sleeves and began working twelve hours a day. As chairman of the canteen, she has a remarkable staff of volunteer helpers,
ranging from society matrons to their own maids, contributing maid's day off. It was Mrs. Kelly who contributed what many of the lads regard as the final touch to
Chicago's hospitality. Some of the center's guests ate fast and hard, as if not sure where their next meal as coming from. Soemtimes they stashed a spare hot dog in
their pockets to eat later. Mrs. Kelly inaugurated a new service. She began packing box lunches for the hungry ones to take along when they left. Service ment
stationed in or near Chicago, or in the city on leave, frequently spent the entire week end in the center, taking breakfast, lunch and dinner there. Their choice of diets
sometimes startles the women behind the counter. There was the yeoman, for example whose favorite breakfast consisted of Swiss cheese on rye with vanilla ice
cream. Boys from the RAF never fail to try hot dogs, having read that their King and Queen ate this odd American delicacy when visiting the United States..."
"Women provide treats...women's groups send enough home-made cake for each day in the month. Not intended to substitute for the army mess but to offer
"treats," the canteen serves, besides cake, sandwiches, coffee, milk, punch and occasionally candy and fresh fruit. The soldiers heartily endorsed the canteen's
offerings."
Food suggestions for local organizers, party planners, and home-based fundraisers for hosting war-time events:
"When it's time to serve, bring forth those perennial masculine favorites. If you are having a hot dish, serve cheese frankfurters, tomato rarebit, spaghetti, hamburgers
or baked stuffed potatoes. Pile stacks of sandwiches on the table, or spiced bread and a selection of cheeses. Original dishes are appealing since soldires get tired
of unimaginative eating, substantial and nutritive though army fare is. Consider distributing your refreshments in individual paper bags. If you can get waxed apper,
wrap thick sandwiches in it, together with cake and cookies, paper spoon, and napkin, and any ice cream cup. Pass piping hot coffee separately. You can handle
large crowds this way, especially if you have each woman in the community wrap several such food bundles before the party. All the cleaning up necessary is a
quick collection of paper bags, which is just a few minutes' work. For soldiers with a sweet tooth, try Honey Ice Cream or Honey Marshmallows. Hot pie are
applause winners, always. Honey Spice Cake is delicious, easy to prepare, and kind to your sugar ration. Even if the boys don't have a lean and hungry look, they
never get their fill of good strong coffee and cake. Make the food simple and adequate and the boys will return to camp
pleased with your hospitality. (p. 18-19)
"Party decorations, no moatter how simple, are important to identify the occasion and to set the theme of your party...You need not think of party
decorations in terms of lavish, expensive materials. Wonderful effects may behad wtih a few rolls of ordinary crepe paper, leaves
and branches, flowers, and other economical items...Patriotic partes: Red, white, and blue bulbs in lamps will cast a lovely light
an carry out the theme...Streamers in these colors strung across the room will give it a really festive look...Pin streamers across
your tablecloth in diagonal strips or pinwheels to accompany the individual favors which may be little flags, paper hats, or snappers
of appropriate color and design. Hang a large flag out of the front window to help you guests identify your house and to add
further to the decoration." (p. 47,49)
"Simple Wartime Menus...simple dinners for special occasions are in keeping with the times. More than ever, it is important
to serve attractively so that the simplest meal will be appealing and appetizing...instead of fancy appetizers, you will start
your wartime dinners with wholesome fruit and vegetable juices, fresh fruit cups, cheese puffs, or nourishing soups. Well-cooked,
economical cuts of meat dressed with delicious sauces and flavorings will replace expensive courses. The little touches such as
crisp relishes, hot rolls, and homemade jellies will enhance the wholesome main dish. Honey-flavored pies, ice creams, cakes, and
cookies, fresh fruits in season, and stewed fruit compotes are rich in taste and allow variety for desserts. Altogether, the adjustments
you make will not diminish the pride you take in serving delicious food, well cooked...Buffet Suppers. A buffet supper lends itself
to almost any kind of entertaining. No matter how large the crowd, you can accomodate everyone with a generous hot dish accompanied
by rolls or sandwiches and a crisp salad, with cookies or cake for dessert. Be sure th have plenty of hot coffee or tea ready...
Additional 1940s buffet menus here.
Cocktails & hos d'oeuvres
What to serve?
[1941]
[1943]
No. 2: Sunday night cheese, Artichoke and shrimp appetizer, Toasted rye bread triangles, Any desired cocktail or
drink, and hors d'oeuvres tray, of various spreads with crackers or toast points."
[1944]
Spread recipes offered by this book are: avocado, blue and cream cheese, crabmeat, cream cheese
and egg, giblet and egg, ham and olive, mock pate de foie gras (made with liverwurst), sardine
and egg, sherry cheese, and "spread-your-own," (chopped frankfurters blended with mustard,
sour pickles, and mayonnaise). (p. 109-111)
"Hors D'Oeuvres
Hors d'oeuvre recipes offered by this book are: apple and salami porcupine, cheese pecans,
chicken liver and bacon, cocktail sausages, dried beef roulades, green or ripe olives in garlic
French dressing, potato chip snappies (bleu cheese and minced onion spread thinly on potato
chips), raw carrot-cheese, raw vegetable hors d'oeuvre platter, salami sandwiches, shrimp (served
with cocktail or horseradish sauce), stuffed celery stalks stuffed with cream cheese & crushed
pineappe, seedless raisins, minced onion, horseradish, bleu cheese, salmon or any of the above
canape spreads), stuffed cheese olives, stuffed olives and bacon, stuffed olives in anchovy butter.
Fruit, fish and vegetable cocktails
Cocktail recipes offered by this book are: avocado, bouquet (chilled melon balls, bananas, grapes,
orange & grapefruit), broiled grapefruit with sherry, chilled honeydew, grapefruit and avocado,
grapes in orange juice, halves of grapefruit, melon balls in grapefruit juice, red raspberry and
pineapple, cranberry and pineapple juice, grape juice and ginger ale, grapefruit juice and mint,
minted orange juice, pineapple and grape juice, pineapple lemon foam, spiced grape juice, clam,
crabmeat, crabmeat and avocado, shrimp mayonnaise, clam juice, clam and tomato juice, oysters
on the half shell, sauerkraut juice, tomato juice, tomato and sauerkraut juice." (p. 118-126)
Atomic bomb cocktail?
"Bente, 24, blamed 10 'atomic bomb cocktails' for a bigamous marriage to huge Fred Bente, jr. of Palm Beach, Fla. The recipe: 'To two jiggers of whisky, poured in a
tall glass with shaved ice, add Seven-Up and a vodka floater,' she said."
[1946]
How much did alcohol cost in 1946? Sample prices from a display ad, Chicago Tribune, December 19, 1946 (p. S5): Four Roses (whisky), $4.25/fifth; Old Grand-
Dad (scotch), $6.75/fifth; Seagram's VO (Canadian whiskey), $6.25/fifth; Port wine, imported, $1.49/fifth; Harvey's Bristol Cream Sherry, $5.69/fifth; Gordon's Gin,
$3.35/fifth; Champagne, $2.98/large bottle. Compare with Prohibition-era alcohol prices.
"Cocktail Parties.
La Brinvilliers, a notorious poisoner, was beheaded for her crimes. According to a French wit, the only
difference between La Brinvilliers and the average cook is the intention. This is particularly true of
menu building, wherein many a hostess sins grievously, but at a "help yourself" party she may give her
fancy free reign and let her guests assume full responsibility. Alcoholic or non-alcoholic cocktails--either or both. A choice of the following suggestions:
Stuffed celery, Olives, Radishes, Marinated mushrooms, Hot ripe olives, Potato chips and cheese
Antipasto, Lobster spread sandwiches, Caviar and cucumber canapes, Very small hot toasted
sandwiches or puff shells (mushroom, cream cheese, liversausage, oysters etc.), Codfish balls, Tiny
broiled sausages with mustard cream, Chicken livers in blankets, Broiled sardine canapes, Deviled
sardines, Rolled tongue or chipped beef hors d'oeuvre, Lettuce sandwiches, crab or lobster canapes,
pastry snails, Shrimp surround a small hollowed cabbage filled with mayonnaise or pink sauce for
shrimp, Meat pie in dough (rissoles), Pretzels and cream cheese, Pickled onions and bacon, Bacon and
saltine canape, Oyster canapes, salted nuts."
---The Joy of Cooking, Irma S. Rombauer [Bobbs-Merrill:Indianapolis] 1946 (p. 800-1)
[1948]
Cheese apple centerpiece appetizer, surrounded with crackers, Tuna fish, crab meat or lobster appetizer
(cold or hot), Surprise olive appetizer, Coronation appetizer, Strawberry appetizer, Assorted small
cakes or cookies, Cocktails, Dry wines and Fruit juice punch.
Cocktail Parties
(For small groups)
Bonbon Elite, Hotel Rainbow Appetizers, Hot Hame Bouches, Hot Mushroom Meringe Appetizers,
Sweet pea Appetizer, Assorted small cakes or cookies, Cocktails and Dry wines."
[1949]
Cocktails:
A Luau on the Mainland, Trader Vic style
"Sunday afternoon or any evening--it's all the same. If you have a patio and barbecue pit, by all means make it an outdoor
affair, the weather permitting, but indoors won't cramp your style any. Indoors or out, you'll want plenty of flowers and greens for
decoration, and it will mean gathering flowers from the gardens of your friends as well as stripping your own. If you're in the chips and want to spend
great gobs of dough you'll use nothing but orchids, anthurium, gardenias, bird-of-paradise, and hibiscus and perhaps have ginger and
pikaki leis flown over from Honolulu, but I'm assuming that you will hae more sense than money and are willing to let the
toil of your own lily-whites make up for the difference. Put flowers wherever they will be seen--on top of fence rails, cupboards,
window sills, and on shelves. Use greens and flowers of all kinds in profusion to give a tropical effect, a feeling of lush
abundance. You'll need loads of flat ferns or any large leaves for the table to take the place of ti and banana leaves used on the islands.
If you can collect enough of them, spread these broad leaves on the floor to walk on and ask your guests beforehand to come in white ducks
or pareus and be prepared to remove their shoes upon entering.
"If you party is to be held indoors, put away all the doodads and bric-a-brac. Just leave the furniture and give every room your
guests will see a liberal flower treatment, even the lalas. Paper leis can be combined with fresh flowers and greens and you can ask a
few close friends over the day before the feast to help you make flower leis, one for each guest. Leis can be made from any flowers that
mass well and don't wilt too quickly, such as daisies, marguerites, carnations, cornflowers, chrysanthemums, dahlias, pinks, asters, et
cetera. The stems are removed and the flower heads are threaded on strong thread with a large needle. These leis can be put in boxes
of wet newspapers and kept fresh in a cooler or icebox overnight. A refrigerator would be too cold, making the blossoms wilt
more quickly when removed from such a low temperature...Its a custom in the islands for the host and hostess to present each guest with a
flower lie and a kiss. The host takes dare of the women and the hostess gubers the men. Like our mistletoe at the Christmas
season, this limbers the reflexes and starts things off on a friendly basis. In addition the men are given crowns of flowers and the
women flowers for their hair. The wreaths give the men a rakish air and bring out the madcap in the most sedate. It has been by
observation that no man can be still with something on his head. When or by whom party hats were invented I don't know, but
whoever it was knew his psychology. And that's a tip for harried hostesses when confronted with a guest list of stuffed shirts. Just put
something on their heads...the wreaths...[are] made from a flat sword fern wired or tied together in a circle and studded with
small flowers--daisies, cornflowers, or whatever you happen to have.
"Contrary to the usual custom of keeping the dining room closed off as a surprise until the meal is served, guests should be taken
immediately to see the results of your labors and the preparations made for their entertainment--and sample the punch. This will bet them
into the spirit of the party, especially the punch. And here should be a punch bowl, by all means. It doesn't matter whether you use
a wooden tub or a hollowed-out log, as long as it's seaworthy, because the sides won't show anyway. You canuse a large crock or take a large
lard bucket and have it sandblasted. Better still, get a twenty-five gallon barrel and saw it in hlaf. At any rate, use something
unique because you've thrown formality out the window for the day. Set your improvised punch bowl on a side table or buffet, covered first
with greenery, then bank the sides of the container with coconuts, hands of bananas, wholepineapples, citrus fruits, limes, green
avocados, and small fruits as available. After that tuck flowers and green leaves around the edge of the bowl and in th crevices between
the fruits. For punch cups, use coconut shell cups or sections of bamboo sawed into cups. Coconut cups are easily made by sawing coconuts in
half and allowing them to dry for a vew days until the meat comes loose from the shell. The outer husk can be sandpapered and the edges smoothed down.
For holders, cut other coconuts into rings into which the cups can be set and not tip over. These same punch cups or whatever you
decide to use will be used throughout the meal to follow.
"Music isn't essential but soft island music will help set the tempo of your party. Perhaps someone you knows plays a ukeulele or
guitar, or you might even hire a musician for the day. A record player, stacked with records of Hawaiian music and turned down
low, will do the trick too.
"If your guests are yound and limber, spread the feast on the floor or round in true island style, but if their bones creak, trade
authenticity for comfort and use table and chairs. Forget the knives and forks. People seldom have a chance to eat with their fingers and
it's fun if everyone else is doing it. You'll have to plan your menu accordingly tough. Islanders may be able to manipulate such soft
foods as one-finger, two-finger, or three-finger poi, but amateurs won't take to the idea. In case you're wondering, that finger
business is a measure of the thickness of poi...Whether you spread your feast a floor level or on a table, use ti leaves, ferns,
banana leaves, or whatever broad leaves are available, and make a solid green table covering. In the center build a mound of
fruits--lemons, oranges, bananas, avocados, small fruits, peaches, pears and apples, topped with a pineapple. If the table is long,
several pineapples may be spaced at interval. Lay blossoms profusely among the fruit and down the center of the table. When you
get around to setting places, use one large plate, one smaller one, and the punch cup for each cover. Wooden plates and a large shell for the smaller plate will
add color and tropical atmosphere. Abalone shells are ideal and even those large scallop shells which are used for baked seafood are
suitable. Small shells make good ask trays. You have now eliminated extra dishes, silverware, and numerous appertenances usually considered
musts at dinner parties, and you won't have to worry about the tablecloth. You'd better stick to napkins, though, unless you want to emulate the Chinese and
pass hot towels and a basin of hot water.
"I put on a party at Cypress Point, near Monterey, California, last year which is still being talked about. The food was takenfrom Oakland about
a hundred and twenty-five miles and prepared at the scene of the party. The cooking faciltiies were most inadequate, so anyone could do the same thing
at home a lot easier. On one clamshell I served hearts of romaine with French dressing. There were large wooden bowls of
batter-fried shrimp, and small bowls of sauce in which to dip them. There were bowls of barbecued spareribs; bowls of chicken and
squab, roasted Chinese style, and bowls of banana fritters. The romaine salad compensated for the lack of vegetables and was eaten with the
fingers. For the dessert, in addition to the banana fritters, there were compotes of bite-sized fruits such as oranges, apples, and
pineapple chunks, with a marinade of curacao, which dould also be fished out with the fingers. I spread the tables with green
crepe paper overlaid with a quantity of sword fern and used profusions of great tuberous begonias in the center of the table
between the large wooden bowls of food and hurricane lamps. I served the punch in a long wooden canoe-shaped bowl. The punch itself was just a
lot of little Zombies ladled out into coconut cups. We finished off with hot buttered rums, coffee grogs, and Tahitian music
and dancing...
"If you've ever been to the islands, any of them, you know that the food described is not typical. I'm not claiming that it is, nor am
I suggestiong that you serve typical Hawaiian or Tahitian foods--not entirely at any rate. The menu does suggest the tropics, it is
delicious, and the manner in which it is served is typical of the islands, which is an important feature. Let me give you other
menus which could be used as given or adapted to whatever is available or most easily prepared...There's no hard-and-fast
rule about the thing at all.
"Menu Bowls of fried or barbecued shrimp, Smoked oysters, Barbecue chicken or Barbecues Squab (chopped into easly handled pieces with a
cleaver), Limed fish with coconut cream, Laulaus with curry sauce, Baked sweet potaotes, Large bowls of sliced assorted fruits
(Pineapple, ornges, and apples dipped in lime juice.)" (p. 141-147)
"Menu Roast leg of lamb or Baked ham (Cut meatup in small squares andserve ina bow), Javanese sate (Meat on a stick),
Batter-fried shrimps in a bowl, Limed fish with coconut cream, Tahitian Pota, Baked sweet potatoes, Baked bananas, Tahitian Fruit Poi." (p. 153)
New American products introduced during the 1940s:
[1940] Arnold Bread, Red Cheek Apple Juice, Dairy Queen soft serve ice cream
POPULAR AMERICAN BRANDS
Brand name foods advertised in Woman's Day, January 1941:
Woman's Day, September 1942:
Good Housekeeping, August 1943:
Woman's Day, October 1944:
Woman's Day, May 1946
Gourmet, June 1946
Good Housekeeping April 1947
Gourmet, May 1948:
Good Housekeeping, October 1948:
Good Housekeeping, July 1949:
Need to make something for class? We suggest wacky cake or:
Butterless, Eggless, Milkess cake
Although thrifty pioneer cooks were well versed in "making do," recipes for "Butterless, Eggless,
Milkless"
cakes begin to nudge their way into American cookbooks during the early years of the 20th
century. Why?
These ingredients were sometimes difficult to obtain from World War I through World War II,
and cakes
such as these were often served on family tables. Crisco, salad oil, lard, mayonnaise were the most
common substitutions for the butter (fat). Baking powder/soda substituted for the eggs (to make
the cake
rise) and water (or canned soup) was used instead of milk (liquid). White sugar was also
expensive and
rationed during this period. Brown sugar, corn syrup, honey and molasses were often substituted.
These cakes are found under a variety of names including "War Cake" and "Depression Cake."
"Depression cake. In the March 1989 issue of Country Living, Food Editor Joanne Lamb
Hayes
assembled a fascinating colleciton of recipes to show "how families coped in the kitchen during
the Great
Depression and wartime." This sugarless, eggless cake was developed during the First World
War. "Sugar,
the cheapest and most compact form of energy...was saved for our boys overseas, so creatie
cooks
learned to use molasses, honey, or corn syrup instead. For scarce wheat, they substituted barley,
oats, for
corn; for butter they used vegetable oil." When the Great Depression arrived, just eleven years
after the
Great War, this frugal cake was renamed Depression cake."
RECIPES FOR BUTTERLESS, EGGLESS, MILKLESS CAKE
[1944]
Period cookbooks and magazines tell us belly-filling simple meals prepared from pre-packaged
goods were popular in the 1950s. This
was a perfectly understandable reaction to recent memories of lean pantries, government
rationing, and WWII soldier rations. American companies did their best to convince the "typical"
1950s American homemaker to purchase time-saving appliances and serve her family new
convenience foods. Did the average home cook buy into all this
convenience? Yes, but not immediately. She also liked to experiment and was intrigued by new
flavors and recipes introduced by returning GIs. Welcome to the age of Hawaiian-American
buffet. Food of the 1950s is much more complicated than it seems on the surface. We recommend
Laura Shapiro's Something From the Oven:
Reinventing Dinner in 1950s America.
1950s cookbooks, food company brochures, and popular women's magazines confirm the
popularity of tuna noodle & green bean
casseroles frosted
meatloaf (frosted
with mashed potatoes!, served with
peas) and anything grilled...though mostly red meat...on the barbeque (a popular "new" suburban
trend). Family meals were accompanied by frozen vegetables, with lots of butter or sauce. Canned
soup reigned supreme as the ultimate combination of convenience and versatility, explaining the
proliferation of casseroles. Three bean salad was ubiquitous. Chex Mix (also known as
Trix Mix, TV Mix) was the "signature" snack.
This decade also marked the beginning of ethnic foods entering mainstream America. GIs
returning from tours in Europe and the Pacific developed new tastes. Food companies were quick
to supply the ingredients. "Americanized" versions of sukiyaki, egg foo yung, chow mein,
enchiladas, pizza, lasagne, and barbecued meats with Polynesian sauces regularly appeared in
1950s cookbooks.
What were Americans cooking in the 1950s?
Appetizers
Stuffed pecans or walnuts
Barbecued short ribs
Mushroom or clam broth
Consomme
Sukiyaki
Ham and vegetable casserole
Vegetables
Mushrooms au gratin
Green peas with sour cream
Desserts
Chocolate cake with white icing
Angel food custard
[1952] Simple home menus (all include "a beverage.")
Breakfast
Lunch
Dinner
[1954]
[1955] Dinner party menus
Hors d'oeuvres Tray, Relishes, Roast Turkey, Cranberry Jelly, Potato Puff, Spinach Ring with
Baby Lima Beans, Grapefruit and Endive Salad, Vanilla Ice Cream with Tutti Fruitti, Small
Cakes, Coffee
Consomme Bellevue, Relishes, Filet Mignon, Bordelaise Sauce, Chestnut Puree, String Beans
with Celery, Mixed Green Salad, Chocolate Souffle, Coffee
Littleneck Clams, Relishes, Roast Duck, Orange Sauce, Wild Rice with Mushrooms, Buttered
Asparagus, Bombe of Raspberry Ice and Vanilla Ice Cream, Small Cakes, Coffee
Oysters in the Half Shell, Roast Chicken, Whole Hominy with Sherry, Broccoli with Brown
Crumbs, Macaroon Cream with Sliced Peaches, Coffee
Fish Fillets with Normandie Sauce, Roast Beef, Yorkshire Pudding, Braised Celery, Mixed
Vegetable Salad, Mincemeat Turnovers, Coffee
Consomme Madrilene, Relishes, Baked Virginia Ham, Grilled Sweet Potatoes, Cauliflour with
Lemon Butter, Romaine with Roquefort Dressing, Wine Jelly with Whipped Cream, Coffee"
"Theme" dinners were popular in the 1950s
"Entertaining in Hollywood
"After the Concert
"Fashion luncheon
"Mother Goose party
"Campfire or Girl Scout Cook-Out
Backyard barbecues
[1950]
[1954]
[1955]
[1956]
[1958]
[1959]
"Come Over for Steak
Grilled steak
"Backyard Barbecue
What did some 1950's women think about their husband's BBQ finesse?
1950s Cocktails
"Cocktails, long cold drinks such as highballs, and beer are the favorites among the alcoholic
beverages of this country. There are a few epicures who know and appreciate wines and who can
distinguish among vintages. Most of us are content with serving sherry, vermouth, or Dubonnet
before diner, and on special occasions offering an appropriate wine with a meal to which it adds
enjoyment. Sometimes a brandy or a cordial will also be served after coffee. There are a few
simple rules which should be followed in the service of beverages of this sort. The next few pages will
be devoted to the question of what to serve, when, and how. For more detailed informaiton, I refer
you to Along the Wine Trail, by G. Selmer Fougner, published by the Stratford Press, Boston, which
contains accurate and practical information...There are actually hundreds of recipes for cocktails.
You may go as far as you will in experimenting with them yourself, but be careful about offering
a strange mixture to guests, unless you have the makings of other drinks on hand that are hand
and are hospitable enough to allow them to choose something else. The two most popular
before-dinner cocktails are Martinis and Manhattans. Next perhaps come old-fashioneds, whiskey sours, and
daiquiris. If you make these according to the accepted practice, it will not be necessary to have
any more on your list of standbys.
Service of Cocktails: All cocktails except old-fashioneds are mixed with ice in a cocktail
shaker, but some of them are stirred instead of shaken. If you have only one shaker, Martinis and
Manhattans may be stirred and served in pitches from which they may be poured into the cocktail glasses in
the living room. Old-fashioneds may be mixed at the bar, if you have one, or in the kitchen, which is
easier, and where you generally have better results. They are brought to the living room on a tray.
To serve the usual type of cocktail, arrange the glasses of standard size, which may have long or
short stems, with the shaker on the tray. Small napkins should accompany them, and coasters may be
offered with them if you are particular about rings on your mahogany. A tray of canapes, savory
crackers, or an assortment of relishes should be offered with cocktails."
These cocktails and alcoholic beverages are listed Irma Rombauer's Joy of Cooking, circa 1953:
Food Timeline library owns Old Mr. Boston's De Luxe Bartender's Guide, 13th printing revised 1957. Happy to send
selected pages. This book ends with "Bar Tricks section: 74 ways to entertain at the bar!" (p. 125-157).
Popular trends & new drinks:
What food to serve?
Can we eat dinner in the TV room?
Television posed new challenges with timing (serving meals between "favorite shows") and location (TV trays in the living room).
Period entertainment guides reveal a subtle ambivalence toward the affect of television on family life. Trendsetters embraced television, planning entire home parties around
the set. Savvy companies marketed novel lines of self-contained TV dinners and
TV snack mixes.
Did television really "kill" the dinner hour, or did it facilitate an emerging meal pattern? Period newspapers promoted mobile tray dining (get out of the dining
room!). Pop up dining happened inside and out: verandas, porches, back yards, and television rooms.
The passsage below appears to bemoan the "intrusion" of television on family meals. Reading beween the lines, one senses a collective sigh parental relief.
Cooking & serving two settings (early for kids, later for adults) cavoided the stress of timing one family table.
Kids were hungry long before commuting dads returned home. Dad needed some time to decompress when he arrived home from the office. The free "babysitter" in the living room may have been more welcome than nuisance. Before, during, and
after dinner. Was dining in front of the TV the "norm?" Hard to say. Print media focuses on popular trends and new products.
"Television--the Permanent Dinner Guest
Suburban family bliss?
TV cocktail parties
New Year's Day festivities
TV trays
"When I started this article I intended to write about the many uses we have found in our family for those familiar folding trays on legs, called TV trays, or snack
trays. Our set of four was given to us one Christmas by my husband's parents and they are perhaps the most used and useful furniture in our home. I keep them in the
kitchen, one always set up ready for action next to the rocking chair, and the other three reclining in the holder. I often set my light lunch or breakfast on the
tray to enjoy a solitary meal of eating and reading. The children can setup up the trays quicker than I can say 'Captain Kangaroo,' when they have permission to eat
a late summer's breakfast or a lunch in front of the TV set. The trays are handy when buffet service for company is the order of the evening...This summer our six-year-old has
become a chef, with the aid of packaged mixes. Since our kitchen counters weren't built for pint-sized cooks, some lower working level had to be found. That's right--the TV trays! There
he can mix, stir, add water and open eggs to his delight...So thanks to TV trays and packaged mixes our by has found an interesting, profitable pastime."
Compare with: TVs in restaurants.
EMERGENCY SHELVES, 2 WAYS, 1950S STYLE
1. Mom's kitchen
2. Cold War survival
What to serve for a teenage party?
Based on the menus above, we suggest you serve: hamburgers/cheeseburgers, hot dogs, tuna fish sandwiches, fried chicken, pizza (make your own on
English muffins or French bread), French fries, potato
chips, pretzels, corn chips, dips & dunks, malted milk, milk shakes, ice cream floats, ice cream sundaes ("make your own" is always a fun activity), cola, root beer, lemonade.
If you want to recreate a "Drive In" menu, we recommend: The American Drive-In: History and Folklore of the Drive-In
Restaurant in American Car Culture/Michael Karl Witzel and Car Hops and Curb Service: A History of American Drive-In
Restaurants 1920-1950 Jim Heimann. Both books are full of pictures (great for decorating ideas) and sample menus. Your
local public librarian will help you obtain these books.
Modern kitchen convenience, 1957
Popular American foods introduced in the 1950s
[1950]
[1951]
[1952]
[1953]
[1954]
[1955]
[1956]
[1957]
[1958]
[1959]
Ppopular American products
These food products were advertised in Good Housekeeping, August
1950:
Gourmet, August 1950
Better Homes & Gardens, July 1951:
Better Homes & Gardens, March 1952:
Good Housekeeping, April 1953:
Family Circle, July 1953:
Good Housekeeping, June 1954:
Better Homes & Gardens, September 1955:
Gourmet, October 1955:
Family Circle, November 1956:
Family Circle, August 1957:
Good Housekeeping, October 1958:
Better Homes & Gardens, August 1959:
Wrap all your late 1955+'s leftovers in aluminum foil. Why?
Because America no longer had to divert metal to the war cause!
Signature dishes & popuar trends
Recommended reading:
[1963] Home parties from heartland America's company kitchens
[1966] Upscale urban entertaining menus from the New York Times
1960s buffet notes & menus
Baked chicken breasts supreme, savory stuffed mushrooms, peach Waldorf salad, hot cheese
biscuits, creme-de-menth parfait, coffee.
Our best cucumbers in sour cream, sirloin tips en brochette, white rice with onions, carrots in
mustard glaze, fresh peas oregano, baba au rhum, tea.
Beef in burgundy with gnocchi, herb-buttered zucchini and carrots, green-salad bowl, rolls, pears
sabayon, jewel cookies, coffee, tea.
Chicken curry on white rice with raisins, curry accompaniments (chutney, salted peanuts, coconut,
kumquats), sesame rolls, raspberry sherbet, coffee, tea."
International theme buffet menus:
"Quick Oriental Dinner: Egg rolls, fried shrimp, sweet & sour shrimp sauce, red mustard
sauce, speedy chicken chow mein, Chinese fried rice, soy sauce, preserved kumquats, oriental
salad, Mandarin orange dessert, coconut macaroons, green tea. NOTE: give your guests
chopsticks.]
Smorgasbord: Swedish relishes and breads, Swedish meat balls, brown beans, deorated
chilled ham, dill potatoes, vegetable cups, red-and-white salad, Swedish pancakes with
lingonberry sauce, caraway seed cheese, toasted wafers, Swedish coffee.
Mexican Fiesta: Mexican relish tray, turkey-stuffed tamales, cheese enchiladas, Mexican
fried rice, chiles rellenos, tomato sauce, fried tortillas, caramel custard, hot coffee.
Casual Curry Buffet: Shrimp curry, yellow rice, curry condiments, romaine salad, chilled
orange sections, coconut chips, hot tea.
Italian Supper: Antipasto tray, lasagne, pizza or spaghetti, Italian green salad, Italina long
loaf or bread sticks, spumone or cherry ice cream, coffee.
Island Feast: Water chestnuts with chicken livers, Kona chicken, steamed rice,
batter-fried shrimp with sauces, Chinese peas with water chestnuts, Waikiki salad, raspberry
sherbet with
coconut, beach boy punch. [NOTE: Trader Vic's made Polynesian food very popular in the
1960s.]
Casual buffets, American style
Party-best Buffet:: Tomato refresher, beef Stroganoff, yellow rice, ambrosia molds, crisp
relishes, brown-and-serve hard rolls, pink confetti pie or easy chocolate eclairs, coffee."
Buffet-style Suppers, main course casseroles:
Cocktail parties & appetizers 1960s style
[1965]
"Come for Cocktails. Gayest way to entertain lots of friends is the cocktail party. A good cocktail party whould have good drinks, good food, compatible people, and room
enough to circulate a bit. The food should never be sweet, but should certainly be highly seasoned. We favor a 'menu' hearty enough to substitute for a meal, since
cocktail parties often span the dinner hour...Have lots of ashtrays, and put them everywhere. And, if possible, have about twice as many glasses as guests; otherwise,
you'll be washing glasses during most of the party. Put coasters on every flat surface that could be harmed by moisture. If possible, have separate tables for the drinks and
the food. Try to put the drink table in a place where traffic an move freely to avoid unnecessary spills. Paper napkins, in assorted bright colors, look like
bouquets if you furl and mass them in little wooden baskets around the room. Wooden picks, used for dipping foods, stick decoratively into pretty fruit arrangements...Topiary
trees made from edibles such as cherry tomatoes, green or ripe olives, marinated shrimp, are decorative additions to the food table, or may be spotted around the
room. A nice touch is the coffee service later on for your helpers and any stragglers."
Cocktail dinners:"The social pattern is changing just as everything else is these days. Hostesses entertain more frequently, but less formally. Flair replaces fuss;
invention takes the place of conformity. The choice of food and drink is no longer set and routine. These were some of the opinions aired during the Licensed Beverage
Industries; session at the recent Newspaper Food Editors conference...'Drinking patterns have changed with the growth of the so-called middle class. There's a healthy
trend away from conspicuious consumption of the past, from hard-fisted drinking as a proof of masculinity, from snobbery and reverse snobbery in food and drink
habits.' And what kind of party as this change produced? A better relationship, socially, between men and women who now enjoy the same kind of drinks together...Cocktails
are a pleasant prelude to shared meals or other social activities instead of an end in themselves.'...Robert Misch talked about the new type of meal that grew out of the
Age of Aquarius and fits the curretn social scene, the cocktail dinner. Cocktail dinners...are the new trend. They begin with drinks, go on to satisfying food and talk.
Through planning foresighted hostesses can now be ready to satisfy their guests' dinner-hour appetites with light-hearted ease. They use ready or home-prepared foods that can
be stored in the freezer...Food consultant Sylvia Schur demonstrated the ease of preparing a cocktail dinner. Her version of the classic pot roast will keep warm until slicing
time and is perfect to serve with small sandwich rolls and crisp-cooked vegetables in a gin-marinade. Both meat and vegetables may be prepared ahead of tine...She suggested
ligh-flavored cocktails for before dinner drinks."
Standard 1960s cocktail beverages:
[1961]
[1962]
[1965]
[1967]
"To lovers of romance...we offer a cocktail new to the USA. The Tequilla Sour...Our Gin Sour isn't only a new cocktail, it's a new idea--the two purpose cocktail.
You make it a Tom Collins by adding club soda, sugar, and ice...For those who think the proof of a cocktail is in the proof, we present our 11 to 1 Vodka
Martini."
"...the Daiquiri is America's second most popular cocktail."
[1969]
Equipment & service
What was served at a 1960s cocktail party?
"Cocktail Party for 20. The drinks should be simple--Scotch, bourbon, martinis, gin and tonic, sherry. Blend some martinis ahead of time and chill them. Salted
Filberts, Potted Shrimp Pate, Melba Toast Fingers, Hot Roast Loin of Smoked Pork, Rye Bread Rounds, German and French Mustard, Spiced Onions, Cherry
Tomatoes, Sweet and Sour Pickles, Thin Onon Sandwiches."
"A Cocktail Party for 30. Here is a party that embodies my approach to the cocktail hour. Instead of tray after tray of tiny morsels of food, we have a good, hearty offering. Serve the usual variety of drinks, but be sure to include some beer, champagne and chilled dry sherry. The steak tartare should be served in a bowl surrounded with a selection of breads and crackers; or molded into a loaf and served on a chopping board. Pass the spareribs with plates and small paper napkins. Along with this, serve either a bowl of freshly shelled peas or fresh, raw asparagus tips--whichever is is season. Steak Tartare, Glazed Spareribs, Raw Peas or Raw Asparagus Tips with Coarse Salt and Pepper, Freshly Roasted Salted Peanuts, Knockwurst with Shallot Mustard."...ibid (p. 238-239).
"A Large Cocktail Crush for 40. This is one of those parties which starts at abou 6 or 7 o'clock and goes on till about 8:30 or 9:00 and provides enough food so that people do not need to go to dinner. I'd set up a full bar and also have some champagne and white wine with cassis. Thus you are apt to satisfy everyone. Coffee is a good idea at about 9 o'clock, with some sweet biscuits, perhaps. Roast Beef with Mustards, raw Vegetables in Ice, Cheese Board, Nuts, Olives."---ibid (p. 240-241)
"A Simple Cocktail Party for 6 or 8. Offer an assortment of cocktails and drinks without attempting to produce everything in the bartender's handbook. You might confine yourself to martinis, daiquiries and Scotch, for example. The feature of the party will be the pate de campagne. Pate de Campagne, Provencale, Fresh Toast, Anchovied Radishes, Garlic-Flavored Olives."---ibid (p.245)
"A Small Elegant Cocktail Party for 10. This is the type of cocktail party you give for a very close friend who loves the
elegant things in life or for a visiting mogul who is tremendously important to you or to the community. In other words,
its a smash! Fill a large silver punch bowl with ice, and in it chill champagne, vodka, and zubrowka and perhaps aqavit.
If guests demand other drinks, have the makings at hand, but the chilled selection in the punch bowl is appropriate for
the food to be served. Brink out small plates, knives and forks, and your best linen. Caviar, Smoked Salmon, Foie Gras.
"---ibid (p. 252)
"Hors d'oeuvres and canapes are appetizers served with drinks. The canape sits on its own little couch of crouton or pastry tidbit, while the hors d'oeuvere is independently and ready to meet up with whatever bread or cracker is presented separately. Many hors d'oeuvres are themselves rich in fat or are combined with an oil or butter base to buffer the impact of alcohol on the system. If, during preprandial drinking, the appetizer intake is too extensive, any true enjoyment of the meal itself is destroyed. The palate is too heavily coated, too overstimulated by spices and dulled by alcohol. A very hot, light soup is a help in clearing the palate for the more delicate and subtle flavors of the meal. The very name 'hors d'oeuvre,' literally interpreted, means 'outside the main works.' These hold themselves aloof as do the famed Russian Zakuska or the Italian antipasto, in spite of their separatist quality, may even replace the soup course if the portions offered are somewhat more generous in size or amount. Allow about 6 or 8 hors d'oeuvres per person. Serve imaginative combinations, but remember that, unlike in the overture to an opera, it is unwise to forecast in this course any of the joys that are to follow in the meal. Never skip hors d'oeuvres of canapes when you are serving drinks for they play a functional role, but there is not harm in keeping them simple--just olives, salted nuts and one or two interesting spreads or canapes, so the meal that is to follow can be truly relished. Should you serve--either in the living room or at the table--caviar in pickled beets or anchovy eggs on tomatoes, forget the very existence of beet and tomato when planning the flavors of the dinner. This is not a superfluous caution, for one encounters many unnecessarily repetitious meals. Choose for living-room service bite-size canapes or hors d'oeuvres, unless you are furnishing plates. If hors d'oeuvres are meat to be hot, serve them fresh from the oven. If they are the type that will hold, use some form of heated dish. Have cold offerings right out of the refrigerator or on platters set on cracked ice. Cheeses should be presentd at a temperature of around 70 degrees...Here are a a few types of food which are particularly appropriate for the hors d'oeuvre course: Caviar, pate and terrines, vegetables a la grecque, stuffed artichoke hearts, mushrooms, beets, brussel sprouts and cherry tomatoes. You may also use spreads and dips: deviled, pickled, truffled, or chopped eggs; skewered or bacon wrapped tidbits; smoked, sauced or mayonnaised seafood; quenelles, and timbales; choice sausages, both hot and cod; glazed or jellied foods; nuts, olives or cheeses...
"About ways to serve...Food often looks more dramatic if some of it can be presented on several levels...Keep in mind what the platter will look like as it begins to
be demolished. For this reason, it is often wiser to arrange several small plates which are easily replaced or replenished than one big one which may be difficult to
resurrect to its pristine glory. First described are some mechanical aids to give platters a lift. Here are a few of the simplest: cut a grapefruit in half or carve a solid
base on an orange or apple, place cut side down on a plate, stud with hors d'oeuvres, and surround with a garnish or canapes...You may also cut a melon or use a
small, deep bowl or a footed bowl as a receptacle for hors d'oeuvres and surround it with canapes...Stud a pineapple...Just by the placement of food on the platter
you can bring about height variations and attractive color relationships. On an oblong plate, center some dainty triangular sandwiches, peaks up like a long mountain
range. Alternate sandwiches of a fine ham spread or thinly sliced ham with others made of caviar or mushroom spread or with thick buttered bread. Place small,
well-drained marinated shrimp along the base of the range, on either side, and accent the water cress garnished edge of the platter with French endive or celery
filled with Guacamole...Try to choose and edible garnish for hors d'oeuvres trays. You may want to try beautifully cut vegetables...If platters are not passed and you
want a table accent, place hors d'oeuvres directly on crushed ice, on a layered tray..."
"As for food, there is only one guiding principle. Millions of toasties, tidbits, hot and cold hors d'oeuvres, cocktail snacks and canapes are
sold commercially prepared. You simply ask yourself--are they decidedly salty, peppery or piquant? If they are, they spur
the taste and thirst apparatus...For instance, salty anchovy fillets quicken the taste buts. A paste made of canned salmon..deadens
the appetite. Genuine razorback Smithfield ham, cured with pepper, sets the juices flowing. Ordinary boiled ham keeps the
juices passive. If you plan to serve canapes or hors d'oeuvres beforehand, either hot or cold, and you want them to be as showy
as possible, you should buy them already prepared...Be sure to place the prepared canapes on a large platter or tray lined with a
large lace-paper doily...remember to avoid such bland concoctions as peanut butter, tongue puree or cream cheese and pineapple
spread. By all means use such items as Roquefort cheese spread, anchovy paste, smoked salmon paste, etc. Remember that such spreads
should be ice-cold and should be served on the lightest and crispest crackers or cocktail wafers available...We do not wish to join the
snobcracy who turn up their noses at such old-fashioned teasers as potato chips, peanuts and popcorn. Bit of you're throwing
a party, why not put on a proud belly for your special occasion? Instead of peanuts, serve large, fresh salted almonds; instead of
potato chips serve light, feathery shrimp chips; instead of ordinary popcorn taken from a bag, make your own warm fresh popcorn and
douse it generously with fresh butter and swirls of salt."
"The food you serve should be finger-size if possible, as some of your guests will be standing, holding a glass in one hand and eating a bite here and there as they move about
talking to other guests. Juggling doesn't come easily to most people. Circulate fresh supplies as long as part lasts--reguar or open-faced sandwiches, plates of relishes,
potato chips, salted nuts, and a hot specialty like tiny sausage rolls. Each is best handled separately. Occasionally cocktail-party food is set out as for small buffet, with
a stack of small plates or those who wish them.. Provide plenty of toothpicks or forks for spearing moist snacks. Cocktail food generally is most appealing when sharply flavored--salted
nuts, olives, flavorful crackers, crisp 'munchies,' herring tidbits, smoked oysters, smoked salmon, pates, cheese spreads, dips, spreads, cocktail toast, seasoned toasts,
nut wafers, cheese wafers, and stuffed eggs. Strips of toasted bread make good appetizer foundations...cut bread into assorted shapes...Or buy small dinner rolls, and slice thin...
For the finishing touch on canapes, here are a few suggestions: anchovy paste asparagus tips and Parmesan cheese on toast strips; onion sandwiches; smoked salmon and capers on
pumpernickel; caviar with mimosa garnish (sieved egg yolk) on toast; sardines, onions and mayonnaise on toast; shrimp butter and shrimp on toast; ground ham and Swiss
cheese on rolls, heated; toast, blue-cheese spread and onion garnish; clam cocktail spread on toast triangles decorated with anchovy curls, grilled....Hors d'oeuvres Suggestions:
steak tartare, stuffed mushrooms, turnovers (ham and anchovy, sausage, mushroom or empanadas), shrimp toast, chicken in paper, butterfly shrimp, baked sesame clams,
keftethes (parsley meat balls), tirotrigona (cheese-filled triangles)."
Backyard barbecues, 1960s-style
[1960]
[1965]
NEW PRODUCTS:
[1960]
[1961]
[1962]
[1963]
[1964]
[1965]
[1966]
[1967]
[1968]
[1969]
SOURCES: The Food Chronology, James L. Trager, The Century in
Food, Beverly Bundy
POPULAR BRANDS
These foods were advertised in Better Homes & Gardens, April 1960:
Everywoman's Family Circle, February 1961:
Better Homes & Gardens, July 1962:
Better Homes & Gardens, December 1963:
Good Housekeeping, May 1964:
Better Homes & Gardens, February 1965:
Better Homes & Gardens, November 1966:
Ladies' Home Journal, January 1967:
Better Homes & Gardens, September 1968:
Gourmet, March 1969
Better Homes & Gardens, October 1969:
What were baby boomer kids eating?
Product pictures:
I,
II &
III
Favorite home kitchen appliances, 1966:
If you need to make something for class?
Sylvia Lovgren's Fashionable Food: Seven Decades of Food Fads [MacMillan:New York]
1995
places these recipes in her 1970s chapter:
Signature dishes of the 1970s (general notes & selected recipes):
Family meals
Most home cooks did not have this luxury of choice. Economic challenges of the 1970s went beyond the even/odd days at gas
pumps. They also visited butcher counters in local supermarkets. Horseburgers, anyone?
Period cookbooks are imperfect barometers of actual plates served to real people. At best, they accurately report
the collective vision of what average, middle class-people "should be" eating. For that reason they are worth examining.
If you interview anybody who ate their way through the 1970s you are likely to find their meal recollections were pretty different from
the following recommendations. People eat what's in the house. If the primary cook has time to cook traditional
time-consuming recipes then so dines the rest of these house. Note: most folks through the ages valued food economy & prep
time.
What to serve at a 70s party?
