Friday, November 17, 2006

Retro Recipe Challenge #5: Boozy Holiday



I look forward to the holidays each year -- baking, listening to Christmas carols, sending out holiday cards -- but I also find them stressful. The over-crowded malls, the bleeding of money, the desire to get everything just right; sometimes it's just too much.

And that's when a visit with Johnny Walker comes in handy. He and his friends Captain Morgan, Jim Beam, Jack Daniels and the rest really help take the edge off a stressful holiday season.

You may say I'm a boozer, but I'm not the only one.

As such, the theme for Retro Recipe Challenge #5 is Boozy Holiday. Here's the nitty gritty:

Cook up a holiday-appropriate dish featuring alcohol OR mix up a festive holiday drink using a recipe first published between 1900 and 1980. For help in searching for a recipes, visit “helpful links” on the sidebar of Retro Recipe Challenge Blog.

If your religion or lifestyle prevents you from consuming alcohol, then you may submit a mocktail recipe.

Take a picture of your creation(if possible)
Post the recipe, the picture and your results on your blog. Please include:
--The year the recipe was published
--Where the recipe came from
--How it tasted
--A tag for --A link to this post

Send an email to RetroRecipeChallengeATgmailDOTcom by Friday, December 15 at 11:59pm EST. Please include:
--RRC#5 in the subject line
--your first name or blogging nickname
--your blog's name and your blog's URL
--the recipe name and the post's URL

I hope today you'll join us, and the world will drink as one.


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Retro Recipe Challenge #4: Fall Favorites Round-Up

"Welcome, everyone, to the Junior League's 'Cats in Trees Benefit Dinner.' As you probably know, cats getting stuck in trees has reached epidemic levels in our community, diverting our firemen from their primary task. Just last week, a church, a hospital, and a convent all burned down while the Fire Department was busy getting Queenie out of a maple tree. But before we get to our keynote speaker, please enjoy the lavish spread provided by our wonderful members."



~Soups, Starters & Sides~

Brilynn at Jumbo Empanadas is ladeling out Borscht .
































Ulrike aka ostwestwind at Küchenlatein serves up Swede Mash, with a side of sausage.

































For your salad, Gillian at Food History has salad cream .
(Artist's interpretation.)



Hometown girl Laura Rebecca has Poppin Fresh Barbecups .

(Artist's interpretation.)










~Entrees ~








Em from Kitchem cooked up Beef Bourguignonne .









Anh from Ahn's Food Blog created a lovely Beef Stroganoff .











Cathy from Not Eating Out in New York offers the exotic Moussaka.












Emily at Appetitive Behavior melts comfort food fans hearts with Susan's Macaroni, Tomato and Cheese.










If you can't decide what to order, sit back and let Stephanie at Dispensing Happiness serve you Irish Stew, Brown Bread, and Dark Gingerbread.












~Desserts~



Becke of Columbus Foodie is dishing out Autumn Apple Squares .























La Vida Dulce at La Vida Dulce offers up that perenial favorite, Cranberry Wine Mold.
(An interpretation.)












Rachel at Food Maven cooked up Betty Crocker's recipe for Chocolate Fudge
(Yet another artist's interpretation)











Breadchick at The Sour Dough baked up some Maple Shortbread Bars.












Shandon at How's Annie whipped up some Maple Sponge. (She's less than thrilled about it, but I bet it's delicious.)










Last, but certainly not least, the loverly Alicat at Something So Clever has brought Baked Doughnut Puffs.















"And that's the spread, ladies! I want to extend my gratitude to all the wonderful chefs who helped make this luncheon possible! If there are any dishes I've left out, please let me know so I can put them out and everyone will be able to sample them. Please enjoy your meals!



"And don't forget about next month's holiday celebration! I hope you can join us!"

Monday, October 16, 2006

Retro Recipe Challenge # 4: Fall Favorites



It’s that time of year again. There’s a crispness in the air. Apples and pumpkins are in season. The coats, gloves, and scarves emerge from storage. There’s Halloween AND Thanksgiving to celebrate.

