Yorkshire Burger

February 28, 2021 by Andi Cohen-Rabiner ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

A Recipe from 9th Grand National Cook Book (1958)

About the Recipe

It’s been a long time since I’ve had a real Yorkshire pudding. When I saw this recipe for the first time, it didn’t actually occur to me that this would be the closest that I’d ever get to making one myself! The texture of the breading around the meatballs is like a British pudding – eggy, buttery, slightly salty. It’s absolutely delightful.

When I put it out on the table, my husband took a giant piece, grabbing 4 meatballs in one go – exactly like the picture above! Mr. Kellogg notes that his high school baseball teammates like to dig into this dish, and after seeing the excitement in my husband’s eyes when it landed on the table, I don’t doubt that they did!

One quick adaption here – we don’t eat ground beef in my house, so I substituted ground turkey. It worked really well, and I would imagine any ground meat would do fine. It was even noted at the table that some salmon or other fish based balls would also be delicious in the eggy pudding.

For more recipes in the Pillsbury Challenge, click here!

About the book

In 1958, the Bake-Off moves across the country from New York to Pennsylvania. If the photos in the book are any indication, it seems the participants had a wonderful time. Indeed, the publishers of this years book seemed to have too much fun to cram into one little volume. The front cover has the customary letter from Ann Pillsbury, and is surrounded by smaller photos of the event itself. With the 10th Anniversary to follow, they dedicate more space than usual (4 whole pages!) to the following year’s event. So exciting!

About the glassware

I just got this beautiful Butterfly Gold lasagna pan a few weeks ago (the day after I made lasagna, of course). It came from the little antiques store that I love in New Paltz, NY. I’d had my eye out for a pan like this one, and I was so excited to see it. While it’s a little shallow for casseroles (other than lasagna) in general, it’s perfect for dishes like the Yorkshire burger, and will be exactly right for bar cookies and the like.

The gravy dish was a birthday present from my husband. Spring Blossom is my favorite, and I honestly just love every excuse to bring it out of hiding.

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef
1/4 cup chili sauce
1 package dry onion soup
2 T chopped parsley
1/4 t pepper
1/4 t poultry seasoning
5 egg
1 T water
1 1/2 cups sifted flour
1 1/2 t double-acting baking powder
1 t salt
1 1/2 cups milk
3 T melted butter

Beef Gravy:
1/4 cup Crisco or butter
3 T flour
1 T beef extract
2 1/2 cups milk

Directions:

Combine in a mixing bowl the ground beef, chili sauce, dry onion soup, parsley, pepper, and poultry seasoning. Blend 1 of the eggs and the water. Add to meat mixture; mix well. Form into 24 small meat balls. Place in well greased 12×8-inch baking dish.

Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Beat 4 eggs until foamy. Add milk and melted butter; mix well. Add dry ingredients all at once to egg mixture. Beat with rotary beater (or low speed on mixer) only until smooth and well blended.

Pour over meat balls.

Bake in moderate oven (350*F) 50-60 minutes until golden brown. Serve hot with Gravy.

Beef Gravy:
Melt butter or Crisco in saucepan. Blend in flour and beef extract. Add milk. Cook, stirring occasionally, until gravy is smooth and thickened.

Maraschino Date-Nut Cake

February 23, 2021 by Andi Cohen-Rabiner ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

A Recipe from Cakes & Tortes (1957)

About the Recipe

Yesterday was my little brother’s birthday, and I asked him what kind of cake he wanted. I passed him a few of my baking books and let him figure out which sounded the most interesting to give a test run. This was the cake that he picked out. He was excited about the dates, nuts, and cherries, and it was his birthday so I said “okay!” When all is said and done, I have to say that he definitely chose wisely!

All in all, this cake is wonderfully moist, yet crumbly, with just enough chocolate and spice to give it depth – a real winner! The method is a little bit more on the complicated side, but that’s to be expected with some of these Culinary Institute recipes. Note that it cooks low and slow. I actually needed to tack on another 15 minutes or so to the bake time before my tester came out clean from the center. But honestly, it was well worth the wait.

An additional note from my brother: “It goes really well with jam!”