[1970]
Hearty, Winter, knives & forks: Chicken Sticks, Moulded Guacamole, Peppy Almonds, Neapolitan Veal, Lisa's Noodles, Celery Heart Salad,
Ginger Coffee Treat
Cook-at-table Dinners
Beverages
Soups & sauces
Salads & dressings
Eggs & cheese
Meats, poultry & fish
Vegetables
Sandwiches
Desserts
[1973]
Festive Friday Dinner
Formal dinner
Patio Spring Dinner
The Cocktail Party
Hearty Sunday Breakfast
Tea for the Committee
[1974]
Party Luncheons
Dinners That Glamorize Beef Leftovers
Dinners that Glamorize Chicken Leftovers
Cash-Saver Buffets
Smorgasbord
Party Buffets
Menus for the Charcoal Chef
[1975]
"Two Formal Summer Buffets
"Four Back-Yard Barbeques
"Four Formal Dinners
"A Summer Cocktail Party
"A Winter Cocktail Party
"Teenagers today are about three times as worldly as their parents were at the same age. Many
have traveled, if not abroad, at least to big cities where there are ethnic restaurants. They have
sampled Smorgasbord, whole repertoires of pasta and Chinese classics, Shish Kebabs, Beef
Stroganoff, chili (not the canned but the fiery Texas Type), Tacos, and very possibly Paella,
Moussaka, Bouillabaisse, Borsch, Tempura, Sukiyaki, and Teriyaki. Let you own teen-ager help
plan the menu. He or she knows what's in and out.
A Teen Birthday Supper
SOURCE: The Doubleday Cookbook: Complete Contemporary Cooking, Jean
Anderson and Elaine Hanna [Doubleday & Company:Garden City, NY] 1975
[1976]
Children's Lunch
Club Women's Lunch
Dinner for Four
Saint and Sinner Dinner
Potluck Buffet
Late Evening Buffet
Outdoor Barbecue
Supper party
How about a "Watergate" theme party? In the 1970s two popular period recipes were Watergate salad & Watergate cake. Two
tongue-in-cheek cookbooks were published to "commemorate" this event in 1973: The
Watergate
Cookbooks (Or, Who's in the Soup?), The Committee to Write the Cookbook and The
Watergate Cookbook, N.Y. Alplaus. These may have been inspired by The Washington
Post writer Tom Donnelly, who published an article titled "Serve Hot, Then Count the
Silver." The recipes in these books are classic 1970s, the names cleverly allude to the players and
their rolls. Sample dishes from the Committe to Write the Cookbook:
Popular drinks and cocktail trends:
"The public taste is swinging away from the ultra-dry, palate-numbing drinks to cocktails with more emphatic flavors. Favorite drinks still may vary
with the region. But a House Beautiful survey of bars in well-known clubs and restaurants around the country indicates that more-tasty cocktails
are being ordered everywhere. These professional barmen credit the new drink preferences to the influence of women, who often don't like
astringent cocktails, and of young people, who create their own drinks in a freehand style that ignores the time-honored rituals of mixology. There
has been much talk of late that young people of today do not drink as much as their counterparts of a few years ago. But several industry
surveys have reported that the younger generation's consumption now is at about the same level as that of those who came before. Today's
young drinkers are, however, drinking more types of cocktails with a greater variety of spirits mixed into them. Typical of the new drink innovators
are California's young surfers. They pioneered the kooky Harvey Wallbanger, a current favorite. Named for a fictitious folk hero of Paul Bunyan's
stripe, Harvey packs an alcoholic A-bomb behind its beguiling taste. It combines three to six ounces of orange juice and one ounce of vodka
with 1/2 ounce of Galliano floated on the top. Another youth-invented potion is a mixture of brandy and Kahlua...For experimentation, a number of
brandies and liquors come in miniature (one- to 1 1/2-oz.) bottles. At 50 cents to $1.50 each, they allow tryouts for the new drinks without
having to stock a large inventory. Miniatures, however, are not for sale in all 50 states. New premixed cocktails recently launched by two industry
giants (National Distillers and Seagram) allow a host or hostess to serve some of the most exotic and hard-to-make drinks in town without messy
bartending. Pop the top of an eight-ounce aluminum can (two drinks), and out pour the subtle flavorings of Mai Tai, for example, a mix of white
rum, Orgeat (brandy, almonds and orange water), Curacao and fresh lime juice. Also featured among these convenience cans (a special boon to
women, who like the seductive cocktails and who do most of the home liquor-buying) are dinks with ingredients the home bar is not apt to have
and can't stock from local liquor stores and fruit stands. Pina Colada, Apricot Sour, Margarita, classic and fruit-flavored Daiquiris are just the
beginning of more exotic drinks to come. The time-honored, safe way to sample a new dink is to try out a professional version at a bar before
stocking the sometimes exotic ingredients a recipe may call for."
Singature drinks: Sangria & Harvey Wallbangers
Hors d'oeuvres & small bites
From "Cocktail Buffet," Gourmet, January 1970 (p. 30-37) recipes for: Salted Almonds, Caviar Pastries, Iced Pickled Shrimps, Curried Stuffed
Eggs, Anchovy Eggs, Cheese Sticks, Celery Curls, Mushroom Toasts, Smoked Turkey Toasts, Walnut Cheese Bowl, Walnut Wheat Bread, Hot Veal
Balls, Salami Cornucopias, Smoked Salmon Canapes, Potato Chips, Cucumber Sandwiches & Salted Cherry Tomatoes.
From "The Cocktail Hour," Gourmet, November 1970 (p. 33, 35): "Delectable finger foods, served hot or cold, are one of the most popular varieties of cocktail morsels. The recipes that follow run the gamut from delightfully stuffed crudites to flavorfully filled pastry crescents. And the drinks that toast these find hors d'oeuvre are thoughtfully selected from among the cocktail classics, with some interesting variations." Recipes offered: Westphalian Ham Rolls, Spinach Dipping Sauce, Marinated Mushroom Sandwiches, Radish Pinwheel Sandwiches, Filled Gougere Crescents, Ham Filling, Mushroom Caps with Roquefort Stuffing, Celery with Anchovy Stuffing. Cocktails: Dry Martini Cocktail, Negroni Cocktail, Old Fashioned, Danish Mary, Bullshot, Scotch Toddy & Daiquiri.
New food introductions:
Popular American brands
[1971]
[1972]
[1973]
[1974]
Daily menus are served by month or season, reflecting historic pre-mass refrigeration techonolgy practices. Meal names reflect
the shift from taking the main meal at midday to evening. Lunch replaces dinner. Dinner replaces supper.
[1901]
"September
Sunday
Breakfast Melons, sago, vegetable hash, broiled veal cutlets, fried tomatoes, coffee. Dinner Broiled prairie chicken,
baked sweet potatoes, green corn, cauliflower, plum sauce, cabbage salad, peach pyramid, ice cream, coffee. Lunch
Sliced ham, biscuit, baked pears, cake, tea.
Breakfast Cream toast and fruit, prairie chicken stewed, fried potatoes sliced tomatoes, coffee. Dinner Roast beef,
potaotes, green corn, egg plant, succotash, watermelon, cake, cheese, wafers, and coffee. Supper Cold sliced beef,
French potatoes baked apples, cake and tea.
Breakfast Fruit, hominy, buttered toast with hash, corn fritters, cookies, and coffee. Dinner Soup, vegetable, chicken pie
potatoes, Lima beans, onions, slaw, baked custard, cake, oranges, nuts and coffee. Supper Rolls, dried beef, sliced tomatoes,
peaches and cream, cake and tea.
Breakfast Fruit, rice, Sally Lunn, broiled chickens, cucumbers, coffee. Dinner Boiled beef with potatoes, turnips,
geeen corn, pickled beets, apple pie, fresh fruits, cake, nuts, coffee. Supper Biscuit, sliced beef, sliced toamtoes, grapes
and peaches, cake, tea.
Breakfast Fruit, sago, hot muffins, fried chicken and fried cabbage, jelly, tea. Dinner pea soup, veal pot pie, Lima
beans, carrots, corn, peach meringue, cake, fresh fruits, coffee. Supper Vienna rolls, pressed chicken, currant jelly, baked
apples, cake, tea.
Breakfast Fruit and oatmeal, broiled ham, poached eggs on toast, cucumbers, coffee. Dinner Baked fish, boiled
potatoes, baked onions, egg plant, cabbage salad, ice cream, peaches, grapes, nuts, coffee. Supper Cold tongue, soda
biscuit and hominy, sliced tomatoes, fruit cake and tea.
Breakfast Nutmeg melons, sago, broiled mutton chops, fried potatoes, crurant jelly, coffee. Dinner Soup, roast pork,
apple sauce, mashed potatoes, creamed cabbage, stewed corn, beet pickles, peach cake with whipped cream, cheese, wafers, coffee.
Supper Sliced pork, tea rolls, banana fritters, fruit cake and tea."
---Woman's Exchange Cook Book, Mrs. Minnie Palmer [W.B. Conkey:Chicago] 1901 (p. 505-506)
[What is sago?]
"Menus for a Week in in the Spring
Breakfast Grape Fruit, Cereal, French Omelet, Rice Cakes, Maple Syrup, Coffee. Dinner Oysters on the Half Shell, Olives,
Radishes, Roast Veal with Dressing, Mashed Potatoes, Fried Egg Plant, Edive Salad, Rhubarb Pie, Cheese, Black Coffee.
Supper Baked Bean Salad, Devilled Eggs, Whole Wheat Bread and Butter, Lady Baltimore Cake, Custard, Tea.
Breakfast Cereal Cooked with Dates, Scrambled Eggs with Parsley, Creamed Potatoes, Toast, Coffee. Luncheon
Potato Cakes, Cold Veal, Corn Bread, Cookies, Orange Marmalade, Tea. Dinner Cream of Potato Soup, Broiled Steak with Parsley Butter,
Baked Potatoes, Asparagus on Toast, Young Beets and Beet Green Salad, Poor Man's Pudding.
Breakfast Oranges, Cereal, Finnan Haddie, Watercress, Popovers, Coffee. Luncheon Veal Olives, Baked Potaotes, Boiled
Rice, Maple Syrup, Tea. Dinner Tomato Soup, Olives, Gherkins, Braised Veal Cutlets with Currant Jelly, Parsnip Fritters,
Sweet Potatoes, Asparagus Salad, Sliced Pineapple, Cake, Coffee.
Breakfast Evaporated Apple Sauce, Cereal, French Olive, Wheat Muffins, Coffee. Luncheon Clam Chowder, Brown Bread and Butter,
Pickles, Gingerbread, Tea. Dinner Cream of Asparagus Soup, Filet of Flounder, New Potatoes with Parsley Butter, Stewed
Tomaotes, Lettuce Salad, Cottage Pudding, Coffee.
Breakfast Oranges, Cereal, Eggs a la Caracus, Rice Cakes, Coffee. Luncheon Hamburger Stead, Baked Potatoes,
Lettuce with French Dressing, Raisin Cake, Baked Rhubarb, Tea. Dinner Vermicelli Soup, Radishes, Pickles, Pork and
Parsnip Stew, Pineapple Shortcake with whipped Cream, Black Coffee.
Breakfast Evaoprated Apricots, Stewed, Cereal, Broiled Mackerel, Watercress, Wheat Muffins, Coffee. Luncheon
Creamed Codfish, Boiled Potatoes, Pickles, Apple Sauce, Cake, Tea. Dinner Cream of Celery Soup, Broiled Shad, Creamed Potatoes,
Oyster Plant, Endive Salad, tapiocal Pudding with Meringue, Coffee.
Breakfast Bananas and Oranges, Cereal, Ham and Eggs, Graham Gemn, Coffee. Luncheon Frizzled Beef, Cream Toast,
Currant Tarts, tea. Dinner Split Pea Soup with Croutons, Pickles, Pot Roast of beef, Browned Potatoes, Creamed Turnips and
Peas, Lettuce with French Dressing, Cabinet Pudding, Black Coffee."
---New York Evening Telegram Cook Book, Emma Paddock Telford [Cupples & Leon:New York] 1908 (p. 207-209)
Use the
digital menu collection uploaded by the Los Angeles Public Library to identify period
menus [Search date 190*]. Recommended reading: Repast: Dining Out at the Dawn of the New American Century, 1900-1910/
Michael Lesy and Lis Stoffer.
Worth noting: Horn & Hardart automats launched in Philly 1902 & the first American
pizzeria opens in NYC. It won't however, be until after World War II
decades that mainstream Americans embrace this ethnic specialty. NYC Wall Street
restaurants cater to businessmen.
Americans are fascinated with fair food, especially the items attributed to the 1904 St. Louis Exposition. The truth? Most
of the foods attributed to this fair existed long before 1904. What these foods have in common is that they were mass
marketed at the St. Louis fair. That is why 1904 holds a special place in the American gastronomic chronology. Foods commonly associated with the
this fair are: ice cream cones, hamburgers, puffed rice, Dr. Pepper, iced tea, Texas-style chili, & peanut butter.
Recommended reading:
Beyond the Ice Cream Cone: The Whole Scoop on Food at the 1904 World's Fair/Pamela J. Vaccaro.
1901 Cliquot Club Ginger Ale, White Rose Ceylon Tea, NECCO Wafers (candy)
1902 Barnum's Animal Crackers, Presto self-rising cake flour, Salada Tea,
Karo Corn Syrup,
NECCO Conversation Hearts
1903 Canned tuna
1904 Banana Splits, Swans Down Cake Flour, Campbell's Pork & Beans, Frnech's Cream Salad Mustard, Dr. Pepper
1905 Heinz Baked Beans, Hebrew National frankfurters, Royal Crown Cola, Ovomaltine (renamed Ovaltine)
1906 Planters Nuts, Hot dogs (name, not the actual food), Post Toasties, A-1 Sauce, hot fudge sundaes,
Kellogg's
Corn Flakes
1907 LeSeur peas, Hershey Kisses, Canada Dry Pale Dry Ginger Ale
1908 Tea bags, French Dip sandwich, Hershey bars with almonds
1909 Melitta drip coffeemaker, Idaho Spud Bar (candy)
SOURCES: The Food Chronology/James L. Trager [Holt:New York] 1995, The Century in Food: America's Fads and
Favorites/Beverly Bundy [Collectors Press:Portland OR] 2002 & Candy: The Sweet History/Beth Kimmerle [Collector's Press:Portland OR] 2003
...primary evidence confirms national brand advertising was not yet a standard practice
Pillsbury's Best Flour, Atmore's Plum Pudding, Mrs. Well's Tomato Ketchup, Eagle Brand Condensed Milk, Uneeda Biscuits (National
Biscuit Company), Campbell's soup, White House coffee, Colman's English Mustard (genuine)
Borden's Evaporated Cream, Armour's Potted Ham and Tongue, Quaker Oats, Armour's Corned Beef
Jello, Marshall's Kippered Herring, Senate Brand Coffee, Swift's Premium Hams, Eagle Milk (can), Royal Baking Powder, Rumford
Baking Powder, Davis' Baking Powder, Lowney's Cocoa, A & P Jams, Fig Newtons (National Biscuit Company), Minute Tapioca,
Campbell's soups, Nonesuch Mincemeat, Heinz's Best Quality Mincemeat, Hecker's Buckwheat, Hornby's (H-O) Buckwheat B&O Molasses
What people eat in all times and places depends upon who they are (ethnic, religious heritage), where they live (urban centers, rural outposts) and how much money
they have (rich have more choices than poor).
Which means? In the USA during the 1910s newly immigrated Italian families ate very different food from South Carolina plantation owners, West Virginia coal
miners, Chicago businessmen and San Francisco Chinese.
Typical upwardly-aspiring Anglo-American middle class families in the 1910s took cues from meals suggested by period cook
books. Technology was moving quickly; foods were readily available, in and out of season. World War I
imposed unexpected challenges. Here we catch early glimpses of American discomfit reconciling traditional Old World dishes
(read: heritage) with newly formed alliances (read: opportunity). Most American print sources proclaim culinary nationalism (aka the 'melting pot') was
summarily celebrated and embraced. For the unity of the country. How else to explain Lasagne with
American cheese and Chop suey with American hamburger? Despite the fact mainstream print sources opted against reporting what was really being
stoically served by the matriarchs of our immigrant families, the famliar table remained.
(rationing & "making do" was NOT a new concept in the 1940s)
Soldier Rations
These selections work perfectly for every taste & budget. Portable & delicious too! We're also serving authentic 1913 luncheon menus
Tea sandwiches: white or wheat bread, thin slice, no crust, cut in fancy shapes or rolled sandwiches.
Fillings: meat salads (ham, chicken, tuna), jam/jelly, flavored butters, cream cheese.
Dessert table
Sponge cake (orange, lemon), chocolate cake, oatmeal cookies &
brownies
Confections
Fudge, caramels, taffy (salt-water or regular ok), popcorn balls, jelly beans
Beverages
Coca cola (bottles), coffee, tea, iced tea, lemonade, fruit punch (ginger ale based)
The following recipes were published in The Economy Administration Cook Book, edited by Susie Root Rhodes and Grace Porter Hopkins [W.B. Conkey Co.:Hammond IN] 1913.
This special book compiles recipes contributed from the wives and daughters of US Congressmen, foreign ambassadors and well as suffragettes, home economists
and women college professors. Recipes for all menu items area included. Happy to scan/send pages if you like!
"Luncheon No. 2: Tomato Boulioon, Broiled Beef Balls, Tomato Sauce, Carrots, Creamed Potatoes, Cabbage Salad, Tea Biscuits, Eggless Cake, Jelly,
Whipped Cream." (p. 264)
"Harmony Luncheon: Chilled Fruit, Clam Boullion with Whipped Cream, Cheesed Crab Flakes en Coquilles, Chicken a la maryland with String Beans, Haricot
Vert au Buerre and Asparagus Tips, Salad, Whole Apples stuffed with nuts and Celery with Mayonnaise, Prune Whip, Coffee." (p. 345)
"Luncheon: Clam Bisque in Cups, Chicken Souffle, Potatoes au Gratin, Tomatoes and Lettuce Salad Cream Cheese Balls, French Dressing, Lemon
Sherbet, Chocolate with Whipped Cream, Popovers, Ripe Olives." (p. 268)
"Cheese Menu No. 2: Cheese Fondue, Toast, Zweiback, or Thin Crisp Baking Powder Biscuits, Celery, Potatoes, Baked or or Fried in Deep Fat,
Peas, or some other Fresh Vegetable, Coffee, Fruit Salad with Crisp Cookies or Meringues." (p. 472)
"Luncheon: Consomme, Chicken Patties, Cold Sliced Ham, Creamed Potatoes, Endive Salad, Chocolate Pudding, Lady Fingers, Tea." (p. 289)
"Luncheon: Creamed Chicken and Mushrooms, Baked Potatoes, Cream Slaw, Parker House Rolls, Coffee or Tea, Raspberry Jam, Radishes." (p. 60)
"Spring Luncheon: Clear Soup, Lobster Salad, Breaded Lamb Chops, Green Peas, Frozen Punch or Fruit." (p. 65)
"Buffet Luncheon: Grape Fruit Cocktail, Creamed Brains, Mushrooms in Timbales, Green Peas, Aspic with Mayonnaise, Ham Roll and Pickled Gherkins,
Finger Rolls, Chicken Salad on Lettuce Leaf, Wafers, Angel Parfait, Fruit Cake, Coffee." (p. 136)
"February Luncheon: Fruit Cup, Bouillon, with Cheese Straws, Stuffed Squabs, Currant Jelly, Tomato and Rice en Coquilles, Hot Rolls, Celery Hearts, Watermelon
Preserves, Salad with Cheese Crackers, Meringue Glaces (Individual), Coffee, Apricot Liquor, Candy Ginger." (p. 97)
Lunch: Cream Celery Soup, Cold Sliced Beef or Lamb, Lettuce, Corn on Cob, Baked Irish Potatoes, Fruit Salad, Cold Beaten Biscuits, Pudding, Milk
or Tea." (p. 128)
Luncheon: Fish Croquettes, Creamed Potatoes, Water Cress, Cold Bread, Steamed Apples, Tea or Cocoa." (p. 175)
Box Lunch
[1917]
"Positively the newest stunt in society is the giving of 'cocktail parties.' The cocktail party is a Sunday matinee affair which originated in St. Louis. Mr. Julius S.
Walsh, Jr., a leader in social activities there, is responsible for the innovation. Mrs. Walsh introduced it recently, with the first cocktail party in society's history.
Invitations were issued to fifty. The guests were divided into two classes, those who went to church in the forenoon and those who devoted their time to a motor
promenade of the boulevards. Then at high noon they gathered at the Walsh home on Lindell boulevard for the hour's 'interregnum preceding 1 o'clock dinner.'
The party scored an instant hit. Mrs. Walsh's home is equipped with a private bar. Around this the guests gathered and gave their orders to a white-coated
professional drink mixer who presided behind the polished mahogany. If a woman guest who had been driving all forenoon in her limousine, and was a little chilled in
consequence, felt the need of a drink with an extra kick in it, she ordered a Sazarac cocktail. Others, of course, preferred a Bronx or Clover Leaf, and a few who
had been to church where old fashioned enough to order a Martini or a Manhattan. And as long as the professional drink mixer was there to fill all orders other
beverages than cocktails were in demand. Highballs, some with Scotch and some with rye or Bourbon whisky, gin fizzes--ordered because the spring morning
hinted of coming summer--and at least one mint julep for a former gentleman of Virginia were handed out over the private bar. That the cocktail party is already a
St. Louis institution, filling a long-felt Sunday want in society circles there, and that the party at which Mrs Walsh was hostess was so merry and so jolly as to
approach in hilarity the famous early morning eggnogg parties popular in the same city a decade ago, is vouched for by the St. Louis newspapers. In the meantime
Mrs. Walsh, because of the innovation, has become more of a social celebrity in St. Louis than ever."
---"Sunday Inspiration: Cocktail Parties Latest St. Louis Society Diversion," (from the St. Paul Pioneer Press), published by the Washington Post, May 19, 1917 (p. 6)
Grocery/food ads in city papers sometimes included brands. Many foods were still sold in bulk; company connection was not
advertised. The concept of "nationally branding" was a rarity in these days. Only the largest companies (willing to spend
big bucks for advertising) went that route. Among the national leaders were the National Biscuit Company (now Nabisco), Campbell's,
Armour, Coca Cola, Jell-O, Royal, Dole, and Baker's (chocolate, coconut). Most grocery store food ads promoted the product, not the
company or brand. Fresh produce ads in the 1910s
highlighted point of origin (California figs, Florida oranges, Jersey tomatoes, Baltimore beans, Maine Sugar Corn, Celyon Tea). Same as today!
[1910]
Hydrox "biscuit bonbons" are introduced by the Loose-Wiles Biscuit Company, Aunt Jemina Pancake Flour is sold throughout the United States
---SOURCES: The Century in Food: America's Fads and Favorites/Beverly Bundy & The Food
Chronology/James L. Trager
---SOURCES: The Century in Food: America's Fads and Favorites/Beverly Bundy & The Food
Chronology/James L. Trager
"When Prohibition went into effect in America on January 16, 1920, it did more than stop the
legal sale of alcoholic beverages in our country...[it] increased the production of soft drinks, put
hundreds of restaurants and hotels out of business, spurred the growth of tea rooms and
cafeterias, and destroyed the last vestiges of fine dining in the United States...Hotels tried to
reclaim some of their lost wine and spirit profits by selling candy and soda pop The fruit cocktail
cup, often garnished with marshmallows or sprinkled with powdered sugar, took the place of
oysters on the half shell with champagne and a dinner party opener....The American wine industry,
unable to sell its wines legally, quickly turned its vinyards over to juice grapes. But only a small
portion of the juice from the grapes was marketed as juice. Most of it was sold for home-brewed
wine. Needless to say, this home brew was not usually a sophisticated viniferous product, but
sales of the juice kept many of the vineyards in profits throughout Prohibition. Prohibition also
brought about cooking wines and artificially flavored brandy, sherry, and rum extracts.
Housewives were advised to omit salt when using cooking wines, as the wines themselves had
been salted to make them undrinkable...Some cooks gave up on alcoholic touches, real or faux,
altogether...The bad alcohol, the closing of fine restaurants, the sweet foods and drinks that took
alcohol's place, the artificial flavors that were used to simulated alcohol, all these things could not
help but have a deletrious effect on the American palate."
---Fashionable Foods: Seven Decades of Food Fads, Sylvia Lovgren [MacMillan:New
York] 1995
(p. 29-30)
---Fashionable Foods (p. 37-8)
Some continued to list recipes calling for small amounts of beer, wine and liquor as ingredients,
others whistfully noted substitutions, still others omitted the ingredient completely. Grape juice is
sometimes used instead of wine. There also seems to be an increase in the use of extracts (vanilla,
lemon, almond). Extracts are alcohol-based flavorings. We checked several cookbooks for
fruitcake and welsh rarebit recipes (these traditionally include small amounts of alcohol). This is
what we found:
---Everybody's Cook Book, Isabel Ely Lord [Harcourt Brace:New York] 1924 (p. 139)
"Speakeasy...Also "speak." A term popular during Prohibition to describe an establishment selling
illegal alcoholic beverages. In order to gain entrance, you had to speak in a low voice through a
small opening in the back door and tell the attendant inside who it was who sent you to the place.
The term itself (which dates in print to 1889) may derive from the English "Speak-softly-shop," an
underworld term for a smuggler's house where one might get liquor cheaply, its usage in this
sense having been traced back to 1823. But with the onset of Prohibition in America, speakeasies
sprang up overnight, sometimes in shabby sections of town, but often in the best neighborhoods,
and many of these establishments were actually fine restaurants in their own right. New York's
"21" club was a speakeasy during this period and had two bars, a dance floor, an orchestra, and
diningrooms on two floors...French diplomat Paul Morande, visiting New York for the first time
in 1925, reported his experience at a speakeasy: "...the food is almost always poor, the service
deplorable."
---The Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink, John F. Mariani
[Lebhar-Friedman:New York] 1999 (p. 307)
---Eating in America: A History, Waverly Root & Richard de Rochemont [Morrow:New
York] 1976 (p. 398)
---American Heritage Cookbook: Illustrated History [American Heritage:New York] 1964
(p. 357)
[NOTE: What was Free lunch?]
That, of course depended upon the "quality" of the establishment. Speakeasys catering to wealthy
clientele likely offered the same fine wines and mixed drinks that were available prior to
Prohibition. Other establishments sold "bathtub" gin. Recommended reading: Drinking in America: A
History, Mark Edward Lender and James Kirby Martin [Free Press:New York] 1982.
Prohibition-era newspapers offered daily reports of illegal cocktail parties, mostly focused on social impropriety, military/government
double standards, and high profile divorce. Of course, there were some well known people who
believed: "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em." Compare with fancy cocktails 1927.
How much did these drinks cost?
"Mrs. [Esther Ford] Wait is a prohibitionist--that is, she believes in prohibition if it can be enforced. 'But as it can't,' she said, 'I have nothing against a drink or two
at bridge parties or serving cocktails to my friends when they come to dine. Justice Ford...cited his daughter as an example of a nice, young modern girl who goes
to cocktail parties...'Cocktail drinking an cigarette smoking by women are questions of manners, not morality.'"
---"Boys Need Chaperones Most, Says Mrs. Wait," Washington Post, June 16, 1925 (p. 9)
Gatsby and his friends were adventurous diners. They dined in the finest New
York clubs (Twenty One, Stork, Embassy, Simplon, Surf, Yale, and 51 1/2 East Fifty First), trendy ethnic restaurants (Chinatown)
and catered elegantly at home.
Use the Los Angeles Public
Library's digital menu collection to identify what was served in all types of restaurants during
the 1920s. Search by date (192*). Most of these menus are from California, but the food was also
served in New York and other major metropolitan areas.
Cream of Celery with Toasties
Celery Olives
Aiguillette of Striped Bass Joinville
Potatoes a la Hollandaise
Medaillon of Spring Lamb, Chasseur
Asparagus Tips au Gratin
***
Breast of Chicken a la Rose
Waldorf Salad, Mayonnaise
***
Venetian Ice Cream
Assorted Cakes Coffee
Apollinaris White Rock."
---Waldorf Astoria Cookbook, Ted James and Rosalind Cole [Bramhall House:New
York] 1981 (p.
46-7)
What did average Americans eat in the 1920s? Food historians tell us we had a sweet tooth, a
taste for the exotic, and a well-developed sense of ordered creativity. Translation? Fruit cocktails,
Pineapple upside-down
cake and Jell-O molds. Tea sandwiches, fancy salads, and chafing-dish recipes were also "in."
City kitchens were wired with electricity meaning foods could be safely refrigerated at home.
General Electric (and other companies) published cooking brochures touting frozen foods and
safe meat storage.
Swedish Leaf
Jellied Tomato Cream Bouillion Toasted Crackers
Roast Duck Broiled Potatoes
Carrots and Peas
Radish Roses Salted Almonds
Potato Biscuits Butter
Raspberry Mousse Little Decorated Cakes
Black Coffee
Shrimp Cocktail
Chicken Soup with Noodles
Crown Roast of Lamb Mashed Potatoes
Peas
Entire-Wheat Rolls Butter
Pickled Peaches Celery Hearts
Steamed Marmalade Pudding Hard Sauce
Black Coffee
Party refreshments may be served buffet style as described for formal afternoon tea. In this case,
the menus described for club refreshments may be used. If, however, the party is of such nature as
to call for the formal service of a late evening supper, the guests seated at the table, or served
buffet style, menus of the following type may be used.
Hot or Jellied Consomme Bread Sticks
Chicken a la King
Cream Cheese Sandwiches Brown Bread Sandwiches
Olives Salted Nuts Candied Ginger
Nuts and Date Salad Mayonnaise
Strawberry Bavarian Cream Little Pound Cakes Russian Wafers
Coffee
Crabmeat Croquettes Peas
Brown Bread-and-Butter Sandwiches
Jellied Tomato and Pimiento Salad Olives Celery Hearts
Nesselrode Pudding Macaroons
Coffee
Jellied Tongue Harlequin Salad
Buttered Baking-Powder Biscuits
Olives Salted Nuts
Biscuit Tortoni Angel Cake Squares Bonbons
Iced Coffee" (p. 883-4)
The following list is culled from Mrs. Allen on Cooking, Menus, Service, Ida C. Bailey
Allen (c. 1924), Chapter IX: "Foods that begin a meal" (p. 103-118)
Canapes, hot and cold, cocktails (fruit, oysters, clam, lobster, crabmeat), relishes (olives, pickle,
radish roses, plain/stuffed celery, pickled pears or peaches, salted nuts). Cold canapes include
caviar, sardine and anchovy, Indian (chutney-based), smoked salmon, and stuffed eggs. Hot
canapes include oyster toast, shrimp or lobster toast and mushroom toast. Other savoury
appetizers: sardines in aspic, stuffed pimientos, Swedish loaf, anchovy toast, jellied anchovy
moulds, salmon and caviar rolls, finnan haddie shells, and savoury cheese balls.
Salted nuts, celery, tuna fish a la King, asparagus salad, Russian dressing, ice cream, cake,
coffee
Olives, pickles, chicken salad, apple jelly, rice croquettes, ice cream, cake, coffee
Olives, radishes, baked ham sandwiches, potato and celery salad, ice cream, cake,
coffee.
Serving a large crowd on a low budget? We suggest:
Deviled eggs, celery, olives, pickles, salted nuts (almonds, pecans, peanuts, filberts)
Bread sticks, Parker House rolls, saltine-type crackers, potato chips
Caesar salad, Waldorf salad
Finger sandwiches...peanut butter & jelly, ham, turkey, chicken salad, tomato, egg salad, cream
cheese
Fried chicken, baked ham
Pineapple Upside down
cake, angel or devil's food cakes, ice cream & chocolate sauce, chocolate pudding. Canned
peaches work well.
Beverage service:
Soft drinks garnished with fruit & fruit juices (ginger ale with maraschino cherry juice, decorated with
cherries), Ginger Ale, Coca-Cola, Kool-Aid, Lemonade, punch, coffee, cocoa & Orange Pekoe
tea
Domino Sugar (box, sack, canned golden syrup), Horlick's ORiginal Malted Milk ("for infants and Invalids), Wheatsworth
(whole wheat crackers, F.H. Biscuit Co., NY), Grape Ola (concentrate, bottle, recipe for no-alcohol Grape Ola Hi-Ball),
Gordon & Dilworth Real Orange Marmalade, Dr. Bush's Kumyss Sparkling Milk (bottle), Grape Nuts (breakfast cereal made by Potum/Battle
Creek), Sheffield Farms: "Bacon; once an aversion now a luxury," Borden's Milk ("The more Bordens Milk you drink the better and
wiser you think"), Instant Postum (can, "rich coffee-like flavor"), Gorton's Ready to Fry Cod Fish Cakes (can, 'Delicious meal for
3, 25 cents. A new taste from the sea...nothing to do but fry."), Comet uncoated white rice (box, recipe for Comet Rice with
sausages), Jelke Good Luck Margarine, Coca Cola, Ballantine's Golden Glow Ginger Ale, Gulden's Mustard (glass jar, 15 cent/8 oz.).
Jiffy-Jel (gelatine product, "Desserts of the New Grade, 10 flavors in glass vials...2 for 25 cents"), Kellogg's Toasted Corn
Flakes (also Kellogg's Krumbles, & Kellogg's Bran), Swift's Premium Bacon, Borden's Milk, Horlick's original malted milk ("Safte for
Infants & Invalids"), Coca Cola, Cross & Blackwell's Scotch Oatmeal, Clark's Virgin Peanut Oil (bottles or cans), Long Island
Duck.
Kellogg's Corn Flakes, Triscuit crackers (Nabisco), Crisco, Shredded Wheat, Argo Corn Starch, Beech Nut Gum, Nabisco Assorted Sugar Wafers,
Goodman's Noodles, Sunkist Juicy Oranges & Lemons, Swift's Bacon, Wheatena.
Rumford Baking Powder,Cream of Wheat, Kellogg's All-Bran, Walter Baker Chocolate, Slade's Spices, Cox's Instant Powdered Gelatine,
White House Coffee, Comet Rice, Junket, Malt Breakfast Food, Jell-O, Virginia Dare Butterscotch Sauce, Knox Gelatine,
Lea & Perrins Sauce, Gold Medal Flour, Royal Baking Powder.
Rumford Baking Powder (can), Mirro (aluminum cookware), Kellogg's Corn Flakes and All Bran (with recipe for Corn Flake Date
Cookies & Christmas Cookies), Royal Baking Powder (canned, recipe for Christmas Plum Pudding), Plymouth Rock Plain
Gelatine (box), Gold Medal Flour (signed by Betty Crocker, no picture of her), Knorr Soups (in 1/4 lb rolls "each roll makes
6 plates of tempting soup," illustration of product, wrapped like sausage. Flavors: Asparagus, Bean,
Cream of Celery, Cream of Potato, Green Kern, Green Pea, Lentil, Mushroom, Mock Turtle, Oxtail, Yellow Pea with Bacon, plus Beef
Bouillon cutes, Chicken Flavor Bouillon Cubes, Norwegian Kippered Herrings and Kipper Snacks (recipes for Norwegian Kippered
Herring Sandwiches, Planked Cutlets of Norwegian Kippered Herring, Mock Omlet of Norwegian Kippered Herring), Stickney & Poor's
Spices (boxed), Liberty Paper Baking Cups (cupcake papers, also pie collars, chop frills, croquette skewers, & paper doilies),
), Wesson Oil (can), KitchenAid electric mixer, R & R Plum Pudding (Richardson & Robbins), Burnett's Vanilla Pudding (box),
Bensdorp's Royal Dutch Cocoa, Durkee's Salad Dressing (bottle, ready to pour on salad), Lea & Perrin's Worcestershire
Sauce ("One teaspoonful to every can of soup."), Virginia Dare Wine Jelly (Sherry or Port flavors), Kraft Cheese (American,
Pimiento, Swiss, boxed), Hay's Five Fruit (bottle, use for sauce on ice cream, puddings, waffles, fritters and cereals),
Deerfoot Farm Sausage, Carnation Milk (cans, "From Contented Cows," recipe for Carnation Cream Caramels), Bell's Seasoning
(box), Kitchen Bouquet (concentrate for gravies), Mintalade ("translucent green crystals are a decoration on the plate. Made of
pure frut, with delicate flavor of mint leav. Served with breakfast bacon or dinner roasts, on luncheon wafers or hot rolls--
with fruit salads or ice cream in a dainty mint sundae, its appearance and flavor make instant appeal," Kehoe Preserving Co., Terre
Haute, Indiana), Knox Gelatine (recipes for Christmas Plum Pudding, Cranberry Salad, Christmas Candy Supreme and Jellied
Turkey), Baker's Chocolate ("Dot" Sweet Chocolate," for dipping), Slade's Spices (cloves, nutmeg & cinnamon, boxed).
Campbell's Tomato Soup, Post Grape Nuts, Libby's Evaporated Milk, Aunt Jemima Pancake Flour, Heinz Tomato Ketchup,
Cocomalt (chocolate flavor food drink), 3 Minute Oat Flakes, Armour's Star Ham, Sunkist California Orange Juice,
Fleischman's Yeast, Gulden's Mustard, Sanka Coffee (caffeine-free), Knox Gelatine, Eagle Brand Condensed Milk,
Minute Tapioca, Snowdrift (canned fat product for cooking), Beech-Nut Peanut Butter, College Inn Chicken A La King (can),
Underwood Deviled Ham, Ovaltine, Sunshihe Crackers, Cookies & Cakes.
Duke Univeristy has uploaded several
company advertising cookbooks from the 1920s. They are
no longer protected by copyright. You can use these books to download actual recipes and
pictures of the product. Check out: Jello, Fleischmann's yeast,
(yeast) Minute Tapioca, Junket,Blue Ribbon Malt Extracts, Jelke Good Luck Margarine, Sunshine
crackers, Maxwell House coffee,Calumet Baking Powder, Dromedary Products(figs, coconut, grapefruit etc.), and Sunkist
fruit(oranges, grapefruits),
[1920] La Choy Food Products, Eskimo Pies, Good Humor ice cream, Baby Ruth & Oh Henry! candy bars,
[1921] Wonder Bread, Betty Crocker (General Mills baking mixes), Land O'Lakes (brand butter), Sanka (freeze dried
decaffeinated coffee), Chuckles (fruit jelly candies),
White Castle (fast food chain), Lindy's (NYC restaurant famous for cheesecake),
Sardis (NYC restaurant of the stars), Quaker Oats quick oats
[1922] Clapp's Vegetable Soup (first commercially prepared U.S. baby food), Girl Scout Cookies, Pep (breakfast cereal), Gummi Bears,
Mounds, Charleston Chew, Clark Bars
(candy bars)
[1923] Pet Milk (canned product), Macoun apples, Welch's grape jelly, Popsicles, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Mounds (candy bar),
Yoo-Hoo
chocolate drink, Sanka Coffee
[1924] Caesar Salad, Wheaties (breakfast cereal), Bit-O-Honey (candy bars), fruit-flavored Life Savers, Beech-Nut Coffee,
Stouffer's restaurants (NYC), Birdseye brand frozen foods
[1925] Honey Maid Graham Crackers, Mr. Goodbar (candy bar)
[1926] Good Humor (ice cream novelties), Safeway & IGA (supermarket chains), Hormel Flavor-Sealed Ham (canned), Liederkranz cheese,
Milk Duds (candy)
[1927] Lender's (bagels), Gerber's (baby food), Pez (breath mint/candies), Mike & Ike (coated fruit-gel candies),
Pez (candy with personal disenser,
Kool-Aid (powdered drink mix), homogenized milk, Marriott's Hot Shoppes (chain restaurant)
[1928] Rice Krispies (breakfast cereal), Progresso (brand foods), Nehi (orange beverage), Velveeta cheese, Peter Pan Peanut butter, Drum Sticks (ice cream
cones), Reeses Peanut Butter Cups, Butterfingers &
Heath bars (candybars), Barricini Candy (NYC)
[1929] Gerber canned baby food, Columbo Yogurt, Oscar Meyer wieners, Karmelkorn, Snickers (candy bar) Twizzlers (licorice)
, 7-Up
---SOURCES: The Food Timeline, The Food Chronology, James Trager [Henry Holt:New York]
1995 (p. 426-460), The Century in Food, Beverly Bundy [Collectors Press:Portland OR] 2002(p. 68-71) &
Candy: The Sweet History, Beth Kimmerle [Collectors Press:Portland OR] 2003 (p. 35)
---Fashionable Food: Seven Decades of Food Fads, Sylvia Lovegren [Macmillan:New
York] 1995 (p. 41-44)
---Revolution at the Table: The Transformation of the American Diet, Harvey Levenstein
[Oxford University Press:New York] 1988 (p. 196-7)
According to Mabel Claire, "Today's" kitchens should be colorful workshops arranged for
cooking convenience.
---Bamberger's Cook Book For The Busy Woman, Mabel Claire [Greenberg:New York] 1932 (p. 18-21)
Artist, author, wife, and entrepreneur. She was promoted as the 1930s ideal modern housewife for her time-saving ideas and
successful lady-like career. Because she advocated new appliances and novel kitchen gadgets, Ms. Claire's cook books were featured
in department stores. Macy's and Bamberger's (New York based) commissioned thousands of books with their store names on the
cover. While not representative of American homes struggling through hard times, Ms. Claire's ideal kitchen
gave housewives hope.
---"Aesthetic Cookery: A Book That Is Not Only a Cook Book, But a Creed Too," Manitoba Free Press [Winnipeg CA], November 7, 1927, Literary and Book Review Section (p.1)
---"Woman Sculptor Writes Book of Unusual Recipes," Freeport Journal-Press [IL], September 12, 1925 (p. 8)
---"Mrs. Jack Bechdolt, Author, Dead at 43.," New York Times, July 29, 1933 (p. 11)
1930s soup kitchens were run/funded by charitable organizations: religious groups, Ladies Aid
Societies, Salvation Army etc. community service groups, government agencies, companies, organized crime and
private individuals. They relied on volunteers and donations. Depression-era Brooklyn soup
kitchens most likely served different food from those in Cleveland, Houston and Bakersfield. This
would have reflected the local tastes and available produce. Many other countries experienced
Depression circumstances during the 1930s...their soup kitchen menus could have been altogether
different.
"Soup kitchens and the missions state that they can always get meat scaps and day-old bread,
frequently for nothing and always for very little, but the vegetables that make up the bulk of the
soups and stews which they serve are few and far between, and those they can afford are poor and
stale. Arrangements are being made to have baskets at the Grand Central and Pennsylvania
Station to recieve contributions of fruit and vegetables brough in on trains."
---"Urges Charity Gardens'," New York Times, April 14, 1932 (p. 18)
---"Capone Feeds 3,000 a Day in Soup Kitchen," New York Times, November 15, 1930
(p. 4)
---"Milwaukee opens Soup Kitchens'," New York Times, March 6, 1930 (p. 24)
---"15th A.D. to Install a Soup Kitchen," New York Times, February 21, 1933 (p.
21)
[NOTE: the 15th district was considered a wealthy neighborhood. That it was installing a soup
kitchen for its residents was a sad sign of the times.]
Throughout time, in almost every culture and cuisine, soups and have been the primary foods
consumed by people with not much money. It is economical (can be composed of whatever the
cook has on hand that day...can be stretched to feed more by adding liquid), simple to cook (one
large pot, does not require much in the way of fuel/cooking appliances/utensils), easy to serve
(requires only a bowl/cup and a spoon, in a pinch it can be sipped without a spoon) and requires
minimal clean-up. Bread also has a long history of filling empty bellies during the worst of times.
"Penny Restaurants" were subsidized by social service organizations. The point was to provide good, hot meals to unemployed folks
too proud to accept charity.
---"Penny Cafes That Pay Way With Hearty Nickel Meals Give Heart to Unemployed," E.C. Scherburne, Christian Science
Monitor, July 14, 1933 (p. 1)
CCC camp menus: Heyburn State Park (Idaho)
---"Food Fashions," Daily Record [Morris County NJ], November 23, 1931 (p. 9)
The following menus are extracted from Aunt Sammy's Radio Recipes Revised, Bureau of
Home Economics, U.S. Department of Agriculture [Government Printing Office:Washington]
Scalloped oysters, five-minute cabbage, pickled beets, jellied fruit; Lima beans in tomat sauce with
crisp bacon, mashed rutabaga turnip, lettuce with tart dressing, fruit, chocolate drop cookies,
roast beef, Yorkshire pudding, scalloped parsnips, turnip greens, pickled cherries, Washington
pie..
Cheese souffle, spring onions on toast, browned parsnips, olives and radishes, rhubarb Betty, pork
chops, savory cooked lettuce, parley potatoes, chili sauce, jelly roll; fresh beef tongue, wilted
dandelion greens, fried potato cakes, banana pudding...
Cold sliced meat, potato salad, rolls, peaches and cream, iced coffee, tea, or chocolate; fried or
broiled chicken, new potatoes, peas, currant jelly, strawberry ice cream, vanilla wafers; broiled
ground beef on toast, lima beans, fried tomatoes, Spanish cream...
Scalloped onions and peanuts, spinach, hot biscuits, catsup, lemon pie; cold boiled ham,
succotash, carrots, cold slaw, green tomato pie; cream of vegetable soup, oven-toasted bread,
grated cheese and lettuce salad, apple sauce, hot gingerbread; roast chicken, mashed potatoes,
Brussels sprouts or some other green vegetable, crabapple jely, peanut-brittle ice cream, sand
tarts..."
The following menus were published in the Ladies' Home Journal, August 1932:
"Sunday Midday Dinner: Corn soup, Fricasseed Chicken with Brown Rice, Broiled Tomaoes, Avocado-and-Lettuce Salad, Blueberry
Pudding, Cream or hard sauce, Iced Tea or Black Coffee.
Monday Luncheon: Hot Toasted Ham-and-Cheese Sandwiches, Sliced Peaches and Cream, Cookies, Egg Lemonade or Milk.