It’s fall and it’s wonderful.

Retro Recipe Challenge #4 is all about Fall Favorites. Go on the hunt for old recipes that work well in fall: apple cider donuts, cheesy chicken casseroles, hot toddys, squash gratins, etc. – what ever makes you think “fall” and “retro” is perfect for this round.

Here are the details:
Cook up a recipe associated with fall and first published between 1920 and 1980
Take a picture (if possible)
Post the recipe and your results on your blog. Please include:
--The year the recipe was published
--Where the recipe came from
--How it tasted
--A tag for
--A link to this post

Send an email to RetroRecipeChallengeATgmailDOTcom by Wednesday, November 15 at 11:59pm EST. Please include:
--RRC#4 in the subject line
--your first name or blogging nickname
--your blog's name and your blog's URL
--the recipe name and the post's URL

That's it!

For help in searching for recipes, visit “helpful links” on the sidebar of Retro Recipe Challenge Blog. If you come across some resources that aren't listed, share the wealth! Leave a comment or send an email to RetroRecipeChallengeATgmailDOTcom .

Good luck and get cooking!

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Retro Recipe Challenge # 3 Round Up!

Our mission: to explore recipes first published in the year of one’s birth – or at least, in a year within five of one’s birth. Our guides: Mr. Peabody and his boy, Sherman, ready to take us on a culinary tour of the 20th century.



Mr. Peabody: Sherman, set the Waybac Machine for 1987.

Sherman: Yes sir, Mr. Peabody!

First stop is Emily’s White Bean and Pork Chili from Bon Appetit. She wasn’t impressed with it of first, writing “Keebler TownHouse Cornbread crackers […] and Monterey jack cheese saved the chili.”

Sherman: I guess 1987 didn’t need flavor when it had NKTOB!

Mr. Peabody: Quiet, you.

Kirsten serves up Lazy Texas Brisket Bon Appetit which she calls “euphorically delicious and simple.”

For dessert, Brilynn (who’s blogger photo is A CABBAGE PATCH DOLL) has Canadian Living’s Cinnamon Buns

They look delicious as well. Hmm, why would recipes from ’82 be more flavorful than those from ’87?

Sherman:I know! By the late 80s we had a distracting bad taste in our mouths due to the Regan administration! God, it all makes sense.

Mr. Peabody: Quiet, you.

I knew Mr. Peabody was a Republican.

Mr. Peabody: Quiet, you.

Hm, well. It’s not worth stopping the Waybac in 1981 to sample Cowboy Cookies from Applehood & Motherpie.They’re pretty flavorless and boring, but maybe that’s the way the Junior Leaguers avoids having to hide food in clothes dryers.

Another two stops in one year – this time, it’s 1975. Stephanie made scrumptious looking Fried Risotto with Gruyere and Truffle filling. "Must I go through the formality of saying this was fabulous?" she writes. "Risotto, which is good. Gruyere, also good. White truffles, decadent. Put them together, and fry them? Heavenly."

Also in 1975 is a trip through The Mickey Mouse Cookbook for the Seven Dwarfs’ Cupcakes. Peabody (the blogger) writes “There is one basic recipe with 7 different adaptations so I decided to make one of each. It said it made twelve, but really only made 7 (how fitting).”

Mr. Peabody: (chuckling) How droll.

Get in the Waybac, Mr. Peabody. This isn’t that kind of website.

1973 offers up a beautifully photography (and delicious looking) Carrot and Apple Salad. Its chef, Pepper, first consulted the House and Garden Drink Guide. "There was one cocktail named Between the Sheets, giving me a mental picture of some mustached, sideburned guy in a light colored, wide lapelled suit mixing up one of these...let's change the channel." Good idea, Pepper. We don’t need Mr. Peabody getting excited again.

Becke turned to the grand dame of retro recipes – the Pillsbury Bakeoff archives – and whipped up the Grand Prize Winner for 1972: Quick ‘n’ Chewy Crescent Bars. “They are very simple to make, and sickly sweet [...] actually, they’re not bad at all, quite good […] It sort of reminds me of the praline topping that I put on top of my yams at Thanksgiving, minus the booze of course."