About the Book

This is another booklet from the Culinary Arts Institute, which I’ve said before and I’ll say again are lovely little books. As with most of the others, it’s arranged into sections, this time by type of cake – butter, chiffon, angel, etc. What I didn’t realize when I bought it is that it’s really a nice basic resource on the science of cakes and tortes. Not only does it come with the 193 recipes noted on the cover, but also pages and pages of tips and tricks on how to improve your cake baking. I almost missed acquiring it from a fellow cookbook enthusiast, but last minute she found another copy and it feels like it just came home.

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups sifted flour
2 t baking powder
1 t allspice
1 t cinnamon
1/4 t salt
1 1/2 cups (about 12 oz.) maraschino cherries
2 cups pecans, chopped
1 cup date pieces
2 oz. chocolate
3/4 cup butter or margarine (softened)
1/2 t vanilla extract
2 cups sugar
4 egg yolks, well beaten
1 cup unseasoned mashed potatoes
1/2 cup milk
4 egg whites

Directions:

Prepare a 13x9x2″ pan – Grease the bottom of the pan only; line with waxed paper cut to fit bottom; grease the waxed paper.

Soft together 2 cups of the flour, baking powder, allspice, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.

Drain, slice and set aside on absorbent paper the maraschino cherries. A few pats with the paper will absorb excess moisture.

Coarsely chop pecans. Cut dates into small pieces. Put fruits and nuts into a large bowl with remaining 1/4 cup flour. Mix well and set aside. Grate chocolate and set aside.

Cream together butter/margarine and vanilla extract until softened. Add sugar gradually, creaming until fluffy after each addition. Add the egg yolks in thirds, beating thoroughly after each addition. Add the chocolate and mashed potatoes and beat until well blended.

Measure out the milk. Beating only until blended after each addition, alternately add dry ingredients in fourths, milk in thirds, to creamed mixture. Finally, beat only until smooth (do not overbeat). Pour batter over fruit nut mixture and mix thoroughly.

Beat egg whites until rounded peaks are formed. Spread beaten egg whites over batter and fold together. Turn batter into pan and spread evenly to edges.

Bake at 275*F 1 hr. 30 min., or until cake tests done with cake tester. Cool and remove from pan as directed for butter-type cakes.

Eggs, Eiffel Tower

February 20, 2021 by Andi Cohen-Rabiner ♥ 6 Comments

A Recipe from Better Homes & Gardens Lunches and Brunches (1963)

About the Recipe

If you’ve been reading my blog for any period of time, you probably know by now how much I love an overcomplicated but delicious breakfast / egg dish. Here’s another one to enjoy!

When I was looking at the recipe on paper, my first thought was that it sounded like a croque Madame – egg, ham, cheese, bread. Simple! But it’s clearly more complicated than that – and the flavor profile you get out of it is more complex as well. It tastes kind of like a quiche Lorraine or an egg hash when all is said and done. The texture is really lovely and surprising. It’s a very light, fluffy dish and everything just comes together when you dig in with a fork.

I used a rustic French sandwich bread for the toast, and a sharp cheddar cheese. This is a recipe that would also be really easy to substitute in other kinds of cheeses and meats with success. Just make sure that your meat can be broken up or speared easily as it gets buried in the ramekin. And of course, if you want a true Parisian taste to go on, go with the deviled ham and some good gruyere.

About the Book

These little Better Homes & Gardens books are such great resources in a kitchen. In the case of this one, you simply pick the lunch or brunch that you’re planning for and there’s a menu ready to go! I’ll go into more details the next time I post on it. For right now, just to give you the flavor of the book, here’s some of the contents:

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

4 rusks or slices dry toast
1 4.5 oz can deviled ham
3/4 cup shredded process cheese
6 egg whites
1/4 t cream of tartar
10 drops bottled hot pepper sauce
Dash salt
1 t prepared mustard
6 egg yolks

Directions:

Cut rusks or toast in rounds to fit in bottom of 4 ramekins or 6-oz custard cups. Butter each rusk; spread with 1 T deviled ham, place in ramekin and sprinkle with 1 T cheese.

Beat egg whites with cream of tartar, hot pepper sauce, and salt till soft peaks form. Place on top of cheese in each ramekin. Top with egg yolks (place 2 egg yolks in 2 of the ramekins). Dot layer with bits of deviled ham (about 1/2 T on each) and sprinkle with 1 T cheese. Top with egg-white mixture.