Dinner: Iced cantaloupe, Kentucky Succotash Garnished with bacon, Hearts of Lettuce, French Dressing, Toasted Wafers,
Creamy Rice Pudding Frappe, Tea, Coffee." (p. 32)
Saturday Luncheon: Chilled Tomato Cocktails, Salmon Loaf, Molded Potato Salad, Hawaiian Coleslaw, Olives, Spiced
Sekel Pears, Water-Cress-and-Lettuce Sandwiches, Buttered Nut Bread, French Peach Pie, Hot Coffee, Grape-Juice Lemonade, Milk." (p. 38)
The following menus are extracted from Ida Bailey Allen's Cooking, Menus, Service,
[Garden City:New York] 1935
[1937]
"A Week of Family Menus," America's Cook Book, compiled by the Home Institute of
the New York Herald Tribune [Charles Scribner's Sons:New York] 1937 (p. 855)
Ice cream or punch, small cakes or sandwiches, coffee, butter balls, petit fours, mapel meringue
cookies.
"Chinese Supper
"Chicken soup with noodles, Chicken Chop Suey, Chinese rice, egg foo yung, tea rolls, preserved
kumquats, tea.
"Afternoon Tea or Coffee
Shrimp aspic with Thousand Island Dressing, Sally Lunn, Himmel Trote or caramel tea rolls,
poppyseed roll, coffee.
"Children's Supper Party
Bouillon, croutons, chicken timbales or mousse, mashed potatoes with parsley, jellied oranges,
bread and butter sandwiches or orange and nut bread or butterscotch toast, sunshine cake, vanilla
ice cream, daisy cream candy.
"Children's Birthday Menus
Creamed chicken, animal shaped sandwiches, milk or orangeade, birthday cake with candles,
junket custard or chocolate rice, marshmallows or date and walnut bonbons.
"Washington's Birthday Luncheon
Halves of oranges, with Maraschino cherries in center, chicken a la Maryland, with drum sticks,
southern sweet potatoes, Virginia corn bread, cherry salad, Boston brown bread, chcoolate log
cake (cocoa roll), nuts, raisins, coffee, Washington punch.
"Saint Patrick's Day Party
Halves of grapefruit with green Maraschino cherry in center, olives, celery and nuts, cream of
spinach soup with shamrock shaped toast, pork chops with apples, onions and green peppers,
O'Brien potatoes, clover leaf rolls, shamrock salad with Irish dressing (Vinaigrette), salted
wafers, Erin Ice (Creme de Menthe ice) or blanc-mange, with a bit of "Ould Sod" (grated sweet
chocolate), potato chocolate torte, mint wafers, tea."
---The Settlement Cook Book, Mrs. Simon Kander [Settlement Cook Book
Co.:Milwaukee WI] 1936 (p. 608-616)
You will find dozens of
elegant dinner menus from the 1930s online, courtesy of the Los Angles Public Library.
Many of these menus were composed for black-tie type events. Search date 193*
Conservative wealthy and middle class folks, who were fortunate to invest in other opportunities
besides the stock market and banks, fared well. They continued to prepare fine food, patronize high-end restaurants, serve dinner at home
with maids, and take cruises featuring opulent meals.
This popular race, now known as the Americas Cup, drew crowds from all points of the globe to Newport RI. Cruise lines offered special trips
providing spectacular venues for well-heeled spectators. In 1930, Eastern Steamship Lines ships Evangeline and the George Washington were booked solid.
Living accommodations and dining options were exquisite. This breakfast menu is bountiful.
[NOTE: Sir Thomas Lipton's Shamrock V was defeated for the 5th time by the Enterprise.]
Franco-American Spaghetti (can), Armour's Star Ham (bagged, not canned; includes recipe:
Fixed Flavor Star Ham Omelet), Junket (Vanilla, Orange, Chocolate, Raspberry, Lemon, Coffee),
Fleischman's Yeast (promoted to mothers as health food during pregnancy), Baker's Cocoa
(promoted as health food for children), bananas (Banana Growers Association: promoted as
health food for children), Del Monte Tomato Sauce (can), Land O'Lakes Sweet Cream Butter,
Uneeda Bakers Fruit Cake (National Biscuit Company), Gerber's Strained Vegetables (vegetable
soup, spinach, carrots, prunes, peas, tomatoes, green beans), Heinz Mince Meat (glass jar), Bere
Rabbit Molasses (can), Steero Cubes (bouillon cubes), Richardson & Robbins Plum Pudding
(can), Ovaltine (promoted as health food for children), Del Monte peaches (can), Wrigley's
Double Mint Chewing Gum (peppermint flavor; promoted as an inexpensive beauty aid), Gulden's
Mustard (glass jar: with recipe for Savory Beef Rolls), Wheateana, Washington Coffee, La
Choy food products (sprouts, soy sauce, kumquats, water chestnuts, chow mein noodles, sub
kum, cooked rice, brown sauce, bamboo shoots, sub kum chop suey), Ballard Pancake Flour
(box mix), Pillsbury's Pancake Flour (box mix; promoted as a "modern kind of pancake"),
Diamond Walnuts (with recipes for Velvet Fudge, Diamond Chicken Soup, Cheese and Walnut
Roast), Ralston Whole Wheat Cereal, None Such Mince Meat (box), Knox Gelatine, Gold Medal
Cake Flour ("Soft as Silk": promoted as correcting common cake baking mistakes).
Canada Dry Pale Ginger Ale (bottle with menu for Football Party Buffet), Armour's Star Ham (wrapped in air-tight sack;
recipe for "Fixed Flavor Star Ham"), Del Monte Foods (cans, FRUITS: apricots, berries, cherries, figs, fresh prunes, fruit salad,
grapefruit, peaches, pears, pineapple, plums--VEGETABLES: asparagus, beets, corn, peas, pimientos, pumpkin, spinach, string
beans, tomatoes, tomato juice--COFFEE: "As famous for flavor as every other brand"), Campbell's Soups (canned: Asparagus,
Bean, Beef, Bouillon, Celery, Chicken, Chicken-Gumbo, Clam Chowder, Consomme, Julienne, Mock Turtle, Mulligatawny, Mutton,
Ox Tail, Pea, Pepper Pot, Printanier, Tomato, Tomato,Okra, Vegetable, Vegetable-Beef, Vermicelli-Tomato. 11 cents a can.",
Swans Down Cake Flour (with recpe for White Fruit Cake), Heinz Rice Flakes (box, promoted for its 'laxative' effect), Maxwell
House Coffee (can), Ovaltine (promoted to "Add 5 pounds to your child's weight."), Gerber's Strained Peas (for baby, canned), Libby's
peaches (canned), Arm & Hammer Baking Soda (box, advertised for brushing teeth to make them whiter), Bond Bread ("To build strong
bones and sound even teeth, to promote proper growth, to strenghthen resistance to colds and illness...), Sanka decaffeinated Coffee
(can), Sunkist California Oranges, Heinz Tomato Juice (canned and bottled), Carnation Milk (canned, "Almost
miraculously good for babies..."), G Washington's Coffee (can), Royal Baking Powder (can), Del Maiz Corn (can),
Hankscraft electric Automatic Egg Cooker (& baby bottle warmer), Stokley's Corn (canned)), Fitzgerald Manufacturing Co.
Magic Maid mixer, Heinz Cream of Tomato Soup (can), Knox Gelatine (recipes for Chocolate Plum Pudding & Knox Dainties),
Bristol Diced Mints (glass jar), Du Pont Cellophane (clear plastic packaging), Sun-Maid Raisins, United Fruit Company
Bananas (fresh), Postum (milk supplmeent for children), Rath's Black Hawk vacuum cooked meat products (canned ham, chickenn,
pure pork sausage,), Pillsbury's Pancake Flour (box, with recipes for pancakes, bran pancakes, & waffles), Liebig's Extract of Beef
(jar), Jones Dairy Farm Sausage, Coleman's Mustard (dry, box with recipe for Scalloped Corn Piquant & offer for free
recipe cards), Fruit Cake from Hawaii, Johnston's Tableau (assorted fine boxed chocolates), Diamond Walnuts (recipe for Jellied
Fruit and Walnut Salad),Hawaiian Pineapple (sliced, crushed, tidbits, no particlar brand, offer to win $5000 in awards),
Cut-Rite Waxed Paper (boxed, in rolls), Roman Meal Flour (box), Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce, Maple Candy (
heart-shaped in "sap bucket"), House Of Lords Tea (& tea chest), French's Mustard, Bell's Seasoning, Puffles snack foods
(cheese, gruit or vegetable chips), Hormel Flavor Sealed Ham (can), Seaside Brand Lima Beabs (can, with recipes for Nicoise Salad,
Lima Puree, Limas Louisiana, Flavory Lima Loa and Limas and Lamb Stew), Friend's Baked Beans (can), Junket (box dessert),
Toastmaster (electric toasters), Pet Milk (can), Wheaties (breakfast cereal), Gold Medal Flour (regular, pancake & cake; mentions
Betty Crocker but no picutre).
Kraft Mayonnaise (glass jar), Crisco (can), Campbell's soup (canned: asparagus, bean, beef,
bouillon, celery, chicken, chicken-gumbo, clam chowder, consomme, julienne, mock turtle,
muligatawny, mutton, ox tail, pea, pepper pot, printanier, tomato, tomato-okra, vegetable,
vegetable-beef, vermicelli-tomato), Heinz Cooked Spaghetti (can), Knox Sparkling Gelatine (box),
Colman's Mustard (canned: powdered mustard), Wesson Oil (can), Sanka coffee (can), Welch's
Grape Juice (glass bottle), Pet Milk (canned: for creamy human desserts, not animal's food!),
Hires Root Beer (box: extract to make 8 bottles), Cliquot Club Ginger Ale (bottles), Kellogg's
Rice Krispies (box), Cream of Wheat (box), Chase and Sanborn's Coffee (can), Libby, McNeill &
Libby's Corned Beef (tin: "Grand for Picnics!")
Gold Medal Softasilk Cake Flour, Burnett's Extracts, Japanese Deep-Sea Crabmeat, Kraft Cheese (Old Engish, American, Velveeta, in boxes),
Hay's Five Fruit (juice), Cox's instant powdered Gelatine, Arm & Hammer Baking Soda (with recipe for Sour Milk Griddle Cakes),
Canned Pineapple (no brand), Pyrex Ovenware, Morton's Iodized Salt, Bell's Seasoning, Shefford Snappy Cheese, Mintalade, Lea &
Perrins Worcestershire Sauce, Richardson & Robbins (R&R) Boned Chicken (can, recipe for Chicken a la King), Knox Gelatine, Heublein's
A-1 Sauce, Farwell & Rhines Genuine Gluten Flour, Haserot's Kornlet (canned corn), Hip-O-Lite marshmallow sauce (jar), Carnation
Milk (canned, recipe for Fruit Whip), Slade's Spices (cream of tartar, cinnamon).
Chase and Sanborn's Coffee (tin), Sanka Coffee, Minute Tapioca (with ercipe for Berry Minute Tapioca), Kraft cheese (Old English Creamed
Cheese, Velveeta), Royal Suick Setting Gelatin Dessert (Pineapple flavor), Heinz Tomato Juice, Coca Cola ("the pause that
refreshes), Sift's Brookfield Butter, Kraft Mayonnaise (glass jar), Bosco (glass jar), National Biscuit Company Shredded Wheat
(box), Pet Milk (can, offers: Four Pet "Memo" books (free), & 200 page Loose-Leaf Cookbook, $1.00), Anglo Corned Beef (tin),
Wesson Oil (tin, recipes for Wesson Oil Mayonnasie & Wesson Oil Waffles), Underwood Deviled Ham (tin), Kellogg's Kaffee-Hag Coffee
(decaf), Canned Pineapple (promoted by the Pineapple Producers Cooperative Assn. for health), Pyrex Ware (ovenproof temepered cookware),
Quaker Puffed Rice & Puffed Wheat, Magic Chef gas ranges & stoves, Cream of Wheat (box, offer for Rogers silverware (plate), Coronet
Pattern),
Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk (can, recipe for Magic Cookies), Eatmor Cranberries (recipe for Cranberry Sauce),
Farwell & Rhines Genuine Graham Flour (Watertown NY), Arm & Hammer Baking Soda, Mapleine Taste Treats (syrup, nut cream, baked ham,
quick icing), Richardson & Robbins (R&R) Chicken Broth, Morton's Iodized Salt, Knox Sparkling Gelatine (box, recipe for
Apple Sponge Pudding), Bell's Seasoning, Federal Mill's Lucky Doughnut Flour, Hip-O-Lite "Whipped Creme," Lea & Perrins Worcestershire
Sauce, Haserot Kornlet (canned corn), Shefford Snappy Cheese (can), White Mountain Baking Powder, Carnation Milk (can, recipe for
Soft Custard), Hay's Five Fruit (Portland ME), Burnett's Vanilla ("Since 1847").
Eagle Brand Condensed Milk (can, with recipe for Eagle Band Chocolate Fudge), Marshmallow Fluff (ice cream recipe booklet),
Mapeline Syrup (bottle), Scott Paper Towels, Morton's Salt, Shefford' Snappy Cheese, Arm & Hammer Baking Soda (box), Comet
Brown Rice, Farwell & Rhines Genuine Graham Flour, Rice (unbranded, Southern Rice Industry; recipe for Rice Uruguayan),
Hutchinson Manufacturing Company's Ejector Service Fork (solid nickel silver; cannot rust), Haerot Kornlet (canned corn), Lea
& Perrins Worcestershire Sauce, Carnation Milk (can), Bell's Seasoning & Burnett's Vanilla Extract.
Tootsie pops,
Hershey Bars,
Butterfingers,
Milk Duds,
Baby Ruth,
Whitman samplers (box of candy),
Lifesavers,
NECCOs (& conversation hearts),
Mounds,
Milky Ways,
Heath bars,
Snickers,
SOURCE: The Century in Food: America's Fads and Favorites, Beverly Bundy & Candy: The Sweet History, Beth Kimmerle
Crisco, Campbell's Soup, Chase & Sanborn coffee (bag), Franco-American Spaghetti (can),
Sanka coffee (can: caffeine-free coffee), Armour and Company (canned: Star brand corned beef
hash, beef and noodles, spaghetti and meatballs, chile con carne, tamales), Royal puddings (box:
chocolate and vanilla), Ovaltine (Swiss-food drink), Sunkist California Lemons (fresh), Kellogg's
Kaffee-Hag Coffee (canned: "Saves Your Nerves"), Royal gelatine (box: "Quick Setting"),
Sterling International Salt (box: "Steam-sterilized), Tender Leaf Tea (box: loose tea), Swift's
Premium meats (ham & bacon), National Biscuit Company's Ritz Crackers (box: "Try
Ritz...they're marvelous alone...and see how they improve appetites for salads and vegetables),
Wesson Oil (can), Pet Milk (canned & irradiated), Gerber's baby foods (canned: vegetable
soup), Kraft cheese (foil packets: American, Philadelphia Cream Cheese, Old English), Gold
Medal flour (paper bag), Underwood Deviled Ham (can), Heinz Strained Foods (canned: for
baby--strained vegetable soup, peas, green beans, spinach, carrots, beets, prunes, cereal,
tomatoes, apricots and applesauce), Nehi Carbonated Orange Beverage (bottle), Kellogg's Rice
Krispies (box), Morton's Salt (cylindrical cardboard container: "When It Rains It Pours" logo),
Land O' Lakes Butter (1 pound, 4 foil-wrapped sticks).
Chicken of the Sea Tuna (fancy, orange can & White Star (blue & orange can; contest to write Tuna Tests, 35 words or less "why you keep a good supply of this
famous tuna on hand."), Campbell's Soup (can, 21 kinds: Asparagus, Bean with bacon, Bouillon, Celery, Chicken, Chicken-Gumbo, Clam Chowder, Consomme,
Consomme-Printanier, Mock Turtle, Mulligatawny, Cream of Mushroom, Noodle with chicken, Ox tail, Pea, Pepper Pot, Scotch Broth, Tomato, Vegetable,
Vegetable-Beef), Tender Leaf Tea (box, loose leaves, black), Corning Coffee Maker (new, Pyrex, all glass), Wrigley's Doublemint Chewing Gum (sticks,
"Housewives! Enjoy Double Mint Gum daily while you work...It will help keep your face looking as carefree and winning as a child's"), Phillips Soups (can,
condensed, promoted by George Rector, recipe for Cottage Cheese Mold, varieties: Vegetable, Tomato, Pea, Bean, Celery, Onion, Asparagus, Beef,
Mushroom, Mulligatawny, Pepper Pot, Chicken, Noodle with Chicken, Vegetable Beef, Clam Chowder, Scotch Broth, Chicken Gumbo, Oyster), Swift's
Premium Ham (& bacon, "Ovensized"),Heinz Ketchup (bottle), Gerber's Baby Food (can), NBC [Nabisco] Shredded Wheat (box), Armour Star Sausage
Meats (recipe for Eggs Jellied in Bouillon), Heinz 57 Strained Foods (cans, for baby, varieties: Vegetable Soup, Prunes, Peas, Green Beans, Spinach, Carrots,
Beets, Cereal, Tomatoes, Mixed Greens, Apricots and Apple Sauce, Beef and Liver Soup), French's Mustard (jar, promoted by 'Hot Dan the Mustard Man'),
Pompeian Pure Imported Olive Oil, Underwood Deviled Ham (can, jar), Anglo Corned Beef (recipe for Corned Beef & Cabbage), Silex genuine Glass Coffee
Maker, Florida Grapefruit (no brand), Cut-Rite Wax Paper (roll), Coca Cola (bottles "Frosty Bottles From Your Own Refrigerator").
Campbell's soups (canned: vegetable, bean with bacon, Scotch broth, noodle with chicken),
Swift's Premium (ham and bacon), California cling peaches, Delmonte vegetables (canned: peas,
asparagus, corn), Del Monte dried fruits (boxed: raisins, prunes, apricots & peaches),
Franco-American Spaghetti (canned), Campbell's tomtato juice (canned), Sunkist lemons (fresh
lemons/juice), Heinz vinegar (bottles: cider, malt, tarragon flavored malt & distilled, white),
Wheateana (box), Wesson oil, Royal Baking Powder, Jelke's Good Luck Vegetable
Oleomargarine, Junket Rennet Powder, Crisco.
Best Foods Hellmann's Real Mayonnaise (glass jar & recipe for Combination Shrimp Salad), Campbell's Tomato Juice (can), Certo
thickening agent for making jellies, Kellogg's Whole Wheat Krumbles, Heinz fresh cucumber pickle, Arm & Hamnmer and Cow Brand
baking sodas, Kerr self-sealing Mason jars, General Electric Garbage Disposal Device ($200.00), Alka-Seltzer, Kool-Aid (5 cent packages,cloth aviation caps free with three empty product packages), General Mills Wheaties ("Breakfast of Champions," with "Myrna's Mistake BRibing her
child to eat breakfast" cartoon.
Swift's Premium Bacon, Veal & Beef, Kellogg's Corn Flakes (standard & family size boxes, Piping Hot Breakfast instructions 1. Heat
Kellogg's Corn Flakes in the oven 2. Pour on HOT milk or cream just before serving), Campbell's Tomato Soup, Del Monte
Pear Halves (can), Franco-American Spaghetti (can), Fleer's Dubble Bubble Chewing Gum ("test you chewing strength! Decide wheterh
your own jaw muscles need exercise. 1. Bite off a piece of Fleers (slice to suit you), 2. Chew for 15 minutes. 3. Check
results"), Libby's Baby Foods (cans), Crisco shortening (can, recipes for Golden Fruit Pie & Fig Mallow Cake), Nucoa oleomargarine
('provides precious Vitamin A!'), Cocomalt (can, milk nutrient booster for children), Kellogg's All-Bran breakfast cereal (box),
Gold Medal Flour (recipe for Prize Contest Lemon Pie), Wheateana (box "tastes good:), Corning Glass Works
Pyrex glass cookware (sets for $1--$4.75), Heinz Chicken Noodle Soup (can), Libby's Fancy Hawaiian Sliced Pineapple (can),
Pep Tea, Shefford Snappy Cheese (glass jar, recipes for Snappy Tuna Ring & Snappy Cheese Omelet), Florida canned grapefruit
(Florida Citrus Commission, no brand), Royal Crown Cola (individual portion bottles, 'It lifts you up--its flavor is great--Four
bottles are enough for eight!'), Karo (blue label can, "Karo is the only syrup served to the Dionne Quintuplets. Its maltose
and dextrose are ideal carbohydrates for growing childen"--Allan Roy Defoe M.D.), Hawaiian Canned Pineapple (serving suggestions
for Noodle Ring, Cheese Souffle, Fresh Fish, Rice Croquettes, Scrambled Eggs, Sea Food Salad), Beech-Nut Strained Foods (glass
jar, for babies 'The goodness of the earth captured in a glass!'), Bovril Bouillon Cubes, Horlick's Original Malted Milk,
Washington State Apples (photo displaying Winesap, Delicious & Yellow Newtown varieties), Revere Ware (cookware, stainless-steel
top; copper-plated bottom), Burnett's pure Vanilla, Arm & Hammer Baking Soda, Brere Rabbit Pure New Orleans Cooking Molasses (can,
recipe for Boston Brown Bread), A-1 Sauce (bottle, recipe for Bean Rabbit, 'Puts zest into plain meals."), Minute Tapioca (recipe
for Salmon Croquettes a la Pierre), Crosse & Blackwell Date & Nut Bread (can), Cut-Rite (waxed paper), Flako Pie Crust (box mix),
Good Luck Lemon Pie Filling, Worcesterh Salt (cannister, iodized), Clabber Girl Baking Powder (can), Steero Bouillon
Cubes (tin, 'Keep slender guard health and beauty.'), Marshmallow Fluff, Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce, Veg-All (canned
vegetables, recipe for Salmon Loaf), Cream Top ('New Style Milk Bottle'), Dole Pineapple Gems (can), Green Giant Tender
Peas (can), Wrigley's Double Mint Chewing Gum, Gerber's Baby Food (can), Stokely's Finest Foods (tomato juice).
[1930]
Birds Eye Frosted Foods
Wonder Bread (sliced)
Hostess Twinkies
Mott's Apple Sauce
Snickers candy bars (Mars, Inc.)
French's Worcestershire Sauce
Chock Full o'Nuts chain restaurants (New York City)
Philadelphia Cheese Steak (Pat's)
Beech-Nut Baby Foods
Bisquick (General Mills)
Ballard Biscuits (cardboard tube packed refrigerator dough)
Wyler's Bouillon Cubes
Hotel Bar Butter
Tootsie Pops
Frito Corn Chips
Skippy Peanut Butter
3 Musketeers (candy bar)
Heath bar (candy bar)
Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies
Campbell's Chicken Noodle and Cream of Mushroom soups
Kraft Miracle Whip
Tree-Sweet canned orange juice
E. & J. Gallo winery founded
Pet Evaporated Milk
Wild Cherry flavor Life Savers
Royal Crown Cola
Carvel (ice cream restaurants)
Ritz Crackers [Nabisco]
Adolph's Meat Tenderizer
Kit Kat bar
Five Flavors Life Savers
ReaLemon Lemon Juice
Goya brand foods
Waring blender
Betty Crocker (General Mills)
Elsie the Cow (Borden)
Spry (Unilever)
Hungry Jack pancake mix (Pillsbury)
Chunky Chocolate bar
Mars Almond Bar
Fifth Avenue (candy bar)
Orangina (soft drink)
Howard Johnson's restaurant chain
Pepperidge Farm Bread
Kix cereal (General Mills)
Spam (Hormel)
Kraft Macaroni & Cheese Dinner
Ragu Spaghetti Sauce
Sky Bar (New England Confectionery Co.)
Rolo (candy)
Smarties (Rowntree candy)
Lawry's Seasoned Salt
Mott's Apple Juice
Nescafe (instant coffee)
Hollywood bread
Lay's Potato Chips
Cream of Wheat (5 minute)
Dairy Queen (ice cream stores)
---SOURCES: The Food Chronology, James Trager [Owl Books:New York] 1995 & The Century in Food, Beverly Bundy [Collector's Press:Portland OR] 2002
"Where are the snacks of yesterday? A spirited discussion over popcorn in the correspondence columns of The New York Times raises the
question: and--though there seems to be a popcorn revival in New York--it must be conceded that many of the between-meals
foods and drinks of a generation, or even a decade, ago have vanished almost as completely as the snows. A retrospective glance over
the present century reveals a surprising series of changes, behind which the discerning might find almost a complete social history of
the epoch...Many of the changes are results of our progressive organization and of the much-discussed standardization of life. Formerly
local products were the chief source of our snacks, as was much of our regular food. In New Hampshire the young folks got out a flatiron
and a hammer in Winter evenings and cracked butternuts which they had gathered and dried in the Autumn before. In Iowa they regaled
themselves on hazel or hickory nuts; in Virginia they lugged out a sack of chiquapins or chestnuts. Nowadays all three States unite in
eating pecans from Florida and almonds from California.
---"Odd Hour Munching in the Machine Age," Arthur Warner, New York Times, April 24, 1932 (p. AM14)
"Americans have become so food conscious that they must beware of food fads. That is the opinion of Mrs. Quindara Oliver Dodge, of Boston, National president of the American
Dietetic Association...'Our association frowns on all reducing diets...We feel that American women have done positive harm to their constitutions by adopting such radical food
measures. Only for physical welfare and not for beauty of figure should any woman consider adopting any special diet.' The spinach-haters of every family should give Mrs. Dodge
three cheers, for she actually doesn't insist on spinach having its very own regular place in the family menus. But there is a catch in this freedom-from-spinach allowed by this
Nationally known food expert. 'If...you dont have spinach on the family menu then be sure to include a proper amount of cellulose from other foods.' The celluose...may be had in proper
quantities from the none too popular turnip greens so plentiful through the South. So plentiful their feeling toward turnip greens will determine the extent of relief for spinach-haters.
Liberal views toward self-selection of foods by children are held by the organization of dieticians. 'Let the children select their foods and in most cases they will choose the right
nourishment for their bodies...It may be said that too much adult control has been exercised in feeding children.' This principle of letting children choose what htey would eat is so new
and radical that it needs proper research, so a definate project of this kind on which findings will soon be announced is under way in Indiana. Sixty children between the ages of three
and 16 are choosing their own menus for a period of three months, while a similar group is fed by the usual method of adults' planning of menus. Accurate sialy chickeng is being made
of weight so fthe children through the three-months trial of the experiment."
---"Food Concious Public Warned of Eating Fads," Washington Post, February 26, 1934 (p. 11)
[NOTE: We do not find any reports regarding the findings of the study. We do find several articles advocating adult supervision of children's diet.]
1. Heinz Oven-Baked Beans with Pork and Tomato Sauce
2. Heinz Oven-Baked Beans without Tomato Sauce, with Pork--Boston Style
3. Heinz Oven-baked Beans in Tomato Sauce without Meat--Vegetarian
4. Heinz Oven-Baked Red Kidney Beans
5. Heinz Cream of Tomato Soup
6. Heinz Cream of Green Pea Soup
7. Heinz Cream of Celery Soup
8. Heinz Mince Meat
9. Heinz Plum Pudding
10. Heinz Fig Pudding
11. Heinz Peanut Butter
13. Heinz Cooked Sour Kraut with Pork
14. Heinz Cherry Preserves
15. Heinz Red Raspberry Preserves
16. Heinz Peach Preserves
17. Heinz Strawberry Preserves
18. Heinz Pineapple Preserves
19. Heinz Crab-apple Jelly
20. Heinz Currant Jelly
21. Heinz Grape Jelly
22. Heinz Quince Jelly
23. Heinz Apple Butter
24. Heinz Preserved Sweet Gherkins
25. Heinz Preserved Sweet Mixed Pickles
26. Heinz Sour Spiced Gherkins
27. Heinz Sour Mixed Pickles
28. Heinz Chow Chow Pickle
29. Heinz Sweet Mustard Pickle
30. Heinz Dill Pickles
31. Heinz Fresh Cucumber Pickle
32. Heinz Fresh Cucumber Relish
33. Heinz India Relish
34. Heinz Sandwich Relish
35. Heinz Soup Pickled Onions
36. Heinz Preserved Sweet Onions
37. Heinz Spanish Queen Olives
38. Heinz Stuffed Spanish Olives
39. Heinz Ripe Olives
40. Heinz Pure Spanish Olive Oil
41. Heinz Tomato Ketchup
42. Heinz Chili Sauce
43. Heinz Beefsteak Sauce
44. Heinz Pepper Sauce, Red and Green
45. Heinz Worcestershire Sauce
46. Heinz Prepared Mustard
47. Heinz Prepared Mustard Sauce
48. Heinz Evaporated Horesradish
49. Heinz Salad Cream
50. Heinz Mayonnaise Salad Dressing
51. Heinz Pure Malt Vinegar
52. Heinz Pure Cider Vinegar
53. Heinz Distilled White Vinegar
54. Heinz Tarragon Vinegar
55. Heinz Rice Flakes
56. Heinz Breakfast Wheat
57. Heinz Tomato Juice"
---Heinz Book of Salads, [H. J. Heinz Co:Pittsburgh] 1930 (p. 92)
When the end of Prohibition was in sight, furturists pondered what "new" drinking establishments would be like.
Men-only saloons went the way of the horse and buggy. Hush-hush speakeasies were no longer needed. What would the future
bring? Plenty of change. Most notably: respectable men and women drinking together in public. Good bye
free lunch. Hello bar menus. How much did drinks cost?
"First the old-fashioned saloon, then the newfangled speakeasy, then what? This is the question which bobs up these days like the ghost of
Banquo at Macbeth's feast to trouble both the moderates and the wringing wets. If it is beer alone which is being discussed, the discussion as to
whether to sell it in barrels or battles in hotels and restaurant or over the counter like ice cream soda is as important as its alcoholic content.
When the total repeal of prohibition comes up the question becomes even more complicated. The only point on which almost all the advocates of
beer and light wines and some of the advocates of cups which inebriate as well as cheer seem agreed is that the saloons shall not return. To make
this statement is a little like saying that the Victorian red plush sofa or the horse and buggy shall not return, for, whatever the laws of the land
may be, the saloon, as America once knew it, is an out of date as those two ounce cherished institutions. two-thirds of Congress and
three-fourths of the States may conceivably join to legalize hard drinking. ..The saloon brought about prohibition, but the process cannot be
worked backward--the repeal of prohibition cannot bring back the saloon...The things that killed the saloon were those that made it picturesque.
Its allurement and its wickedness were those of a vanished day when, for hundreds of thousands of men, drinking was almost the only cheap and
regular entertainment available during the hours of more or less elegant leisure. This being true, it is now possible to regard the saloon as a
historical episode and not as a live issue and to approach it--figuratively speaking--with the philosophical detachment of one contemplating a
social trend which has curled up and died. There are...many misconceptions about it. it has had its better enemies and some who have seen it
both good and evil. It was infinitely better than the vile speakeasies which sell 'smoke' in the poorest sections of New York; it was no worse than
the beer houses which now clutter floors in mid-manhattan; and it was worse in some ways than the quieter speakeasies so largely patronized by
men and women who want good food with cocktails or wine...Whether for better or worse, it was unique in its masculinity...'The best patron of a
saloon is the man with the biggest thirst'...Patrons of the saloons did get drunk. The worse the saloon, the more drunks. But, as social workers and
clergymen have admitted, inebriation was not the saloon's only product. Frequently the saloon served the best food in the neighborhood, including
food for the mind as well as the body. It was of the home of a local debating society...Through saloons men kept track of one another,
particularly in factory or mill districts; the bartender was a purveyor of news as well as of refreshment..Very different are the speakeasies which
have taken the place of the workingman's saloon--dispensaries in the rear of buildings where dinks may be had for 10 cents and up. There was a
time when 15 cents would buy a drink of good whisky; the same amount now buys only 'smoke,' a concoction able to produce an intoxication that
is a complete physical and nervous collapse...'Smoke' places cater to the down-and-out; they are seldom frequented by men who work.
Workingmen with jobs and able to afford anything alcoholic usually make it a home. The cheap speakeasy as a Hogarthian degradation. The old
Bowery knew something just as low, but there such saloons were segregated by custom and the gregariousness of the 'bum.' Now the vicious,
illegal drinking place has spread over the poorer sections of the city. The war and prohibition brought about radical changes in the drinking habits
of Americans, principally because of the participation of women. The cocktail hour was more or less recognized during the war was no longer an
exclusively masculine privilege..the speakeasy was at first largely a place for men, with indifferent attention to food and no attempt to cultivate
an 'atmosphere.' It was some time before the speakeasy lost the air of surreptitious wickedness and became a normal part of the life in Eastern
cities. And in its evolution it was affected tremendously by the insistence of men on sharing it with women--or perhaps it was the other way
around. The old custom of standing at the bar and downing glasses of beer or highballs gave way to sitting in a quiet and curtained dining room
and consuming hard liquor at leisure. Speakeasies to a large extent have followed a natural development determined by feminine emancipation. If
prohibition had not arrived it is certain nevertheless that there would have been much more public drinking by women than there was in the '90s;
prohibition added the zest of the forbidden and so hastened the sharing by women of what had been man's exclusive privilege in this country.
There are many restaurants what come under the designation of speakeasies because the serve liquor, which are as quite and dignified as any
old-time chop house. As a matter of fact, speakeasies are seldom riotous places--the feminine influence is too strong. Their proprietor have
learned that by serving good food as well as liquor they can keep a clientele indefinitely...They have their greatest patronage in the evening,
drawing from the middle class, whose men would seldom have frequented the saloon at night. The speakeasy's place has become so firmly fixed, at
least in New York life, that probably beer alone could not dislodge it. There are as many kinds of speakeasies as there were saloons, but they
types of men who frequent them are more restricted. At the bar of the average saloon men of every class rubbed shoulders, but such bars were
no more like those of the average modern speakeasy than they were like the bar of Sherry's, quite to the point of exclusiveness. The present
home of liquid refreshment may be a baronial-appearing house off Fifth Avenue or a dive near the waterfront--both are speakeasies. One is more
expensive than the other and does not poison its patrons; both are equally illegal, and the difference between the people who go to them is the
difference between the extremes of society...At noon and from the hour before dinner until late at night these places are often filled with men and
women, and the number of women who go together without feeling the need for masculine escort is astonishingly large. Such places have become
the playgrounds of a certain type of New Yorker; they are frequently garish in decoration, completely dominated by woman's influence...For a large
group of moderate drinkers who used to drop into saloons occasionally, but who now cannot afford to patronize speakeasies and do not care to
corrode their interiors with 'smoke,' there is a fascinating occupation of making beer, wine or other liquor at home. At the worst, unless something
blows up, this helps to keep the family together. But both the speakeasy and home brewing are doomed if repeal brings with it the sale of alcoholic
drinks at a price the average man can afford. So we come to the 'then what?' phrase of our discussion. Whatever it is that takes the place of the
legalized drinking places of old, it is certain that it will have competition that the saloon did not have. Life is not so monotonous as it was--at least
there are more kinds of monotony. Since prohibition began, in 1919, attendance at motion picture theatres has about tripled--the motion picture
now occupies two hours or more of the average person's time each week. In 1919 radio broadcasts did not exist--now there are perhaps
16,000,000 sets, brining into what Victorians would have called the parlor practically everything in the civilized world, from Kings and Presidents to
symphony orchestras, jazz bands and 'crooners' that can make an interesting noise...On summer Sundays all who can afford the cheapest
second-hand car take to the road...These changes make it certain that no drinking place can ever occupy the place that the old-fashioned saloon
did. There is too much competition. But that there is a demand for some form of social drinking is proved by the existence of the speakeasy. Beer
which can only be guzzled in the privacy of one's home will not eliminate the speakeasy...The American substitute for the saloon may be a 'beer
parlor,' such as may be found in several of the Canadian Provinces...As it is impossible to image the speakeasy continuing indefinitely as an illegal
institution, it seems reasonable to expect that, in New York, at least, the drinking place of the future will serve strong drink as well as beer and
light wines. But it will not be, in the old meaning of the word, a saloon. Probably, like most present-day speakeasies, it will be a restaurant. The
art of cooking may be revived, since with profits from the sale of drinks restaurant proprietors can afford to lose or break even on the sale of food
alone. But mainly the difference between the new saloon and the old will like in the refining and restraining., if also intriguing, presence of women
in most drinking places. Once man was able to take the jungle when he became temporarily tired of the distaff side of his family. Later he took to
the saloon. Prohibition destroyed that last refuge; repeal will not restore it. The drinking place of the future will be co-educational."
---"From Saloon to Speakeasy--and Now? The Change in the Social Picture Makes Us Wonder About Our Future Drinking Places," Russell Owen,
New York Times, January 22, 1933 (p. SM6)
"In the pre-war days the cocktail was a pre-dinner drink, now it precedes almost everything; sometimes it just appears from out of the nowhere and with no
excuse." (p. 45)..."A cocktail is an American invention and not one to be particularly proud of, for strangely enough, a cocktail to be good, must be so cold it can
hardly be tasted. However, a cocktail is a social drink and it has increased in popularity a hundredfold since Prohibition made it 'smart.' A modern cocktail is a fruit
juice with synthetic gin or raw apple brandy; it is made every way in every place and is drunk before, after and between meals. Probably the original cocktail was
what is now called an 'old fashioned' one; next came the 'Manhattan' then the ''Martini' followed by a 'Bronx,' and from then on, most anything. These formulae are
presented for their historic value only or in case the age of reason returns."
---The Gun Club Cook Book, or a Culinary Code for Appreciative Epicures, Charles Browne, revised edition [Charles Scriber's Sons:New York]
1934 (p. 262-263)
[NOTES: (1) The Gun Club was located in Princeton, NJ. (2) The title page of this book credits Mr. Browne as 'Sometimes Mayor of Princeton; one time Member of
Congress; A.M., M.D., and some other things, but primarily interested in cookery."]
---"Capital Kitchen," Susan Mills, Washington Post, March 9, 1934 (p.. 12)
"One of the odd developments of our thirteen-year 'drought' was the increasing popularity of the cocktail habit: the mixing of this
potent drink was always a favorite topic of converstaion. Today, with foreign lands andour own distilleries contributing more and more
varieties of liquors to its concocting, the mixing of cocktails is becoming more of an art than ever before. And the cocktail party,
which usually begins late in the afternoon and lasts for a few hours at least, is now and established institution...Tradition traces
the cocktail to Mexico. It is said that an Aztec chief, on receiving a delectable stimulating drink named it a 'xoctl,' after the
maid who brought it to him. And incredible legend this, as the New World had no distilled liquors until the white man
brought his firestarter. One might as reasonably attribute the coctail to the lost Atlantis. Washington Irving refers to a colorfu
gin drink of the early Dutch setters of New York which had the iridescence of the rear plumage of roosters--hence, some people say,
the name 'cocktail.' Another legend is that the cocktail was first offered 'well shaken before taking' at the Wayside Inn at
Scarsdale, N.Y. The mixer was Betsy Flanagan. According to this legend also the various hues of the liquors used were responsible for
the name. Whatever its origin, the cocktail has been recognized everywhere as an early American work, and its creation has enlisted the
highest talent. Nathanie Hawthorne in his novel, 'The Blithesdale Romance' (1852), makes honorable mention of a man as
'being famous for nothing but gin cocktails and commanding a fair salary for that one accomplishment.' An attempt to take from this
country the credit of inventing the appetizer has been made in behalf of Engand. It is based on certain passages in the
Thackaray novels
describing the adventures of one Arthur Pendennis. Harry Foker is advised to take 'some cocktail.' Thackeray's knowledge of the
American drink was only literary and he probably never tasted a cocktail until 1852, when he was in the United States on his first
lecture tour. An honest mistake may have been made by those who have heard that certain palate-provoking elixers were first
compounded at the Pendennis Club, named in honor of the Thackeray hero. That club, however, was not in London, but in Louisville,
Ky. and was famed for its mint juleps. Cocktails, however, were drunk in the United States long before the Pendennis was
founded, and were enjoyed in New England and New York in various guises. They were served thoroughy iced. The geniuses of the American
drinking bar have evolved a thousand cocktails of varied flavors and picturesque names. Albert S. Crockett, historian of the old
Waldorf-Astoria, gives the recipes of more than 300 served at that hotel alone. New plays, news events, sports, popular songs,
have inspired their titles. The 'cocktail hour' not ony whets the appetite for food, but also satisfies it. One need never leave it
hungery. With the many drinks are eaten delicate gastronomic bits--caviar, anchovies, rare cheeses, red salmon roe, crisp crackers and
biscuits; constant processions of tempting canapes and hors d'oeuvres passed on trays, in seemingly undiminished numbers.
The cocktail hour has qualified as a social institution."
---"Our Cocktails Travel Far: They Influence Habits, Manners, Even Arts," John W. Harrington, New York Times, January
20, 1935 (p. SM17)
"The day is past for cocktails made with gin and ingenuity only. We may now enjoy a multitude of more regular and less inspirational concoctions, among which the
following are perhaps the best known: Bacardi Cocktail, Barker Special, Benedictine Cocktail, Bronx Cocktail. Clover Club Cocktail, Five Fruits Cocktail,
Gin Cocktail, Hawaiian Cocktail, Manhattan Cocktail, Martini Cocktail, Dry Martini Cocktail, Old-Fashioned Cocktails, Orange Blossom Cocktail, Paradise Cocktail,
Presidente, Queen Elizabeth Cocktail, Sherry Cocktail, Waldorf Cocktail, Whisky Cocktail, Sidecar and Whisky Sour."
---Joy of Cooking, Irma S. Rombauer [Bobbs-Merrill:Indianapolis IN] 1936 (p. 551-553)
[NOTE: Rombauer suugests these foods:
"Alcoholic or non-alcoholic cocktails--either or both. A choice of the following suggestions: Stuffed Celery, Olives, Radishes,
Marinated Mushrooms, Hot Ripe Olives, Potato Chips and Cheese, Antipasto, Lobster Spread Sandwiches, Caviar and Cucumber
Canapes, Very Small Hot Toasted Sandwiches or Puff Shells I (mushroom, cream cheese, liver sausage, oyster, etc.), Pastr Snails,
Shrimp Surrounding a Small Hollowed Cabbage Filled with Mayonnaise, Meat in Pie Dough (Rissoles), Codfish Balls, Tiny Broiled
Sausages with Mustard Cream, Chicken Livers in Blankets, Broiled Sardine Canapes, Deviled Sardines, Rolled Tongue or Chipped Beef Hors d'oeuvres,
Lettuce Sandwiches, Crab or Lobster Canapes, Pretzels and Cream Cheese, Pickled Onions and Bacon, Bacon and Saltine Canapes, Oyster Canapes,
Salted Nuts." (p. 569-570).]
---June Platt's Party Cookbook, June Platt [Houghton Mifflin:Boston MA] 1936 (p. 225)
[NOTE: Savory recipes included in this chapter are: Coeur a la Creme, Pain Surprise (hollowed & filled bread loaf), Chopped Mushroom and Mayonnaise Filling, Tomato
Sandwiches, Cucumber and Chopped Sweet Onion Filling, Chopped Walnut and Watercress Filling, Ham and Horseradish Sandwiches, Shrimp and Horseradish filling, Hot
Bacon Biscuits, Potato Chips with Cream Cheese, Raw Vegetables, Liverwurst Appetizers, Shrimps and Mayonnaise and Chili Sauce, Hot Sausage Rolls. (p. 225-237).]
[NOTES: (1) Hors d'ourvre recipes are classed as liquid (non-alcoholic Clam Juice Cocktail, Clam and Tomato Juice, Sauerkraut and Clam Juice, Tomato Juice)
or solid (Anchovy Canapes Anchovy, Bacon and Stuffed Olive Canapes, Anchovy, Devied Ham, and Egg Canapes, Anchovy and Olive Roll, Anchovy Filets,
Caviar Canapes (5 kinds), Cheese Canapes, Ham Canapes, Ham-and-Celery Roll, Ham and Stuffed Olivers Canapes, Ham and Tomato Summer Canapes, Horesradish Canapes, Mushroom
and Ham Canapes, Parmesan and Ham Canapes, Pate de Foie Gras Canapes (mock & real), Salmon Canapes, Sardine Canapes and Tomato Canapes) Sandwiches
and Fillings, Rarebits and Chafing Dish recipes merit individual chapters. (2) Selected cocktails, including the most
popular drinks of the Western World from this book.]
---The Settlement Cook Book, Mrs. Simon Kander [Settlement Cook Book
Co.:Milwaukee WI] 1936 (p. 608-616)
"The Cocktail Party. Your husband, brother or some family friend will superintend the drinks, or, if you are a bachelor girl, a
masculine friend--under your supervision. Drink may be mixed and poured in the kitchen or in the corner of the living room on a small
table set with a simple cloth for protection and a tray bearing the ncessary mixing ingredients and utensils...The filled glasses are
passed on a tray holding an equivalent number of diminutive cocktail napkins. Each guests removes a napkin with the drink as it is
presented to him. Drip protectors may include coasters or some composition of impervious to stains from alcohol, or they may be crochedted or
knitted 'jackets' which fit over the foot or base of the class. Coasters are passed with the drinks and each guest is requsted to take one to use
underneath his drink for protection of the table tops. The 'jacket' type of drip protectors are fieed to the glasses before passing
them...At a cocktail party the food served is rightfully termed 'snacks.' Besides varieties of simple crackers, salted nuts, olives and
popcorn, any savory canape may put in an appearance...Sandwiches if served should be very small in size to whet the appetite rather than
appease it. Sweets, including cake in any form, or candy, are not for the cocktail party--not, as one might suppose, because they are too
lady-like; simply that they interfere with the enjoyment of substantial food which properly follows cocktails, either at dinner, or at
supper if the party is held in the evening."