Sherman: I kind of would like have to have one with booze, Mr. Peabody.

Mr. Peabody: Just. God.

1970 gives us Cheese Toast from Gourmet. Finding it, writes Caryn “as a Yank living in the UK […]seemed somehow serendipitous.” This was after a google a search yielded a recipe for a WMD from The Anarchist Cookbook.

Mr. Peabody: Thank you for not making a joke about WMDs and the current administration.

I think I just did, Mr. Peabody.Let’s go to the nuclear age of the 50s, shall we?

Ruth baked up a Date & Nut Loaf from the book “that Jewish mothers traditionally buy for their daughters when they get married -- A Treasure For My Daughter .” It’s a beautiful bread.

Mr. Peabody: That’s the only "date" on your horizon, isn’t Sherman?

Sherman: To call you a “son of a bitch” wouldn’t be inaccurate, huh, Mr. Peabody?

1954 yields a Macaroni Sauté from Betty Crocker's Good and Easy Cook Book. La Vida Dulce writes that her mom “made this macaroni dish, but she gave it her own flair. Her technique was to leave it uncovered, use canned crushed tomatoes instead of tomato juice, a tiny pinch of comino (ground cumin) and then she added grated Monterey Jack cheese to finish. If it got too dry during cooking, she added more water. It was one of our family favorites.”

Another trip in the Waybac Machine takes us to the rationing of the 40s where Doodles reminisces over Tomato Soup with Grilled Cheese. “The soup was probably Campbell's with a can of water added, eeek! And the grilled cheese was probably made with white bread, two eeeks!! But in those days it was made with love just like today. And if we were really good we probably got a pickle to accompany our sandwich.”

The last two recipes have indeterminate dates, so bear with the Waybac.

John Buehler offers up his Gramma’s recipe for salsa. In an email, John writes “When we were first married, my wife tried it several times and it just didn't taste like Grams. The long notes following the recipe are mostly her secrets to making it taste just right.”


Finally, Joanne Hay has recreated the perfect snack for time travel: Pemmican. “Pemmican is a great way to get nourishment…,” she writes. “Just keep a bag of Pemmican in your car [or Waybac Machine]. It keeps for years out of the fridge.”


Mr. Peabody: Sherman, were you aware that a war was waged over Pemmican?

Sherman: No, and honestly, I’m tired of pretending to care about history.I mean, do you think--

Mr. Peabody: Just SHUT UP.

Well, it’s time to hustle the boys into the Waybac and get back things back to normal. Thanks to everyone who participated -- please email me if I've left anyone out.

See you for Retro Recipe Challenge #4 (just announced)!

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Monday, September 25, 2006

Announcing RRC#3!


Whip out your aprons, warm up your ovens, and grab yourself a nip of sherry ‘cause it’s time for the latest Retro Recipe Challenge!

There were a number of wonderful theme ideas. But the one that got the most people buzzing was suggested by Bibliochef: a recipe from Gourmet published during the year of one’s birth.

It’s an absolutely wonderful idea, but Gourmet’s archives aren’t up to the challenge. A quick search for “1977” yielded two recipes, “1955” yielded one, and “1940” didn’t turn up anything.

So let’s broaden things a bit: for Retro Recipe Challenge #3, create a recipe (from any publication) originally published within five years of your birth year.

If you can find a great recipe that comes from your year of birth, great! If not, you’ve got five years of wiggle room to find something you’re really interested in making. (This IS about having fun!)

For example, I was born in 1977 so I’ll look for recipes published between 1972 and 1982. This might include Chile and Chorizo Cornbread(1977), Pasta Primaveria(1975), or Chile Relleno Casserole (1982).

My mom was born in 1952, so she might whip up Lobster Newberg (1950), German Apple Pancakes (1952), or Barbecue Potato Cheese Meatloaf.

Of course, you don’t have to limit your search to online resources. Check out the library, scour garage sales, mess around in Grandma’s attic.