Repeat layers of ham, cheese, and egg white, building up a peak of egg white mixture. (See picture, above)

Bake in slow oven (325*F) about 30 minutes, or till golden and yolks are of desired doneness. Makes 4 servings.

Maple Memory Cookies

February 14, 2021 by Andi Cohen-Rabiner ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

A Recipe from 100 Prize Winning Recipes from Pillsbury’s 3rd Grand National (1952)

About the Recipe

These little maple cookies are just the right amount of sweet! They’re fairly easy to make, but be aware that the dough gets a little on the dry side as you’re combining the dry ingredients and maple syrup to the creamed mix. A few extra drops of syrup evened out the texture in the end. The walnut on top is absolutely necessary to create just the right crunch. As a bonus, they plump up a little bit in the oven and the nutty flavor shines through.

For more recipes in the Pillsbury Challenge, click here!

About the book

After so much time away from the Challenge, it was fun to be able to pick it up again with Bake-Off 3 in 1952. I was instantly reminded of why I started baking from these booklets in the first place. The recipes are so delightful, and just simple delicious, from scratch baking. I’m not much of a baking snob, but there’s really a massive difference when the chemistry of scratch ingredients is right. Anyway – as always, the 1950’s Bake Off books are total winners. Grab it if you see it.

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups sifted flour
2 t double-acting baking powder
1/2 t soda
1/2 t salt
3/4 cup shortening
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 t maple flavoring
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
additional walnut halves

Directions:

Sift together flour, baking powder, soda, and salt. Cream shortening, and add gradually the brown sugar. Add the egg and maple flavoring; beat well. Add maple syrup alternately with dry ingredients to creamed mixture, blending well after each addition. Add walnuts.

Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets; top each with a walnut half. Bake in moderately hot oven (400*F) 8 to 10 minutes.

Strawberry Cake

February 7, 2021 by Andi Cohen-Rabiner ♥ 5 Comments

A Recipe from VIP Cook Book Vol. II (1977)

About the Recipe

When I opened this book to find a recipe, I did it with one goal in mind – Find the recipe from Rosalynn Carter! I had two thoughts when this was the one that I found:

Well, it’s almost Valentine’s Day, so I guess it’s the perfect time of year for what’s sure to be a very pink cake
Oh wow is that a lot of processed, pre-packaged sugar!

The good news is, that the result is magnificent. I’m sure the former First Lady wowed her parlor guests with this festive cake, chock full of nuts and personality.

I used fresh strawberries (had to get a little freshness in there somewhere), which worked marvelously, and I think gave the cake a little bit more of a pop. As much as it feels like you want to cut the sugar down in this dish, don’t cut it from the fresh strawberries! Sugar draws the juices out of the berries and stimulates the natural pectin that holds the cake together.

About the Book

As fundraising cookbooks go, this one must be one of the cooler ones. It came again from the big box from my cousins, and I was so excited to see it. The book itself is a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society. The recipes come from all of the muckety-mucks in Washington and Virginia, from the media to the Senators’ wives to Mrs. Jimmy Carter! I’ll definitely dive into this one again, so for this first post I’ll leave you with some photos of the book as a teaser:

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

1 pkg. yellow or white cake mix
3 oz. pkg. strawberry gelatin
3/4 c. cooking oil
1 c. chopped nuts
4 eggs
2 T flour
10 oz. pkg. frozen strawberries, or 1 pt. fresh strawberries with 1/2 c. sugar

Directions:

Mix all ingredients and beat well; pour into a greased angel food cake pan and bake.

Serve plain or with whipped cream.

Sweet-and-Sour Pork

February 6, 2021 by Andi Cohen-Rabiner ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

A Recipe from Southern Living 1981 Annual Recipes (1981)

About the Recipe

I love Chinese food. My husband also loves Chinese food. Over the years we’ve both made our own copycat recipes for various things – stir fry, fried rice, egg drop soup. Absolutely nothing that we tried before tasted like it does fresh out of the cardboard box. Until now.