---America's Cook Book/Home Institute of the New York Herald Tribune [Charles Scribner's Sons:New York]1937 (p. 888)
[NOTE: This book offers recipes for: "Gin Cocktails, Martini, Bronx, Alexander, Orange Blossom, Grapefruit; Whiskey Cocktails...Manhattan (dry), Manhattan (old), Whiskey Sour, Old-Fashioned;
Rum Cocktails...Bacardi, Daiquiri, Planter's Punch; Miscellaneous Cocktails...Dubonnet, Coq Rouge, Applejack, Frosted Mint, Mint Julep, Champagne Cocktail,
Gin Rickey, Tom Collins, Whiskey Highball, Hot Whiskey Toddy." (p. 846-849)]
---"150 Dogs Are Hosts At Cocktail Party," New York Times, November 18, 1937 (p. 25)
"Consider for a moment the herculean task of feeding 50,000,000 people. Yet that is the number of visitors expected at the New York World's Fare of
1939. Statisticians predict that each visitor will spend seven to seven and one-half hours within the grounds per visit. Since
during a period of seven hours the average person eats at least twice, the imagination staggers at the amount of food that will be
consumed each day at the Fair. Considering, further, the well-known effect of fresh air and exercise upon the appetite, it is not
unlikely that many will eat a third time. Architects planning restaurants figure in acres, dietitians in tons...Comfortably to ffe this
multitude is a gigantic undertaking. Eighty restaurants wtih a total seating capacity of 43,200 will be necessary to meet the
need...To ally any lurking feat that the cost of eating at the fair may be prohibitive, let it be said that plans have been made to
fit every pocket-book. There will be hot dogs and hamburgers; snack bars, sandwich bars, beer gardens. One company will specialize in
hot roast beef sandwiches. There will be moderate-priced table d'hote meals and all kinds of dining up to and including the de luxe.
There need be no disappointment for those people who can never forget that perfect dish found in a little French restaurant, or
those who long to taste again the Rijstaple of the Netherland's far-off and exotic East Indies. Americans in recent years have become
fond of dining al fresco, and this prediliction has not been forgotten in the planning of eating places...One of the most
interesting, as well as one of the largest, of the restaurants will boast an American cuisine, and to make ordering easy for guests from
across the seas there will be waiters fluent in a dozen different tongues...Of importance in the pageant of American food will
be that which comes from the sea...for New York can provide some of the finest seafood in the world. Inspite of the profuse offerings of
luxuries to be found upon the menus at the Fair, there will be some visitors with less experimental palates...For them there is to be
a restaurant where under one roof may be found special local dishes from twenty sections of the United States...The foreign groups will do their part to
gratify all types of palates, even the most curious. In fact, it will be possible on the Flushing Meadows to take a gourmet's trip around
the world. ...Among the exotic setting will be the Japanese...vistors may consume sukiayki...or the more elaborate feast which is called
by the Japanese "banquet food."...In the Italian section there will be two restaurants, the favorite spaghetti to be served inone, and tin the
other formal Italian dishes...Perhaps the Swedish and Norwegian smorgasbords might be called the ultimate in snack bars...
Rumania hopes to import game; Belgium's offering will include her excellent sorrel soup...There will be Turkish coffee,...hot
chile con carne from Mexico. From Greece will come liquors and rare fruits, and an unforgetable delight will be the strawverries from the
little Grand Duchy of Luxembourg--strawberries dripping ripe, in Moselle wine. France will serve French food de luxe in an
equally de luxe setting...[serving] turbot of sole, souffle au rhum, lobster thermidor, poulet farci en cocotte..."
---"There'll be All Kinds of Food at the Fair," Kiley Taylor, New York Times, January 20, 1939 (p. SM9)
Rationing was introduced in the United States by the Office of Price Administration in 1942 as a
way to equitably distribute diminishing food supplies. It ended in 1947. The
American government encouraged homeowners to create Victory Gardens, small plots of fruits
and vegetables to supplement personal and community food supplies. Nutrition information was
also widely disseminated to help home cooks create balanced meals for their families. The
National School Lunch Act was passed in 1946, extending Roosevelt's New Deal WPA
committment to feeding America's hungry children to ensure a healthy future.
In all places and times, prices are determined by supply and demand. During WWII, chickens producers were
required by law to divert the majority of their birds to suppling US military. This resulted in product
scarcity for civilian consumers, which drove prices up. The Office of Price Administration (OPA) tried
regulating these prices. Chicken industry leaders fought back. "The current shortage of poultry for
consumers has been due largely to two regulations, one of which directed the sale of all broilers in eight
leading poultry-producing states to the Government for military use, and the other ordered the canning of
seventy million pounds of boned chicken and turkey for the services. A total of about 250,000,000 pounds of
poultry will be needed to fill the two orders."
---"Chicken Prices Will Rise 1 1/2 Cents," New York
Times, March 24, 1945 (p. 20)
"Secretary of Agriculture Clinton P. Anderson in a sudden move late today ended household and institutional sugar rationing effective at 12:01 A.M. tomorrow.
Rationing to industrial users of sugar continues and price controls on sugar and related products are not affected by the order. Today's action market the end of a
war-rationing system which went into effect in April, 1942."
---"Rationing of Sugar Ended Except for Industrial Use," Bess Furman, New York Times, June 12, 1947 (p. 1)
[NOTE: Historic newspaper databases are excellent resources for identifying exact dates for rationing milestones for particular commodities. Your local public
librarian can help you connect. You might be able to do this from home!]
Grandma's Wartime Baking Book/Joanne Lamb Hayes--history notes & modernized
recipes
Grandma's Wartime Kitchen/Joanne Lamb Hayes---WWII American cooking notes and
recipes
Fashionable Foods/Sylvia Lovgren---food fads by decade
American Decades: 1940-1949/Victor Biondi (editor)
Food service establishments (restaurants, hotels, hospitals, schools, cafes) were subject to rationing from 1943-1946. The
rules & formulas were very different
from civilian home use. Restaurant were issued "Red Points" by the federal government based on the number of meals/customers served. People paid money, not points, for meals outside the
home. Generally, restaurants could "spend" these points any way they wanted. Customers used money, not ration books, to
pay for meals. In one case, it was suggested that resort guests "pool" their points for aggregate feeding. This appears to
be a suggestion, not a regulation.
These are extracted from the Good Housekeeping Cook Book, New Edition, completely
revised 1944 [Farrar & Rinehart:New York].
Canapes with spreads (avacado, blue and cream cheese spread, hame and olive ), welsh rarebit
toasties, cocktail sausages, raw vegetable platter (with Thousand Island dressing or creamy horse
radish sauce), stuffed celery stalks.
Breakfast: Tomato juice, ready-prepared whole grain or enriched grain cereal with whole
milk, buttered enriched white toast.
Lunch: Panned kidney beans, pickled beets, raisin bread, butter or fortified margarine,
gelatine fruit dessert.
Dinner: Meat ball stew, pickle relish, lettuce, nippy mayonnaise dressing, rye bread,
butter or fortified margarine, pudding, lemon sauce.
Lunch box: Sliced ham loaf on enriched white bread, peanut butter "pop-u," sandwich
filling on raisin bread, cottage cheese, wedge of cabbage, lemon sponge cake.
Breakfast: Applesauce, corn meal griddle cakes, syrup for pancakes and waffles
Lunch: Bean and barley soup, cottage cheese and prune salad, enriched white bread,
butter or fortified margarine, orange slices.
Dinner: Scrambled eggs and carrots with toasted bread cubes, creamed stewed tomatoes,
cole slaw, evaporated milk dressing, whole wheat bread, butter or fortified margarine, assorted
nuts and raisins.
Lunch box: Mashed potato soup, pimento sandwich filling on cracked wheat bread,
peanut-prune sandwich filling on soya bread, grapefruit sections, butterscotch pudding
---Meal Planning Guide, Home Economics Institute [Westinghouse Electric &
Manufacturing Co.:Mansfield OH] November 1943 (p. 20-1)
---Good Housekeeping, 1944 (p. 899-900)
NO. 1: Whole Baked Ham, slightly warm, Horseradish Sauce...Shrimp or Lobster Aspic...with Blackstone Dressing...Macaroni with Tomatoes
and Mushrooms...Crescent Rolls, Milwaukee Rye Bread, Chocolate Coffee Ice Cream, Almond or Peanut Cookies, Orange Sticks,
Stuffed Dates, Coffee."
---The Settlement Cook Book, Mrs. Simon Kander [Settlement Cook Book Co.:Milwaukee WI], 25th edition enlarged and revised, 1943 (p. 610)
---Good Housekeeping, 1944 (p. 889)
USO canteens were true community efforts. Most of the food was donated. The fare was generally simple (sandwiches, hamburgers, hot dogs, pie, cake, coffee,
&c.) and portable. The primary rule was "Have enough."
---"Chicago Throws a Party," Saturday Evening Post, July 18, 1942 (p. 62)
---"14,000 Service Men Guests of Brooklyn USA in Month," Catherine Maher, New York Times, November 29, 1942 (p. D3)
1. Sliced Sweet and Sour Tongue, Potato Pudding, Vegetable Plate: Cauliflower, Beets, Green Beans, Buffet Salad Plate, Rye
Bread or Crusty Rolls, Fruit Plate, Nut Overnight Cookies, Coffee or Tea.
2. Baked Bean Rarebit or Baked Beans, Tossed Lettuce and Tomato Salad, Brown Bread or Soybean Muffins, Honey Jelly,
Molasses Cookies, Hone Ice Cream, Coffee or Tea.
3. Cheese Frankfurters, Toasted Buns, Coleslaw, Red, White, and Blue Fruit Cup, Coffee or Tea.
4. Spaghetti with Meat Balls, Tossed Lettuce, Tomato, and Radish Salad Bowl, Hard Rolls ro Bread, Relish Tray, Rye Bread Torte,
Coffee or Tea.
5. Chicken Pie de Luxe, Fresh Green Salad, Assorted Rolls or Baking Poweder Biscuits, Jam and Relish Tray, Chilled Fresh
Fruit, Honey Drop Cookies, Coffee or Tea.
6. Cold Cuts Platter, Farmer's Chop Suey, Bacon and Hominy, Hot Rolls or Bread, Caramel Orange Cake, Coffee or Tea."
---Wartime Entertaining, Ethel X. Pastor [Consolidated Book Publishers:Chicago] 1942
[NOTE: This
booklet offers several theme parties, popular games, and photos of food. Sorry, no recipes. If you would like us to scan, fax or mail please let us know.]
Prohibition recently repealed, Great Depression in full swing, World War II looming in the near future. Americans took
this time to create a new ways to entertain. The Cocktail Party, as we Americans know it today, was perfected in this decade.
James Beard's detailed instructions for hosting successful cocktail parties, includes 15
"must have" drinks. Raising the bar: New York City's Stork Club cocktail &
Trader Vic's exotic conconctions, 1946.
"In America since the repeal of the Prohibition Amendment there has developed a new and, at times, delightful form of hospitality--the cocktail party. With this has
come the use of the age old French term from 'outside the meal' food. But instead of huge buffets groaning with succulent morsels, as in European homes
(formerly!), the age old appetizer has become streamlined along with our trains and automobiles and living. We have developed a most amazing variety of finger
food to go with the cocktail and the glass of sherry, literally hundreds of variations, some of course borrowed from our European and Asiatic backgrounds and
many that are distinctly our own. In many ways this is one of the most truly American contributions to the art of good living. It is with this finger food that I am
concerned in this book and with the cocktail party, whether it be the simple 'drop in for a drink' type or the great 'crush' that pays a year's social depts in one fell
swoop. To the average American hostess, practically everything from a potato chip to a whole, six-rib roast of beef comes under the term hors d'oeuvre...
Americans have developed what is known as the cocktail hors d'oeuvre ro snack. This is a small 'hasty bite' served usually without bread or biscuit, sometimes on a
toothpick and sometimes under its own power. Hot hors d'oeuvre may be eaten with a fork, as they often have a heavy sauce or a marinee."
---Hors D'Oeuvre and Canapes With a Key to the Cocktail Party, James Beard [M. Barrows:New York] 1940 (Introduction, p. ix-x)
[NOTE: this book offers dozens of hot & cold cocktail hors d'oeuvre recipes but no suggested menus. Index here.
Happy to supply selected recipes; let us know what you need.]
"Tea and Cocktails.
The cocktail hour is one of our American inventions...The first requisite for a party is good liquor. The second is
plenty of it. Don't try substituting the second recommendation for the first. Lots of people do that, and for that
reason lots of men shy away from the cocktails they are offered a parties. They prefer to do their drinking at a
bar where they can see the bottle form which their drinks are poured. Good liquor is not cheap. Cheap liquor is
not good. Nor will a lot of very fancy canapes make up for poor drinks...If you're entertaining on a shoestring and
have to count the pennies very carefully, then why go in for cocktails at all? Why not be smartly proletarian and
have beer on tap or ready to serve from cold bottles, complete with hearty foods? Or, if your friends are
connoissuers of wine, why not have some very good white wine and ask your friends in to try this with some dry,
slightly sweet biscuits or sponge cake? Or hunt about for one of the very little known Swedish punches-and
these are powerful too. Build your party around this with some really Swedish hors d'oeuvres, arranged as
smoregasbord.
But let us say that you have decided to give your friends cocktails, and the best of their kind. The immediate
question is which kind. At the River Club in New York, as the bartender told me, the six most popular mixed
drinks are: bacardi cocktails, daiquiris, dry martinis, manhattans, old-fashioned cocktails and whisky sours.
Usually, and for even a fairly large party, dry martinis, with whiskey and soda highballs, sherry, iced fruit juice and
milk for the many who are on diets but who like going to parties just the same, offer something for every taste.
You can mix martinis just before the party and have them ready to pour into cracked ice to be stirred round and
round when the guests begin to arrive. Martinis are always stirred, not shaken. An olive is dropped into the glass;
the cocktail is poured over it; a thin slice of lemon rind is twisted above the glass to let one drip of the pungent oil
fall into it, and the martini is ready.
There's an exact ritual about the glasses for various drinks. Men are proverbially particular about this point.
Perhaps you can't honestly feel that it's a life-or-death matter to serve each drink in its properly ordained glass,
but probably your husband does...If you are having your firends come to the house for cocktails it is well to have
tea, too, since a number of people really prefer it to any othe drink during the afternoon...What to serve with
cocktails? Since Repeal American ingenuity has been at work inventing canapes that cause foreigners to gasp at
our temerity. Daring combinations of oysters, peanut butter, caviar, anchovies and melted cheese are set out to
betray the unwary into indigestion."
---Entertaining is Fun! How to be a popular hostess/Dorothy Draper [Doubleday, Doran & Company:New York]
1941 (p. 67-70)
Cocktail parties
NO. 1: Beverages: Liquor cocktails, Yellow tomato juice cocktail, Dubonnet and Sherry, Ice cubes, Charged water,
Ginger ale, Bourbon, Rye, and Scotch Whisky. Platter of hot appetizers: Sardine pasties, Rolled toast with
mushrooms, Cheese puffs, Snacks in bacon blankets, Crabmeat or lobster canapes, Picquant puffs. Platter of cold
appetizers: Rainbow rye bread appetizer, Canapes of Smoke salmon, Stuffed celery stalk with crabmeat, Caviar
sandwiches...piped with cream cheese, Rolled sandwiches filled with mock pate de foie gras or any spread, Dried beef snacks,
Raw chopped meat.
---The Settlement Cook Book, Mrs. Simon Kander [Settlement Cook Book Co.:Milwaukee WI], 25th edition enlarged and revised, 1943 (p. 611)
"Canape spread-your-owns
An informal way of serving a first course of canapes is to arrange several canape spreads each in a
small, attractive bowl. Arrange the bowls on a tray, along with individual butter spreads. Put the
tray on a convenient table in the living room. Beside it, arrange plates of assorted crackers, with
toasted bread, Melba toast, bread sticks, potato chips, celery sticks or, if desired, halves of
hard-cooked eggs from which the yolks have been removed and used in one of the spreads. Then
let
the guests spread their own canapes and fill their own celery sticks and eggs, to be eaten with fruit
juice, vegetable juice, or other cocktails. Or if you are having a leisurely meal and can take a little
more than the usual time for the first course, bring in your toaster, and toast crisp hot pieces of
bread for the assorted spreads in bowls. In fact, you can buy a combination toaster and tray with
several dishes designed to hold assorted canape spreads. Such spread-your-owns are excellent too
as an afternoon snack, served with tea or coffee." (p. 109)
Hors d'oeuvres, like canapes, should be of such a size that they can be easily eaten in one or two
mouthfuls. You may arrange two or three varieties on a tray as an accompaniment to a first
course of fruit juice, vegetable juice or other kinds of cocktails, served in the living room before
luncheon, dinner, or supper. Frequently one or several kinds of hors d'oeuvres which can be easily
eaten with the fingers are arranged on a platter and passed to each guest, at the table, as an
accompaniment to the first course of tomato juice, clam juice, or similar cocktail, which is in place
at each cover just before or after the guests sit down. If you want something unusual as a
refreshment for an afternoon or evening party, a club meeting or afternoon tea--try serving an
assortment of hors d'ouvres such as those which follow with a cup of tea or coffee, or with a
cooling vegetable juice or fruit juice cocktail." (p. 111-2)
"Fruit and fish cocktails are often served in cocktail glasses, designed for the purpose, which fit
into bowls holding crushed ice. If these are not available however, or a simple service is desired,
sherbet glasses may be used instead. In either case, arrange the bowl or sherbet glass on a small
plate, and then place on the service plate at each cover, either just before the guests sit down or
immediately thereafter. They oyster fork for the the fish cocktail, or the spoon for the fruit
cocktail, should be placed at the extreme right of the silver at the right of the service plate. Juice
cocktails such as tomato, vegetable, or fresh or canned fruit juice may also be served in cocktail
glasses set in bowls of crushed ice. Or, simple cocktail glasses without the bowls for ice may be
used...Many hostesses like to serve a first course of tomato, vegetable, or fruit juice, or other
cocktail with or without a few hors d'oeuvres...in the livingroom. The juice cocktail in cocktail
glasses is passed, with a small cocktail napkin for each guest, from a tray. A small plate may be
placed under each cocktail glass if desired. Then the hors d'oeuvres, one or more as preferred
(select ones which can be eaten with the fingers) are passed from plate or platter. In serving such
a first course in the living room, the hostess without a maid has an opportunity to slip out and get
the main course on the table, while the guests are enjoying their cocktails." (p. 117)
---Good Housekeeping Cook Book, New Edition, completely
revised 1944 [Farrar & Rinehart:New York]
"At least one cafe has brought out the Atomic Bomb Cocktail, price 75 cents, and positively only one to a customer."
---"Living with the Atom," Edwardsville Inteigencer [IL], August 31, 1945 (p. 2)
---"'Atom Bomb' Drinks Blamed for Bigamy," Washington Post, March 20, 1946 (p. 12)
"An Englishman orders whisky and soda, an Italian vermouth, a Scandinavian aquavit, a Russian vodka and an American--well, almost anything that combines many things. Our taste
for mixing alcoholic beverages is kown the globe around; the cocktail is as much a part of the national scene as the World Series and the drug store that sells
everything but refrigerators. Here in New York, entertainment capital of the country, restaurants, night clubs and hotels often cater to our predilection for mixed
drinks by featuring at least one as their specialty. For example, the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel not only has the Waldorf-Astroia cocktail, but also the Waldorf cocktail, the New
Waldorf cocktail and the Astoria cocktail, in addition to six others!...Astoria Cocktail: 1/2 part gin, 2/3 part French vermouth, Two dashes orange bitters. Stir with ice,
strain and serve."
---"News of Food: Club and Hotel Cocktail Recipes Show Americans' Predilection for Mixed Drinks," Jane Nickerson, New York Times, October 23, 1946 (p. 31)
"Cocktail Parties
(For large groups-more than 12)
Pineapple centerpiece Appetizer, surrounded with small round cakes, Stuffed olive pinwheels, Sailboat
appetizers, Caviar-egg Appetizer, Swan-Shrimp Appetizer, Man's favorite appetizer, Hot cheese
soullfe appetizer, Assorted small cakes or cookies, Cocktails, Dry wines and Fruit juice punch.
---Antoinette Pope School Cookbook, Antoinette and Francois Pope [MacMillan:New York] 1948 (p.
345) [NOTE: We can fax/mail the recipe pages to you.]
Popular alcoholic beverages, 1949:
The following drinks are offered in James Beard's Fireside Cook Book [Simon & Schuster:New York]
1949 (p. 303-306)
Abbey Cocktail, Alexander Cocktail, Applejack Cocktail, Bacardi Cocktail, Bijou Cocktail, Black
Velvet, Bobby Burns Cocktail, Brandy Cocktail, Brandy Smash, Bronx Cocktail, Clover Club Cocktail,
Daiquiri, Dubbonet Cocktail, French 75, Frozen Daquiri, Gibson Cocktail, Jack Rose Cocktail,
Manhattan Cocktail, Martini Cocktail (dry), Martini Cocktail (sweet), Old Fashioned Cocktail, Pink
Lady Cocktail, Rob Roy Cocktail, Sidecar Cocktail, Stinger Cocktail, Vodka Cocktail, Zombie.
Long Drinks:
Blue Blazer, Champaige Punch, Cobblers, Collins, Daisy, Eggnogg, Fizz, Flips, Golden Fizz,
Highballs, Hot Buttered Rum, Mint Julep, Rickeys, Silver Fizz, Slings, Smashers, Sours, Swizzles,
Toddies, Tom and Jerry, Whiskey Cooler.
After WWII, returning GIs spread the word of exotic foods to their friends and families. Hawaiian
luaus were among the most intriguing. Savvy restauranteurs and trendy
hostesses embraced the opportunity to explore different flavors, optimize creative decorations, and introduce alternative dining
customs. Trader Vic (Victor Bergeron) built an empire on this premise. Polynesian-stlyle theme parties remained popular
into the early 1960s. Here are Trader Vic's party notes for USA home hostesses, circa 1946:
---Trader Vic's Book of Food and Drink, Victor Bergeron, with an introduction by Lucius Beebe [Doubleday & Company:Garden
City NY] 1946
[NOTE: Recipes for everything except for baked sweet potatoes, roast leg of lamb and baked ham are included in this book.
Trader Vic's cocktails & books.]
[1941] M&Ms, Cheerios
[1942] Tootsie Rolls packed in US ration kits, Post Raisin Bran, Kellogg's Raisin Bran, Dannon Yogurt
[1944] Chiquita bananas
[1945] Kraft Parmesan Grated Cheese, Welch's Junior Mints, Constant Comment Tea
[1946] Pillsbury pie crust mix, frozen french fries, Ragu spaghetti sauce, French's Instant Potatoes, & Tupperware
[1947] Pillsbury hot roll mix, Reddi-Whip, cake mixes, Lady Borden Ice Cream, Almond Joy, frozen orange juice
[1948] V8 Cocktail Vegetable Juice, Nestle Instant Tea, Minute Rice, Nestle's Quik chocolate milk additive, Cheeto's brand
snack foods
[1949] Kraft sliced American cheese, Fritos Corn Chips marketed nationally, Sara Lee Cheese cake, Junior Mints, Smarties
SOURCES: The Century in Food/Beverly Bundy, The Food Chronology/James Trager & Candy: A Swet History/Beth Kimmerle
Ritz Crackers (National Biscuit Company), Armour's Treet (canned processed meat product),
Dromedary Ginger Bread Mix (box), Gorton's Cod Fish Cakes, Dexo (shortening, canned), White
House Evaporated Milk, Gerber's Cereal Food (box), MelloWheat cereal (Ann Page brand),
Premium Crackers (National Biscuit Company), Eight O'Clock Coffee (bagged, beans ground in
store), Marvel bread (sliced white in cellophane wrap), Hecker's Fream Farina (box), Flako Pie
Crust (box, also: Flakorn corn muffin mix and Cuplets cup cake mix), Maltex (box cereal),
Beardsley's Shredded Codfish Cakes (can; "Just form and fry"), Heinz Junior Foods, SPAM (with
instructions for SPAMburgers and SPAMwiches).
Pillsbury's Best XXXX Flour (recipe for Pillsbury's Pot-Luck Pie), Armour's Treet (Hormel SPAM competitor tinned composed meat product, recipe for Cheese
Treats), Swift's Prem (Treet competitor, White House Evaoprated Milk (send away for recipe booklet featuring recipes for Oyster
Stew, Honey Ice Cream, Cocoa with Corn Syrup, Coffee Bread Pudding, Gingerbread, Cream of Pea Soup, Vegetable Pie, Chocolate
Ice Cream, Cauliflower Ring & Lamb Hach de Luxe), Underwood Deviled Ham (1821-1942), Nabisco Graham Crackers (pound cardboard
box), Kellogg's personal variety pack cereals (Corn Flakes, Rice Krispies, Pep, Shredded Wheat, Krumbles), Softasilk (Bettey
Crocker Cake flour, with Sugarless Cake recipe topped with edible decorations recreating war plane formation), Worcester Idoized
Salt (Baked Stuffed Onions recipe), Durkee's Dressing, Gerber's Baby Foods (box & can; free samples), Grandma's Molasses
(Gingerbread recipe), Cut-Rite (waxed paper), Pyrex (ovenware/flameware cooking pans), Diamond Crystal Salt, Clapp's Baby Food,
French's Mustard (bottle), Beech-Nut Gum (5-slice pack), Brer Rabbit Molasses (can, recipe for Brer Rabbit Gingerbread),
Wrigley's Spearmint Gum (Uncle Sam want men to chew), Wilson & Co. MOR (Treet, Prem, SPAM competitor), Kellogg's Corn
Flakes, Wesson Oil (large metal can), Peter Pan Peanut Butter, Heinz Baby Foods (canned, featuring strained carrots & chopped
mixed vegetables), Richardson & Robbins Boned Chicken (canned), Quaker Oats (cardboard cannister, + Quick Mother's Oats),
Borden's Smokey Cheese Spread (glass jar, pop lid, collector glass, Pillsbury's Pancake Flour, Hormel's SPAM, Skinless
Wieners and Frankfurters (no brand; promoting US War Bonds), Duff's Ginger Bread Mix, Flakorn Corn Muffin Mix, Gravy Master,
Eight O'Clock Coffee (regular, Circle & Bokar).
Heinz Oven Baked Beans (jar), Lipton's Continental Noodle Soup (dehydrated soup mix),
Campbell's Soup (tomato, asparagus, Scotch broth, cans), Bosco (chocolate flavored iron
supplement combined with milk, jar), McCormick (spices, vanilla, celery salt, tea bags, bottles &
paper boxes), Lipton tea (paper boxes), Del Monte foods (sliced peaches, jars & cans), Jell-O
puddings (chocolate, butterscotch, vanilla, with recipes), Libby's drinks (tomato juice, pineapple
juice, in cans), Nabisco 100% Bran cereal (box), Coleman's mustard (tin), Nabisco Shredded
Wheat (box), Wesson Oil (bottle), Sunkist California oranges (fresh product), Kellogg's Rice
Krispies (box), Kraft Dinner (now known as Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, box), Kraft Miracle Whip
Salad Dressing (bottle), Birds Eye frosted (frozen!) Foods (box), Chicken of the Sea tuna (cans),
Chef Boy-Ar-Dee Spaghetti Dinner ("dinner in a jiffy" kit includes sauce, spaghetti & cheese),
Gerber's Baby Foods (cereal, box; strained & chopped foods in cans), Coca Cola (6 pack of
bottles), A1 Sauce (bottle), La Rosa macaroni (spaghetti, box), B & M Baked Beans, General
Mills/Betty Crocker (cake recipe using Wheaties), Underwood Deviled Ham (can), Nestle's Semi
Sweet Chocolate (bar & morsels), French's Mustard (bottle), Armour and Company, "Star Brand"
(frankfurters, cold cuts, sausages, canned meats, ham, bacon).
Derby's Peter Pan Peanut Butter (creamy-smooth; includes pictures of open-face peanut butter
sandwich combos), Durkee's Vegetable Oleomargarine, Herb Ox Boullion Cubes, Swift's Prem
(canned meat product "Ready-to-eat, Prem is top-top meat for summer meals), Brer Rabbit Gold
Label Molasses, Chef Boy-Ar-Dee Spaghetti Dinner (packaged kit includes canned parmesan style
grated cheese, bottle of spaghetti sauce, box of spaghetti; "Even the children want second
helpings...Inexpensive...Time-Saving"), Van Camp's Chili Con Carne (glass jar), Aunt Jemima
Ready-Mix Pancakes (box), Comstock Pie Sliced Apples (glass jar), Borden's Wej-Cut Cream
Cheeses, Ovaltine, Premium Crackers (Nabisco), Armour's Treet (processed meat product),
Heinz Baby Foods (cereal, soup, porridge), Dromedary Gingerbread Mix (includes cookie
recipes: Peanut Butter Gingies and Ginger Crispies), Cocomalt (chocolate-flavored mik enhancer
with extra calcium), Kellogg's Krumbles (toasted wheat shred cereal, boxed), Derby Hot Sauce,
Softasilk Cake Flour (Betty Crocker/General Mills; includes recipe for pink and white Party
Cake), Gravy Master, Duff's Hot Muffin Mix, Libby's Tomato Juice, Ivory Salt, My-T-Fine
Desserts (pudding), SPAM, Clapp's Baby Foods.
Borden's Olive Pimento Cocktail Spread (in glass jar), Cut-Rite (waxed paper), Clapp's baby foods (cans), Ritter Tabasco Flavored
Catsup, Kellogg's Rice Krispies, Baker's De-Luxe Dutch Princess Breakfast Cocoa (powder), Royal Crown Cola (bottles), Ann Page
Sprinkle Mixture for Pudding (boxed pudding mix), Ekco pressure cooker, Brer Rabbit New Orleans Molasses (with recipe for Devil's
Food Layer Cake), Mor (canned meat product with recipe for MOR Salad Plate), White House Evaporated Milk (recipes for:
White House Swiss Lamb Chops & Curried Eggs Over Asparagus), Swift's Allsweet Vegetable Oleomargarine ("Easiest to color!"),
Eight O'Clock Coffee (A&P house brand), A&P Pound Cake (in cello-wrap), Derby Steak Sauce, Nabisco Graham Crackers, Pabst-ett
(Processed cheese), California Oranges, French's Mustard (glass jar), Gerber's Baby Foods (boxed cereal and oatmeal), California Lemons,
B & M Brick Oven Baked Beans (glass jar), French's Worcestershire Sauce (bottle), Knox Gelatine (with recipe: White Cap Tomato Jelly),
Duff's Ginger Bread Mix (box), Mdonna Tomato Paste, Armour Corned Beef Hash, Borden's Hemo (vitamin-enriched drink, milk chocolate
flavor), McCormick Pure Vanilla (bottle), Wilson's B*V "Meat Magic," Shedd's Corn Muffin Mix (box), Bon Olive Oil, Stahl Meyer
Liverwurst (can), Carnation Malted Milk (glass jar), Coleman's Mustard (canned dry mix, recipe for Toasted Cheese
Sandwiches, Diamond Crystal Iodized Shaker Salt (round cardboard cannister), A & P Tea (Nectar, Our Own, Mayfair),
My-T-Fine (boxed Chocolate Flavor Dessert mix), Gravy Master, Van Camp's Beans in Tomato Sauce (can), Blue Moon cheese,
Town Toast Cookies (Fruit Delites, in paper bag), Sterling Salt (round cardboard cannister), Libby's Apple Sauce (baby food, glass
jar), Donald Duck Peanut Butter (glass jar), Underwood Deviled Ham (can), Dexo (shortening, with recipe for Strawberry
Shortcake), Pepto-Bismol (bottle), Canada Dry Water (recipe for Chocolate Ice Cream Soda), Peter Pan Peanut Butter (jar),
Hormel SPAM (recicpe for SPAM 'n' Macaroni Loaf.
Rheingold Extra Dry Lager Beer, Hammacher Schlemmer barbecue units ["The Patio" & "The Terrace"], utensils, and
condiment/spice filled "chuck boxes," De Kuyper Creme De Menthe (cordial), Moguin Coridals, Sherry, Wine & Spirits
Co. Champagnes, Red Bordeaux and White Bordeaux bottle & case price list, Beaulieu Vinyard BV wines (Burgundy & Riesling),
B. Altman Father's Day gift box ("Jauntily topped by a cigarette box decoy duck, it contains pickles, broiled brook trout,
orange slices, sardines, maraschino cherries, smoked mussels, drandied apricots, smoked turkey pate, creme de coffee candy,
cocktail onions, and Gaffelbiter fish snacks, $12.50), Revere Ware (copper and brass bottom cookware), Lord Calvert blended
whiskey, Valliant California Burgundy, Croix Royal Burgundy, Simi Vinyard Pale Dry Sherry (with recipe for Veal Kidney with
Wine Sauce), Bellows Partners Choice Whiskey-A Blend, Wente Brosl, Livermore Dry Semillon 1942, Sauvignon Blanc 1942, Pinot Blanc
1942 and Frank Schoonmaker's booklet on California vineyards, Heublein's Club Cocktails ("solve your cocktail
problem," premixed, bottled, in five varieties: Manhattan, Dry Martini, Old Fashioned, Side Car & Daiquiri),
Presto Pressure Cooker, Brugal Rum, Sherry's (restaurant, 300 Park Ave. NYC, wedding receptions & gourmet shop: chocolates, bon-bons,
ice cream, tea, preserves, coffee), Schaefer (beer, advertised by a
woman in tennis garb drinking the product from a wine glass), Connecticut's House of Herbs flavored vinegars (Herb N'Spice, Garlic
Wine, Herb Salad Wine), Monnet Cognac, Town House restaurant (108 East 38th street, NYC "close to everything," Terrace
Restaurant "under the artful supervision of Chef Tode"), Old Sheffield sterling silver, Abbott's Bitters ("endorsed" by
Sarah Bernhardt), Nuyens Cognac, The Plaza (hotel & restaurant, Fifth Avenue & 59th Street, NYC "Society has long looked upon The
Plaza as a distinguished background for dinners, dances, weddings and receptions, photo of the Baroque Room), Merito Sherries and
Ports, Biscuit Cognac, Roast Sauterne Mushrooms for Cocktail (glass jar, also: Smoked Mussels in Oil, Green Turtle Consomme with
Imported Sherry & Whole Roasted Chicken 'Delicious heated or sliced cold," 2lb. tin), National Premium Beer, Maillard's
Fine Chocolate, Charles Fournier Brut Champagne, Pommery Champagne, Ronrico White Label Puerto Rico Rum, Harvey's Inported
Sherries & Ports, Widmer's Wines and Vermouths (New York State), Hiram Walker's Dry Martini Cocktail (pre-mixed, bottle),
Hoenshel Brandied Fruit Cake ("Knows no season"), Arnold Brick Oven Bread (enriched white, thinly sliced), Park & Tilford Private
Stock Whiskey, Gentleman's Companion, consisting of The Exotic Cookery Book, The Exotic Drink Book, Charles H. Baker,
Jr. (5.00/boxed set "700 greatest masterpieces of food and drink, secrets of the world's best chefs & barmen," NOTE:
Food Timeline owns this original set), Dry Imperator New York State Champagne, Serve-a-Cart (patent pending, "sturdy,
featherlight cocktail cart" (with photo), Bunte Mi Choice "The Aristocrat of all Box Chocolates," Cherry Heering cordial
"an old delight from Denmark," Fog Head '400' beer, Plantation Whiskey (with recipes for making Manhattans, Highballs &
Old-Fashioneds), LeJon Brandy, Great Western American Champage (Pleasant Valley Wine Company, Rheims NY), BinB Mushrooms (
can), Ile de France Wine Vinegars (glass bottle), Hollywood Delights Honey Nuts (glass jar), Ard's Avocado Oil
Dressing (glass bottle), Cardinale's Mustard (glass jar), Dash seasoning (combined herbs & spices, glass bottle), Mel-O-Pure
Cheese (round ball, presumably wax coated), Hickory Valley Farm Smoked Turkeys (jars), Tripoli Brand Boned Chicken &
Boned Turkey, James River Deviled Smithfield Meat-Spread (glass jar), Riccardi French Ice Cream, Dorsett De Lux Chicken a la
King (glass jar), Maggi's Bouillon Cubes, High Valle Farm's Pate of Smoked Rainbow Trout, Fresh Frozen Vermont Chickens ($3.00),
Roma Chanmpagne, Prior Lager Beer, Southern Comfort, Home Cook Book/Louis Diat (chef and regular Gourmet columnist),
Fresh Frozen Dover D'oeuvres ("Deliciously different, these ready-to-serve hors d'oeuvres will keep in the freezing compartment of
your refrigerator undefineately. Each tray contains 6 different varieties of 4 pieces each. These hors d'oeuvres are made with
pure butter and specially prepared bread filled with liver patty, ham, cervelat, cheddar cheese flavored with sherry wine, anchofy and
olives. A sure hit for your next next luncheon or cocktail party. Simply remove desired amount of trays from freezing compartment of
refrigerator 1/2 hour prior to serving. Unit of 4 trays (96 hors d'oeuvres) 6.60 postpaid, Dover Food Shop, NYC), Ron Merito
Puerto Rican Rum, Leroux Triple Sec, Allen's Toffee (individually wrapped candies in decorated tin), VAT 69 Scotch Whiskey,
Best Foods Mustard, Hoffritz Cutlery (self sharpening knife rack), Florida Orange or Grapefruit Juice (case of 12 cans, $4.95,
Peter Pan Associated Growers), Clementine in the Kitchen/Phineas Beck (cook book, $3.00), G D American Vermouth,
Angostura Bitters, ice cubes (delivery in Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens, Empire Cube Co.), Lancers Dinner Wine
(Crackling Vin Rose, barrel-shaped earthenware crock bottle), Mix Master's Ice Caddy (Post Mart), Meier's Wines, Chocolate Almond Mounds (
mail order box candy, County Store, Beverly Hills, indivually wrapped), Chateau Lejon California White Wine, Forbidden Fruit (cordial),
Brown-Foreman's King Black Label Blended Whiskey, Dewar's White Label Blended Scotch Whisky & Victoria Vat. [magazine price,
newstand, single issue: 35 cents.]
[NOTE: Compare with Gourmet ads published in 1948, 1950
, 1955 & 1969.]
Nabisco Shredded Wheat, Swift's Veal, Campbell's Soups (Vegetable, Bean with Bacon,
Chicken), Crisco (includes recipe for American Beef Pie), Del Monte Corn (includes recipe for
Cornpatch Casserole), V-8 Cocktail Vegetable Juice, Kraft cheeses (Velveeta, American, Old
English, packed in boxes), Gold Medal Flour (includes recipe for Betty Crocker Golden Dream
Cheese Souffle), Karo Syrup (includes recipe for Sea Foam Frosting), Borden's Hemo (fortified
vitamin drink), Welch's fruit products (Orange Marmelade, Grape Juice, Tomato Juice, Grape
Jelly, Grapelade), Libby's products (Peas, Deep-Brown Beans, Deviled Ham, Corned Beef Hash,
Tomato Juice), Campbell's Strained Baby Soups (Chicken, Beef, Lamb, Liver, Vegetable), Birds
Eye Frosted Foods (includes recipe for Chili Corn), Spry (pure vegetable shortening, canned),
Nabisco 100% Bran, Sweetose Crystal Syrup (glass bottle), Wesson Oil (glass bottle), Cream of
Wheat, Temt (canned luncheon meat), Golden Dipt (breadcrumbs), Vermont Maid Syrup,
Pillsbury's Best Four (includes recipe for An Pillsbury's Coconut Fluff Cake), Contadina Tomato
Paste.
Reingold Extra Dry Lager Beer (featuring Pat Quinlan, Miss Rheingold 1948), Courvoisier Cognac, Royal Doulton fine china
(Malvern pattern), Martell Cognac Brandy, Vita Juicer ("brings you fresh, undiluted fruit juices full of healthy minerals and
vitamins...Durable baked enamel finish, A.C. only $49.75, available at Hammacher Schlemmer), Mosse's Stunning 'Nimrod'
Cloth (tablecloths, indoor and outdoor dining, bird dog, deer and pheasant, beautifully hand printed on pure linen--with that
look of old wood cuts. In turkey red, tobacco brown, or leaf green with oyster white...3 yd cloth, l 12 napkins-$62.00),
Beaulieu Vinyard BV Wines (California Burgundy, Beaurose), Heublein's Vatted Vermouth, de Kuyper Cordials (Creme de Menthe),
Charles Fournier Brut Champagne [NY], Bellows & Company Gourmets Bazaar (Clear Pheasant Broth, Pheasant a la Newburg,
Breast of Pheasant in Sherry Wine, Wild Mallard Duck Stew, Mallard Duck Soup a la Chasseur Mallard Duck Broth with Wild Rice, Pheasant
Broth with Wild Rice), Jamaica Rums (recipe for Jamaica Swizzle), Fox Head '400' Beer, Vat 69 Scotch Whisky, Sell's
Liver pate and Corned Beef Loaf (cans), Bell's Royal Vat Blended Scotch Whisky, Gold Seal Champagne [NY], Cherry Heering (Danish
liqueur), Oak Bar (The Plaza Hotel, NYC) "In keeping with The Plaza tradition...this room is reserved for gentlemen only until
3 P.M., Mondays thorugh Fridays. Buffet Luncheon served Noon to 2:30), Rotiss-o-mat ("Like an open fire spit, Rotiss-o-mat slowly
revolved meat or fowl, browining it beautifully. Electric current turns spit, provides cooking heat. Heat-resistant glass door reveals the mouth-watering
process but keeps smoke and sputtering fats inside. With spit removed, flat grill can be used at any of 3 levels, for broiling steaks
chops, or toasting sandwiches. Of heave polished aluminum and stainless steel; handsome enought to use in the dining room.
AC only, 49.95, photo included), Harvey's Bristol Dry Sherry (also: Bristol Cream, Bristol Milk, Amontadillo, Hunting Port,
Bristol Dry, Shooting, Gold Cap, Gold Cap Port), Park & Tilford Private Stock Blend of Straight Whiskies, Drambuie (
"The cordial with the Scotch whisky base--made in Scotland since 1745 from the secret recipe of Prince Charles Edward's personal liqueur),
Great Western Wines [NY], Rafetto Nesselro (glass jar, recipe for Nesselro Pie included), Gourmet's Cook Book of Fish and Game
($3.50), Korbel Brut Champagne, Yuban Coffee (tin, regular, drip or pulverized grind, "The Guest Coffee"), Kettle Cove [MA] Orange
Slices (glass jar, for making Old Fashioned cocktails), Bluhill Foods [CA] Indian Grill Salad Dressing ("the dressing men like,
Zesty, not sweet." $1.25), John Toms Flavor Ridge [VA] Pickles & Jellies, Southern Biscuit Comany [VA] FFV Butterscotch
Wafers (round tin, lemon... vanilla, colonial girl sandwiches & tea rings), Shaffer's Market [NY] "Fine Foods for Good
Living," (Out of town delivery schedule, North Shore Long Island--Tuesday and Friday, Westchester and Connecticut-Thursday, Trucks
leave at 10:30A.M.), Red Raven Corporation [PA] Fancy Drinks Direct to Your Home (Billy Baxter brand carbonated beverages
(ginger ale, club soda, sarsaprilla, quinine soda, root beer, birch beer, lemon soda, ginger beer, $8.00 48=10 oz bottles to the case),
Ricciardi French Ice Cream (includes recipe for Strawberries Romanoff "for 'dress up' dessert"), Bunte Mi Choice The
Aristocrat of all Box Chocolates (photo of box), Duvernoy & Sons Retail Bake Shop [NY] ("Served at most of metropolitan
New York), Vendome Russian Beluga caviar (1 lb tin--Russian weight 14 oz $32.00, also slightly salted and Oscetrina caviar)
Richardson's [PA] Striped, Creamy, Old Fashioned Mint (candy, boxed), Hickory Valley Farm [PA] Hams, Bacon, Turkey & Sausage (mail order),
Rose's Lime Juice (glass bottle), Underwood Black Bean Soup (can), Black Horse Ale, Widmer's Wines [NY], House of Herbs Barbecue
Sauce ("This luscious Barbecue Sauce, recently born in Connecticut, is already a country-wide traveler--and no wonder. Besides its mouth-watering
list of ingredients, gourmets detect something indescribably taste-exciting--perhaps the clean, winelike air which surrounds its
making or the flavor skill of its farm-kitchen creator. Its aroma make people want to eat leaves from the trees or the flowers from
the living-room chintz while waiting for their first taste. Try it on a plain broiled fish if you want to know how good it makes
food. $1.00 at fine food counters or direct, product photo included, Barbecue Cook Book "Barbe-Cues" by Charlotte Adams offered,
10 cents), Old Smuggler Blended Scotch Whisky, Aborn's Coffee (vacuum packed, 3 grinds, at your grocer's), Maison Glass Delicacies
[NY] (Vichyssoise Soup, Consomme, Lobster Newburg with Sherry wine), Hamm's Preferred Stock Beer, Dry Sack Sherry ("Women who know and
enjoy exquisite living often prefer sherry"), Victoria Iberia Pure Spanish Olive Oil (gallon tin, $6.75), Fountain Grove California
Vintage Table Wines, Prior Lager Beer ("Liquid Luxury"), Benedictine Liqueur, "666" Gleaming Copper Fry Pans (3 popular sizes...6 1/2
$4.25), Pure Vermont Maple Syrup ($2.75/quart), Swiss Colony [WI] Aged Cheese ("Never sold in stores, only by mail." Summer-cured Swiss, Sharp Aged Cheddar, Old-Fashioned
Brick), Arnold Breakfast Rolls ("topped with lucious butter icing, product photo included), Piper-Heidsieck Champagne, Dry Imperator
Champagne [NY], Connoissuer's Corkscrew (from Italy, promoted for Father's Day, solid brass, $3.50), Bar Mart Tippler ("The guide to clever home
entertainment. A colorful catalog pages of idea for pepping up a part. Toasts, pranks, recipes, gifts, and novelties for every room from kitchen to den.
