I know that I am not supposed to play with food. That is what my mother taught me (well, at least when we are in public anyway) but, over the winter, I got a lot of cooking practice/play in. I have been picking up the family business, blueberry farming and every day I go to work with my dad. To save money, I cook lunch and since I am a sucker for history, we ate a great many meals from my 30s/40s cook book collection over the past year or so. Some meals were fantastic and we had more than once. Others . . well . . we will not be trying again. Ever. Period, end of story. Anyway, so what books do I have in my collection? Well, take a look. So far, I have the American Woman’s Cookbook, New Delineator Recipes, The Service Cookbook, and a couple more.
All of them were great buys and I still browse the shelves of antique malls to find more. My first one was from 1929, the New Delineator Recipes, and that started it all. Soon, I found the big blue one, then the others. For the most part, they contain wonderful advice for the beginner cook (which I needed), and tasty recipes. So, what did I make? Well, I tried beef recipes, chicken, salmon, and desserts of course. And even some simple rolls too. No bread though, I’m not too confident in my bread making skills.
These books offer some incredible insight into the culinary habits of 30s/40s individuals and families. What struck me the most was how no scrap was wasted. There were so many recipes suggesting how to use left overs, small pieces of meat, etc. It really reveals the frugality of the people and time in which these books were written and published. The vibrant color plates too really caught my eye. These vivid images offer serving suggestions and ideas on how to decorate desserts to suit the season and occasion. These too give an idea on how some of the dished should turn out.
The gelatin! For whatever reason, someone thought it was a grand idea to put anything and everything in a gelatin mold. Noodles, vegetables, meat, you name it! Personally, none of that looks one bit appetizing and I will not be trying those anytime soon. I just don’t understand it. Gelatin . . . Besides gelatin molds of everything, puffs, as in fish puffs, beef puffs, etc were popular too. For those, I can see why those caught on because they require little meat and bread scraps make up the bulk of the recipe. These puffs are filling, economical, and the Salmon Puffs do not taste too bad. . . they were a little dry buy not awful. Fish. There are a lot of fish recipes in all of my books. In fact, fish makes up its own chapter in each one. Are the recipes any good? Well, I think so. Many of them include broiling, backing, and even boiling fish.
The American Woman’s Cookbook held some interesting social history in the back. Near the back of the book, there was a section on entertaining without a maid or any servants. I thought that this was particularly interesting because it reveals a change in social habits and even structure where the middle class is rising and servants or maids were becoming a thing of the past. Just to have this in this text alone reveals that it was important enough to include to guide maid less hostesses.
So there you have it, a little insight into my life and culinary experience. . . Not only do I find 40s fashion interesting but the food too. And why not? Both topics played a large part in the lives of those before us because not only could they not go prancing about in the nude but they had to eat something. Does this post indicate that there may be a food related post on here once in awhile? Maybe . . . . . .Depends on how the recipes turn out . . . and if I burn it. . .badly . . .