I’ll admit from the get-go that this is a little bit more tricky than the usual recipes that I highlight, but it’s well worth the effort. It tastes just like fresh from the hole-in-the-wall sweet and sour pork. Yum!

This is definitely a recipe that you can play with a little bit. I used red and yellow peppers, because that’s what I had in the house. I also added some mushrooms and onions to give us a little bit more from a nutrients perspective. Other great veggie additions would include snow peas, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, carrots, the list goes on! I plan on trying it again cutting down the sugar and using pineapple and pineapple juice. We even discussed using some mango when it comes in season again.

About the Book

Usually I put the breaks on when I see a book from the 1980’s. The ’80’s were a strange time in culinary history – lots of low-sugar / low-fat / low-taste things going on. But this one looked interesting, and it came from my cousin so I thought I’d give it at least one try.

The book is divided into months with appropriate recipes in each month. Obviously I decided to do one of the February recipes, and I have to say that it tasted even better as the Nor’easter whipped snow around our house. We also get some Mardi Gras / New Orleans inspired dishes (okra and “French Quarter” green beans), though I’m positive that my NOLA friends would giggle at the ingredients. And of course, plenty of chocolate desserts for Valentine’s Day.

I think I’ll pull this out again come March…

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

2 T peanut oil
1 1/4 lbs boneless pork shoulder, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 2 1/2 cups)
1 t garlic salt
1/8 t pepper
1 3/4 cups water
2 medium-size green peppers, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup raisins
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup vinegar
2 T cornstarch
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 cups hot cooked rice

Directions:

Pour oil around top of preheated wok, coating sides; allow to heat at medium high for 2 minutes. Add pork, and stir-fry about 5-6 minutes. Add garlic salt, pepper, and water. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer about 25 minutes or until pork is very tender.

Add green pepper; cook, uncovered about 4 minutes. Stir in raisins, sugar, and vinegar. Dissolve cornstarch in soy sauce, and add to pork mixture. Cook stirring constantly, until thickened and bubbly. Serve over hot cooked rice.

Note: I used yellow and red peppers, and added onions and mushrooms. There’s plenty of sauce, so feel free to load this up with veggies!

Zucchini Lasagna

January 31, 2021 by Andi Cohen-Rabiner ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

A Recipe from The Wonderful World of Cheese (1979)

About the Recipe

With so many cheesy, delicious recipes to choose from out of this book, my husband opted for the lasagna. This is a super simple lasagna recipe, if you’re looking to break the ice and try one for the very first time. The sausage provides a punch of flavor, and the zucchini is timed just right so that it’s slightly crunch, adding great texture to the dish.

The recipe itself kind of tricks you into making a meat sauce – brown the meat and onions, add the tomatoes / sauce and spices, simmer for a bit to let everything blend together. Rather than using their quick sauce, I used this Basic Red Sauce from the New York Times cookbook that’s become a staple in our home. You could absolutely feel free to use your favorite jarred sauce as well for a nice short-cut.

About the Book

This is everything I love about advertising booklets from the 1970’s: Swirly, ridiculous fonts. Weird suggestions on what to do with the product in question. Colored photographs that are supposed to look appetizing, but somehow… miss the mark. It’s a total winner!

This booklet was produced by the American Dairy Association. It eschews the value of a good cheese, and gives a thorough list of the 200 different variations available in the United States in 1979. It’s a total treasure, and came again from the giant box from my cousins. Only fitting, since Becky and I have been munching on cheese together since the beginning of time.

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

1 lb. mild Italian sausage, casing removed
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 can (15 oz.) tomato sauce
1/2 cup water
1/4 t salt
1/4 t oregano
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 T flour
8 lasagna noodles, cooked and drained
4 cups zucchini slices, cut 1/4″ thick
12 oz. sliced Mozzarella cheese

Directions:

Brown sausage with onion; drain. Stir in tomato sauce, water and seasonings. Simmer, uncovered, 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Preheat oven to 375*F. Combine Parmesan cheese and flour. Layer half of the lasagna noodles on bottom of buttered 13×9-inch baking dish. Top with half the zucchini, half the Parmesan mixture, half the meat sauce and half the Mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers of noodles zucchini, Parmesan mixture and meat sauce. Bake 20-25 minutes or until zucchini is tender. Add remaining cheese; return to oven until cheese begins to melt. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

NOTE: Option to use your favorite jarred sauce or make your own with this Basic Red Sauce from the New York Times instead of using ingredients 2-6 above.