Send 10 cents for latest edition), Java-India Condiment Co. ("Your request with a 3 cent stamp will bring you our booklet
of precise Indian recipes for making currries"), BinB Mushrooms (can, whole crownbs, sliced crowns, chopped), Lancers Crackling
Vin Rose, Gotham American Champagne [NY], Maggi's Seasoning (bottle), Bellows & Company importers and wine merchants [New York, Colorado
Springs, Chicago), Old Charter Pre-War Whiskey [KY]. [Gourmet magazine: cover price, 35
cents, $4.00/year, $7.00/2 years]
Cream of Rice, Kitchen Bouquet (gravy concentrate), Gerber Baby Foods (liver, veal & beef, in cans), V8 Cocktail Vegetabel Juices, Pillsbury's Best
XXXX Flour (with recipe for No-Knead Kolacky), Kraft cheeses (Velveeta, Chantelle, Philadelphia Cream Cheese, Kay Cheddar), Campbell's Strained
Vegetable Baby Soup (glass jar), Crisco, Swan's Down Cake Flour, Campbell's Grean Pea Soup, Heinz Baby Foods (strained green beans), Del Monte Fruit
Cocktail, Carnation Evaporated Milk, Cream of Wheat, Betty Crocker Vegetable Noodle Soup (dry mix in box), French's Good Luck Pie Crust Mix,
Fleischmann's Blue Bonnet Oleomargarine, Kellogg's Corn Soya, Coca Cola (aka Coke), Bisquick, Nucoa Oleomargarine, Libby's Pineapple Juice, Baker's
Coconut, Kellogg's Corn Flakes, Kellogg's Variety Pack (Rice Krispies, Shredded Wheat, Pep, Corn Flakes, Krumbles, Corn Soya, Bran Flakes), Swift's
Allsweet Oleomargarine, French's Mustard, Knox Gelatine, Ocean Spray Cranberries: fresh (clear bag), jellied cranberry sauce (can) & whole cranberry sauce
(can), Ritz Crackers, Chicken of the Sea Tuna, Hunt's Tomato Sauce (can), PictSweet Foods (frozen vegetables, peas & corn, in boxes), My-T-Fine Lemon Flavor Pie Filling, Pompeian Olive Oil, Oreo Cream Sandwich, Gravy Master (gravy concentrate), Morton's Salt, Kraft Kitchen Fresh French Dressing (in botlle), Tootsie Fudge 'n Frosting Mix, Hip-O-Lite (marshmallow creme), Brere Rabbit Molasses, A1 sauce, Underwood Deviled Ham, Heart's Delight Fruit Nectar, Green Giant Sweet Peas (can), Marshmallow Fluff, Jolly Time Pop Corn, Vermont Maid Syrup.
Sunsweet Prune Juice, V8 Cocktail Vegetable Juices, Pillsbury Hot Roll Mix, French's Mustard, Betty Crocker Split Pea Soup (dry mix in box), Campbell's
Chicken Noodle Soup & Tomato Soup (cans), Jell-O, Minute Tapioca, French's Worcestershire Sauce, Baker's Coconut (with Snoflake Pie recipe), Kraft
Mayonnaise, Karo Syrup (Chrystal White), McCormick Pure Vanilla Extract, Mott's Apple Products, Libby's Tomato Juice, Planters Peanuts, Jell-0 Pudding,
Nabisco Sugar Wafers, Dole Unsweetened Pineapple Juice, Franco-American Beef Gravy, Underwood Deviled Ham, Amazo Instant Dessert (instant pudding),
Golden Dipt Breading, Kraft Miracle French Dressing
The original inspiration of Butterless, Eggless, Milkless cake dates back to the Medieval Ages.
Spices and
raisins were popular ingredients of that time. Great cakes and steamed puddings are hundreds of
years old.
These recipes were introduced to America by European settlers. Early American cookbooks are
full of
recipes for spice cakes (aka rich cakes and great cakes). Did you know up until the late 19th
century
fruit/spice cakes were served as wedding cakes?
---American Century Cookbook: The Most Popular Recipes of the 20th Century, Jean
Anderson
[Clarkson Potter:New York] 1997 (p. 441)
[NOTE: this book contains a recipe for Depression cake.]
[1914]
"Butterless-Milkess-Eggless Cake.
2 cupfuls brown sugar
2/3 cupful Crisco
2 cupfuls water
2 cupfuls sultana raisins
2 cupfuls seeded raisins
1 teaspoonful salt
2 teaspoonfuls powdered cinnamon
1 teaspoonful powdered cloves
1/2 teaspoonful powdered mace
1/2 teaspoonful grated nutmeg
2 teaspoonfuls baking soda
4 cupfuls flour
1 teaspoonful baking powder
1 1/2 cupfuls chopped nut meats
3 tablespoonfuls warm water
Put Crisco into saucepan, add sugar, water raisins, salt, and spices, and boil three minutes. Cool,
and when cold add flour, baking pweder, soda dissolved in warm water and nut meats. Mix and
turn into Criscoed and floured cake tin and bake in slow oven one and a half hours. Sufficient for
one medium-sized cake."
---A Calendar of Dinners with 615 Recipes, Marion Harris Neil [Procter &
Gamble:Cincinnati] 1914 (p. 120)
[NOTE: Procter & Gamble manufactured Crisco shortening. This company cookbook shows the
home cook how easy it is to incorporate Crisco into everyday recipes, including cakes.]
"Butterless, Eggless, Milkless Cake (No Eggs):
1 c. Brown sugar, firmly packed
1 1/4 c. Water
1/3 c. Vegetable shortening or lard
2/3 c. Raisins
1/2 teasp. Nutmeg
2 teasp. Cinnamon
1/2 teasp. Powdered cloves
1 teasp. Salt
1 teasp. Baking soda
2 teasp. Water
2 c. Sifted all-purpose flour
1 teasp. Baking powder
Boil brown sugar, 1 1/4 c. Water, shortening, raisins, and spices together for 3 min. Cool. Add
salt and
baking soda which has been dissolved in 2 teasp. Water. Gradually add the flour and baking
powder which
have been sifted together, beating smooth after each addition. Bake in a greased and floured
8"X8"X2" pan
in a moderate oven of 325 degrees F. About 50 min., or until done. Needs no frosting."
---The Good Housekeeping Cook Book, New edition, completely revised 1944 [Farrar &
Rinehart:New York] 1944 (p. 698)
Fruit cup
Soup & salad
Broiled grapefruit
Melon ball cocktail
Sea food cocktail
Pastry snails
Dried beef rolls
Silver dollar hambugers
Bacon wrap-arounds
Herring-Appleteaser
Dips & chips/crackers: Lobster Newburg spread, Guacamole, Deviled Ham-Cheese Dip,
Hollywood
dunk
Canapes: Deviled ham, savory mushroom, hot cheese puffs, minature pizzas, hot clam
Cheerios cocktail snacks (something like Chex Mix)
Decorate your appetizer tray with celery trunks, stuffed cucumbers, grape clusters & fruit
kabobs.
---Betty Crocker's Picture Cook Book, revised and enlarged, 2nd edition
[McGraw-Hill:New York]
1956 (p. 57-66)
[NOTE: This 1950's classic cookbook was reprinted in facsimile edition in 1998 by the same
publisher and is easy to obtain. Ask your librarian for help.]
Salted almonds
Filled celery (with Roquefort and cream cheese)
Tidbits in blankets (surround cooked shrimp, oysters, stuffed olives, pickled onions, watermelon
pickle,
sauteed chicken livers, skinned grapefruit sections, dates stuffed with pineapple with thin strips of
bacon,
secure them with toothpicks. Broil them under moderate heat until the bacon is crisp.)
Glazed shrimp
Garlic olives
Sardine and bacon rolls
Marinated mushrooms
Cheese balls
Sausage and potato rolls
Ham and egg balls
Pineapple fingers and bacon
Broiled stuffed mushrooms (stuff with bread crumbs, shad roe, shrimp)
Shrimp puffs
Deviled eggs
Cheese for dipping potato chips
---The Joy of Cooking, Irma S. Rombauer [Bobbs-Merrill:Indianapolis] 1953 (p.
28-39)
[NOTE: there is a separate section devoted to canapes and sandwiches]
Toasted Tuna
Cocktail kabobs (button mushrooms and cocktail franks cut in half marinated in French
dressing)
Broiled shrimp
Mix Trix (like Chex Mix)
Pumpernickel squares (crab meat, chili sauce, curry powder, mustard on pump)
Deviled almond rolls
Party pinwheels (dough, leftover meat, moistened with chili sauce, baked)
Cocktail knishes
Filled cream puffs (store-bought puffs filled with hot chicken salad, creamed shrimp, creamed
turkey,
served in a chafing dish)
Broiled mushroom caps
Baby pizzas (use English muffins!)
Sea-food celery (stuff flaked crab & mayo into cut celery. Garnish with paprika.)
Stuffed eggs (deviled eggs)
Sardine surprise (sardines mashed with hard cooked egg yolks, anchovy paste, dry mustard,
butter, &
spices. Served on squares on pumpernickel)
Ham rolls (boiled ham & liverwurst)
Dunks (aka dips): sour cream, shrimp, chive, horseradish, guacamole, pimiento, tuna
---Martha Deane's Cooking for Compliments, Martha Young Taylor [M. Barrows:New
York] 1954 (p.
13-35)
Split pea soup
Main course
Easy chicken gumbo
Oxtail soup
Spicy tomato soup, Cream of tomato soup
Chicken and corn chowder
Pineapple fruit plate
Tomato stuffed with perfection salad
Bean (three-bean) salad
Orange-and-Bermuda onion salad
Melon boat salad
---Betty Crocker's Picture Cook Book, revised and enlarged, 2nd edition
[McGraw-Hill:New York]
1956 (p. 377)
Onion soup
Chicken (or beef, shrimp, crab) gumbo
Cream of celery soup
Cheese soup
Cole slaw
Chilled canned tomatoes
Lettuce or mixed salad with sour cream
Salad Caesar
Cucumber salad with French dressing
---The Joy of Cooking, Irma S. Rombauer [Bobbs-Merrill:Indianapolis] 1953
Clam chowder
Cream of chicken
Asparagus soup
Cream of mushroom soup
Mixed green salad (French dressing or mayonnaise)
Stuffed tomatoes ravigote
Vegetables in sour cream
Potato salad (both hot and cold)
Gelatin & fruit salad molds (raspberry ring, grapefruit intrigue, sea siren salad)
---Martha Deane's Cooking for Compliments, Martha Young Taylor [M. Barrows:New
York] 1954
Grilled kabobs
Scalloped chicken supreme
Beef and corn casserole
American lasagne
Tuna-potato chip casserole
Savory meat pie
Welsh rarebit with tomato slices and little sausages
Swedish meat balls
Fluffy meat loaf
Baked ham with glaze
---Betty Crocker's Picture Cook Book, revised and enlarged, 2nd edition
[McGraw-Hill:New York]
1956
Chicken a la king
Oysters baked in the half shell
Spaghetti with meat sauce
Turkey or chicken casserole with vegetables
Chicken pot pie
Hamburger-olive loaf
Chicken or veal croquettes
Baked fish
Souffle
---The Joy of Cooking, Irma S. Rombauer [Bobbs-Merrill:Indianapolis] 1953
Salmon steak
Orange sole
Corn-crust chicken
Sweet ham patties
Curried veal chops
Eggs foo young
Fricasseed trukey with wild rice
Lobster in patty shells
Salmon casserole
---Martha Deane's Cooking for Compliments, Martha Young Taylor [M. Barrows:New
York] 1954
Often served with butter, cream sauce, sour cream sauce, canned soup; topped with bread
crumbs, dried onion flakes
Buttered vegetables (canned or frozen)
Creamed asparagus
Lima beans in sour cream
Broccoli-mushroom casserole
Mexican corn saute
---Betty Crocker's Picture Cook Book, revised and enlarged, 2nd edition
[McGraw-Hill:New York]
1956
Creamed onions (mushrooms, peas)
Baked zucchini
Potato volcano with cheese (mashed potato volcano!)
Baked beans
---The Joy of Cooking, Irma S. Rombauer [Bobbs-Merrill:Indianapolis] 1953
Baked acorn squash
Baked stuffed onions
Wax beans oriental (sweet and sour sauce)
Ginger-honey carrots
---Martha Deane's Cooking for Compliments, Martha Young Taylor [M. Barrows:New
York] 1954
Chiffon pie (lime, orange, pineapple, strawberry, chocolate)
Beverages
Little pies (tart-sized portions of standard pies)
Coconut cake
Peppermint candy cake
Maraschino cherry cake
Chocolate cherry cake
Angel food
Banana chiffon cake
Easy caramel corn (made with General Mills cereals)
Marshmallow bars (made with General Mills cereals)
---Betty Crocker's Picture Cook Book, revised and enlarged, 2nd edition
[McGraw-Hill:New York]
1956
Velvet spice cake
Ice cream with cherries
Apricot souffle
Baked apples
Gold layer cake with caramel icing
Banana chocolate cake
Butterscotch brownies
German cherry cake
Peppermint ice cream with chocolate sauce
---The Joy of Cooking, Irma S. Rombauer [Bobbs-Merrill:Indianapolis] 1953
Quick butterscotch-chocolate pie
Maraschino cherry pudding
Broiled or baked grapefruit
Cherries jubilee
Peppermint pie
Devil's cream cake
Baked Alaska
Melon balls and sherbert
Orange snow balls (hollowed orange halves packed with lemon sherbert)
---Martha Deane's Cooking for Compliments, Martha Young Taylor [M. Barrows:New
York] 1954
Soda pop [in bottles if you can get it], Tang [this space drink is VERY 50s], fruit punch, fruit
smoothies, milk shakes, hot cocoa, iced tea, coffee.
1. Orange juice, sauteed eggs and bacon, cinnamon toast
2. Apple juice, sausage-meat cakes, popovers, jelly
3. Chilled grapefruit, waffles, honey, cream
4. Sliced peaches, omelet or scrambled eggs, drop biscuits, marmelade
5. Tomato juice, French toast with applesauce
1. Broiled hamburger sandwiches, wilted lettuce, canned or stewed fruit
2. Cold sliced ham, hot potato salad, toast, applesauce
3. Pan-fried fish, broiled potates, tossed green salad with French dressing, muffins, grapefruit
jelly
4. Chili con carne, creamed spinach, sweet muffins with nuts
5. French ham toast, avocado on lettuce with French dressing, gingersnaps
1. Meat balls with spaghetti, green peas, sliced oranges, peanut-butter cookies
2. Pigs in blankets, baked tomatoes with cheese, banana sherbet, butterscotch brownies
3. Salmon in casserole, potato chips, green salad with French dressing, lemon milk sherbet,
chocolate-chip drop cookies
4. Eggplant filled with leftover foods, boiled carrots, hot rolls, preserves, quick method white
cake with lemon icing
5. Pork chops with scalloped potatoes, French bread, Harvard beets, apple crunch"
---A Cookbook for Girls and Boys, Irma S. Rombauer [Bobbs-Merrill:Indianapolis] 1952
(p. 223-228)
Weekend Cook Book, Good Housekeeping, June 1954
Chilled Melon, Lobster Newberg in Croustades, Crown Roast of Lamb, Potatoes with Parsley
Butter, Peas with Mint Cream, Chestnut Cream, Coffee
---Silver Jubilee Super Market Cook Book, Edith Barber [Super Market Publishing:New
York] 1955 (p. 37-8)
"Hawaiian buffet luncheon or supper
For table decorations, use lemon leaves, ferns, pineapple, bananas. Flowers (including lei for each
guest) would be everywhere. Soft strains of Hawaiian music lend atmosphere: Tropical fruit salad,
(avocado sections, orange slices, whole ripe olives...on bed of shredded lettuce) with lime or
lemon dressing, chicken curry, browned rice, toasted whole almonds, french-cut green beans,
sauteed banana quarters, Hawaiian pineapple cake.
Grace Kelly, winner of the Academy Award as the Best Moving Picture Actress of 1954,
personally selected and sent us this menu as one of her favorites: Caviar blinis, duck a l'orange,
French-style green beans, hearts of palm salad vinaigrette, fruit, cheese.
Welsh rarebit or grilled cheese sandwiches, celery hearts, olives, chocolate cupcakes or
brownies, bunches of grapes, sliced fresh pineapple or broiled grapefruit halves, coffee.
Individual cheese souffles with crabmeat sauce, asparagus vinaigrette, melba toast, Mr. John's
French Beret pancake desert, coffee.
Children are asked to come as some character from Mother Goose (Little Miss Muffet, Wee
Willie Winkie, etc.). The mother of the child having the party, dressed as the Old Woman in the
Shoe, welcomes the little guests as they arrive: Creamed chicken, mashed potatoes, buttered peas
or carrots, lettuce sandwiches (cut in animal or flower shapes), ice cream, sponge cake, cocoa.
Pocket stew, buttered split hard rolls, whole tomatoes, walking salad (washed fresh fruit in plastic
bags), milk or cocoa, brownies."
---Betty Crocker's Picture Cook Book, revised and enlarged, 2nd edition
[McGraw-Hill:New York] 1956 (p. 49-51)
After WWII, many returning GI's married and settled in the suburbs. A house with a back yard
was one of the symbols of American middle-class status. How best to show off one's back yard? Barbecue! It's
no coincidence men proudly did the grilling. Women did the planning and
prep-work based on suggestions offered by contemporary magazines and cookbooks. James Beard's Complete Book of Barbecue &
Rotisserie Cooking (c. 1954) was one of the "bibles" consumed by American home barbecue enthusiasts. What was served?
Anything & everything. With flaming gusto!
"Barbecuing is New Hobby and Anyone Can Take Part,", Mary Meade, Chicago Daily Tribune, August
13, 1950 (p. SW_D6)
"Now America Eats: This Week's Food Editor Goes on a Barbecue Roundup,", Clementine Paddleford,
Los Angeles Times, September 10, 1950 (p. G14)
Both articles focus on homemade barbecue sauces.
"Eating outdoors is one of life's finest pleasures. It is not just a trick of the imagination that makes food smell and taste
better under blue skies or under the stars. The fire in your grill and the freshness of the air add savor to every dish, whether it
is served in a patio, a back yard, a picnic grove or on a stretch of sand or grass on lake, stream or ocean. Many people put a lot
of time and money into assembling equipment for outdoor cookery and construction elaborate outdoor kitchens in their yards or
patios. Though this can be fun for the ambitious handyman, it's not necessary. There are many portable grills and braziers on
the market that will give you just as tasty a result as the most complicated 'made-to-order" job...The little Skotch Grille is one of the
simplest and most practical on the market. It is small-12 inches high and 12 inches across-and easy to carry. It cooks with charcoal
and the steaks, chops, hamburgers-or whatever you choose to cook-have that delicious flavor that only charcoal can give. The Skotch
Grill can be used any place outdoors can be easily carried to picnics, on camping or hunting or fishing trips, and can be used at
home in the fireplace...The Big Boy portable barbecue line includes everything from an 18-inch bowl-type charcoal brazier on
wheels, at less than $25, up to a large barbecue unit, also on wheels, with seven motor-driven spits and a warming oven, at about
$300...Another interesting small charcoal unit for outdoor or indoor cooking is the Japanese hibachi. If there is a Japanese store in
your area, ask to see them there. These little grills have been used for centuries in Japan for preparing the delicious native
barbecued dishes and sukiyaki...They are cast-iron tubs in little stands, many of which are quite decorative."
---Complete Book of Barbecue & Rotisserie Cooking, James Beard [Bobbs-Merrill Co.:Indianapolis] 1954 (p. 6-7)
[NOTE: Receipe index here. Let us know which items you need!]
The Good Housekeeping Cook Book offers a chapter titled "The
Bountiful Barbecue" (p. 593-600). It offers tips for planning a barbecue, including equipment
checklist (asbestos gloves, Monosodium glutamate!), practical notes (choose a menu to fit the
grill's space, double-wrap foods in heavy-duty aluminum foil) and safety notes (never heat canned
foods in the unopened can). Recommended meats include: big steaks, little steaks, king steak,
salt-grilled sirloin steak, barbecued spareribs, heavenly hamburgers, hot franks, grilled ham,
barbecued bologna roll, and and beef alfresco, kabobs, charcoal-grilled chicken, charcoal-grilled
duckling, fish fries and barbecues, and shellfish alfresco. Fresh grilled vegetable recipes feature
corn, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and mushrooms. Special instructions are provided for grilling
canned and frozen veggies. Grilled breads were also popular. Good Housekeeping
recommended grilled French & Italian breads, grill-baked breads, rolls and muffins,
garlic-buttered slices and a variety of hot grilled sandwiches. Dessert could also be prepared on
the grill.
Popular items included caramel roast apples, walnut roast, fried marshmallows, baked bananas,
and "Marshmallow Treats," (think: S'Mores).
"Barbecuing is fun...You're headed for a meal that's the best (says Dad), the easiest (says Mom), the
happiest (say the kids...who know) yo ever pitched into. For wat-do-we-eat, see the next 9 pages loaded with ideas from
tantalizing, wide-awake breakfasts to peaceful sunset suppers...
"Now Call the Gang...:
Special Barbecued Ribs, Skillet Potatoes, Cabbage-Pepper Slaw, Buttered Salt Sticks, Big Strawberries for Dunking in Sour Cream or
Confectioners' Sugar, Sparkling Iced Tea.
"Hawaiian Special: Honolulu Punch, Hawaiian Short Ribs, Chinese Fried Rice, Buttered Peas and Carrots, Avocado-Orange Salad with Fruit French
Dressing, Toasty Cheese-topped Loaf, Tropical Parfait, Hot Coffee.
Twilight Buffet: Spiced Crabapple Kabobs, Perfect Fried Chicken, Hartwell Farm Corn Pudding, Hot Muffins, Polka-dot Fruit Cup (Blueberries, Raspberries and strawberries
spirnked with coconut), Cheese Tray, Assorted Crackers, Hot Coffee.
Family Fresh-air Special: Sizzling Ham Slices, Foil-baked Tomatoes with Onion, Hot German Potato Salad, Slim-jim Bread Sticks, Warm Cherry Pie, Campfire Coffee,
Mugs of Milk.
Friday Barbecue:...Grilled Fish Foldovers, Corn on the Cob, Western Salad Nowl, Garlic Dressing, Toast Cheese Bread, Lemon Serbet, Coffee.
Home-style Back-yard Supper: Warm-ups (heated potato chips or crackers on the grill), Grilled Minute Steaks Buns, Indian-style Corn on the Cog, Dutch Cucumbbers,
Picked Beets, Chocolate Cake with Fudge Frosting, Ice Cream Cups, Limeade, Popcorn, Toasted Marshmallows.
When You Ask Folks Over: Seafood Fancy, Peas and Mushrooms, Summer Aspic, Water Cress and Cauliflowerets, Cheese Straws, Fresh Blueberry Tarts, Iced Tea.
Hot-off-the-grill Quickie: Ham Line-up Loaf (sandwich composed of French Bread, deviled ham, pickle relish & tomato slice; fillings inserted into thinly sliced bread,
wrapped in foil, baked & served whole, Easier-than-falling-off-a-log French Fries ("With beverage-can opener, punch hole in top of French Fries or shoestring
potatoes. Place can on grill and roll occasionally as it heats. Open and serve. Ditto for French-fried onions" p. 98), Green Onions, Radish Roses, Chocolate-chip Cookies, Tea Sparkle.
Teen-agers' Treat: Choo-choo Sandwich (French bread, tomatoes, cheese corned beef & green pepper rings...baked then covered in foil & grilled), 30-minute Baked Beans, Perfect Potato Salad, Relishes,
Chocolate Malted Milk.
He-man Breakfast Splurge: Icy Tomato or Orange Juice,, Frizzled Ham, Golden Hominy Scramble, Speedy Donughts for Coffee Dunking.
---Better Homes & Gardens Barbecue Book [Meredith Publishing Company:Des Moines IA] 1956 (p. 9-15)
House and Garden's Cook Book contains instructions for grilling the
following items (p. 195-208):
Churrasco (South American beef steak), Beefsteak Jerome LePlat (Italian recipe with Hollandaise
sauce), Beefsteak Pizzaiola, Sliced Larded Filet on French Bread, Chateaubriand Marchand de
Vin, Sate with Steak, Kebabs, Roast Leg of Lamb, Shoulder of Lamb, Lamb Steaks, Oriental
Lamb Steaks (soy sauce & ginger), Ham Steak, Plain Hamburgers, Savory Hamburgers
(w/chopped onions, olives & mushroom powder), Frankfurters, Grilled Italian Sausages, Spitted
Roast Chicken, Chicken Tarragon, Garlicked Chicken, Ginger Chicken, Baby Chickens on a Spit,
Sate Ajam-Chicken on the Spit (Indonesia), Grilled Chicken Hearts, Epicurean Broiled Turkey,
Broiled Turkey Flambe, Broiled Duckling, Broiled whole Fish, Fish Mixed Grill, Rotisserie Veal
with Kidneys, Roast Leg of Lamb Hong Kong, Shish Kebab, Pork Loin with Sherry, Pork
Shoulder Robert, Loin of Pork California Style, Port Tenderloin Orleans, Spareribs Island Style
(w/pineapple), Spareribs German Style (w/sauerkraut), Suckling Pig on a Spit, Roast Chicken
Pierre (w/sherry), Chicken Far East (w/cashews & peanut butter), Long Island Duckling Gourmet
and Goose Montmartre."
Woman's Day (magazine)
"Lamb Barbecue
Lamb Roast, Indienne, with
Savory-mint Barbecue Sauce
Fruited Pilaf, Whole Tomatoes
Quick Vegetable Salad with Parsley Dressing
Buttered Crusty Bread Slices
Fruit Basket, Coffee."
Butter-toasted Corn
Garlic French-bread Slices
Mixed Green Salad, Roquefort Dressing
Honeydew Melon with Lime Slice
Coffee."
---Family Circle, August 1957 (p. 51)
Charcoal-broiled Steak or Hamburger
French-fried Onions, Cold Bean Casserole
Cheese and Caraway French Bread
Peach and Apple Pie
Coffee, Milk."
---Woman's Day, June 1959
"Does your husband love to put on a chef's hat when he is broiling a steak? Is he the only one who never forgets the
sherry in the soup? Is his pet story about the time he cooked for the boys when they all went fishing? Then for goodness
sake, give him a barbecue and watch his ego expand. And think what a conversation piece you've handed him. Interest in a
barbecue can provide a substitute for those play-by-play descriptions of golf, football or fishing...Adding a barbecue to your household will provide an endless selection of gadgets to solve the gift problem of
Christmas, birthday or anniversary. An amateur chef is always enthusiastic about a new prop for his act."
---The Queen is in the Kitchen: Informal Meals of all Kinds, Marguerite Gilbert McCarthy [Charles Scribner's Sons:New York] 1954 (p. 203)
"Standard American alcoholic beverages & cocktails, circa 1950s
beer, bourbon highball, brandy highball, champagne punch, eggnog, Cuban cola (rum & coke),
French "75" (gin, sugar & champagne), mint julep, randy smash, planter's punch, rum Collins,
Tom Collins, Scotch and soda, rye highball, the screwdriver."
---The New Wolf in Chef's Clothing: The picture cook and drink book for men, Robert
H.Loeb, Jr. [Follett Publishing:Chicago] 1950 (p. 115-124)
---Silver Jubilee Super Market Cook Book, Edith Barber [Super Market Publishing:New York].
Revised edition. 1955 (p. 84-5)
[NOTE: this book contains instructions for Daiquiris, Manhattans, Martinis, Old Fashioneds and
Mint Juleps. It also contains notes on serving beer, selection and care of wines, and service of
liqueurs. Happy to scan & send upon request.]
Alexander, Artillery Punch, Beer & Ale, Benedictine, Bowl or Fruit Cup, Brittany, Bronx,
Champagne, Claret Cup, Clover Club, Corree, Cuba Libre, Cubana, Curacao, Daiquiri (& frozen
daiquiri), Eggnog, El Presidente, Frisco, Gin Bitter, Gin Sour, Gordon, Highball or Ricky,
Knickerbocker, Larchmont, Manhattan (dry & medium), Martini (& dry martini), Miami, Milk
Punch, Millionaire, Mint Julep, Old-Fashioned, Orange Blossom, Pradise, Pink Lady, Planter's
Punch, Rum Collins, Hot Buttered Rum, Hot Rum Lemonade, Rum Punch, Sazerac, Sidecar,
Stinger, Tom and Jerry, Tom Collins, Whiskey Cup, Whiskey Sour, Whiskey Toddy, White
Lady, and Mulled Wine. (p. 966-7)
"The greatest revolution of all...has been the change in the Martini. The first Martini was sweet
drink but the classic formula for the drink as we know it today was two parts gin and one part French
or dry vermouth. If you used that formula today you would more than likely lose a customer. This
[Mr. B. Paul] attributes to the American insistence on making Martinis increasingly more dry. "There
is no question that the most popular cocktail in the world today is the Martini. After that, the Old
Fashioned. The English also have a liking for straight drinks such as pink gin, which is gin with a
dash of Angostura bitters. The most popular drink in England is the gin and tonic; after that Scotch
and after that the Martini." He added...many customers still ask for a Bronx cocktail, a drink made
with equal parts gin, sweet vermouth and orange juice...."Then of course, there is the recent world
rage for the Bloody Mary. It is a drink that has a particular appeal to women although men like it too.
That and the screwdriver are the only two new drinks that have caught the public fancy in the last
two decades." He added, too, that the social climate has changed radically within the last thirty
years and this has accounted for some of the world's drinking habits...During this recent meeting of the
International Bartenders Association there was a fierce competition among the members to
concoct a new cocktail. The contest was won by a 27-year-old West Berliner, Dieter Waldman of the Hotel
Kempinski. The recipe follows:
Kempinski Cocktail
2 ounces grapefruit juice
1 ounce Bacardi rum
1 ounce Cointreau
Fill a cocktail shaker half full with cracked ice and add the liquid ingredients. Shake well and
strain into two chilled cocktail glasses. Garnish each cocktail with a maraschino cherry. Yield: Two
Servings."
---"Food: A Master Mixer, Cold Beer and Dry Martini Products of Times, Dean of Bartenders Says,"
Craig Claiborne, New York Times, November 6, 1959 (p. 33)
[NOTE: This article mentions Martini (dry), Gin & Tonic, Old Fashioned, Bronx Cocktail, Scotch,
Bloody Mary]
"It is important to have the beverages and the canapes compiment each other and with a little care in selection this can be accomplished...delicate floavors predominate champagne. Tart and salty blend best with gin, while these and heartier foods are more suitable for whisky and beer...keeping this in mind will help bring satisfaction to your guests.
Champagne: Caviar, hearts of artichoke and shrimp tidbits, Swiss cheese and shrimp balls, chicken and cheese balls, chicken tarts, crabmeat puffs, chicken salad puffs, liver (paste) puffs, lobster balls, lobster puffs, egg and lettuce tidbits and stuffed endive.
Highballs: Chipped beef rolls, bologna gherkin tidbits, stuffed celery, stuffed eggs, variety of cheese balls, cheese and deviled ham pinwheels, cream cheese pastry tarts, smoked salmon rolls, strips of crisp bacon, roast beef snacks, ham tidbits and pickle (dill) and cheese snacks.
Sherry: Apple, raisin and cream cheese balls, bacon balls, chipped beef rolls with mushrooms, stuffed mushrooms, peanut rolls, peanut butter rolls, peanut butter tarts, nut and stem ginger tarts, ham tidbits, chicken, lobster or liver paste puffs, turnovers, cheese straws, sausage tidbits and smoked hickory cheese balls.
Whisky cocktails: Alligator pear spread, anchovy fillet tidbits, bacon and curried peanut butter rolls, East Indian beef balls, clam spread tidbit, pizzas--miniature, smoked oysters in blankets, Camembert cheese and ham tarts, chicken livers and bacon, roast beef snacks, kippered herring and bacon rolls and meat balls (beef in blankets).
Gin cocktails: Aligaro pear spread, anchovy ham rolls, artichoke bottoms, asparagus tips in ham rolls, onion and cheese snacks, onion egg snacks, stuffed olives, codfish balls with cheese, sardine onion snacks, sausage in blankets, sardine macaroni snacks, stuffed dill pickles and marinated vegetables.
Beer: Anchovy fillet tidbits, stuffed olives, cheese straws, turnovers, cocktail frankfurters and sauerkraut, garlic popcorn, cheese balls, chipped beef and sardine
rolls, kippered herring and bacon rolls and tongue rolls or pinwheels."
---501 Easy Cocktail Canapes, Olga de Leslie Leigh [Thomas Y. Crowell:New York] 1953 (p. 5-6)
[Compare with: TV cocktail parties.]
In the 1930s-1940s, families listened to the radio while dining. After supper, they retired to the living room to enjoy favorite programs.
Like furniture-grade console radios, most families placed TVs in the living room for general seating comfort. TV's allure, of course, was the visual component.
As post-war affuence rose, so did the acquisition of the family TV. This animated box changed American life,
and by association dining patterns, forever.
The most demanding guest ever to enter the American home is Television. It has disorganized family life, thrown tradition to the winds and as for the dinner hour, it is
ignored completely. Even discipline has been turned over to Television--the mere suggestion of being banished from a favorite program is enough to bring the most unrully
child into line. Yet try as you may, you can't squeeze Television into the old set of rulles. You can plan dinner at six and nothing happens--all eyes and ears are glued to the
screen. You moan like a martyr, you deliver an ultimatum, but it gains you nothing. Far better to outsmart the situation and join the ranks of enthusiasts. 'But how can I feed the
children in time for their program yet avoid a hectic, hurried meal when Dad gets home from the office?' you ask. It can be done! Preparing one dinner and serving two takes
a certain amount of planning, that is at first. But once you get on to it, it can become an automatic routine. It is simply a matter of preparing one recipe but using two bowls or
serving dishes or dividing the food between individual baking dishes...Hamburgers can be seasoned and shaped for two dinners, wrapped in waxed paper or foil and stored in the refrigerator until
time to be fried or broiled. Even your tossed green salad can be mixed at one time yet with no danger of you and Dad being fed the left-overs. Just toss together the desired selection of
greens, towl and chill until ready to be mixed with the dressing...The double boiler can be used when reheating vegetables cooked ahead of time or for keeping them hot for the second serving...
Serving meals while viewing television is no problem, that is if you use trays. (Trays are one investment which pay for themselves over and over again.) The kind I use are
made from pressed paper or composition board. They are inexpensive, durable, weigh practically nothing and are finished to look like fine-grained wood; also they are
liquor-prrof. You may decide to invest in a few of the larger size trays, large enough to hold a casserole, serving dish and salad bowl. These allow your entire dinner to
be moved from kitchen to living room at one time and on one tray. In my kitchen I keep my flatware and napkins convenient to the place where the trays are stored. It takes only a
minute to set them up along 'the buffet' which is the name given to the open counter between the upper and lower cupboards in my kitchen...Now that we've arranged everything, where will
your family or guests eat; where will they put their trays? I shudder to think you would expect them to balance a tray on their knees. Your answer is tables. My daughter
usus a huge coffee table placed in front of her television set. A similar idea but a differently constructed table is built like a long ench and is covered with individual
cushions. It is a perfect seat for viewing television. When the cushions are placed on the floor (Oriental fashion) as seats, the table is then ready for dining.
You could build such a table yourself by using a 2 foot wide plywood door, with iron legs and cushions of foam rubber. Or perhaps individual tables would be more to
your liking? If so, invest in one of those sets of four which hang from a rack or else a nest of tables which may be stored on inside the other. For the children's use, probably the
cheapest answer would be those metal trays with legs attached--they are lightweight and colllpase for storing. As the clock strikes the hour, each child balances a tray and
the processions moves into the realm of make-believe. You and Dad sink into comfortable chairs--far from the blare and blatt of the children's program--and enjoy a few minutes
of peace and quiet as you sip your cocktails. Later, as you dine in front of your program, you realize that at last your goal has been reached--the family has
found happiness under its own roof."
---The Queen is in the Kitchen: Informal Meals of all Kinds, Marguerite Gilbert McCarthy [Charles Scribner's Sons:New York] 1954 (p. 3-5)
"How log has it been since you have had a glamourous evening alone with our husband? A whole evening full of talk, good food, candlelight, soft music, and maybe a
bottle of light, chilled wine. it sounds wonderful, doesn't it, but the budget is too trained and it's so difficullt to find someone to stay with the children. Then what
about a do-it-yourself project! Here's how it works in our house. Late in that afternoon I do all the preliminary cookinng, set the coffee table in the living room with a
pretty cloth, my best china; and silver, and the candelabra from the mantle, and stakc the phonograph with record. After I have bathed the children and helped them into their
pajamas, I spend a little extra effort on my own dressing and make-up..By the time my husband comes home at 6 o'clock, I am dressed and relaxed and the children are happily
eating a tray supper in front of the television set. This is a treat for them, especially when they are served hamburgers, fruit salad, carrot sticks, and an ice cream
bar for dessert. They consider this menu a real party and what could be easier for Mother. When the children finish their supper they usually go upstairs to watch Daddy shave and tell him
about their day. Then he reads them a story and tucks them into bed. This gives me time to broil a steak, mix the green salad, and dress the baked potatoes with sour cream
and chives. While I bring the dinner into the living room on a large tray, my husband pours the wine, lights the candles, and flicks the switch on the phonograph. Now there we
are, away from the distractions of television, children, and friends, with time to really talk. Food never has tasted better...And what will this glamourous evening cost?
A little extra effort and planning on your part, and a few dollars for the steak and wine. We do this once aa week and the children have come to call it
'Mommy and Daddy's party night,' which indeed it is."
---"A Do-It-Yourself Project: Glamour Evening at Home," Barbara Hubbard, Chicago Daily Tribune, May 20, 1956 (p. F1)
"Today a new form of entertaining--the television gathering--supplements the cocktail party. The room is darkened; therefore one does not give careful scrutiny to
the choice of snacks and canapes. Something which is easy to handle and does not drip should be served. Guests will not appreciate the efforts of the hostess if
their apparel is suddenly decorated with a soft spread, nor do they want to flounder around in the dark for snacks while trying to concentrate on the show. This
naturally eliminates a number of canapes. They must be of a solid nature to nibble on, or small enough to consumer immediately. A few suggestions which include
the late evening or midnight snack: Cheese straws, Garlic popcorn, Roast beef snacks, Bologna and cheese snacks, Ham and cheese 'sandwich' snacks, Meat
balls (Beef in blankets), Dill pickle and cheese snacks, Cheese and deviled ham pinwheels, Ham and Swiss cheese rolls, Pastry pinwheels, Tortilla chips, Veal loaf
snacks."
---501 Easy Cocktail Canapes, Olga de Leslie Leigh [Thomas Y. Crowell:New York] 1953 (p. 7-8)
"Television has drastically changed New Year's day for millions of Americans. Festive famiy dinners have yielded to bowl broadcasts and TV trays. Open houses have been replaced by
floats, flowers, and football. Sitting in their rocking chairs, TV viewers traveled from coast to coast and back again thru the magic of the one eyed giant in the
living room."
---"Video Changes New Year's Day for Americans," Larry Wolters, Chicago Daily Tribune, January 2, 1955 (p. 100)
"Truly versitale ore the popular TV trays. While our trays are occaasionally used for the purpose for which they were orginally purchased, namely the serving of meals
and snacks in front of the television screen, more often they will be found put into service in other ways...The trays always lend an informal atmosphere to evening refreshments an
when friends dorp in. And at buffet suppers, the bane of the males' existence, note the happy smile as each guest is provided with a tray on which to put his dinner...
We oftimes enjoy bedtime snacks, prepared in the kitchen aand carried to the bedroom on a tray. These trays are also ideal for special projects, mending, cutouts, stamp-collecting
paraphernalia...Even if you don't own a TV set, TV trays are hand to have. They store compactly in a minimum of space and yet when opened can provide ample eating facilities for
a group of people. You can repaint or redecorate them if you wish. Don't confine their use to inside only. During the warm weather, they make happy porch and yard
companions as well."
---"Our TV Trays Unlimited," T. Jewell Collins, Christian Science Monitor, October 11, 1958 (p. 17)
---"Our Useful TV Tras," Peggy Case Paulus, Christian Science Monitor, August 14, 1959 (p. 17)
Food companies marketed their products to home cooks as convenient/economical/modern ingredients from the middle of
the 19th century forwards. In the 1950s, this marketing split into two distinct tracts: mom's kitchen & cold war survival.
USA housewives embraced the "emergency pantry" stocked with canned foods for economy & expediency from early
20th century forwards. Recipes incorporatiing commercial products proliferated in the "make do" 1930s & 1940s. They were promoted by
food companies (corporate kitchens) & community cook books. When
the dean of American cuisine acknowledged the expediency of the Emergency Pantry for "Impromptu
Cooking" in How to Eat Better for Less Money, (1954) American housewives drew a collective sigh of
validated relief. James Beard offered recipes for Curry in a Hurry, Pizza & Kidney Bean Chili (but not Tuna Noodle Cassrole...
interesting). Happy to scan/share.
Stocking food in a family's bomb shelter engaged a different set of culinary objectives.
Civil Defense pantry, c. 1953
If you are going for the classic "Malt Shop" theme (think: Happy Days & Grease) period restaurant (diner, drive in) menus are your best guides.
Teen party menus suggested in cookbooks are generally not as "hip." Sample 1950s coffee shop & ice cream parlor menus are
online here. Type the name of these four restaurants (one at a time) in the "restaurant' box :
Stan's, Brown Derby, Carnation, Vern's. The database will return entire menus.
"The 1957 housewife can prepare three meals a day for a family of four in one hour and 20 minutes. Her mother spent nearly six hour daily doing
the same job. These two facts, proven by United States Government tests, represent a modern miracle in the kitchen, probably the biggest let-up
in kitchen chores since man discovered fire and put woman to work cooking over it. The change didn't happen overnight. It crept up on us during
the past generation, so smoothly that today's housewife doesn't realize how lucky she is compared to mother. Take chicken soup. Mother made
her soup with a chicken bought from the butcher and a bunch of soup greens from the vegetable store. Her daughter today just strolls into a
supermarket, walks past the canned soup shelves and goes home with six different kinds of chicken soup all ready to heat and serve, in less than
five minutes. Sure, there are still women who make their soup the old way. But the proof of the miracle is your latest cookbook--which starts its
soup section with the words 'a can of soup.' Precooked foods, frozen foods and modern kitchen equipment have cut the American housewife's
cooking time so drastically that a record 21 million women can hold jobs and still eat at home--with 10 million of them feeding husbands and
families besides. A lot of things made possible the miracle in your kitchen: Frozen orange juice, instant cocoa, cookie mixes, 'brown and serve' rolls,
dehydrated soups in little plastic bags, freezers, blenders, cakes ready to bake in throw-away foil pans, no-rinse detergents, fast oven grease
removers, pancake batter in paper containers, pre-stuffed turkeys, plastic wrap, ready-made dishes, 'TV dinners.' They've perfected an electronic
range which bakes potatoes in four minutes flat, and are testing supersonic dishwashers that can scrape egg off a plate in a second, dehydrated
pork chops that keep a year and 'instant' bread dough powder. Also in the works are automatically irradiated foods that last indefinitely without
refrigeration, and the 'pouch' diners --whole dehydrated meals in plastic bags that cook instantly when you pour hot water into the bag. Instant
spaghetti with instant sauce, bread that stays soft three months, canned pre-fried bacon that heat without splatter--these are being made right
now by the Government. And, by 1959, housewives will have them. The Government agency perfecting these super-convenience foods is the
Quartermaster Food and Container Institute for the Armed Forces. This vital Government unit has the job of improving military meals--but women
won it a huge vote of thanks: It put cake mixes, dehydrated soups and boneless meats in your kitchen. It all came about because the QM
Institute tried to give servicemen in the field in World War II food that was as good as anything they could get in a mess hall...When the war was
over, powdered eggs, dehydrated potatoes, etc., were grabbed by civilian industry...These solutions became today's convenience foods.
The one-package meal 'TV' dinner...can claim the K-ration as an ancestor."