Here are the details:


  • Cook up a recipe published within five years of your birth year
  • Take a picture (optional – if you can’t do it; don’t worry!)
  • Post the recipe and your results on your blog. Please include:

    *The year the recipe was published
    *Where the recipe came from
    *How it tasted
    *A tag for RRC3
    *A link to this post

  • Send an email to RetroRecipeChallengeATgmailDOTcom by Sunday, Oct. 15 at 11:59pm EST. Please include:

    *RRC#3 in the subject line
    *your first name or blogging nickname
    *your blog's name and your blog's URL
    *the recipe name and the post's URL
  • That's it!


    If you don’t have a blog, you can still participate! Please click here for details.

    For help in searching for recipes, visit “helpful links” on the sidebar of Retro Recipe Challenge Blog. If you come across some resources that aren't listed, share the wealth! Leave a comment or send an email to RetroRecipeChallengeATgmailDOTcom .

    I can’t wait to see what everyone whips up – good luck and get cooking!



    HUGE thanks to Kalyn, Kevin (aka Acme Instant Food ), Ellie, Rachel, Gena, Emily, Doodles, and Lis for their input and theme suggestions. You guys are grea! I can’t wait to tackle all of your wonderful ideas.


    Tags:

    RRC#3 Guidelines for Non-Bloggers


    Whip out your aprons, warm up your ovens, and grab yourself a nip of sherry ‘cause it’s time for the latest Retro Recipe Challenge!

    For Retro Recipe Challenge #3, create a recipe (from any publication) originally published within five years of your birth year.

    If you can find a great recipe that comes from your year of birth, great! If not, you’ve got five years of wiggle room to find something you’re really interested in making. (This IS about having fun!)

    For example, I was born in 1977 so I’ll look for recipes published between 1972 and 1982. This might include Chile and Chorizo Cornbread(1977), Pasta Primaveria(1975), or Chile Relleno Casserole (1982).


    My mom was born in 1952, so she might whip up Lobster Newberg (1950), German Apple Pancakes (1952), or Barbecue Potato Cheese Meatloaf.

    Of course, you don’t have to limit your search to online resources. Check out the library, scour garage sales, mess around in Grandma’s attic.

    To participate, just send an email by Sunday, Oct. 15 at 11:59pm EST to RetroRecipeChallengeATgmailDOTcom with “RRC#3” in the subject line. Please include:

  • The recipe
  • The year the recipe was published
  • Where the recipe came from (your source)
  • How it tasted and what your experience making it was like
  • Attach a photograph of your food creation (optional)
  • Your name and hometown, with as much/as little information as is comfortable: "Carolyn from NYC” or “Food-lover from Florida”


  • Good luck and get cooking!


    A big thank you to Sugar High Friday blog for setting the groundwork & details for non-blogger submissions.

    Tags:

    Saturday, September 23, 2006

    Retro Recipe Challenge #3 Call for Theme Suggestions

    "Hmmm. Should I make tomato aspic or a sherry chicken hot cup?"



    There have been some GREAT ideas for the next RRC:

    * Casseroles, suggested by Kalyn

    *Mother's (or grandmother's) best recipe, suggested by Acme Instant Food and seconded by Ellie

    *Brightly colored, suggested by Rachel

    *Fall/autumnal theme, suggested by Gena

    *Fudge, suggested by Gena

    *Comfort food, suggested by Bibliochef

    *Retro with a twist, suggested by Bibliochef

    * A recipe from Gourmet during the year of one's birth, suggested by Bibliochef and seconded by Emily and Doodles

    *Bake Sale items, suggested by Emily and seconded by Doodles

    There's still time before next Monday to make a theme suggestion (or suggestions!) or vote for one of the ideas listed above. Just leave a comment in the comments section below. Thanks for your help!

    Retro Recipe Challenge #2 Round-Up

    Originally published at Laura Rebecca's Kitchen on 7/17/06




    I think we have a dream spread here, folks. There is nary a healthy dish in sight. We are laden with sugar, fat, salt -- just the way people ate before they knew about cholesterol.