---"Modern Kitchen Miracles," Olga Curtis, Washington Post, April 26, 1957 (p. C2)
Sugar Pops (Kelloggs)
Minute Rice (General Foods
Lawry's Seasoned Salt (Lawry's)
Legal Seafoods (Boston-based restaurant chain)
Diners Club (credit card)
Dunkin' Doughnuts (fast food chain)
Ore-Ida Foods (frozen potato products)
Duncan Hines Cake Mix (Nebraska Consolidated Mills)
Tropicana Products (Florida orange juice)
Jack-in-the-Box (fast food chain restaurant)
Taco Bell (fast food mexican restaurant)
Cheeze Whiz (Kraft)
No-Cal Ginger Ale (Kirsch Beverages)
Sugar Frosted Flakes (Kellogg's)
Pream non-dairy creamer (M & R. Dietetic Laboratories)
Ms. Paul's Fish Sticks
Lawry's Original Spaghetti Sauce Mix (Lawry's)
Sugar Smacks (Kellogg's)
TV Dinners (Swanson)
Pepperidge Farm butter cookies
"Irish Coffee" (San Francisco's Buena Vista Cafe)
Denny's (restaurant chain)
Star-Kist (canned tuna)
Eggo Frozen Waffles
Trix (General Mills)
Butterball Turkeys (Swift-Eckrich CO.)
Stouffer's frozen meals (Stouffer)
Nonfat dry milk (Carnation Co.)
Burger King (fast food chain)
Shakey's Pizza (fast food chain)
Peanut M&Ms (Hershey's)
Marshmallow Peeps(Just Born)
Special K breakfast food (Kellogg's)
Pepperidge Farm cookies (Bordeauz, Lido, Milano, Orleans)
McDonalds (Kroc style)
Kentucky Fried Chicken (Colonel Sanders)
Imperial margarine (Lever Brothers)
TreeSweet Products (fruit juices)
Certs (breath mints)
Chocolate covered ants
Gino's (fast food chain)
Pam (nonstick cooking spray)
Refrigerated cookie dough (Pillsbury)
Tang [orange-flavored breakfast drink]
Ruffles [potato chips]
Rice-A-Roni [packaged flavored rice product]
Williams-Sonoma [upscale cookware retailer]
Sweet 'n Low [sugarless sweetener]
Cocoa Puffs [breakfast cereal, General Mills]
Jif [peanut butter]
Chicken Ramen [instant noodle product, Nissen Foods]
Instant Tea [Lipton]
Pizza Hut [franchise restaurants]
International House of Pancakes (IHOP) [restaurant chain]
Royal Crown Cola
Frosty O's (General Mills)
Ocean Spray brand products (name changed from National Cranberry Assn)
Haagen-Dazs Ice Cream
--SOURCES: The Food Chronology, James Trager [Owl Books:New York] 1995 & The Century in Food: America's Fads and Favorites,
Beverly Bundy [Collectors Press:Portland OR] 2002 & Candy: The Sweet History, Beth Kimmerle [Collectors Press:Portland OR] 2003
Campbell's Tomato Soup (with recipe for Easy Stuffed Peppers), Pillsbury Hot Roll Mix (box
mix), Ritz Crackers, Minute Tapioca (with recipe for Minute Tapioca Cooler), Birds Eye
Concentrated Orange Juice (can), Gerber's Baby Foods (beef and liver flavors), Wesson Oil (with
recipe for Shrimp Salad), Libby's Fruit Cocktail, Kellogg's Variety Pack cereals (10 boxes, 7
choices including Corn Flakes, Pep, Shredded Wheat, Rice Krispies, Corn Soya), French's
Mustard, Lady Borden Ice Crema (Black Raspberry new flavor), Mazola Oil (with recipe for
South Seas Salad Dressing and Cruise Cake cookies), Jell-O Pudding (boxes: chocolate,
butterscotch & tapioca; recipes for Chocolate Surprise Cakes, Orange Blossom Cream Peach
Delight), Kakauna Klub Cheese Foods (packed in soft plastic tubes, Wisconsin), Funsten's
Pecans, Van Camp's Pork & Beans, Hi-C Orange-ade (can), Coca Cola (six pack; glass bottles).
Old Schenley Rye or Bourbon, Bellows Partners Choice Whiskey, Bekk's Royal Vat Whiskey, Korbel Brut Champagne, Noilly Cassis
Vermouth, Reed and Barton sterling silver tea services, Miller High Life Beer (featuring illustration of a fashionable
youngish woman in an old-style European kitchen setting with a bottle of the product on the sideboard), Black and White
Scotch, Great Western American Champagne [NY], Gourmet complete set 1949 bound issues $8.00, "limited number of
1946, 1947 and 1948 bound volumes" available [individual magazine sells for 35 cents], Metaxa Specialty Liquer (imported from
Greece), Maggi Seasoning (bottle, to 'improve the flavor of soups, gravies, vegetables, meats), Went Brothers White Wines
(Dry Semillon, Sweet Semillon, Saugivnon Blanc, Grey Riesling, Pinot Blanc), Bacardi Cuban Rum (with recipe for Bacardi
Cocktail), Ac'Cent(flavor enhancer, shaker bottle or small tin "Ac'Cent is like nothing you've ever known. Not a flavoring (it adds
no flavor of its own), Ac'cent intensifies the food natural flavors already in foods...some scientists say Ac'cent also urges the taste buds to
a keener appreciation of food flavors. You can buy Ac'cent (a 99 + % pure monosodium glutamate in crystal form) in many
grocery stores), Riccardi French Ice Cream, Orange Blossom Honey (small tin, mail order), Yum Yum Lora Lee's Indian Wild Fruit Drink
(Every sip fragrant with sip...A skillful blend of wild fruits and berries makes the astounding Yum Yum! Fruits, berries, sugar, no chemicals, powder mix "just
add water"), Pilsner Urquell Beer, Champy Wines, Gourmet's Guide to Good Eating (book, "the most reliable directory to good eating
places in this country and Canada, $2.00), California Olives, High Valley Farn Smoked Rainbow Trout, Raffetto imoported
Marrons and Nessero (glass jars), Penthouse Party Foods (Hamper-Sampler Special Offer: Roquefort Cheese 'N Olives, Stilton Cheese
'N Olives, Cheddar Cheese 'N Olives, Mousse Salmon Caviar, Mousse Anchovy, Mousse Smoked Salmon. Packed in handsome imported willow
hamper, makes wonderful gift...regular $7.50, on sale $5.00), Bowl & Cruet Virgin Peanut Oil, Billy Bacter brand gourmet carbonated
drinks (6 dozen 10 oz. bottles, $13.20 case: ginger ale, club soda, birch beer, root beer, lemon soda, sarsaprilla, quinine
soda, ginger beer), Favorite Flavors Liquid Spices (with rack), Wright's Hot-N-Tot Bar-B-Q Smoke (bottle), Sexton American
Worcestershire Sauce (bottle), Sea Sampler Rainbow Trout (mail order, also: Smoked Oysters, Kippered Shad, Albacore, Smoked Oregon
Sturgeon, Smoked Salmon Pate), Hormel Onion Soup (can, $1.35, grocery stores or mail order), Hickory Valley Farm Pennsylvania
Dutch Baked and Glazed Sherry Cured Ham, BubB Mushrooms (can, whole, chopped or sliced), Redland Tropical Grove [FL] Avocados
(mail order, fresh, 5 avocados $3.50), Elizabeth Widdicombe's Finest Quality Hand Packed California Fruits in Brandy, Rum or
Spiced (sold at department and fancy food stores), Lancer's Crackling Carbonated Vin Rose, Heineken Beer, O'Brien's Farm Sausage
[Waverly NY], Sell's Deviled Ham Pate (tin, also minced chicken pate), Convival Snack-Master ("Make marvelous tempting bite-size
appetizers neatly and speedily. Place slices of bread, meat, pickle, cheese, etc. on board. Use Snack Master like a biscuit cutter.
Puch toothpick into filled tube, push plunger down--presto a perfectly shaped hors d'oeuvre. Complete with 200 colorful plastic
toothpicks. $1.00), Lynn Coursey hams and hickory bacon [AR], Edde Ash's Homestead Groves [FL] (avocados, Tahiti limes, juicy
pineapples), Robin Hood Grove [FL] Choice Avocados, Old Forester Kentucky Straight Burbon (free mint plant offer to make
Juleps), Rheingold Extra Dry Lager Beer (featuring Pat Burrage, Miss Rheingold 1950).
Swift's Brookfield Butter (also eggs, brick Process Cheese Food, and pasteurized process cheese spreads, 5 oz glass jars,
Old York, Cheese and Bacon, Olive Pimiento, Bleu, Pimiento, Relish and Pineapple), Kraft Miracle French Dressing
(brilliant orange-red) and French Dressing (bright orange) in pourable glass bottles, "shake well," recipe for Tossed salad Deluxe,
7Up (glass bottle, personal size), Kraft De Luxe Slices (pre-sliced, not individually wrapped, 1/2 lb package:
Pasteurized Process American Cheese, Pimento Cheese, Swiss Cheeses, Brick Cheese & Old English Sharp Cheese), Campbell's
Soup (cans, chicken noodle, vegetable-beef, cream of celery, Nabisco Shredded Wheat (box), Kraft Mayonnaise ("Kitchen
Fresh"), Borden's Buttermilk, Vera-Sharp Cheese Spread (glass jar) & ice cream (brick) with recipe for Elsie's Fresh Peach Temptation, Betty Crocker's Stir-n-roll Refrigerator Pie featuring Gold Medal enriched flour (recipe "with a new, special marshmallow creamy filing" included), Swans Down Cake Mixes (chocolate devil's Food, Instant Cake Mix, Star-Kist Chunk Style Tuna (can, green label, recipe for Gene Tierney's Star-Kist Tuna Salad Royal), Kool-Aid (beverage mix packets "5 cents package added to 2 quarts water, sweeten to taste," 6 flavors shown, orange, grape, lime and three red colors, presumably strawberry, cherry & raspberry?), Parkay Oleomargarine (box with 4 individually wrapped in aluminum foil sticks; Yellow Parkay or regular with Color-Kwik bag with coloring enclosed in separate envelope), Franco-American Spaghetti (can), V-8 Juice (also promoted by Gene Tierney, starring in 'On the Riviera' a 20th Century-Fox Production in Technicolor, Dixie Cups (time saving, hand, economical, easy), Jell-O Pudding and Pie Filling (box, lemon flavor), Sunkist Lemons, Kraft Cheese Spreads (Old English, Pineapple Cheese, in "new crystal-petal glasses...You'll use them every day, even when company comes. Start a set right away!"), Bennett's Chili Sauce (glass bottle), Keystone Mushrooms (can), Sure-Jell (box, powdered pectin with recipe for Orange Juice Jelly), French's Pure Prepared Mustard (recipe for Frenchwise barbecue sauce, Frenchwise hamburgers & Frenchwise Potato salad), French's Worcestershire Sauce (instructions for tomato juice cocktail, "Hot Dan the Mustard Man recipe offers booklet "Dining Delights"), Coca Cola (6 pack personal size bottles), Pen-Jel (natural powdered Apple Pectin for home canning, box), Crosse & Blackwell Cream Vichyssoise Soup (can), Reynolds Wrap "Government orders now restrict the manufacture of Reynolds Wrap and all household foil. Military needs aluminum foil to protect rations, drugs, delicate instruments. The day will come, however, when Reynolds Wrap will wing its way back. back to your favorite store. back to your home. Aluminum production is being rapidly expanded to bring you, as quickly as possible, all the Reynolds Wrap you want."), Underwood Deviled Ham, In-Sink-Erator (home garbage disposal unit), Armour Dash (can, dog food), Ripe (black) olives from California (no brand, recipe for Yerba Buena Salad), Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce (recipe for barbecue sauce).
Swift's Premium Ham (cloth-wrapped, recipe for Martha Logan's Ham Neapolitan), Kraft dressings (glass jars & bottles: Miracle Whip, Mayonnaise, Sea Island Dressing, Miracle French Dressing, French Dressing, Casino French Dressing "New Continental style...tangy-sweet with garlic,"), Kraft Salad Oil (brown glass bottle), Campbell's Soup (Cream of Mushroom, Cream of Celery & Cream of Chicken, recipes for Beef patties with mushroom cream sauce, Best creamed broccoli & Easy chicken pie), California Olives (no specific brand, recipe for Molly's Olive 'n Tuna Super Supper, Libby's "Sweet-as-summer" vegetables (cans: peas, corn, lima beans, beets, mixed garden vegetables, peas and carrots, spinach, asparagus, tomatoes, pumpkin, stringless beans & sauerkraut), Crisco (blue can), Del Monte Golden Corn (can, recipe for Corn-burger stacks), Softasilk Betty Crocker Cake Flour (recipe for Orange Alaska Chiffon), Swift'ning shortening (can, recipe for Martha Logan's Chocolate Nut Fudge Cake), Kraft De Luxe Slices Pasteurized Process American Cheese (sliced but not individually wrapped), Baker's Coconut (box & can, recipe for Spring Posie Pie), Kitchen Bouquet Gravy concentrate (bottle), Canned Fruit Cocktail from California (no brand, recipe for French Fruit Tarts & Golden Fruit Salads), Franco-American Spaghetti, tomato sauce with cheese (can), V-8 Cocktail Vegetable Juices, Toastmaster (automatic pop-up toaster), Arm & Hammer & Cow Brand baking sodas (box, promoted for baking, cleaning & settling acid stomachs), Aunt Jemima Ready-Mix for Pancakes and Waffles, Diamond Walnuts (shelled, large size, medium size, cans & cello-wrap, recipe for Spiced Tuna in Walnut Tart Shells), Kraft Philadelphia Cream Cheese (silver foil wrap, recipes for chocolate cream cheese cake filling & chocolate nut fudge squares), Sunkist Lemons (recipe for Lemon Barbecue Sauce for Fish), Reynolds Pure Aluminum Foil, Betty Crocker's Stir-N-Roll biscuit treat (recipe for Tuna Roll-Ups), Cheese (no brand, American Dairy Association, recipes for Sunny Cheese Sauce, Sunny Cheese Scallop & Sunny Cheese Tray), Green Giant Peas (can, with giant on can), French's Worcestershire sauce (bottle, recipe for Barbecued Spareribs & Frenchwise Barbecue Sauce), French's Mustard (glass jar, recipe for Ham Steak glaze), Pure-Pak personal size waxed cardboard milk container (no particular milk/dairy company), Heinz Pickles (glass jar), Heinz Worcestershire sauce (glass bottle), Heinz Jellies (glass jars, 10 flavors referenced but not listed; elderberry & cherry shown in ad),
Ovaltine (milk supplement, recommended for children's breakfast), Sun-maid Raisins (Thrift-I-Pak, six handy pocket packages), Underwood Deviled Ham (can), Jolly Time Pop Corn, Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce, 7-UP (green glass bottles, personal size), Gebhardt's Original Chili Powder (glass bottle), Alka-Seltzer (tablets).
Community Silverware (Onieda Ltd, Evening Star, Morning Star, Lady Hamilton & Coronation patterns), Listerine (anticeptic
mouthwash), Hotpoint Automatic Dishwasher (New! Gets Dishes and Glasses Super Clean!), Sunbeam CoffeeMaster and MixMaster,
Crisco (recipes for Crisco's Fancy Friday Fare...Butterfly Shrimp, French Fried Oysters, Fish Fillet Strips & Sauteed Scallops),
Brillo soap pads ("Twice the shine in half the time"), Gerber's Baby Foods ("Babies are our business...our only business!), Borden's
Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk (recipe: Magic Marshmallow Roll), Borden's Cottage Cheese (recipe: Elsie's Spring Glory
Salad), Borden's Ice Cream (recipe: Elsie Easter Basket), Swift's Premium tender-grown Chicken ("Flavor of Springtime! &
"The Dream Chicken that came true!), Minute Rice (recipe for Hawaiian Supper), Norge Upright Freezer & Norge Jet Self-D-Froster Refrigerator
("The new Norge Food-Saver Team), Ritz Crackers (National Biscuit Company, "Do get to know wonderful New Ritz! Richer...
Crispier, "Nothing tastes as good as Ritz- but Ritz), Hunt's Tomato Sauce (can, recipe for Pot Roast-Hunt Style, "Hunt for the
Best"), Joy dishwashing detergent (new plastic bottle), Armour Star (bacon, chese, franks, packged sausage, canned
chopped ham; "Buckaroo Breakfast" with fresh-ade sausage for fresh energy!, mail-in free offer for Marie Gifford's favorite recipes, "Hot and
Cold Hits), Good Housekeeping Cook Book ($3.00, 5 days free trial), Good Housekeeping's Chicken Cook Book (several pages,
magazine kitchen tested recipes), Campbell's Soup (Budget Meal #1: Chicken soup, Mixed vegetable salad, Deep dish apricot pie;
Budget Meal #2: Tomato soup (with bacon garnish), Macaroni & cheese, Cole slaw, Fresh fruit; Budget Meal #3: Vegetable soup,
Openfaced burger with onion, Dill pickle slices, Carrot sticks, Baked apple), Swan's Down Cake Flour & Baker's Coconut (recipe for
Easter Glory Cake), Cut-Rite waxed paper ("Dione Lucas shows you a neat way to make chocolate pudding"), Borden's Starlac Nonfat
Dry Milk Solids (box, nonfat, "for only 9 cents a quart), Universal Coffeematic (electric percolator), Del Monte Early
Garden Sugar Peas (can, recipe for Stuffed Lettuce Salad), Coca cola (personal size glass bottle, "Serve ice cold"), French's
Mustard (glass jar, recipes for French's Gourmet Sauce for Cold Meats & Ham and Potato Salad), Pfaltzgraff chafing dihs, Nesco
new 2 3/4-quart electric roaster oven (ceramic exterior, green or red), Insulate coffee servers ("A transcontinental railroad uses these
Universal insulated two-cup and four-cup servers: Landers Frary and Clark [CT]), Flame-Tamer (ciruclar steel air cushion, provides easy
method of keeping coffee hot without boiling. Just place it on the burner underneath your coffeepot; Tricolator Co [NJ]),
Kelvinator Pantryette ("wall cabinets are hung like pictures...Pantryettes have flourescent lighting...sliding glass door and
sloping fronts to allow more head room with no danger of head bumps."), Pillsbury's Best flour & Spry vegetable
shortening (recipe: "Two-crust slice O'Lemon Pie), Swift's Meats for Babies (cans, "pre-cooked and strained so fine babies can eat it at
3 weeks!"), Dole Hawaiian Sliced Pineapple (can, recipe for Ham and Eggs Hawaiian), Jell-O, Best Foods Real Mayonnaise &
Hellmann's Real Mayonnaise ("Ahhh! a realy new salad idea! Souffle salads! Made the new fast-frost way!, Ideal for Lent...
recipes for Vegetable-Tuna Souffle Salad & Egg Souffle Salad), Nestle's Semi-Sweet Chocolate (plastic bag, morsels, recipe for:
Nestle's Double-Quick Fudge Frosting; photos of Betty Crocker Cake Mix, Duff's Devil's Food Mix, Aunt Jemima Pancake Mix and Pillsbury
Cake Mix), Blue Bonnet Margarine (4 foil-wrapped sticks in cardboard box; Blue Bonnet Sue mascot), Puss'n Boots cat food
(cans), A&P Ann Page brand foods (canned spaghetti, beans, tomato soup; glass jar preserves & peanut butter, boxed elbow
macaroni, & Sparkle pudding), Green Giant Mexicorn Niblets (can), Vernell's Fresh Butter Mints (bag), Foremost Ice cream (vanilla) &
Homogenized milk (quart cardboard container), Osterizer Blender & hand-held electric beater, Anchor Hocking Fire-King Ovenware (clear glass,
Pyrex competitor?), RCA Estate Range (Gas & electric, Duncan Hines Favorite Recipes offer), Coolerator refrigerators & freezers,
Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce ("Out of this bottle intro his heart."), Log Cabin Variety Breads (cello-wrapped & sliced:
raisin-nut, stone ground 100% whole whjeat & Mell-o-Bran), Waring Blendor ("Uncovers the seceret of a remarkable new way to
prepare food), Manitowoc Upright Freezers, McCormick Pure Vanilla Extract (Merry-go-round kit offer), Schilling Pure Vanilla
& food colors (West coast McCormick brand), Swanson canned chicken or turkey product ("Time Short? Chicken Fast!; recipe for Baked
Chicken Casserole), Dole Pineapple (canned: sliced, chunked or tidbits), Star-Kist Tuna (green cans, Chunk Style & Solid Pack),
Admiral Dual-Temp refrigerator/freezer ("No defrosting...Ever!), One a Day multiple vitamins (orange plastic bottle),
Presto Automatic Deep-Fryer, Mexene Chile Powder (recipe for Breast of Chicken Saute Brazilian), Amazo Instant Dessert
(box, chocolate, vanilla & butterscotch flavors, add milk), Marlun Mfg,. Co. Ritz Black Angus Combination Rotisserie and Broiler,
Funsten's nuts (cans: pecans, black walnuts, almonds), Golden Dipt ready-mixed Breading, Cary's Maple Syrup (glass bottle, from
"Old Vermont"), Puffin Biscuits (ready to bake, in tin), Lawry's Seasoned Salt (shakable; "A blend of salt and 17 other ingredients--
rare and costly herbs, spices and seasonings), Morton salt (cardboard canister, Sexton quality foods (tea bags),
Frank's Red Hot Sauce (bottle), Jolly-Time Pop Corn, Dromedary Dixie Fruit Cake Mix (boxed), Quicfrez freezers, Ac'cent
flavor enhancer (tin & shaker: "Pure Monosodium Glutamate"), Sioux Bee Honey (tin & bottle; recipe for Honey Coconut
Divinity), Marshmallow Fluff ("Makes moist, smooth frostings"), Gravy Master, La Rosa spaghetti ("Has less calories").
Karo Syrup, Ritz Crackers, Ideal Tea bags, Wesson Oil, Swift's Premium chicken, Log Cabin
Syrup, Birds Eye concentrated orange juice (in cans, not frozen), Butterfinger (candy bars),
Lipton Tea, Spry Vegetable Shortening, B & M Baked Beans, Sun-Maid Raisins, Oscar Mayer
Wieners (in a can, not shrink-wrapped), Wrigley's Spearmint Gum, Kool-Aid (drink mix),
ReaLemon (reconstituted lemon juice), Armour Treet (canned meat product, like Spam), Bisquick,
Swanson [canned] chicken & turkey, Cheez-It crackers, Underwood Deviled Ham, Adolph's meat
tenderizer, HI-C vitamin-enriched fruit juices, Royal Instant Pudding, Supreme [white bread],
Beech-Nut Foods for Babies, Sunkist Lemonade, French's mustard, Dole Hawaiian pineapple
(canned). Pream (powdered dairy product for coffee), Taylor Pork Roll, Jolly Time Pop Corn.
Broadcast Corned Beef Hash, Tetley Tea bags, Gold Medal flour, Coca Cola.
Gerber's baby foods, Crisco, Sunbeam electric waffle baker, egg cooker & mixmaster, DuPont's Mycoban (commercial mold inhibitor for
bread), SPAM & Hunt's Tomato Sauce (with recipe for oven barbecue), Best Foods Real Mayonnaise & Hellmann's Real Mayonnaise,
Minute Rice (recipe for Minute Rice Rarebit), Borden's Vera Sharp Pasturized Process American Cheese, Borden's Butter Milk (waxed
cardboard containers), Carnation Evaporated Milk (recipes for Whipped Carnation Topping & Old Fashioned Shortcake), Lipton
Frostee Dessert Mix & Sherbet Mix (foil packets), Dixie Cup Dispenser, Nescafe Instant Coffee (glass jar), Junket Sherbet Mix,
Cambell's Soups (Chicken Gumbo, Cream of Mushroom, Beef Noodle), Ann Page Mayonnaise (A&P brand), Fig Newtons, Bisco Sugar
Wafers, Vanilla Wafers (Nabisco), Foremost brand milk & ice cream, Hamilton Beach Liqui-Blender, Canada Dry Spur Cola (tall glass
bottle), Dole Hawaiian Crushed Pineapple (can), Canned Cling Peaches from California (recipe for gelatin salad), California
Frozen Concentrate For Lemonade (can), Royal Crown Cola (personal size bottle), Thermo-Keep Insulated Wonder Bags (for freezer),
Trade Winds brand frozen fresh Fantail Shrimp (box), Grapette Instant Beverages (fruit-flavored syrups, bottles with happy face or cans),
Hebrew National Frankfurters, Salami, Bologna, Corned Beef, Pastrami & Tongue, Real Gold concentrated fruit drink syrup (orange
& grape), Lawry's Seasoned Salt, Underwood Deviled Ham, Adolph's Meat Tenderizer (Kosher, approved by the American Medical
Association), Gravy Master, Golden Dipt Breading, Tums (for acid indigestion), Good Housekeeping Cook Book (free for 5 day's trial
in your own home, 2250 recipes, 1024 pages, $3.50---we do not currently own a copy), Keystone Mushrooms, Wilson's B-V
Onion Soup dry mix, Sunsweet Prunes (box), Fleer Dubble Bubble (chewing) gum (individually wrapped).
Kraft Miracle French & French dressings (bottles), Kraft Mayonnaise & Miracle Ship Salad Dressing, Kraft Casino French Dressing and All Purpose Oil
(with recipes for Pork Chops & German Potato salad, Broiled Ham Slice & Waldorf salad, Pork Roast & Tomato-Cauliflower Salad), 7-Up (personal
sized green glass bottles, showing a baby drinking soda from the company's bottle), Campbell's Soup (vegetable, green pea, tomato, cream of
mushroom, scotch broth, vegetable, cream of chicken "New Soups from Two Soups...Campbell's Soup Mates), Hellman's Real Mayonnaise & Best
Foods Real Mayonnaise, Crisco (blue can), Betty Crocker Homogenized Pie Crust Mix (box mix), Certo & Sure-Jell (pectin for home canning),
Carnation Evaporated Milk (can, recipes for cheese sauce), Chase & Sanborn Instant Coffee (glass jar), Betty Crocker's cake mixes (Angel Food,
Ginger Bread, Yellow, Chocolate, White, Honey Spice & Marble), Quaker Corn Meal & Aunt Jemima Corn Meal (recipe for Sausage Corn Bread
Supper), Spanish green Olives (no brand, appetizer suggestions), Nescafe Instant Coffee (glass jar), Philadelphia Cream Cheese and Crosse &
Blackwell's Original Date & Nut Roll (can, illustration combining ingredients to make party sandwiches topped with maraschino cherries), Dinty
Moore Beef Stew & Hormel Flavor Sealed Chili Con Carne (cans, recipes for Beef Stew 'n' dumplings and Hormel Chili supper plate), B & B Broiled
Mushrooms, Kitchen Bouquet Gravy, Better Homes and Gardens Diet Book & Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book.
Old Fitzgerald Blended Bourbon (in "Candlelight Decanter"...decorative top doubles as jigger and candle holder),
Ballantine's Scotch, Bertolli Vinrosa (dry, pink wine, served chilled), Benedictine (cordial), Pol Rover French Champagne,
Noilly Prat Dry Vermouth, Old Forester Kentucky Bourbon, Monnet Cognac, John Jameson Blended Irish Whiskey (with recipe
for Irish Coffee), Great Western American Cream Sherry (
also Burgundy, Sauternes, Chablis, Port, Tawny Port, Rhine Wine, Claret, Tokay and Sweet or Dry Vermouth & free booklet offer
Chafing Dish Dining, Mrs. Charles D. Champlin, Wine Counselor), Purity Cheese Company Maybud brand (Gouda, Baby Gouda, Edam, Port Salud, Hickory Smoked
Edam, Mel-o-Pure, rounds presumably wrapped in wax), Weaver's Famous Lebanon Bologna [PA] ($3.50 brings you a 3 1/2 lb. Famous
Lebanon Bologna), Wines of California (with free California Wine Selector Wine Recipes booklet), Reed & Barton's sterling
silverware (Tara pattern), Remy Martin Congac, Contreau, Piper Heidsieck Brut Champagne, Plaza Hotel restaurants, NYC (Persian
Room, The Rendez-vous, Edwardian Room (new), Oak Room, Oak Bar & Palm Court), Tribuno Vermouth, Baccarat (wine glasses,
Rebelaise, $60.00/dozen), Ac'cent (flavor enhancer), Maryland Market Capehens (also Squab Broilers, Rock Cornish Hens, Squab Guinea
Hens, mail order), Grill-Aid Ozark Cured Hickory Smoked Hams ($1.40/lb, mail order), Widmer's New York State Cocktail
Sherry, Hennessey Cognac Brandy, Bell's Special Reserve Scotch, Sanderman's Dry Don Port, Cook 'N' Tools [OK] Cook 'N' Kettle ("is the world's
finest charcoal cooker. No Muss...No Fuss and all hits and no misses for Cook 'n' Boss without his Mrs...It's Different--
Cast Iron Gives Uniform Heat, It's Simple...Cooks without Flame for One or a Dozen...It's Easy...self cleaning, Self sterilizing...
It's Distinctive...Seals in Juices, Creates Delicious Flavor from Fat Drippings and Smoke. Complete Unit includes: Lifetime Kettle
and Lid, Hamburber Grill, 'Barrow-Cart, Two Tables, Three Stainless Cook 'n' Tools, Complete Instructions, Recipe Folder...Complete
as shown (picure included) only $99.50..."), Gypsy Hill Farm [MO] Long-Cut Country Missouri Ham & Premium Hickory Smoked Bacon
(mail order), Bollinger French Champagne, Alexander's Dandi Dinmont Light Bodied Blended Scotch Whisky, Lancer's Crackling Carbonated
Vin Rose (wine), Heineken's Beer, Almaden California Grenache Rose, O'Connor's Mocha & Java (ground coffee in tin),
Gourmet's Guest Club Directory, Penthouse, Hotel Plaza NYC (membership permits "charging" meals & drinks, application
requires name, address, company name, bank & 2 other charge accounts for reference), Roquefort Association (cheese)), Becco French candies
(individully wrapped, "each with an intricate 'inlaid' design that goes clear through), Lefevre-Utile Lu Biscuits from France (photo of box
and biscuit), Port de Salut, Edward Artzner Foie Gras de Strasbourg (imported by Heublein), Liebig dehydrated soup mix
(Onion, Vichyssoise, Pea-and-bacon, Minestrone, Cream of Asparagus, Cream of Mushroom, Alphabet Consomme, Cream of Chicken, Chicken
Noodle, Cream of Tomato, Chicken Consomme), Liebig deluxe concentrated soups in cans, with water added, make four to six
tasty portions. A gourmet's delight! (Bouillabaise, Lobster bisque, Onion, Vichyssoise, Marmite Henri IV, Pot-au-Feu, Normandy
Fish Chowder, Potee du Perigord, Chicken with Rice, Ox tail, Cream of Asparagus, Cream of Mushroom, Cream of Tomato,
Vegetable), PC Sardines (Brittany catch, packed in virgin olive oil from Nice, spiced with bay leaf, and aged for 3 years.
Try the 1952 catch--NOW!), Harvey's Bristol Dry Sherry, Courvoisier Cognac, Roayl Verkade of Holland Mocca Stricks
("famous for Biscuit Specialties with that Continental Touch...Frambesca, Spriits Roundies, Cafe Noir, Speculaas,
Chocolate Sticks..., individually wrapped, photo), Menth Hi-Bols ("Delicious New drink...the hit of Hollywood...1 jigger BOLS Creme de Menthe
(60 proof), Ice cubes, Fill with White Rock soda), Droste Pastilles (candies), Heneiken beer, Bauer brand Cooked Ham (tin), Martinson's
coffee, Dom Perignon champagne, Island View Wild Cherry Barbecue Smoke Stix (also avialable in Sugar Maple, Butternut & Hickory),
Tio Pepe Dry Sherry, Conchita Guava Paste, Sun Brand Major Grey's Chuntney, Hills Petit Pours (cello-wrap, made in Washington
DC, sold in "fine food stores"), Spice Islands Beau Monde Seasoning, Forst's Catskill Mountain Smoked Turkey (mail order, whole
turkey), Lowrance Quail Farm [MO] (mail order, full-size quail, frozen), Wild Acres Turkey Farm (mail order gift packages). Mille\
Lacs Maple Products Wild Rice Pancakes (mail order, "new ready-mix of wild rice, buckwheat & wheat"), Meeker's Boneless Smoked
Turkey Rolls, Sexton Old English Mince Meat (glass jar, for baking), Barengo Red Wine Vinegar, Ozark Mountian Famous Ready-to-Eat
Hickory-Smoked Turkeys and Hams (mail order), Beefeater Gin, Pleasure Chest beef products (mail order steaks, frozen),
BV Wines, Ashbach Urlat Rhine Brandy, Gala Danish Cooked Hams (tins, cookied in French Champagne, Burgundy Wine, Danish Cherry
Wine, Tawny Port Wine, Spanish Sherry, Scotch Whiskey), Gala Smorgasbord dips (Curry, Herring & Betts, Danish Cheese), Hala
Cocktail Flowers (canape crackers "beautifully shaped to petal design," tin), Gourmet Cookbook & Bouquet de France,/
Samuel Chamberlain (cookbook), Blue Nun Liebfraumilch (1945-1950), Filler Product's Bake-N-Krisp Fried Bacon Rinds,
Mumm's Champagne, Julius Wile Sons Escoffier Sauce (Sauce Diable, Sauce Robert, Sauce Melba, glass bottles), Holland House
Dry Martini Mix, Fernet-Branca Italian Stomachic Bitters, Marzetti's famous salad dressings (Slaw, French, Italian, mail order),
Reese Piff-O-Puff (tinned canape spreads: onion, bacon, chese, tomato, garlic & shrimp), Inglenook Estate Bottled wines
(Napa Valley CA), Wente White Wines, BinB Mushrooms (canned, recipe fro Hi-Hat Eggs), Raffetto Nesslefo Dessert Sauce
Supreme (glass jar, "imported Marrpons and selected fruits blended in a fine Rum Punch. Ready to serve. You'll thrill to its unique
flavor with ice cream, vanilla pudding, and in Nesslero Pie), Reuland Electric Company, Little Scout electric Smoke House
(home cooker), Happ's St. Croix Trading Post Wild Rice [MN], Torino Fine Foods (olive oil & wine vinegar), Daggar Jamaica
Rum, Gourmet magazine subscription (1 year, $5.00, 3 years, $10.00...single issue, news stand price: 50 cents),
Hiram Walker's Cordials (Orange Curacao, Creme de cacao, Creme de Menthe, Apricot Liqueur, Cherry Liqueur, Rock and Rye, Black
berry Fruit Flavored Brandy, Triple Sec, Kummel & recipe for Strawberries Romanoff), Rhinegold Extra Dry Beer (featuring
photo of Mancy Woodruff, Miss Rheingold 1955)
Nescafe Instant Coffee, Pepsi Cola, Brach's Chocolate Covered Cherries, Pream (dairy product
for coffee), Van Camp's Pork and Beans, Heinz Cream of Tomato Soup, Kraft Miracle Whip,
Tender Leaf Tea, Del Monte Green Beans (can), Reddi-Wip, La Choy Fancy Water Chestnuts,
Libby's Fruit Cocktail, Lipton dehydrated soups (tomato vegetable, chicken noodle, onion, beef
flavor vegetable, green pea), Royal Pudding, Gold Medal Flour, Wrigley's Spearmint Chewing
Gum, Hi Ho Crackers, Carnation Evaporated Milk, Flako Pie Crust, Chase & Sanborn Instant
Coffee, Habitant Pea Soup, Bell's Stuffing, Herb-Ox Bouillon Cubes, Gravy Master, My-T-Fine
Pudding.
Nestea Instant Tea, Star-Kist Tuna, Good Season's Salad Dressing Mixes (packets), Pepsi, Betty Crocker Cream Puff Mix, Betty Crocker Angle Food Cake
Mix, Betty Crocker Brownie Mix, Reddi Wip & Bisquick, Jell-O Instant Pudding, Libby's Fruit Cocktail, Wishbone Italian Dressing (glass bottle), Del Monte
Catsup, Herb-Ox boullon cubes, Bel-Air French Fried Potatoes (frozen, in box), Hellman's Real Mayonnaise, Party Pride Ice Cream (lemon custard flavor),
Skylark White bread, Chase & Sanborn instant coffee, Van Camp's Porke and Beans, Gold Medal Flour.
Lipton Chicken Noodle Soup (dehydrated packets), Log Cabin Syrup (recipes for Fluffl-Light
Skillet Corn Fritters), Wesson Oil (promoting America's first skillet cook book), Borden's milk
(cardboard cartons), Instant Cream of Wheat, Sweeta Tablets (sugar substitute, made by Squibb),
Armour Pure Lard (can & sticks), Olin Cellophane (food wrap), A1 Steak Sauce, Pillsbury Cake
Mix (white cake mix, creamy fudge frosting mix in a box), Ocean Spray Cranberry Sauce (can),
Campbell's Tomato, Cream of Celery and Cream of Mushroom Soups (with meatloaf recipes),
Chef Boy-Ar-Dee Beefaroni, Underwood Deviled Ham, Del Monte Green Beans (with recipe for
Green Beans Amandine with Pork Chop Roast), Instant Pream (creamer substitute), Spam
[Hormel] & Bisquick [Betty Crocker/General Mills] together (with recipes for Spam-in-Blankets,
Spamcakes and Dixie Bake), Fleischmann's Yeast (with recipe for "Pizza Pronto"), Sucaryl
(artificial sweetener made by Abbott Laboratories), Jolly Time Pop Corn (can and plastic bag),
Borden's Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk, Schulze Butternut Bread (sliced white, sold in
Mid-west...with recipe for "The Woodywich Special"), Trade Winds Frozen Fantail Shrimp, Ann
Page Pork and Beans (A&P store brand; with recipe for Sausage n' Beans Country Style),
Lawry's Italian Style Spaghetti Sauce Mix (packet), B & B Sliced Mushroom, Chicken of the Sea
Albacore Tuna, Archway Home Style Cookies (packaged in clear cellophane, dozen count),
Nestle's Semi-Sweet Chocolate Toll House Morsels (with recipe for Marshmallow Cream
Fudge).
French's Spaghetti Sauce Mix (packet, add to plain tomato paste, salad oil and water), Grapefruit Sections from Florida (canned, no brand, recipe
for Grapefruit Salad Spectacular, Snider's Chili Pepper Catsup, Sunkist Oranges, Campbell's Soup (tomato, vegetable, vegetable beef, chicken
noodle, bean with bacon, cream of chicken, vegetarian vegetable), Morton salt (cardboard canister, suggesting using on watermelon), Betty
Crocker cake mixes (lemon custard angel food, yellow and white mixes, recipes for Cool Angel, Cool Lemon Torte and Puddin' Cake Cooler, picture
of Betty in red dress/white collar), Wesson Oil (brown bottle, warning "cholesterol in the villain), Ocean Spray Cranberry Sauce (can), Heinz
Tomato Ketchup, Vegetarian Beans, Worcestershire Sauce, Mustard and Tomato Soup; recipes for Danish Bean Salad, Chilled Tomato-Cream
Soup & Carnival Cream), Betty Crocker Cherry Puff Frosting & Fluffy White Frosting mixes (bid), Miracle Whip Salad Dressing (clear glass jar,
recipes for Show-Off Casserole, Fruit Tower and Chicken High Hats), B&M Brick Oven Baked Beans (can & glass jar), B & M Corn Relish (glass jar),
French's Mustard (recommended for hamburgers, recipe for French's Cheeseburgers filled with cheese and mustard), Chicken of the Sea Tuna
(chunk light=green can; albacore solid white can, both with mermaids, recipe for Easy Fixin' Salad, close-up of mermaid), Ice Cream
(American Dairy Association, no brand, photos of Pillsbury Slice 'n Bake Cookie Pie a la Mode, Pillsbury Pudding Cake a la mode, Pillsbury's Best
Flour Peach Pie a la mode, Pillsbury Apple Crunch Mix a la mode & Hawaiian Fruit Cup a la mode), Pillsbury Flour (recipe for peach pie), Pillsbury
Pudding-Cake Mixes (chocolate, lemon & orange), Pillsbury Apple Crunch Mix, Pompeian Olive Oil, Pillsbury refrigerator rolls (caramel nut, quick
cinnamon with icing, country style sweet milk biscuits, slice-bake cookies, buttermilk), Pepperidge Farm Herb Seasoned Stuffing (clear cello bag,
recipe for Hearty Ham Salad), Hunt's Tomato Paste (recipe for Perfect Meatloaf), Kraft Oil (clear glass bottle).
In the United States, the 1960s was a stormy decade shaped by the clash of
conforming tradition and radical change. Culinary wise? WWII rationing was a distant
memory, 50s casseroles were old & boring. The 60s encouraged showy, complicated
food with French influence (Julia Child, Jacqueline Kennedy), suburban devotion
(backyard barbecues), vegetarian curiosity (Frieda Caplan) and ethnic cuisine (soul
food, Japanese Steak houses). This was also the decade of flaming things (fondue &
Steak Diane) and lots and lots of junk food (aimed at the baby boom children).
"Average" suburban families patronized family-style restaurant chains like Howard
Johnson's. The first Wendy's restaurant opened in 1969.
Party menus from spiral bound The Pillsbury Family Cook Book [Harper & Row:New York] double as social study. What do the
menu names reveal about homemaker/hostess expectations? Witness:
Company Brunch, Luncheon for a New Neighbor, Bridge Club Luncheon, A Teen Committee Meets for Lunch, Daughter's Gift-Dinner on
Mother's Day, Friday Special, A Diner to Finish After Five-Thirty, A Hot Dinner for A Cold Day, Guests for Sunday Dinner After
Chruch, Career Girl's Company Dinner, Casual Dinner Outdoors (2 menus), Dinner After the Holidays, Briday Shower Buffet,
High School Graduation Buffet, Late Snack After the School Play.
The following menus are suggested by theNew York Times Menu Cook Book, Craig
Claiborne [Harper & Row:New York] 1966 (p. 44-48).
"A small cocktail party
Camembert amandine, cucumber spread, crackers and toast rounds, cocktail croquettes,
mushroom strudels.
A large cocktail party
Buttered nuts, chicken-liver pate, toast rounds and crackers, mushroom-stuffed eggs, tuna-stuffed
eggs, cheese straws and twists, wild-rice pancakes, cream-cheese pastry turnovers, meat filling,
cherry tomatoes, green and ripe olives.
Lunch for a football game
Bean and olive soup (in an insulated container), ham and cheese hero, mustard butter, egg and
tomato hero, carrot and fennel sticks, apples, nutmeg date bars, beer, coffee.
A graduation luncheon
Fruit punch, buttered nuts, olive-stuffed eggs, salmon eggs Montauk, chicken and rice casserole,
spinach and sesame seeds, strawberries, custard sauce, lemon chiffon cake.
A children's party
Carrot sticks, grilled frankfurters on toasted rolls, Raggedy Ann salad, chocolate cake, frozen
fruit chunks, watermelon punch.
A birthday supper party
Tomatoes stuffed with chicken livers, potato-cheese Charlotte, avocado and grapefruit salad, dry
white wine, custard ice cream, birthday butter cake."
Buffet, 1960S style
Casual entertaining in the 1960s favored theme buffets and barbecue. International themes were
very popular. The foods served were generally not authentic fare but "Americanized" renditions.
Think lasagne with American cheese; Chinese ribs with ketchup.
"Buffet food should be notable. For hot buffets, there are many marvelous things to serve as a
change from the good, but too familiar, Boston baked beans and spaghetti with meat sauce.
However, if spaghetti is what you want, serve it in special style, with a brand-new sauce.
Planning a 60s-style backyard barbecue?
---McCall's Cook Book, McCalls [Random House:New York] 1963 (p. 716)
Skillet Chicken Supper: Chicken in jiffy tomato sauce, buttered broccoli, fruit platter, hot
French bread, refrigerator cheese pie, hot coffee.
---Better Homes & Gardens Holiday Cook Book: Special Occasions, [Meredith
Press:New York] c. 1959, sixth printing, 1967.
Lasagne, Fancy chicken a la king, Turkey Parisian, Chicken-rice bake, Salmon Tetrazzini, Jiffy
turkey paella, Veal parmesan with spaghetti, Burgundy beef stew, Swedish meatballs, Pizza
supper pie, hamburger pie, Church-supper tuna bake, Pork chop suey bake. "
---Better Homes and Gardens Casserole Cook Book, [1968].
The Better Homes and Gardens Barbecue Book [1965] features beef, pork, lamb,
chicken, and seafood. For parties this book suggests shish-kebabs (have your guests design their
own!), Hawaiian short ribs (sweet marinade and pineapple), "party burgers" (pizza burgers,
stuffed hamburgers, deviled beef patties, served on grilled italian bread), meatloaf (filled with
vegetables & cheese, sliced & served as burgers), rock lobster tails, and grilled shrimp. Popular
marinades/grilling/dipping sauces include: barbecue sauce (ranging in heat from mild to fire!)
teriyaki, herb & honey, and sweet & sour. Foil meals (all ingredents cooked together wrapped
tightly in aluminum foil are also popular. Recipes include Campfire Pot Roast (beef & vegetables),
Patio Fiesta Dinner (ground beef, vegetables...corn, lima beans, onions, green peppers, tomato
puree, American cheese, chili powder) served with corn chips. Standard accompainments were
tossed salad (preferably served in wooden bowls), vegetable salads (potato, coleslaw), pickles
(cucumbers, beets) and grilled bread (garlic Italian a favorite). Dessert: Ice cream, fruit-bobs (fruit
on a stick, brushed with butter & broiled on the grill), pineapple on a spit, barbecued bananas,
served with a cheese tray. Beverage service? Iced coffee, punch (featuring tropical flavors, made
frozen concentrate), iced tea, lemonade and limeade.