    So get out your prescription for Lipitor and dig in.

    The lovely AliCat from Something So Clever has two recipes for us in this go-round, the first being her Peanut Butter Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting .
    “The Peanut Butter Cake was verrry good. I found the recipe online from a cookbook that was guessed to be published 50s or prior. I love this little cake,” she says. She even went the extra mile and adapted a recipe for peanut butter frosting.



    Ali also made some descriptively named Cathedral Windows. “I don't recall my mom making these grow up, but I know a lot of you are familiar with the marshmallow - chocolaty goodness of the Cathedral Windows,” she wrote. “They are no bake and come together in a flash. They are also really gooood!”


    Mooncrazy whipped up some vibrantly colored Picked Beets with Eggs, from her "mother-in-law Ann's Better Homes and Gardens new cook book" printed in 1953."
    She “couldn't bear to make the Crown roast of Spam with potatoes” (hee hee hee) “so I thought I'd do the beets as I remember our mom bringing them to picnics when I was a kid.”


    Retrofood whipped up a Kidney Bean Salad which sparked a bit of debate in her comments section.







    Kathy Maister at The Main Dish pulls out that all-American classic, Lipton Onion Soup Mix Dip. “In this day of being health and calorie conscious,” writes Kathy, “the luxury of real sour cream is by-passed for fat-free sour cream or yogurt. These substitutes work - just. But they just don't have the luxurious taste of real sour cream. I do think Liptons must have a secret recipe with this soup mix because other brands don't work as well, in my opinion.”

    Lastly, I threw together some Lime Honey dressing, which sounds a lot better than it actually tastes.


    Thank you to all who participated! I appreciate your hard work and tempting contributions!

    The next Retro Recipe Challenge won't be announced until the fall, so you have plenty of time to perfect that veal loaf recipe with orange sauce you've been dying to make.

    Retro Recipe Challenge #1 Round-Up

    Originally posted at Laura Rebecca's Kitchen on 6/12/06.



    I am filled with gratitude toward our Retro Recipe Challenge contributors. They threw on their decorative aprons, all-purpose pearls, and 2-1/2 inch heels, headed into their kitchens, and whipped up a little something for Wally and the Beave.

    Because it would be wrong -- and dare I say, unfeminine -- to let the tykes suffer with a Swanson TV dinner. Madge Jenkins down the street does that, but that's only since her divorce. The poor thing.


    But, really; she should have known better. Wearing pants and flat shoes when her husband was around. I mean, really! It's not surprising he ran off with his secretary. Tsk, tsk, tsk.

    Still, it's a shame and I feel terrible for her. Maybe I'll bring Madgie some wine jello. That'll soothe her nerves.


    Oh, fine. No more episodes of the Middle Class and the Restless.

    Sadly, no gents were able to shellack their heads in Bryl Creme for this go-round, but I'm hopeful that they'll be in top condition for the next one.

    On to the entries:

    The first one comes from Emily at

    Appetitive Behavior. Her (East-Coast) California Casserole was the 1956 Pillbury Bake-off winner and created by Mrs. Hildreth H. Hatheway of Santa Barbara, CA.


    Emily explains the recipe:

    With the exception of diner food, nothing screams 1950s to me more than casserole. And this casserole, in particular, seemed like a straight-from-a-sitcom dinner table classic. It photographs like mystery meat, it contains condensed soup, and made by the original recipe a serving accounts for 46% RDA fat, 25% RDA cholesterol, and 44% RDA sodium. Now that is a casserole.


    Send that over to Madge's house, Emily. Tommy and Bobby haven't eaten a home-cooked meal in ages. But don't expect to get your casserole dish back anytime soon -- Madge can't keep track of things like that these days.



    Ilva at Lucullian Delights whipped up an elegant Potage Au Lait D'amndes (Almond Soup). Ilva puts the American housewives to shame as she not only hails from Tuscany but created a French dish. We're burning with jealousy, Ilva, what with your Italian countrysides, and your Italian Maseratis, and your young Italian men glistening in the hot, Tuscan sun...