[1961]
"Women weren't really liberated until the coming of that grand national free-for-all, the cocktail hour. Before Prohibition, bars had
been one-sex affairs. A woman might sneak into the side door of a saloon to have her pitcher filled with lager and then go home to
drink it alone. More respectable matrons would be escorted by gents into the Ladies' Cafe for an occasional ginger beer or port
flip. During Prohibition any girl who dran was, of course, a dangerous piece of sweetmeat...With Repeal...women ripped loose like
corks bursting in a champagne cellar. Crusty bartenders stood aghast as women, alone or with men, boldly walked into bars, grabbed
pretzels and demanded extra-dry martinis. From busy offices, girls came home not to toll the knell of the parting day but to reach for
the ice bucket. Hotels hastily set up restricted men's bars in defense that new female encroachment, the cocktail lounge...
If you're the garrulous type, don't act as your own bartender...hire a bartender...If you're having a large cocktail party for a
single occasion, you can get you glassware, tables, chairs, etc., by either borrowing or renting them from a regular catering service.
If you give cocktail parties frequently, you should naturally own the necessary equipment for this greatest of twighlight sports.
When the cocktail party is a small informal affair in which four or six friends get together for a few slugs of whisky before
dinner, no major alterations are necessary in your furniture or fixtures....For a crowded come-and-go cocktail party,
the best plan is to remove all chairs from the room. A no-chair party discourages stragglers and unwanted overnight
campers. Your cocktail party will then be that rare kind of hour which is confined to sixty minutes. If, however, you are
expecting the pretzel-benders to stay several hours, you should provide straight-back chairs lined up against the wall with an
occasional table between chairs lined up against the wall with an occasional table between chairs for ash trays and empty
glasses...The most important equipment at any cocktail party is the glassware. Drinking a martini out of a thin piece of
crystal and then out of a thick pressed glass makes the same mixture seem like completely different potions...The most popular mixers used in
highballs include plain water, sparkling (carbonated) water, and some variety of a sweeter elixer like ginger ale. Fussy drinkers will demand a bottled water rather
than the tap product, especially in those cities where chlorine is used heavily."
---Playboy Gourmet: a food and drink handbook for the host at home, Thomas Mario [Playboy Press:Chicago IL] 1961 (p. 292-294)
"The ever popular cocktail party is an inferior form of entertainment at best, and there is a tendency to make it formal on occasional--something it was never meant
to be. By all means have your house looking its best, use your best crystal and china, and have the food impeccably turned out, but don't be chi-chi. The results
may be silly. Unless they are small gatherings around a tray with bottles and ice, cocktail parties should be planned so that the service is efficient a d quick. Don't
try to set up a professional bar in your house unless you have a barman to go with it, and you will need two if it is a largish party, and more if it is the 'annual crush,'
which so many people use as a way to pay their social debts (and it is not really a very polite way). A large party will also need someone to tidy up from time to
time. Some guests love to trail through a party leaving a wake of glasses, napkins and cigarette messes. if you must do with a minimum of help or none at all, serve
three varieties of drinks--and make good drinks--rather than attempt to offer a selection. The same holds true of cocktail food. Better to have two memorable
snacks than hundreds of undistiguished canapes. In the menus provided here there is usually one item or two of substantial food. It goes without saying that the
food should be attractive to look at and tasty as well. While the cocktail party is the most popular way of entertaining it can also be the most difficult, since there is
so much going on all at once. Don't make your drinks too weak, or your party won't be very lively. Neither make them too generous, or you will have a bunch of
drunks on your hands. Plan four drinks per person, and have some supplies in reserve. Neither the host nor the hostess should drink unless it is something light. To
give a good party you must be on the alert, though you appear to be entirely at ease. What a delight if can be to settle down later with your shoes off and have a
few drinks in peace and quiet."
---James Beard's Menus for Entertaining, facsimile 1965 reprint [Dell Trade:New York] 1986 (p. 229)
[NOTE:
Selected menus from Mr. Beard's book here.]
---McCall's Cocktail-Time Cookbook, McCalls magazine [Advace Publishers:Orlando FL] 1965 (p. 3)
---"Change in Drinking Patters," Elinor Lee, Washingotn Post, October 12, 1969 (p. 138)
[NOYES: (1) Cocktails shown in this article: Manhattan, Gin & Tonic, Whiskey Sour, Gimlet, Side Car, Old Fashioned, Daiquiri and Tom Collins. (2) Recipes for
Ever Ready Slicing Roast & Gin Pickled Vegetables also included.]
[1960]
The Calvert Party Encyclopedia [c. 1960] states these are favorite drinks: Whiskey Highball, Manhattan, Whiskey
Sour, Old Fashioned, Gin 'N' Tonic, Dry Martini, Tom Collins, Gin Rickey, Daiquiri (frozen), Rum 'N' Cola (Cuba Libre),
Rum Collins, Planter's Punch.
Martinis, Manhattans, Daiquiries, Old Fashioneds, Sidecars, Jack Roses, Whisky Sours, Clover Clubs and Bloody Marys.
---Playboy Gourmet: a food and drink handbook for the host at home, Thomas Mario [Playboy Press:Chicago IL] 1961 (p. 295-297)
These coxktails are listed in The Joy of Cooking/Irma Rombauer, 1962 edition (p. 29-32):
Gin: Alexander, Bronx, Gimlet, Gin Bitter, Gin or Whisky Sour, Perfect Martini, Martini, Pink Lady, White Lady.
Whisky: Perfect Manhattan, Manhattan, Old-Fashioned, Sazerac.
Rum: Benedictine, Cubana, Daiquiri, Blender Frozen Daiquiri, El Presidente, Knickerbocker.
Brandy: Champagne Cocktail, Curacao Cocktail, Sidecar, Stinger.
Vodka & Tequila: Bloody Mary, Margarita.
"Choose your beverage to suit the occasion and the weathter. On a cold, blustery night a tangy, hot drink will be welcomed, but if it's hot outdoors, a tall, cool cocktail with
plenty of crushed ice is in order. By the same token, if a full-course dinner is to follow, keep the cocktail beverage on the light side; if it's holiday time, serve something
spiced and sparkling." Beverage suggestions: Autumn Gold Punch, Strawberry-Wine Punch, Gluhwen, Saturday-Night Cocktail Punch, Fruit Punch with Cointreau, Cranberry
Cocktail, Cranberry Float, Festive Wine Punch, Caribbean Punch, Pik Rhubarb Punch, Quick Raspberry Punch, Spiced Grape Punch, Mai Bowle, Sherry Bowl Punch, Sherry
Cobbler, Salty-Dog Cocktail, Frisky Sours, Cider-Rum Punch, California Nectar, Grape-Juice Nectar, Herbed Tomato Juice, Hot Mulled Cider, Spiced Cider, Mulled Pineapple Juice.
[NOTE: Most of these are non-alcoholic. With the exception of Mai Bowle (Rhine wine) those with alcohol are indicated by beverage name].
---McCall's Cocktail-Time Cookbook, McCalls magazine [Advace Publishers:Orlando FL] 1965 (p. 46-50)
"On the first day, students [at the American Bartending School]...learn the gibson, dry martini, dry manhattan, manhattan, rob roy, daiquiri, bacardi, side car and
champagne cocktail."
---"You Have to Pour it On to Pass the Bar Exams," Los Angeles Times, November 23, 1967 (p. 15)
---"Now there are three more cocktails you can't goof up," ...Calvert advertisement, Los Angeles Times, May 11, 1967 (p. 6)
...rums of Puerto Rico ad, Los Angeles Times, December 14, 1967 (p. H3)
Most popular Happy Hour Drinks, display ad with drink recipes, Los Angeles Times, March 16, 1969 (p. V72)
Also popular in 1969 were cocktails in a can, pre-fab beverages sold in 8 ounce cans with flip top lids. Popular choices were Daiquiri, Manhattan, Screwdriver, Margarita, Mai Tai, Whiskey Sour & Martini.
---display ad, Los Angeles Times, August 17, 1969 (p. M38)
"Now and then we look into the work of our fellow cookbook authors and are usually surprised to discover how little attention they pay to liquor. In past editions we, too, have approached this subject rather apologetically--after all, there was a time when selling or serving alcoholic refreshment was considered disreputable in America. But here and now we drop all subterfuge, frankly concede that 'something to drink' is becoming with us an almost invariable concomitant of at least the company dinner, and have boldly enlarged this section of the book. Always in the back of our minds, spurring us on, is the memory of the cartoon which depicted a group of guests sitting around a living room, strickenly regarding their cocktail glasses, while the hostess, one of those inimitable Hokinson types, all enbonpoint, cheer, and fluttering organdy, announces, 'A very dear friend game me some wonderful old Scotch and I just happened to find a bottle of papaya juice in the refrigerator!'
"Cocktails and Other Before-Dinner Drinks. The cocktail is probably an American invention, and most certainly a typically American kind of drink. Whatever mixtures you put together--and part of the fascination of cocktail making is the degree of inventiveness it seems to encourage--hold fast to a few general principles. * The most important of these is to keep the quantity of the basic ingredients--gin, whisky, rum, etc.--up to about 60% of the total drink, never below half. * Remember, as a corollary, that cocktails are before-meal drinks appetizers. For this reason they should be neither oversweet nor overloaded with cream and egg, in order to avoid spoiling the appetite instead of stimulating it. If you mix drinks in your kitchen, your equipment probably includes the essential strainer, squeezer, bottle opener, ice pick, and sharp knife. Basic bar equiment also includes a heavy glass cocktail shaker; a martini pitcher; and ice bucket and tongs; a bar spoon; a strainer; a jigger; a muddler; a bitters bottle with the dropper type top; and--for converting cubes to crushed ice--a heavy canvas bag and wood mallet. We also show a lemon peeler guaranteed to get only the colored unbitter part of the rind, and the only corkscrew that doesn't induce complete frustration.
"A simple syrup is a useful ingredient when making drinks. Boil for 5 minutes 1 part water to 2 parts sugar, or half as much water as sugar. Keep the syrup in a
bottle, refrigerated, and use it as needed. In addition to various liquors, it is advisable for the home bartender to have on hand a stock of: bitters, carbonated water,
lemons, oranges, limes, olives, cherries. For Garnishes see page 40. See also the chapters on Canapes and Hors d'Oeuvre for suitable accompaniments for
cocktails--besides a steady head...Mix only one round at a time. You stock as a bartender will never go up on the strength of your 'dividend' drinks."
---The Joy of Cooking, Irma S. Rombauer and Marion Rombauer Becker [Bobbs-Merrill:Indianapolis IN] 1962 (p. 28-29)
"A small cocktail party. Camembert amandine, cucumber spread, crackers and toast rounds, cocktail croquettes, mushroom strudels. A large cocktail party
Buttered nuts, chicken-liver pate, toast rounds and crackers, mushroom-stuffed eggs, tuna-stuffed eggs, cheese straws and twists, wild-rice pancakes,
cream-cheese pastry turnovers, meat filling, cherry tomatoes, green and ripe olives."
---New York Times Menu Cook Book, Craig Claiborne [Harper & Row:New York] 1966 (p. 44-45).
---James Beard's Menus for Entertaining, 1965 (p. 223)
---Joy of Cooking, [1962] (p. 60)
[NOTE: Recipes in this section include Nuts Toasted in the Shell, Curried Nuts, Toasted Seeds, Puffed Cereals, Seasoned Popcorn, Stuffed Fruit, Cold Skewered Tidbits, Filled Edam Cheese, Edam Nuggets, Vicksburg Cheese, Nut Cheese Balls, Gelatin Cheese Mold, Anchovy Cheese or Kleiner Liptauer, Nut Creams, Cheese Carrots, Cheese Balls Florentine, Fried Cheese Dreams, Fried Cheese Balls, Pastry Cheese Balls, Egg Apples, Artichoke, Garnished Asparagus Spears, Marinated Beans, Stuffed Beets Cockaigne, Stuffed Brussels Sprouts, Spiced Cabbage Mound, Marinated Carrots, Marinated Celeriac or Radishes, Stuffed Celery Ribs or Rings, Celery Curls, Cucumber Lily, Stuffed Leeks, Marinated Mushrooms, Garlic Olives, Marinated Onions, Peppers, Stuffed Pickles, Black Radishes, Stuffed Tomatoes, Ham and Cheese, Ham and Egg Balls, Prosciutto and Fruit, Meat Balls, Tongue Cornucopias, Bologna Triangles, Tiny Broiled Sausages, Rumaki, Sherried Chicken Bits, Serviche, Fish Balls, Caviar, Herring Rolls, Rollmops, Cold Oysters, Pickled Oysters, Aspic-Glazed Shrimp, Pickled Shrimp, Broiled Shrimp, Fried Shrimp Balls, Foods to be dipped (crackers, potato chips, small wheat biscuits, toast sticks, corn chips, fried oysters, cooked shrimp, iced cucumber strips, iced green pepper strips, cauliflower flowerets, carrot sticks, radishes, celery sticks, peeled broccoli stems) and Dips (sour cream, cheese, Oriental, Syrian, avocado, chilled spinach, seafood, anchovy, tomato cream, caviar, clam, crab meat and shrimp). (p. 61-73)
---Playboy Gourmet: a food and drink handbook for the host at home, Thomas Mario [Playboy Press:Chicago IL] 1961 (p. 294-295)
---Ladies' Home Journal Adventures in Cooking, Ladies Home Journal editors [Prentice-Hall:Englewood Ciffs NJ] 1968 (p. 307-310)
"Everythwere I go, I find a revolution in American eating--the outdoors has come into the home. A new and exciting style of open-air eating is bringining fresh delights to
diers on patios and in backyards--or in dining rooms and kitchenettes. Andd they're available in every season of the year. What a phenomenal change! Just twenty years ago when I first
wrote about outdoor cooking, backyard chefs were few. And their usual fare was steak or hamburger, blackened in an inferno of smoke and flame, and a great deal of beer to
wash away the taste of culinary disaster. Today, in the city no less than the country, we have elevated outdoor cooking to a high art. We still have all the joys of the simplest
cooking over fire, but we have added the pleasures of true international cookery. Our terraces have become second dining rooms. The kitchen stove is no longer king, but a
willing partner of the grill rack, the rotisserie spit, and the fireplace. We have mingled a dozen styles of cooking--from the simplest to the most coplez--to produce
superb outdoor menus and meals that may be eaten and enjoyed anywhere. As I travel about these days, I don't find it at all unusual to sit at a table indoors and find myself being
served a charcoaled duckling that has been spitted over an outdoor grill, and an elaborate, kitchen-prepared rice-and-pine-nut pilaff...Now, in the 1960s, we have an inheritance of good
cooking from all ages of man and a new inclination to apply the imaginatively to a pleasant mode of indoor-outdoor life. And we have all the conveniencdes of modern
civilization to ease our task. Our spits are no longer turned by little boys on treadmills or little dogs, caged in a wheel pursuing a morsel of meat. We have adapted the old
(and often electrified it) and created the new; dehydrated foods, prepared mixes, portable ice boxes, and vacuum containers...The taste of the outdoor lends a wonderful
airl of festivity and well-being to a meal. That's why I wrote this book. It's been my aim to enable you to savor this atmosphere fully, wherever you live."
---James Beard's Treasury of Outdoor Cooking, James Beard [Golden Press:New York] 1960 (p. 10-11)
"Cook your meal in foil. Here's a real adventure in eating. The whole meal or each person's meal is packaged, cooked and served in foil. The blend of flavors is absolutely
delicious! Cook these supper 'kits' over the coals on an outdoor grill. Just arrange the foods in their wrappings (hours ahead, if you like) and stow in refrigerator till time to
cook. Serve packages on paper plates (paper one for no cleanup) and let each hungry diner open his own. Or ou can open all and tuck a sprig of parsley in each for fresh
color. An added plus: If guests are late, dinner will keep warm in foil, not dry out. To go with these easy meals, serve a simple salad or fresh relishes and pickles. Pas a
basket of hard rolls (heated in foil). For dessert, how about fresh fruit? Mm-mmmm."
---Better Homes & Gardens Barbecue Book [Meredith Press:Des Moines IA] 1965 (p. 87)
[NOTE: Recipes in this chapter include: Campfire Pot Roast, Foiled Vegetables, Patio Fiesta Dinner, Cinnamon Apples, Chuck-wagon Special, Pork Chop Treat, Chicken-in-the-garden,
Baked Shoestring Potatoes, Nani Luau (Beautiful Feast), Sukiyaki, Saucy Pot Roast, Dixie Dinner (ham & sweet potatoes), Ribs and Kraut, Bean Bag (franks & beans), Hobo
Popcorn, Cheesed Potatoes in Foil, Brown-and-serve Rolls on a Spit, Broiled French Bread, Grilled Sweet Rolls, Olive Pizza Bread,
Onion-cheese Loaf, Long Boy Loaf (garlic bread), Broiled Refrigerator Rolls, Friday Burgers (tuna), Hot Ham Buns & Hobologna Bunwiches. If you want recipes let
let us know!]
Coffee Rich, aluminum cans used for food and beverages, Granny Smith apples introduced to the USA, Domino's Pizza, single-serving
ketchup packets, Fruit Stripe chewing gum.
Total (breakfast cereal, General Mills), Mrs. Butterworth's Syrup (Unilever), Green Giant frozen peas, Sprite (Coca Cola Company),
Coffee-Mate (Carnation), Sylvia's restaurant (NYC), Hardee's (fast food chain)
Frozen bread dough (Bridgford Foods Corp.), Pet-Ritz Frozen Pie Crusts, Diet-Rite Cola (Royal Crwon Cola), tab-opening aluminum
cans for soft drinks, Taco Bell (fast food chain)
Yakisoba (Nissin Foods), Tab (Cocoa Cola Company), Wundra (flour, General Mills), Cremora (Borden)
Pop-Tarts (Kellogg's),
Carnation Instant Breakfast (Carnation Co.),
Buffalo Wings
(Anchor Bar, Buffalo NY), Coca cola in cans, Ruffles potato chips,
Lucky Charms (breakfast cereal,General Mills),
Bugles, Whistles & Daisy*s (snack foods, General Mills),
Chiffon Margarine and Seven Seas Salad Dressing (Anderson, Clayton & Co, now Kraft),
Yoplait Yogurt,
Awake (synthetic orange juice, General Foods),
Maxim (freeze-dried instant coffee, General Foods),
Shake 'n Bake (General Foods), Cool Whip (General Foods), Tang (General Foods), Rock Cornish game hens
(Tyson), Apple Jacks (breakfast cereal, Kelloggs), SpaghettiOs (Franco-American/Campbell Soup Co.), Cranapple Fruit Juice (Ocean
Spray), Gatorade, Diet Pepsi
Bac*Os (General Mills), Product 19 (breakfast cereal, Kellogg), $100,000 Bar (Nestle), Caravelle (candy bar, Peter Paul),
Taster's Choice (freeze dried coffee, Nestle), Doritos (Frito Lay), instant oatmeal (Quaker), Easy Cheese (Nabisco)
Taco Seasoning Mix (Lawry's)
Red Lobster (chain restaurant), Legal Seafoods (chain restaurant)
Chunky Soups (Campbell's), Kaboom (breakfast cereal, General Mills), Frosted Mini-Wheats (breakfast cereal, Kellogg),
Chipos (snack food, General Mills), Pringles (potato snacks, Proctor & Gamble), Wendy's (chain restaurant), Long John
Silver's Fish 'n Chips (chain restaurant).
Campbell's Frozen Oyster Stew Soup (can, "An oyster stew for folks with strong feelings on the subject," recipes for
Oyster Sauce Supreme & Oysters a la King), Ralston-Purina Ry-Krisp crackers (box, "if you like to watch your weight...Don't
give up on butter...spread it on Ry-Krisp), Underwood Deviled Ham (white paper, red devil-wrapped can, instructions for "Egg-in-
a-Basket," Campbell's Soups (cans: cream of mushroom, tomato, cream of chicken, onion. Recipes for Veal in Cream of Mushroom Soup,
Fish Fillets in Tomato Soup, Chicken in Cream of Chicken Soup & Swiss Steak and Vegetables in Onion Soup), Franco-American
Beef Gravy & Chicken Gravy (cans; recipes for Chicken 'n Stuffing Bake, Chicken 'n Biscuits), Quaker Oats & Mother's Oats
(cardboard cannisters), Breast O'Chicken Tuna ((can), Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce, Calavo Avocados, Kraft Miniature
Marshmallows (cello-bag; "recipe size," instructions for Marmallow Lemon Pie, Marshmallow Topped Cobbler,] Marshmallow Orange
Gems), Betty Crocker Frosting Mixes (box; cherry fluff, chocolate malt, fluffy white; recipes for Cherry Checkerboard, Chocolate
Polka-Dot & Flurry Plaid cake frostings), Wish-Bone Salad Dressing (clear bottle, Russian, Italian, French & Cheese dressings
available), Dole Hawaiian Pineapple (can), Golden Fluffo (shortening product), Borden's Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed
Milk & Baker's Angel Flake Coconut (cans, recipes for Coconut Mint Charmers, Tick-Tick Peanut Butter Coconut Frosting & Apricot
Coconut Flowers), Hormel SPAM (recipes for SPAM 'N Egg Supper Casserole & Plantation SPAM Bake), Diamond Walnuts & Betty
Crocker Fudge Brownie Mix (recipe for Walnutty Brownie Ribbon Dessert), Walnutty Brownie Cupcakes, Walnutty Brownie Clusters &
Walnutty Brownie Pie a la Mode), Wrigley's Spearmint Gun (white package; recipe for East 'How to do it' Fruit Bouquet),
Wesson Oil (glass bottle), Borden's Instant Whipped Potatoes (box), Heinz Tomato Kethcup (bottle; recipes for Tuna Bake, Salmon
Supreme, Crown Fillets & Beans and Fish Sticks, Heinz Spanish Rice), Campfilre Marshmallows (box), Lipton
Chicken Noodle Sauce (box mix), French's Mustard (glass jar, recipe for Golden Glazed Ham),
Dolly Madison Short Cake, Coca Cola (king & regular size glass bottles), Kraft Miracle Whip (recipe for Fiesta Potato
Salad), Hunt's Tomato Sauce (can, recipe for "Country Chicken Casserole"), Betty Crocker Cake mixes (angel food, lemon angel food,
confetti angel food, cocoa chiffon cake & orange chiffon cake).
Blue Bonnet Margarine (sticks), H-O Cream Farina cereal (box), Metrecal (Dietary for weight
control, cans, liquid or powder: "New concept for weight control"), Libby's Ripe Olives
(canned), Allsweet Margarine, Del Monte Pineapple (can), Mazola Pure Corn Oil, Armour Star
canned meats (Corned Beef Hash, Chopped Ham, Chili with Beans, Beef Stew, Treet; cans),
Heinz Cream of Mushroom Soup (includes recipe for Chicken Poulette Sandwich), Chase &
Sanborn Instant Coffee (glass jar), V-8 Cocktail Vegetable Juice, Chef Boy-Ar-Dee Beef Ravioli
& Cheese Ravioli (can), Kraft Pure Strawberry Preserves,& Betty Crocker Gingerbread
(promoted in same ad), Fleischmann's Yeast (includes recipe for Frosted Pineapple Squares),
Campbell's Soups:Cream of Mushroom, Cream of Celery, Tomato (includes meatloaf recipes:
Cheeseburger Loaf, Tuna-Celery Loaf, Tomato-Ham Loaf), Nestle's Sweet Cocoa Mix (metal
cannister), Lawry's Garlic Spread Concentrate (glass jar), Kool-Aid (Grape, "Still costs only five
cents"), Stokely Van Camp's Pork and Beans, Betty Crocker Buttermilk Pancake Mix, Minute
Tapioca, Tums (3 Rolls 30 cents), Flako Coffee Cake Mix, Lipton Chicken Noodle Soup, Sun
Maid Raisins, Kraft Italian Type Grated Parmesan Cheese, Wrigley's Spearmint Chewing Gum
(Handy 6 pack unit).
Sunkist Lemons, Kraft Barbecue Sauce (glass bottle, new barbecue sauce Bottle 'n Brush and matching Flame Douser offer), Chicken of the Sea
Tuna (green can with mermaid, recipe for Tuna Tomato International), Heinz Wine Vinegar (clear decanter, also: Malt, Tarragon and Salad
Vinegars), B & B Whole Mushroom Crowns (can, recommended for kabobs), D-Zerta (diet gelatin dessert, box, strawberry flavor, Jell-O desserts),
Adolph's Salt Substitute (small bottle), Campbell's Soups (cans, cream of celery, Cream of vegetable, Cream of mushroom, Cream of chicken;
recipes for creamed eggs, Creamed tuna, Creamed meatballs & Creamed chicken), Wishbone salad dressings (bottle, Russian, Italian & French;
recipes for Russian Ribs, Wish-burgers & Chicken Francais), Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce (bottle, recipes for Texas Barbecue Sauce, Orange
Barbecue Sauce & Worcester Barbecue Sauce), Kraft Whipped Cream Cheese (aluminum bowl, zip open & reusable), Wrigley's Spearmint Chewing
Gun (promoted for relieving tension and aiding digestion; recipe for Hamburger with Baked Beans), Tupperware (plastic food savers, reference to
Tupperware Home Parties), Open Pit Barbecue Sauce (bottles, regular and smoky flavors; recipes for Barbecued Spareribs, Barbecued Meat Loaf
and Hors D'Oeuvre Dip), Coca Cola (fountain drink, picture of dispenser featured.)
Bisquick (box, back of box shown with recipe for Pancakes, Coffee Cake, Muffins, Velvet Crumb Cake, Fruit Shortcake, Biscuits, Waffles &
Dumplings), Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce (offer for "Be Original" company cook book, 48 pps), Quick Quaker Oats & Quick Mother's Oats
(cardboard canisters, recipes for Saucy Little Meat Loaves, Frost Date Muffins and Lazy Daisy Oatmeal Cake), Mazola Pure Corn Oil (clear glass
bottle), Kellogg's Corn Flake Crumbs & Knox Unflavored Gelatine (boxes, recipe for Choco-nut chiffon pie), Diamond Walnuts (can & cello bags,
recipes for Turkey Fruit Salad, Cranberry Fruit Molds, & Salad Bowl Dressing Supreme), Campbell's Soup (recipes for Beef Roulades and Chicken
Paprika), Del Monte Seedless raisins (box, recipe for Raisin Volcanoes), Duncan Hines cake mix, (box, Fudge Marble, Angel Food, Apple N'Spice,
Coconut Surprise, Spice, Devil's Food, Lemon Supreme and Butter Pecan), None Such Mince Meat (box & glass jar) & Borden's Eagle Brand
Sweetened Condensed Milk (can, recipe combining both products: Holiday Fruitcake), Kraft Grated 100% Parmesan Cheese (green canister),
Fleischmann's Yeast (three attached packets, recipe for Cranberry Christmas Canes), Karo Syrup (clear glass bottle, red label, recipe for Karo
Popcorn Mixture, instructions for making Treasure Balls, Snowman & Christmas Tree), Crisco (can) & M&Ms (single serving pouch; recipe combining
products for East Color Cookies), Ralston Purina Wheat, Corn and Rice Chex cereals; recipe for Party Mix, Imported Spanish Olives (green with
pimiento fillings, no brand, recipe for Olive-Cheese Porcupine), Land O'Lakes butter (box, 4 individually wrapped sticks), Constant Comment Tea,
Gravy Master concentrate, 7-UP (green bottles).
Nescafe coffee (freeze-dried instant), Chef Boy-Ar-Dee Spaghetti Sauce with Meat (can), Kraft
Pure Jellies & Preserves (glass jars), Adolph's Instant Meat Tenderizer (glass jar), Swift's
Premium cold cuts, ham & hot dogs, Miracle Whip Salad Dressing (Kraft, glass jar), French's
Potatoes Au Gratin and Scalloped Potatoes (instant potatoes & cheese mix, add water
and bake), Bisquick (Betty Crocker/General Mills), Spam (Hormel), Betty Crocker Chocolate
Crunch Frosting Mix, Life Cereal (Quaker Oats), Gerber baby foods, Borden's Whipped Potatoes
(instant mashed potatoes), Kraft cheese slices, Lawry's Seasoned Pepper (spice), Aunt Jemima
Pancake Mix, Del Monte Green Beans (can), Knorr Beef Noodle Soup (instant packet), Half and
Half (Bordens milk & cream product), Betty Crocker's Heavenly Strawberry Angel Food cake
mix, Birds Eye vacuum sealed mixed vegetables (frozen in a plastic pouch...boil them in the bag),
Comstock fruit pie fillings (cans), Sunkist Oranges, Imperial Margarine.
General Mills Bran & raisin Flakes (box, breakfast cereal), Royal Pudding & Pie Filling (box, dark 'N' Sweet), Betty Crocker Chocolate Fudge Brownie
Mix & Chocolate Chip Butterscotch Brownie Mix, with Hershey's Chocolate Dainties (morsels), Le Sueur Very Young Early Peas (can), Kraft Cracker
Barrel Cheese (Natural Cheddar, recipe for easy Souffle), Campbell's soups (Noodles & Ground Beef (new) & Old Fashioned Vegetable), Jell-O
(box, new flavors: Tropical Fruit & Orange-Banana), Kraft Miniature Marshmallows (cello bag), Kraft Pizza with Cheese (frozen), Kraft Macaroni &
Cheese Dinner, Kraft Noodle & Chicken Dinner, Kraft Spaghetti and Meat Sauce (box), Kraft flavored Miniature Marshmallows, Kraft Marshmallow
Creme (jar)--recipes for Venetian Spaghetti, Yankee Doodle Macaroni, Homestead Supper, Mallow Swirl Brownies, Polka Dot Roll, caramel Marlow,
Raspberry Marshmallow Pie & Checkerboard Pizza), B & B Mushrooms (cans, sliced, chopped & whole), Libby's Frozen Foods (orange juice & peas
shown; orange product is promoted as new), Kraft barbecue sauce (bottle), Duncan Hines Cake Mixes (Deep Chocolate, Fudge Marble, Pineapple,
Lemon Supreme, Devils Food, White, Swiss Chocolate, Coconut Supreme, Spice & Yellow), Mazola Corn Oil (glass bottle, recipes for Flaky Biscuits
& Buttermilk Biscuits), Birds Eye Frozen vegetables (Mixed Vegetables with Onion Sauce, Corn and Peas with Tomatoes, Small Onions with Cream
Sauce, Green Peas and Pearl Onions), General Mills Total Breakfast Cereal (box), Kathryn Beich Kettle-Fresh Candies (cans, Golden Crunch, Butter
Toffee, Party Nuts, Katydids, Butter Mints, Almonds 'n' Chocolate, Krumble Krunch, Heirloom Squares & milk chocolate bars), Wish-Bone Italian
Dressing (bottle).
Chiffon Margarine (soft product in plastic tubs, "new"), None Such Mince Meat (jar), Reynolds Wrap (aluminim foil, roll), Kellogg's Croutettes (box),
Arm & Hammer Baking Soda (for heartburn), Metrecal Cookies (box, diet product, Chocolate & Chocolate Mint), Post 40% Bran Flakes (breakfast
cereal), Campbell's Soup (New England Clam Chowder & Oyster Stew), Grey Poupon Prepared Dijon Mustard (glass jar), General Foods Baker's
Unsweetened Chocolate (recipe for Baker's Double Fudge Chocolate Frosting), Kraft Miniature Marshmallows, Kraft Cracker Barrell Cheese Kraft
Philadelphia Cream Cheese, Kraft American Slices, Kraft Grated 100% Parmesan Cheese, Kraft Parkay Margarine (recipes for Chocolate Mountain
Cake, Mohave Fruit Salad, Top-Notch Turkey Mold, Gold Rush Salad, Potato Salad Parmigiana, Chocolate "Philly" Frosting, Peppermint Fudge Pie &
Spumoni), Swift's Premium Butterball Turkeys (fresh, frozen & "new" 2 lb Turkey Roast (foil loaf pan container), Lipton Onion Soup (recipes for
Lipton Turkey Pilaf & Lipton California Dip), Fleischmann's Soft Margarine (2 half lb tubs in package), Almonds (California Almond Growers Exchange,
no specific brand, recipe for Fruit Parfait Tortoni), Jello-O Pudding & Pie Filling, Kraft Spaghetti Dinner (box), Golden Glow Margarine (soft, in tubs),
Philadelphia Cream Cheese (recipe for Stroganoff Supreme), Hellmann's Real Mayonnaise (recipe for Turkey Fruit Salad), General Foods Toastem
Pop-Ups (6 to a box, strawberry, blueberry, apple, grape & red raspberry), Rich's Non-Dairy Coffee Rich (waxed cardboard), Del Monte Raisins
(recipe for raisin Honey Drops), Comice Pears (from Rogue River Valley, Pinnacle Orchards, Medford Oregon), Texas Red Grapefruit (Pitman Davis,
Harlingen, TX), Famous Holiday Fruit Cake and Dresden Stollen, Lowery Bakers, Long Island City, NY), Sara Lee Fruit Cakes (mail order), Omaha
Steaks (4 (12-oz) Boneless Strip Sirloins, 1 1/8" thick and 4 (6-oz) Filet Mignons, 1 1/4" thick $24.75. mail order).
Carnation Instant Breakfast (6 packets in a box, chocolate flavor, "New Carnation instant
breakfast makes milk a meal too good to miss"), Lipton Turkey Noodle Soup (box, dehydrated),
Coca Cola (bottle, includes cheeseburger recipe), Sunkist navel oranges, Birds Eye Mixed Fruit
Supreme (frozen box, also frozen peaches, strawberries and red raspberries), Quaker Quick Oats
(cardboard cannister), Royal no-bake pudding pie kits (nesselrode or spumoni, cheese cake,
Dutch chocolate...includes filling, topping, graham cracker crumbs for crust), Post 40% Bran
Flakes, Campbell's Soup (New England Clam Chowder, Oyster Stew), Kraft French Dressing
(includes recipe for Regency Ragout), Kraft Cracker Barrel Natural Cheddar cheese (includes
recipe for Cheddar Corn Bread), Kraft Grated Parmesan Cheese (recipe for Parmesan Popovers),
Kraft Velveeta (recipe for Calico Supper), Kraft Noodle with Chicken Dinner (recipe for Bombay
Noodle Dinner), Party Tyme Cocktail Mixes, Baker's German's Sweet Cooking and Eating
Chocolate (with recipe for German Cream Cheese Brownies), Kellogg's Corn Flake Crumbs
(recipe for Corn-Crisped Chicken with California Cling Peaches), Lazy Maple Bacon, Chef
Boy-Ar-Dee Pizza (kit), Mazola Pure Corn Oil, Pepperidge Farm Soup (Chicken curry, Maine
Lobster
Bisque, Hunter's Soup, Chicken with Wild Rice, Howard Johnson's brand croquettes (forzen:
shrimp or chicken), Tost'em Pop Ups (fruit filled toaster pastries, General Foods), Andy Boy
Broccoli (with recipes for Chicken Divan, Salad Italienne, and Ham Rolls), Thomas' English
Muffins, Betty Crocker Scalloped Potatoes (box, also: Au Gratin potatoes), Orange juice
(Florida, frozen, no particular brand). For cooking & serving? Pyrex Ware, by Corning & Aluminum foil, by Reynolds, Baggies plastic
bags.
Slender from Carnation (liquid diet powder; mix with milk "only 225 calories"), Morton Salt (product package pix 1914, 1921, 1933, 1941, 1956 &
current), Kraft Barbecue Sauce (glass bottle), Betty Crocker Cake Mix (box, Yellow & Chocolate Frosting Mix), Campbell's Soup
(Golden Mushroom & Tomato, recipe for Chicken Marengo), Contadina Tomato Paste (recipe for Manicotti-Cheese Bake),
Wonder Bread "Helps build strong bones 12 ways"), Betty Crocker Ready-to-Spread Frosting, Dark Dutch Fudge "new"), Kraft
Natural Swiss Cheese (sliced), Swift's Premium Sweet Smoked Taste bacon (sliced), Kraft Spaghetti Sauce (box),
'N' Cheese), Italian
Dressing (bottle), Grated Parmesan Cheese, Tabasco Sauce (small glass bottle; recipe for 'Meat 'N' Peas Taters 'N' Cheese),
Nabisco crackers (Sociables, Wheat Thins, Chicken in a Biskit, Triscuit, Bacon Flavored Thins, Ritz) paired with Snack Mate
combustion canned cheese (American, Cheddar & Pizza), Planters Nuts (glass jars: mixed nuts, cashews, pecans & peanuts), Hormel's
SPAM Italiano, "Accordian pleated with Mozzarella cheese."), Pillsbury Coffee Cake Mixes (Apple Cinnamon, Butter Pecan, Pecan
Bars; recipes for Spicy Apples, Pecan Tortoise Treats & Peach Glory Coffee Cake), Lipton Onion Soup Mix (box, recipe for Lipton Fondue
American), Knox Unflavored Gelatine (recipe for Chocolate Souffle), Kraft Noodle & Chicken Dinner (box), Kraft Macaroni & Cheese
(box), Kraft Spaghetti Dinner (box), Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce (recipe for Mock Steak), Hellmann's Real Mayonnaise
(recipes for Shrimp Salad Filling, Avocado Filling, Chef Salad Filling & Egg-Bacon Filling), Pillsbury Ready-to-Spread chocolate
frosting, Mister Mustard (glass jar), Raisins (California Raisin Board, no specific brand or recipe), Benson's Fruit Cake (promoted
for fund raising).
Bols liqueurs, Hennessey V.S.O.P, Cognac, Gerber cheeses (Wispride Sharp Cheddar, spreadable, crock; Swiss Knight individually wrapped triangles &
HUM Gouda and Edam (round, waxe coated), Vandermint liqueur, John Jameson Blended Irish Whiskey, Gaston De Lagrange Cognac, HAIG Scotch Whisky,
Martell Cognac, Benedictine liqueur, Puerto Rican Rum (recipe for Derby Daiquiri, with orange juice), Seagram's Crown Royal (blended Canadian Whsiky),
American Lamb Council ("lamb is elegant, different"), Cointreau liqueur, Tokaji Aszu (Hungarian wine), Lochan Ora liqueur, Tia Maria (Jamaican liqueur), Hanns
Christof Liebfraulmilch, Martini & Rossi Vermouth (with recipes for M&R and Soda, Dry Rob Roy on the Rocks, Rossini (Reverse Martini, Guacamole Viva,
Melon Apertif, Scampi Rossi, Martini & Rossi Grand Mixed Grill), Campbell's Bisque of Tomato Soup (can, offer for cookboook "608 exciting ways to cook with
soup"), Beefeater London Distilled Dry Gin, Genuine South African Rock Lobster Tails (with recipe for lobster tail avocado salad mold and 24-page recipe
booklet), Bel Paese Cheese (wax, round), Marie Brizard liquiers, Madonna Liebfraumilch, Mr. Blue Lake pole green beans (recipes for Orange sauce, Chantilly
sauce, Lemon Mayonnaise, Polonaise sauce), Dry Florio & Sweet Florio (Marsala, with recipes for Marsala Bisque, Crab Meat Florio, Beef Stew with Fennel,
Eggs Marsala, Strawberries a la Marsala, Marsala Cream Pie, Kahlua Coffee Liqueur (from Mexico), Seagram's 100 Pipers Scotch Whisky, PunteMes (Italian
aperitif), Borzoi Dry English Vodka, G. Washington's Rich Brown Seasoning and Broth (& Golden variety, packets, recipe for Pork Chops and Apple Casserole),
Chartreuse liqueur (green), Bollinger Brut Champagne, Cutty Sark Blended Scots Whisky, Remy Martin Cognac, Liquire Strega (recipe for Strega Witches' Brew
cocktail), Grand Marnier Liqueur, Chauvenet Burgundy Wines, Pfaelzer Brothers [IL] prime filet mignon (mamil order, box of 16, 6 oz. each, 1 1/4" thick,
$36.00), Danish Blue Cheese, Broadbent & Bingham's [KY] ham (mail order), Gourmet Garden Seasonings (featuring freeze dried shallots and famous 'San
Francisco Seasoning'), Pepperidge Farm Patty Shells (frozen, ready to fill & bake, suggested for Balkalva, Beef Wellington, Gateuan Niciose and Hors d'oeuvres),
American Express credit cards (with list of top restaurants accepting the card), 1967 bound volume of Gourmet ($9.50), Raffetto Exotic Colonial Chutney
Relish, Canadian Club Whisky, Mumm's Cordon Rouge Champagne.[Single Gourmet magazine issue is 50 cents. Annual subscription $6.00, 2 years
$10.00, 3 years $13.00, 5 years $18.00]
Imperial Margarine (stick & tub), Pillsbury Create-a-Cake mix (recipes using Pillsbury cake and frosting products: Fudge
Ripple Cake, Topsy-Turvy Pineapple Cake, Cherry Crmble Squares, Easy Cheesy Lemon Bars), V8 Juice, Ovaltine, Chicken of the
Sea Tuna, Campbell's Manhandlers Soups (Vegetable Beef), Campbell's Vegetable, Tomato and Cream of Mushroom Soups (with recipes
for Souperburger, Upside Down Pie, Burger Bean Cups), Nabisco Shredded Wheat, Chase & Sanborn coffee, Del Monte Raisins
(& Prunes), Dinty Moore Beef Stew, Chiffon Margarine, Wilson's Certified canned meats (Hickory Smoked Pork Loin, Pork
Roast, Corned Beef Brisket, Beef Roast, Turkey), Kraft Miniature Marshmallows, Chef Boy-ar-dee packaged dinners (Spaghetti,
Tetrazzini, Stroganoff, Goulash, Lasagna, Macaroni & Cheese, Rice), Bisquick (new), Jell-O Pudding & Pie Filing (vanilla, with
recipe for Pecan Pie), Stouffer's Frozen Spinach Souffle, Cool Whip (plastic tub), Cling Peaches (canned), Pepperidge Farm
Apple Strudel, Betty Crocker Pudding (chocolate, ready to serve, can), Snow's Clam Chowder, Kraft Caramel Topping (also
strawberry, butterscotch, vanilla caramel, chocolate caramel, chocolate fudge, chocolate syrup, pineapple and walnut flavors),
Nestle's Semi-sweet Toll House Morsels & Butterscotch morsels (with recipes for quick party mixes: Choco-Scotch dandies, Munchers, Sticks 'N
Straws, Choco-nut Chewies, Buttersotch Mix 'Ems), Kraft Macaroni & Cheese Dinner, Betty Crocker Ready-to-Spread Frosting (vanilla,
chocolate, milk chocolate, butterscotch, Sunkist lemon, & dark dutch fudge), Kellogg's Cocoa Krispies (with recipe for cocoa
peanut logs), Arnold Golden Brick Oven White bread, Park's Sausages, Nescafe coffee (instant), Domino Brownulated sugar,
Greenwood's Sliced Pickled Beets, AND the Amana Radarrange microwave oven "Flameless Electric Cooking."
"If you were forced to take inventory of the small electric appliances in your kitchen and select the most helpful, which would
you choose? Home Magazine asked this question of several hundred readers, providing a list of 28 various appliances from which they
could select their favorite. The results are now in and, if you answered 'toaster' to the above, you are in agreement with the
majority. Popularity of the toaster disproves, too, the adage that familiarity breeds contempt. For more than 99% of our
respondents said they owned a toaster; which according to our survey is the appliance most commonly finidng its way into the kitchens
of our homes. Ownerhsip of appliances obviously goes hand in hand with usefulness. The 10 most-owned items were (1)
toaster, (2)
coffee maker, (3) skillet, (4) waffle maker, (5) can opener, (6) hand mixer, (7) blender, (8) counter-top mixer, (9) knife sharpener,
(10) carving knife. Of these, the six most favored small appliances were as follows: (1) toaster, (2) coffee maker, (3) skillet,
(4) can opener, (5) counter-top mixer and (6) hand mixer. The next two favorites were the portable broiler oven and the
electirally powered sauce-pan. Some of the most-owned items failed to make the list of useful favorites. These were considered
nice to have on hand for special uses, but not an every-day helpmate. The waffle maker fits into this category as does the carving
knife. Many of our readers had definate ideas about the usefullness, the drawbacks and the design of small kitchen appliances. Most
agreed, however, that life would be drearier without them."
---"Our Reader Survey Shows...," Los Angeles Times, November 13, 1966 (p. 97)
Betty Crocker's Cooky Book (1963) was recently republished. This book was very
popular in the 1960s and is full of tasty, authentic items that are easy to make.
zucchini bread, pumpkin bread, crepes, quiche Lorraine, cioppino, spaghetti carbonara, fettucine
alfredo, pasta primavera, moussaka, spinach salad with cheddar cheese dressing, glazed
strawberry pie, granola fondue, carrot cake, strawberry-banana smoothee, broccoli casserole,
wacky cake, apple cake, impossible pie, lemon bars, strawberry squares and tomato coulis.