    Where was I? Oh, yes; the recipe comes from the 10th ed. of La Cuisine de Madame, published in 1933.







    Kalyn at Kalyn's Kitchen makes sure we can all squeeze into our dresses for the Kiwanis benefit with her tasty Hamburger Kebabs. The recipe comes from the fabulously titled How to Eat Better for Less Money by James Beard, first published in 1954.







    Haalo at Cook (almost) Anything At Least Once took advantage of her local Queensland Tiger Prawns and put together an amazing Prawn Cocktail for 2 -- perfect for those rare evenings when the boys are at your mother's house and you and the Mr. are all alone.

    Or when you're trying to impress your date from the key party.








    Fran from Fran's Flavors put together some Porcupine Meatballs, assuring us "there is no actual exotic meat in this dish." Hee.

    Fran continues:





    When I first asked about the curious name, I was told it was because the rice grains resemble little porcupine quills! True? I don't know. It is a good story. I am not sure of the origin of the recipe (there are many variations--most more complicated than mine--one is found in my very retro 1967 edition of The Joy of Cooking-p.430).

    The story of the original recipe as I heard it was that it was devised when pressure cookers became popular way back when and the meatballs could be made quickly. Those of you who are older probably remember all of the accompanying horror stories of pressure cookers. When I was growing up every kitchen had one, yet I never (fortunately) witnessed any of the awful accidents told by the cooks of the day. Probably a heartfelt warning to keep children away from the hot stove.

    Did you read that bit about protecting the children? Fran is gunning for Mother of the Year.




    The lovely Lis at La Mia Cucina baked up a 1960s Betty Crocker Velvet Cream Cake. She speaks of white hot frustration, and calls her frosting job a monstrosity (it's not) but that's only because the Valium hasn't kicked in yet.

    Don't worry, dear; when it does, come over and I'll pour you a nice glass of cream sherry.






    Alicat from Something So Clever whipped up the very colorful Raisin Gumdrop Bread. It hails from the Farm Journal - Freezing and Canning Cookbook, Popular Edition published in 1963, which she "stole from [her] mother in law."

    Crime doesn't pay, Ali. Do you want to end up like one of those women in prison?








    Maltese Parakeet from Peanut Butter Etouffee pulled out her mom's (Mooncrazy) Betty Crocker Cooky Book and baked up some French Lace Cookies . "I thought it looked totally Jackie Kennedy," writes the 'keet.



    Angelika from Flying Apple concocted a delicious Old-Fashioned Chocolate pudding . She explains:

    I found this recipe lately in an Austrian cooking magazine ("Gusto") featuring an interview with the first violonist of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra (the one which plays, among many others, the world-famous New Year's Concert), Martin Kubik. He is not only a great musician, but also a wine collector and private cook. Asked about his favourite dish to prepare he divulged this chocolate pudding recipe which goes back to his grandma (her name was Franziska Ludmilla Krautstofl - what name ! It sounds definitely like good, old Vienna...)
    A moment on the lips, a lifetime on the hips. Of course, the hips can be hidden under a giant crinoline, covered with a skirt festooned with a poodle, so it doesn't really matter.


    Last, but not least, JulieBean from the thematically appropo Suburban Apron Company gives us Lemon Cracker Pudding. "I sampled the questionable dessert with reckless abandon," she writes. "'Odd,' was my initial reaction. The second forkful was, 'better.' And when I had finished the serving, this dessert had proven itself not only edible, but, actually, 'not too bad.'"

    Mmm-mmm. Just like Mommy's first experience with hard liquor.

    ***
    And that's the whole shebang. If there's anyone I missed, please email me ASAP so I can correct my mistake. Thank you again to all the wonderful participants for their contributions and their tolerance (I hope) for my Gladys Kravitz-esque joking.

    Stay tuned: the next RRC will be announced tomorrow.

    Catch you on the flip side, daddy-o.

    ***


    For your viewing pleasure, click the photo above to screen the educational film, "Date With Your Family." Commentary by Joel Robinson, Tom Servo, and Crow T. Robot.