Note: These recipes were NOT invented in the 1970s. They represent popular choices based on
their presence in period magazines, cookbooks, and menus.
What "average" people eat in all times and places depends upon who they are (religious/ethnic heritage), where they live
(urban centers? rural outposts?) and how much money they have (wealthy folks have more choices). American chefs in the 1970s
got to choose between Julia Child (classic French) and Alice Waters (fresh innovation). When New Southwest Cuisine spliced
into the kitchen our American culinary map exploded into delicious fragments of provocative taste.
Breakfast: Orange Juice, Kuglehopf, Browned Sausage Links, Coffee, Milk.
Lunch: Creole Fish Soup, Savory Oven Vegetables, Ginger Pears, Coffee, Tea, Milk.
Supper: Peanut-Butter Sandwiches on Whole-Wheat Bread, Sliced Tomatoes, Ginger Jumbos, Coffee, Tea, Milk.
Breakfast: Applesauce, Poached Eggs, Buttered Raisin-Treat Toast, Coffee, Milk.
Lunch: Country Buttermilk Soup, Tuna Hoboes, Frozen Strawberry Mallow, Coffee, Tea, Milk.
Supper: Pineapple-Grapefruit Juice, Italian Rice Balls, Zucchini Rounds, Anchovies and Pimientos of Lettuce Leaves, Melon Wedges, Coffee, Tea, Milk.
Breakfast: Grapefruit Halves, Crumb Cake, Soft-Cooked Eggs, Coffee, Milk.
Lunch:Tomato Soup, Spicy Relish-Stuffed Eggs, Fruit Cocktail, Crumb Cake, Coffee, Tea, Milk.
Supper: Ziti Casserole, Hearts of Lettuce with Blue-Cheese Dressing, Watermelon Ice, Coffee, Tea, Milk."
---Family Circle Cookbook, Food Editors of Family Circle and Jean Anderson [Family Circle:New York] 1974 (p. 72-72)
The answer, of course, depends upon the type of "affair" you are hosting. Nostalgia birthday?
Semi-formal dinner? Most libraries still have a copy the 1975 edition of Irma Rombauer's Joy
of Cooking. This is an excellent source for authentic (albeit generic) menus and recipes. If
you want to try something more "popular" this source is excellent. If you prefer funky & fun...we have that too!
Cocktail-Buffet Menus
[1972]
Informal, Winter, forks only: Hot Frijole Chip Dip, Zippy Avocado, Sour-Cream Noodle Bake, Fisherman's Find, Barbecued French
Loaf, Wellesley Coffee Cake
Casual & Hearty, Winter, forks only: South-of-the-Border Dip, Chutney Olive Dip, Beef 'n'Beer, Chesapeake Crab, Ansalada de Arroz,
Cheddar Corn Bread, Toffee Ice Cream Roll
Stand up, Winter, forks only: Chesapeake Clams and Cheese, Sunshine Sausage Rolls, Toasted Almond Dip, Veal Flamenco,
Swedish Chicken Salad, Wilted Cucumber Slices, Herb Ring-a-Round, Fyrste Kake, Sweet Potato Pecan Cake
Oriental, Winter, knives & forks: Ham and Pineapple Savories, Pickled Mushrooms, Sassy Pecans, Beef with Oyster sauce,
Chicken Lo Mein, Exotic Shrimp Salad, Celery with Waterchestnuts, Baked Fruit Desert, Almond Tea Cakes
Sunday night, Winter, informal, knives & forks: Onion Cheese Wafers, Down East Sardine Mold, Cassoulet, Lemon Pepper Tomatoes,
Tangy Cucumber Ring, Smoky Bread, Paragon Queen's Heart
Elegant, Spring, forks only: Vienna Pinwheels, Shrimp Pate, Cannelloni, Artichoke Bottoms Filled with Peas, Pineapple
Daiquiry Mold, Coffee Almond Cream Pie
Stand up, Spring, forks only: Oriental Shrimp, Wurst-stuffed Mushrooms, Basic Black and Gold, South Sea Beef, Chicken Livers
Gourmet, Betsy's Spinach, Tomato Ring, Marble Brownies, Miniature Cheesecakes, Danish Sugar Cookies
Sit-down, Spring, knives & forks: Mushrooms Stuffed with Anchovies, Black Olive Dip, Pier 4 Cheese Spread, Veal Marengo,
Paella Salad, Zucchini au Gratin, Filbert Torte, Almond Tart
Fairly Elegant, Spring, knives & forks: Spinach Cheese Rolls, Ceci Remoulade, Cheese 'n' Chutney, Tomato Glazed Beef,
Scallop Casserole, Artichoke Hearts and Peas, Sparkling Salad Mold, Frozen Macaroon Souffle
Informal, Spring, forks only: Chef's Favorite, Green Goddess Dip, Chili Cheese Jubilee, Seafood Santa Barbara, Piquant
Asparagus, Poppy Sesame Petal Loaf, Super Bundt Cake
Elegant, Summer, knives & forks: Shad Roe en Brochette, Brandied Cheese Roll, Rosemary Chicken, Tangerine Rice, Cucumber
Mousse, Cheese-filled Strudel
Stand-up Buffet, Summer, forks only: Zesty Parmesan Cubes, Danish Cheeese Liver Pate, Pearl of the Sea Mousse, Meatball Piemonte,
Chutney Chicken Salad, California Vegetable Bowl, Italian Crescents, Easy Schecken, Chocolate Mint Sticks, Frosted Walnut Bars
Elegant, Fall, knives & forks: Shrimp in Jackets, Elysian Cheese Mold, Pickled Cocktail Beets, Green Noodles Chicken, Vitello
Tonnato, Avocado and Hearts of Palm Salad, Apricot Mousse
Simple, Fall, Stand-up, forks only: Eggplant Puffs, New England Lobster Mold, Pasta Florentine, Spiked Bean Salad, Garlic
Cheese Bread, Bernice's Most Heavenly Hash
Elegant, Fall, knives & forks: Ham Nuggets, Dutch Cheese Appetizer, Smoky Egg Dip, Herbed Veal, Chicken Tahitian,
Tomato Aspic in Cheese Crust, Savory Butterflake Loaf, Mocha Icebox Cake
Sit-down, Fall, knives & forks: Hot Shrimp Toast, Riviera Roquefort Log, Coldon Manor Moussaka, Rolled Chicken Breasts,
Nutty Rice with Mushrooms, Green Bean Salad, Tia Maria Cold Souffle
Cocktails only: Curried Crab Tarts, Ham Tarts, Puffed Cheesies, Aloha Spread, Shrimp and Artichoke Vinaigrette, Fansiful
Crabmeat Rolls, Ruby Red Franks, Cheese Pinwheels, Hammed-up Mushrooms, Tivoli Clam Dip, Snappy Cheese Apple, Antipasto Crostini,
Meat-filled Triangles, Sour-Cream Onion Pie, Gourmet Butterfly Shrimp, Chili con Queso, Nantucket Pancakes, Finger Lickin' Spareribs,
Nova Scotia Mousse, Pacific Avocado Dip, Eggplant Caviar, Brandied Country Pate. ALCOHOLIC COCKTAILS: Martini, Whiskey Sour,
Daiquiri, Bloody Mary, Marguerita, Champagne Punch."
---Come for Cocktails, Stay for Supper, Marian Burros and Lois Levine [Collier MacMillan:New York] 1970 (p. xv-xxvii)
Cook-at-table dinners are a delightful combination of the exotic, the sophisticated and the intimate. There's something
particularly appealing about the sight of a flame flickering under a bubbling fondue pot or a handsome chafing dish. And
these dinners are surefire icebreakers. Guests love the do-it-yourself aspects, the fun of cooking their own meat or dunking
bread into hot, creamy cheese. And from the point of view of the hostess, there are highly practical advantages to
presenting a meal that can be prepared almost entirely in advance. Not to mention the joy of a main dish that keeps the
hostess out of the kitchen and free to socialize. One kind of cook-and-eat meal is cheese fondue. This is a pot of melted
cheese combined with wine. Guests swirl cubes of bread (or ham or cherry tomatoes) in the rich mixture. Though it's fun to do all the
cooking at the table, it ma be easier to do the preliminary cooking in the kitchen and then transfer the cheese mixture to a chafing
dish or fondue pot for the final heating and serving. Then there's beef fondue: Pieces of raw meat are cooked one at a
time in a container of very hot oil, then dipped into an array of sauces and savories. A third kind of table-cooked diinner is Oriental
in origin. This offers a wide variety of combinations of meat or seafood and vegetables simmered in a seasoned broth. Since these
dinners are usually a bit foreign in flavor, they suggest all manner of appropropriate table decorations. The cooking pot can
often double as a centerpiece. Escargots and beef fondue can be somewhat French if the tablecloth is the traditional red-and-white
check of a Montmartre cafe and fat red candles are in the background. Or as part of the sukiyaki setting, use a glass
bowl with two or three gardenias or anemones afloat or an arrangmeent of small figurines. Do keep in mind that cook-it-yoruself dishes
call for a little extra elbow room. Don't crowd the table. And be sure, especially with fondues, that both the pot and the
dips are within easy reach of everyone. You might take the precaution of using an easly laundered or wipe-off cloth. Then if a
few splatters occcur, no one is embarrassed...remember that this kind of dinner is not meant to be eaten in a hurry--the self-
service takes time, and the cooking itself is a major part of the evening's entertainment."
---Betty Crocker's Dinner Parties: A Contemporary Guide to Easy Entertaining, General Mills [Golden Press:New York]
1970, 1974 (p. 44)
[NOTE: this book offers Cook-at-table recipes for Oriental Hot Pot,
Swiss Swirl Fondue (classic cheese).]
Appetizers
Broiled pineapple appetizers, guacamole, meatball dip, mini kabobs, pineapple cheeseball,
pineapple yaki tori, piroshki, spiced prunes, stuffed celery, tuna tempters
Golden glow punch, hot pineapple mulled tea, peach daiquiri, pineapple fizz, tomato-onion
refresher, rainbow punch
Beef barley, chicken corn chowder, cream of asparagus, Italian minestrone, meatball soup, potato
corn chowder, Russian borsch, Swedish fruit soup, tomato mushroom soup, BBQ Sauce Del
Monte, Creole sauce, spicy ham glaze, sweet-sour sauce, tartar relish
Asparagus vinaigrette, California chicken salad, celestial pineapple salad, cranberry pineapple
mold, prune ambrosia salad, raisin slaw, spinach salad, three bean salad, tuna curry salad, tuna
toastadas with guacamole, Waldorf salad, French dressing, creamy Russian, poppy seed, sour
cream, soy, Thousand Island and vinaigrette
Basic cheese souffle, corn souffle, maracroni & cheese, quiche Lorraine, Spanish
omelet, tuna cheese omelet, tuna quiche
Apple kraut pork bake, beef goulash, celebration ham loaf, chili dogs, Creole pork chops, crown
roast of pork, eggplant casserole, enchilada casserole, hamburger-corn pie, islander spareribs,
meatloaf Wellington, Polynesian broil, Swiss steak stew, tropical bean bake, veal parmigiana,
cherry chicken supreme, chicken cacciatore, Hawaiian chicken, peachy oven fried chicken, sesame
chicken, lemony salmon crepes, salmon loaf, shrimp Creole, sweet sour shrimp, Tuna chow
mein
Bean curry, beets a la orange, Creole style green beans, green beans au gratin, peas with
mushrooms and onions, pineapple squash, pioneer succotash, sweet potato islands, zucchini
rissoto, zucchini tortilla casserole
Acapulco burgers, bagel sandwich, broiled tuna burgers, cheesey pinewiches, French toasted
sandwich, pineapple Monte Cristo, Quesadas, triple decker treat, tuna-cado sandwiches, tuna
cheesewiches
Celestial peaches, cherries jubilee, pears Helene, pineapple ambrosia, pumpkin parfait, applesauce
cake, pineapple upside-down cake, lemon sunshine cake, tomato spice cake-cream cheese
frosting, saucy chocolate cake-lemon cream frosting, cheesecake pear pie, pine-lime pie, prune
bavarian pie, pumpkin pie, gremlin bars, harlequin bars, peach chews, pineapple oatmeal
cookies.
---Del Monte Kitchens Cookbook, Del Monte Kitchens [San Francisco:1972]
[NOTE: Throughout American food history, companies promoted their products through
cookbooks and brochures. The pitch was convenience. The purpose was sales. That's what makes
these items excellent sources for discovering popular period foods. Of course, this particular
source is full of pineapple!]
An Italian Dinner
Melon with Port, Veal Scallopini, Noodles with Pesto Sauce, Sauteed Zucchini and Green
Peppers, Bread Sticks, Butter, Biscuit Tortoni or Spumoni, Chilled White Wine, Coffee.
Gazpacho, Fillets of Sole Florentine, Crisp Potato Sticks, Bibb Lettuce with Oil and Vinegar
Dressing, Toasted Herb Rolls, Warm Apricot Souffle with Whipped Cream or Old-Fashioned
Strawberry Shortcake, Chilled White Wine, Coffee.
Cocktails, Salted Nuts, Royal Consomme Madrilene, Toasted Crackers, Rack of Lamb Provencal,
Browned New Potatoes, Stuffed Mushrooms, Red Bordeaux or Burgundy, Green Salad Bowl,
Rolls, Butter, Chocolate-Nut Torte or Creme de Menth Sherbet, Demitasse, Liqueurs.
Chilled Tomato Consomme, Roast Leg of Veal in White Wine, Casserole of Potaotes au Gratin,
Fresh Spinach Mimosa, Sauteed Mushrooms, Basket of Hot Rolls, Butter, Honolulu Coconut Pie,
Chilled White Wine, Coffee.
Daiquiri Punch Bowl and other drinks, cheese Pate Pineapple, Assorted Crackers, Guacamole Dip
with Crisp Vegetables, Cocktail Shrimp, Chafing Dish of Swedish Meatballs, Savory Steak Slices,
Basket of Party Rye Bread, Salted Nuts, Coffee.
Fresh-Orange Spritzer or Honeydew with Lime Slices and Mint Sprigs, Buttermilk Pancakes with
Strawberries and Soru Cream, Maple Syrup, Baked Ham, Sausage, and Bacon, Warm Danish
Pastry, Coffee.
Pineapple-Apricot-Nut Loaf or Lemon Tea Bread with Sweet Butter, Toasted English Muffins,
Strawberry Jam, Almond Tile Cookies, Petits Fours, Hot Tea.
---The New McCall's Cook Book, Mary Eckley, Food Editor of McCall's [Random
House:New York] 1973 (p. 572-6)
Party Brunches
Clam Juice on the rocks, Asparagus Pinwheel Pie, Stuffed Tomatoes, Corn Muffins, Coffee or Tea; Pineapple-Orange Shrub, Crab
Imperial Chesapeake, Chicken Livers, Strogonoff, Fluffy Boiled Rice, Cherry Tomatoes, Coffee or Tea.
Sherried Mushroom Bouillon, Filets de Sole a la Catalane, Fluffy Boiled Rice, Buttered Baby Green Peas, Frozen Venetian
Parfait, Coffee, Tea; Creany Watercress and Leek Soup, Souffled Broccoli Roulade, Sweill-Cheese Sauce, Peeled Cherry Tomatoes,
Oil and Vinegar Dressing, Georgia Peach Shortcake, Coffee, Tea.
Vegetable-Juice Cocktail, Chuck-Wagon Beef Casserole, Summer's Best Green Salad, Hot Biscuits, Fresh Fruit Salad on Angel Cake,
Coffee, Tea, Milk; Mirabeau Beef Pie, Tomatoes Lutece, Rice Imperatrice with Cherry Sauce, Coffee, Tea, Milk.
Celery-Clam Borth, Chicken a la King, Fluffy Boiled Rice, Grapefruit and Avocado Crescents on Lettuce, French Dressing, Coffee
Ice Cream, French Chocolate Fudge Sauce, Coffee, Tea, Milk; Apricot Nectar on Crushed Ice, Chicken Croquettes, Silky Veloute Sauce,
Buttered Broccoli, Hot Rolls, Yankee Fruit Cobbler, Coffee, Tea, Milk.
Clam-Cream Dip, Assorted Crackers, Cassoulet, Marinated Squash Rings, Garlic Bread Chunks, Pears Aosta, Coffee, Tea; Spanish
Dip, Carrot and Celery Sticks, Party Meat Loaf, Lima Salad Cups, Rainbow ice Cream Cake, Coffee, Tea.
Glazed Liver Pate, Scandinavian Appetizer Tray, Salmon Mousse in Aspic, Fish Balls with Parsley Sauce, Turkey Galantine, Sweet-Sour
Brown Beans, Dilled Potato-Salad Platter, Caraway Cabbage Toss, Breads and Crackers, Dessert Cheese Tray, Lingonberry
Torte, Swedish Apple Cake.
Appetizer Vegetables, Molded-Cheese Pineapple, Herbed Roast Beef, Chutney Fruit Sauce, Mustard Cream, Parker House Midgets, Seafood
Salad Souffle, Tiny Tim Pecan Tarts, Coffee, Tea; Dilled Relish Tray, Crisp Crackers, Buffet Glazed Ham, Sweet-Sour Mustard
Cream, Button Biscuits, Meatball Miniatures, Cherry Tomatoes, Candlelight Cake, Holiday Punch.
Cypress Fling, Guacamole, Corn Chips, Napoli Chicken Broil, Baked-Potato Bundles, Continental Green Salad, Quick Cool Lemon
Souffle, Coffee, Tea, Milk; Lime Cooler, All-American Beef-Roll Roast, Chili-Bean Salad, Fresh Corn on the Cob, Hot
Garlic Bread, Chocolate Ice Cream Supreme, Praline-Applesauce Cake, Coffee, Tea, Milk.
---The Family Circle Cookbook, Food editor of Family Circle and Jean Anderson [Family Circle:New York] 1974
(p. 84-88)
"Two Informal Summer Buffets
1. Chicken or Turkey loaf, Tomatoes Sutuffed with Easty Tuna Salad, Jiffy Deviled Eggs, Jellied
Garden Vegetable Salad, Herbed Potato Salad, Danish Meat Balls, Buttered Noodles, Fresh
Peach Crisp, Coffee
2. Glazed and Decorated Cold Ham, Macaroni and Shellfish Salad, Bean and Beet Salad, Tomato
Aspic, Parker House Rolls, Ambrosia, Florentines, Coffee."
--- (p. 77-8)
1. Smoked Salmon, Pate-Filled Ham in Aspic, Chaud-Froid of Chicken Breasts, Avocado
Mousse, Shellfish and Saffron Rice Salad, Lemon Fluff, Gingered Honeydew Melon, Coffee.
2. Fresh Fruit Cocktail, Whole Salmon in Aspic, Country Captain, Boiled Rice, Wilted
Cucumbers, Russian, Strawberries Romanoff, Meringues Chantilly"
--- (p. 78)
1. Guacamole, Taramasalata, Corn Chips, Creackers, Charcoal-Broiled Hamburgers,
Charcoal-Broiled Frankfurters, Buns, Relishes, Chili Sauce, Mustard, Sliced Bermuda Onions,
Three Bean
Salad, German Macaraoni Salad, Assorted Ice Creams, Sweet Lemon Loaf, Soft Drinks, Beer,
Coffee.
2. Andalusian Gazpacho, Charcoal-Broiled Sirloin Steak Stuffed with Mushrooms,
Charcoal-Baked Potatoes, Sour Cream-Almond Sauce, Corn on the Cob, Grapefruit and Avocado
Salad,
Biscuit Tortoni, Sangria, Coffee.
3. Oysters or Clams on the Half Shell, Charcoal Spit-Roasted Loin of Pork, South American Hot
Barbecue Sauce, Charcoal-Baked Butternut Squash, Beans Lyonnaise, Caribbean Compote,
Pecan Crisps, Coffee.
4. Antipasto, Charcoal-Broiled Portuguese-Style Chicken or Turkey, Scalloped Potatoes,
Ratatouille, Basket of Fresh Fruit, Crackers, Assorted Cheese, Coffee."
---(p. 72)
1. Clam Juice on the Rocks, Duckling a l'Orange, Wild Rice, Buttered Green Beans, Poached
Meringue Ring with Algarve Apricot Sauce, Demitasse
2. Coquilles St. Jacques a la Parisienne, Tournedos of Beef, Bearnaise Sauce, Bulgur-Mushroom
Kasha, Minted Green Peas, Green Grapes and Sour Cream, Demitasse
3. Cucumber Veloute, Crown Roast of Lamb or Pork, Carrots Vichy, Danish-style New Potatoes,
Cherries Jubilee, Coffee
4. Melon on Ham, Paupiettes of Sole with Rosy Sauce, Snow Peas and Scallions, Mushroom
Risotto, Classic Pots de Creme au Chocolat, Coffee
---(p. 73)
Pretty Party Pate, Melba rounds, Cold Marinated Shrim, Crisp Cucumber Rounds Tokyo Style,
Garlicky Cocktail Almonds, Beer Cheese Spread, Caponata, Crackers.
Chuntney-nut Meat Balls, Rumakis, Quince Tartlets, Spiced Olives, Garlic Nibbles, Taramasalata,
Sesame Seed Crackers."
--- (p. 77)
Cold Marinated Shrimp, Guacamole, Crackers, Corn Chips, Ripe and Green Olives, Pizza with a
Choice of Toppings, Marinated Roasted Peppers, Tossed Green Salad, Choice of Dressings,
Biscuit Tortoni, Lemon Chiffon Cake with Lemon Butter Cream Frosting, Milk, Soft Drinks."
---(p. 80)
Weekend Brunch
Grapefruit juice, sausage, bacon, cheese scrambled eggs, herbed tomatoes, cinnamon crescents,
hot fruit compote, coffee.
Nutty pups (grilled hot dogs served with chunky peanut butter), pineapple-carrot toss, potato
chips, pickle relish, popcorn pops, milk
Club chicken casserole, tomato slices, carrot sticks, cran-raspberry ring, fudge ribbon pie
Green pepper strips, cauliflowerets, carrot sticks, vegetable dip, beef fondue, creamy onion dip,
cocktail sauce, butter-browned mushrooms, mustard sauce, tossed green salad, oil and vinegar
dressing, French bread, butter, pineapple sherbet, wafers, coffee
Cheese board, assorted crackers, broiled beef steak, boiled lobster, buttered asparagus,
grapefruit-avocado salad, brioche, butter, cherries jubilee, coffee
Swedish meatballs, noodle ring, pease with mushrooms, spiced peach halves, carrot and celery
sticks, olives, buttered rolls, chocolate cake, coffee, milk
Guacamole, olive cheese balls, corn chips, assorted crackers, ham and rye rounds, coconut
macaroons, raspberry foldovers, cafe au lait
Barbecued short ribs, roasted corn, grilled garlic slices, Italian salad bowl, cantaloupe and ice
cream, beverage
Classic cheese fondue, French brad, apple wedges, spiced tea.
---Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book [Meredith:Des Moines] 1976 (p. 380-3)
Nixon's Perfectly Clear Consomme
Your librarian can help you obtain copies of these books. If you just want a sample recipe or two,
we can provide. 1990s sidebar: Bill Clinton was also the target
of a similar culinary collection.
Ellberg's Leek Soup
Liddy's Clam-Up Chowder
Plumers' Soup
Magurder's Dandy Ly'in Salad
Sauteed Slippery Eeels a la Deanoise
Republican Peeking Duck
Mitchell's Cooked Goose with Stuffing
Cox's In-Peach Chicken
Martha's Sweet and Sour Tongue
Hunt's Stewed Tomatoes
Nixxon's Hot Crossed Wired Buns with Tapping
GOP Cookie Crumbles
Madame Jean Dixon's Propheteroles
Pick Your Own Hero Sandwich
Inouye's Hawaiian Punch
"The Bar: What you keep on hand depends on many variables: whether you and your friends enjoy cocktails and wine or prefer beer, soft drinks;
how much space you have for your 'cellar'; how much money you feel like investing. Stocking a bar can be an expensive hobby! We can't really
tell you whether you should buy premium liquor or the 'house brand' at your liquor store, because you and your friends are not like anybody else so
far as taste is concerned. Some people recognize, appreciate, and insist on the best quality. Others don't know or care! Some, unfortunately,
can't tell the difference in taste but are impressed by labels. (The latter order name-brands in a bar, frequently to sound sophisticated, but
probably wouldn't really notice if somebody switched brands on them.) However, bar stocking isn't a contest. You want to please guests, whether
they are connoisseurs or novices in the matter of wine and liquor and so you'll steer a middle course. Select a good liquor store where the range
of wine indicates knowledge and taste. It's usually best to buy a good California wine rather than an unknown French or German one from the
bargain bin. Do ask the sales clerk for advice: He'll probably be flattered and eager to help. If he tries to sell you a vintage Burgundy to go with
pizza, avanti to another store! Basic liquor requirements to make the drinks listed in our menus are:
1. Spirits: Derry gin, domestic or imported (English), Scotch whiskey, vodka, blended or bourbon whiskey, rum (Puerto Rican or Virgin
Island), brandy (codnac, armagnac, or domestic)
2. Aperitif wines and drink ingredients: Sherry, ginger wine (Stone's or Crabbie's or Whiskey Mac), vermouth, French (dry), Vermouth,
Italian (sweet), vermouth, flavored (e.g. Dubonnet, Positano, Csarpano, Chambery, etc.)
3. Assorted flavorings: Grenadine, Rose's lime juice, Angostura bitters, orange bitters, orange flower water
4. Liqueurs: There are dozens of these, and selection is a matter for individual preference and money. The following are among the most
popular, and may be used not only as after-dinner drinks, but sprinkled over ice cream or fresh fruit, as an ingredient in certain cocktails.
Cointreau, Grand Marnier, Drambuie, Cassis, Triple Sec, Creme de menthe, Kahlua, Creme de cacao, Kirsch.
These are also sometimes offered as after-dinner drinks: brandy, port, Marsala, and Madiera.
5. Soft drinks and mixers: Club soda, ginger ale, tonic (quinine water), Coca-Cola, 7-Up, or other favorites, low-calorie mixers if
desired."
---Cosmo Cookery: Gourmet Meals from First Drink to Last Kiss [Cosmopolitan Books:New York] 1971(p. 13-14)
---"New Ways to Greet the Cocktail Hour," Epsie Kinard, House Beautiful, October 1970 (p. 140-141)
[NOTE: cocktail recipes offered from famous hotels/restaurants include: White Mink, Angel's Tip, Spinner, Orange of
Scotland, Cold Buttered Rum, Yellow Champagne, Blonde Baby, Super Negorni, Blue Grass and Bloody Viper.]
"Having people in for drinks calls for a menu different from one for brunch or dinner. You may ask one or two friends to stop by after work, or give a real cocktail party for twenty or more people. In either case, you need nibble food to accompany the wine or liquor. Two rules: one, it should be possible to eat the nibbles with your fingers whether you're standing up or served on the arm of a chair, without any great danger to messy spills on clothes, rugs, or furniture. Two, such food shouldn't need hours of preparations. Too-elaborate canapes may look bery pretty, but they are a lot of work, and a small kitchen is not the ideal place to make them. Also, most canape leftovers are absolutely useless; you just have to throw them away...Here are some ideas and recipes for cocktail party food, grouped into four menus with different national accents, all meeting the two preceding requirements. For fewer guests, select just two or three items from one of the menus, or one from each if you prefer. Keep some of the staples on hand, especially if you adore giving impromptu invitations. We suggest: corn chips, melba toast rounds, miniature sesame crakers, pastry shells, cocktail crackers shaped to hold a filling. Also keep handy a can or two of black and green olives, smoked oysters or clams, tiny imported shrimps, pate de foie, black or red caviar, anchovy curls or fillets, at least two kinds of cheese, a chunk of hard salami...
Transcontinental canape party: California Cheese-nut roll, Curried egg spread, Parfait de foie, Guacamole, New Orleans deviled crab, Smoked oysters.
Middle East Meze: (cold) Stuffed grape leaves, Olives, black and green, White feta cheese, Tarama salata, Hummus, (hot) Fried mussels, Cheese borek, Potato cheese puffs.
Danish Smorrebrod (miniature open-faced sandwiches): Cold rare roast beef and red onion slice, tiny shrimp and cucumber, Herring in cream sauce with pimento slice, Smoked salmon and cold scrambled egg, Liver pate with pickled mushroom and anchovy filet, Smoked cheese wtih tomato slice and gherkin.
English Pub Party: Scotch eggs, potted shrimps, Wine merchants' cheese, Kipper snacks, Cheese straws, Angels on horseback."
---Cosmo Cookery: Gourmet Meals from First Drink to Last Kiss [Cosmopolitan Books:New York] 1971 (p. 223-236)
1970: Orville Redenbacher's Gourmet Popping Corn, Hamburger Helper, Morton's salt
substitute
1971: Alice Waters opens Chez Panisse, Starbucks founded, McCormick's "Roast in a Bag
Kit," Betty Crocker's Snackin Cake
1972: Celestial Seasonings Herbal Teas, Snapple, Quaker Oats granola
1973: Egg McMuffins, Cup O'Noodles, Moosewood Collective (Ithaca NY), Stove Top
Stuffing, Promise (margarine), Brim (caffeine-free instant coffee)
1974: Yoplait yogurt, Miller Lite, Mrs. Field's Cookies, Mr. Coffee
1975: Famous Amos Chocolate Chip Cookies, Country Time lemonade, Apple & Eve juice, Nature's Seasons (spice mix, Morton),
Roller Coasters (canned pasta, Chef Boy-ar-dee), Yogurt English Muffins (
Hollywood Bread), Salad Crunchies (NSB Foods),
Peanut Butter Crunchola (Sunfield Foods), Frozen Swiss Fondue & Stuffed Pasta Shells (Stouffers), Instant European
Style Coffees: Cafe Viennese, Cafe Capri and Cafe Mocha (Hills Brothers)
1976: Pop Rocks, Burger King launches its "Have it Your Way", Starburst Fruit Chews,
Oodles of Noodles, Puritan Oil, Perrier Water introduced to U.S. markets
1977: Dean & DeLuca, Twix Cookie Bars, Denny's Grand Slam Breakfast, recyclable soda
bottles, plastic grocery bags
1978: McCormick's Lite Gravy, Ben & Jerry's Homemade Ice Cream, Reggie Bar (candy),
Reese's Pieces, Whatchamacallit (candy), Arby's Beef'n'Cheddar Sandwich
1979: Paul Proudhomme opens K-Paul Louisiana Kitchens igniting Cajun/blackened food fad,
Zagat restaurant guides (New York City)
SOURCES: The Century in Food:America's Fads and Favorites, Beverly Bundy [Collector
Press:Portland 2002] (p. 157-159); The Food Chronology, James Trager [Henry
Holt:New York] 1995; "They're new on the shelves," Fran Zell, Chicago Tribune, October 2, 1975 (p. WA24)
[1970]
Kraft Macaroni & Cheese Dinner,
Campbell's Tomato Soup, Brach's Chocolate Stars, Brach's Bridge Mix (candy), Del Monte Golden Sweet Corn (can), Pillsbury
Create-A-Cake Mix, Pillsbury Buttercream Fudge Frosting Mix (box, recipes: 'Saucy Apple Swirl', 'Lemon Whippersnaps' & 'Double
Dutch Intrigue Cake'), Betty Crocker Rice Pudding (can, ready to serve; also chocolate, vanilla, butterscotch chocolate fudge
& lemon flavors), Kraft American Pastuerized Process American Cheese (box with slices), Lipton Noodle Soup Mix, Betty Crocker
Sauces (canned; mushroom, Newbury & Hollandaise flavors), Kraft/Parkay Margarine (stick & soft sold in plastic tub), Jell-O
Cheesecake, Kraft Philadelphia Cream Cheese, Kraft Miracle Whip, Pennsylvania Dutch noodles (& dumpings, egg noodles, Bott Boi, Kluski;
recipes for Noodles Alfredo, Chicken and Dumpling Pie, Baked Lasagne), Kraft Roca Blue Cheese salad dressing, Benson's
Sliced Old Home Fruit Cake."
---Better Homes and Gardens, September issue:
"Betty Crocker Wild Blueberry Muffin Mix (box, can of blueberries inside), General Mills Kix (breakfast cereal, offer for Oneida Community stainless steel
silverware set), Bisquick, Betty Crocker Ready To Serve Pudding (cans, flavors: tapioca, rice, chocolate, vanilla, butterscotch, chocolate fudge & lemon), General
Mills Total (breakfast cereal), Green Giant Rice Medley (frozen, rice with peas and mushrooms), Betty Crocker Chocolate Fudge Frosting Mix (box), Gold
Medal Enriched Alll Purpose Flour (paper sack; recipe for "One-Rise Mixer Breads" Hot Cross Buns, Cheese-pepper Bread, Sesame Mini-Loaves and
Butterscotch Coffee Round inside sack), Cream of Rice (box, recipe for Cheese Souffle for bland diets), Pillsbury frosting mixes (cocoanut almond, coconut pcean,
caramel; recipes for Choco-Crown Turnabout Cake, Fudge-Full Peanut-Butter Bars, Cocolate Caramel Cake), Campbell's Soup (tomato, vegetable, chicken
noodle), Hunt's Tomato Sauce (can), Kraft Miracle Whip (recipe for Penthouse Pizza), Betty Crocker Upside Down Cake Mix and Topping (with cans of
pineapple, apple cinnamon & cherry topping), Betty Crocker New Homemade Bread Mix (box, 'makes 1 1/2-LB white loaf, 'just add water, knead, shape & let
rise and bake'), Sunkist Navel Oranges, Kellogg's Corn Flakes & Rice Krispies (breakfast cereals, with offer for "Kay Kellogg's Creative Cookery," 64 page
booklet), Dream Whip Whipped Topping Mix (box), recipe for Dream Cake), Sophie Mae Peanut Brittle (gold box), B in B Whole Crown Mushrooms (can,
recipe for Oven Beef Burgundy), Pennsylvania Dutch Egg Noodles, Dumpling Egg Noodles, Bott Boi & Kluski (recipes for Noodles Alfredo, Chicken and
Dumpling Pie, Refreshing Noodle salad, Baked Lasagne, Short Ribs and Noodles), Campbell's Chunkey Soup (new!, beef, chicken, vegetable & turkey flavors,
ready to serve), Gold Medal Wondra Quick Mixing Flour, LeSeuer Very Early Young Small Early Peas (can), Kraft Italian dressing (bottle, picture of Venice
gondolas on label), Stuckey's restaurants (roadside eatery, free box of pecan candy wtih 10 gallon gas purchase), Katheryn Beich Candies (milk chocolate,
Golden Crumbles, Katydids, Krumble Krunch, Butter Toffee, Chocolate Truffles, Almonds N' Chocolate, Party Nuts, Mint Wafers).
---Better Homes and Gardens, February 1971
Harry & David Fruit of the Month Club, 12-Box Club,
$72.95 delivered (Christmas Roayal Riviera Pears, January Crisp Mountain Apples, February Royal Grapefruit, March Royal
Oranges, April Hawaiian Pineapples, May Wild 'N Rare Preserves, June Home-canned Fruit, July Giant Kiwi-Berries, August Exotic
Nectarines, September Oregold Peaches, October Alphonse Lavelle Grapes, November Spanish Melons), Jell-O Strawberry Gelatin
(recipes for Cranberry Orange Ring & Turkey Salad), General Foods Log Cabin Syrup (glass bottle, recipes for Log Cabin and Baked Acorn Squash,
Log Cabin and The Cranberry, Log Cabin and Glazed Carrots), Cooking Magic Bags (for cooking whole turkey 'The turkey bastes itself. Browns
itself. The juices don't splatter all over your oven!';recipes for Turkey Chow Mein & Quick Turkey Breast), Seagram's
V.O. (Canadian whisky), Wish Bone Italian Dressing (bottle), Campbell's Soups (Cream of Mushroom, Tomato, Golden Mushroom, Onion,
Beef Broth (Bouillon), Cheddar Cheese, Consomme (Beef), Chicken Broth, Cream of Celery, Cream of Chicken; recipe for Glori-Fried
Chicken using Cream of Mushroom),Betty Crocker Fudge Brownie Mix & Fudge Brownie Supreme Mix (with can of chocolate syrup),
Parker Games (Peanut Butter & Jelly, 'ages 4-8 includes plastic plates, bread slices, layers of peanut butter and jelly; first to build
complete sandwich wins. No reading or counting needed'; Birthday Cake 'Festive new game played on a big cake!! Players race to finish
their own cakes using relistic layers, filling, frosting. Colors and pictures show where to move. Tiny candles and plates included, ages 5-10.'),
Kraft 100% Gratd Parmesan Cheese (recipe for Parmesan Burger Casseroles), Quaker Oatmeal, Betty Crocker Wild Blueberry Muffin Mix (box),
Hershey's Cocoa & Unsweetened Baking Chocolate (recipe for 'Hand-Me-Down' Cake, Kraft Marshmallows & Royal Prince Yams (can, recipe
for Sunburst Yam Bake), General Foods Jell-O Soft Swirl Dessert Mix (vanilla & chocolate flavors; recipes for Pumpkin Treat, Peach Shortcake,
Chocolate Graham Crunch and Mincemeat Rum Cup.), Betty Crocker Bac*Os imitation bacon bits ('Bac*Os makes what's good,
better.'),
Borden Egg Nog & Bacardi Rum (instructions for combining for holiday alcoholic beverage), Chiquita bananas (partnership promotion with
National Football League, Bubba Smith color slide free), Kraft Old English (jar cheese), Cheez Whiz (jar), Philadelphia Whipped
Cream Cheese with Chives (aluminum tub), French Onion Teez Dip (aluminum tub), Squeez-A-Snak (tube cheese, bacon & sharp flavors),
Taster's Choice (freeze dried coffee, jar), Sara Lee Strawberry Cream Cheese Cake (frozen), Swift's Premium Brown 'N
Serve all meat Sausage, Ocean Spray Cranberry Juice Cocktail (glass bottle), Heinz Apple Cider Vinegar (recipe for Red Cabbage and
Apples), Herb-Ox Bouillon cubes (beef, recipe for Meat Loaf a la Madrid), Bar-Tender's Whiskey Sour & Instant Daquiri Mixes),
General Mills Total (breakfast cereal, whole wheat & corn flavors; recipe for Perfect Corn Bread), Carnation Instant Hot Cocoa
Mix (packets, just add hot water), Kraft American Singles ('eash slice wrapped), Pasturized Process Cheese food, onlin-chive, sharp &
jalapeno pepper), General Foods Minute Rice (recipes for Beef and Rice Stroganoff, Polynesian Chicen, Rice and Bread Stuffing),
Carnation Special Morning instant breakfast ('33% more protein plus increased vitamins minerals and energy,' chocolate flavor),
Kraft Spaghetti Dinner Tangy Italian Stule, Planters Peanuts (sweepstakes offer honoring the 470th aniversary of the discovery of
the peanut...grand prize: a 15 day adventure for two spanning three continents--South America, Africa, and Europe...plus $1,000o
in cash), General Mills Gold Medal EEnriched Flour & Red Star Instant Blend Active Dry Yeast (reference to No-Fry Doughnuts, frecipe in the
gold medal sack), Lipton Onion Soup (recipes for Blue Cheese California Dip, Shrimp California Dip, Vegetable California
Dip), Borden Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk & Nestles Morsels (chocolate, butterscotch; recipe for Fudgie Scotch Ring),
Hormel Spam (regular, smoke flavored & with cheese chunks), Hellmann's Real Mayonnaise (recipes for Turkey Crunch Casserole, Turkey
Cheese Ball, Turkey Burgers, Tanbgy Creamed Turkey, Turkey Loaf, Turkey Divan), Reynolds Wroap, Kellogg's Croutettes Stuffing
(box), Banquet Chicken Pie (frozen), Dole Sliced Pineapple (can), Rath Ham (canned), Dole bananas (recipes for Dole Danish
Delight, English Breakfast Treat & Jamaizan Pound Cake), Hunt's Tomato Sauces (cans, with tomato bits, with mushrooms, herb sauce,
with cheese, with onions & special), Kitchen Bouquet (gravy concentrate), B&B Mushrooms (can, recipe for Vegetable OPriental with Turkey
or Chicken), Chef Boy-ar-dee Complete Pizza Mix (box, recipe for Jamaican Pizza & Polish Pizza), Hunt's Manwich (can, add sauce to
ground beef), Libby's Pumpkin & Pumpkin Pie Mix (cans, recipes fro Pumpcream Parfait, Pumpkin-Eater Pumpcakes, Chiffon-Pump Pie),
Brach's Chocolate Covered Mints (individually wrapped), Heinz Great American Bean with Smoked Ham Soup(can), Cream of Rice
(box, recipe for Medium White Sauce), Fleischmann's margarine (sticks, tubs, regular, unsalted; recipe for Festive Fruitcake),
Pet-Ritz Frozen Pie Crust Shells, Pet Whip, None Such Mince Meat (instructions for making mince meat pie), Blue Diamond Almonds (cello bag
& can; recipes for Spour Cream Sauce Almondine, Crown Sweet Potatoes with Whole Natural Almonds & Green Beans Almondine),
Sanka Freeze Dried Caffiene-free Coffee (jar), Kraft Pure Safflower Oil, Bisquck (recipe for Cherry Crepes), Parkay
Margarine (stick & tub), Aunt Jemima French Toast (frozen, box, regular & cinnamon swirl), Betty Crocker Hamburger Helper
(Chili Tomato, Beef Noodle, Potato Stroganff, Hash, Cheeseburger Macaroni, Rice Oriental), Wright's Bar-B-Q Smoke (bottle),
French's People Crackers (for dogs, shaped like mailmen, police officers & firemen), Vandermint Liqueur (recipe for Vandermint Chocolate
Cheese Pie, Vandermint Parfait, Vandermint Fondue), Profile sliced bread (diet), Chase & Sanborn Coffee (cans, promotion to
win Superbowl tickets/trip), Land O'Lakes Butter (sticks), Durkee Hors D'oeuvres (box, frozen, 12 assorted franks-'n-blankets, cheese straws,
shrimp, cheese, beef and chicken liver puffs), Cake Mate Decorating Icing Tubes (red, blue, green, yellow, purple), Gravy
Master (concentrate, bottle), Mazola Pure Corn Oil (recipe for Tempura), Galliano liqueur (for making Harvey Wallbangers).
---Better Homes and Gardens, November 1972
Kraft Parkay margarine, Campbell's Soup
(New England Clam Chowder, Cream of Shrimp, Oyster Stew, Clam Chowder Manhattan Style), Van Camp's Pork and Beans,
Birds Eye French Green Beans with Toasted Almonds & Green Peas and Cauliflower with Cream Sauce (frozen), Kool-Aid
Iced Tea Mix (packet, sugar-sweetened lemon flavored), Kraft Italian Dressing, Kraft Miracle Whip (recipe 'Mandarin
Mold'), Kraft Real Mayonnaise (recipe for 'Tuna Stuffed Tomatoes'), Carnation Slender (diet food mix, cans & packets;
chocolate flavor), Uncle Ben's Long Grain & Wild Rice (recipe for 'Beef Paprikash'), Hunt's tomato sauce, Lipton
Onion Soup Mix (recipe 'Shrimp California Dip'), Mrs. Smith's Apple Pie (frozen), Kikkoman Soy Sauce ('Happy Isles
Chicken), Kikkoman Teriyaki Sauce ('Flavorama Steak'), Bisquick (recipe for 'Cranberry-Nut Coffee Cake), Max Pax ground
coffee (pre-packed filters), Kraft Pure Safflower Oil, Pennsylvania Dutch Egg Noodles (recipes for 'Chicken Cordon Bleu',
'Noodle Florentine' & 'Apricot Noodle Dessert'), Avocados (California Avocado Board, recipe 'Mexican Chef's Salad'),
French's People Crackers (for dogs!).
---Better Homes and Gardens, May 1973
Rice-A-Roni (with recipe for "Pizzarama"), white rice (Rice Council of America industry promotion, no specific brand, with
recipe for Pepper Steak with Rice), Sunkist lemons, (with recipes for broiled chicken with lemon pepper, baked chicken
with lemon inside, shaker bag chicken flavored with lemon and sauteed chicken breasts with lemon), Carnation's Slender
(diet drink dry mix & canned beverage), Reynolds Wrap aluminum foil (recipes for Spiced and Fruit, Potato-Cheese Frosted
Meat Loaf...both baked wrapped in Reynolds...no pot/pan), Maxim (freeze dried coffee), Nature Valley Granola, Cremora
(powdered non-dairy creamer), Borden Instant Breakfast Drink (orange powder, Like Tang), Chiffon margarine (in plastic tub)
, Nescafe Decaf (instant coffee), Mr. Mushroom (sliced mushrooms in natural juices, jar), Kraft Chef's Surprise (Hamburger
& Macaroni Stew, box, like Hamburger Helper), Birdseye Broccoli Spears with Hollandaise Sauce (frozen, box), Betty Crocker
Hamburger Helper (Hamburger Pizza Dish), Betty Crocker Whipped Frosting Mix (chocolate, strawberry cream, vanilla & lemon
flavors), Polish Ham (canned), Sara Lee Macaroni & Cheese (frozen, box; also mentions Ravioli, Lasagna, Chicken & Noodles
Au Gratin, Tuna & Noodles Au Gratin).
---Ladies Home Journal, September 1974