Fish Soufflé

January 23, 2021 by Andi Cohen-Rabiner ♥ 2 Comments

A Recipe from Westinghouse automatic Electric Range Book (195?)

About the Recipe

I’m so excited for this post – we have a guest chef in the house! My husband, Michael picked out this recipe to spear head for our supper this week… and promptly started to freak out. The word “soufflé” while exciting at first, started to pop images of beautifully risen desserts falling into miserable sunken heaps after coming out of the oven, and he just didn’t want to let me down. Thankfully, we’re a great team and he perservered:

He’s just the cutest, and I’m so lucky to have a partner who supports my hobbies and cooking the way he does.

At any rate – back to the recipe – we used canned salmon for our fish flakes, although any good flaked fish would do in this case. The recipe is a touch salty, but other than that the flavor is fantastic. And, as with most things, much easier to execute than we expected.

About the Book

Westinghouse started publishing spiral bound booklets to promote the use of their new electric ranges in the 1940’s. I believe my copy is from the 1950’s, and it’s super well loved. The cover is falling apart. There are notes and pieces of paper shoved between the pages. Per the note at the top of the Index – “Favorite dishes are checked.”

This came from the giant box from my cousins, and I know it’s going to be one that gets good use in my kitchen in the future.

About the Glassware

The dish is a Friendship casserole that we picked up at our little flea market in High Falls, NY. My mother-in-law spotted it when she was visiting (pre-pandemic) and bought it for me. It was only fitting that this one take center stage when Michael picked the dish. It’s one of my favorites!

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

2 T butter
2 T flour
1/4 t pepper
1 t salt
1 T minced parsley
1 1/2 cups milk
1 large can fish flakes
1 t grated onion
3 eggs, separated

Directions:

Make a white sauce of the fat, flour, pepper, and salt. Add to this the onions, parsley, and fish flakes, the latter picked apart with a fork. Beat egg yolks until light, then add to this mixture. Fold in stiffly-beaten egg whites. Pile in buttered casserole.

Temperature: 350*-375*F; baking time 45-60 minutes

Old Fashioned Cake

January 17, 2021 by Andi Cohen-Rabiner ♥ 2 Comments

A Recipe from Kamp Kookery (198?)

About the Recipe

I’m always hesitant when it comes to cooking recipes from the ’80s. It was not a great time in culinary history – low-fat, low-cal, low-sugar, no sugar – the list goes on. The good news is, this recipe is none of these things. I can imagine that this cake recipe was first made in grandma’s kitchen in the 50’s/60’s when all things “Hawaiian” (aka banana and pineapple) were very in fashion, and nothing was low-fat.

This is a total winner of a recipe. It’s delightfully crunchy on the outside, with a moist, fluffy inside. The pineapple melts away and just leaves its sweetness behind to linger with the banana. All told, this tastes like an especially rich banana bread. It’s perfect for luncheons and dinner parties to go with a cup of decaf.

About the Book

Unfortunately, there’s not a ton to be found about this community cookbook, but here’s what I know: It was published sometime in the ’80s by the Ginter Park (Virginia) Junior Women’s League to benefit Camp Easter Seal – East. The camp was in the process of being built at the time and was set up to be available to all mentally and physically handicapped children and adults in the state of Virginia. It still is in existence today, and if you’d like to find out more check out the website here.

One more note on this one – there are nearly 400 pages of recipes in this book, and the Junior Women’s League had to turn people away! All that said to mean – these are truly the best of the best that this community had to offer. That’s the crux of why I love community cookbooks to begin with, and I’m so glad to find that this one doesn’t disappoint.

About the Glassware

What better use for the Federal Glass Atomic Flower snack plates, than a little bit of after dinner cake? It’s truly what these ’50’s era plates were designed for, and I swear it makes little snacks taste just a little bit better. Sadly, they’re without a teacup companion for the time being, but they serve as the perfect tiny platter all the same.

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

3 c flour
1 t. cinnamon
1 t. salt
1/2 c. nuts (optional)
1 t. soda
2 c. sugar
1 can (8 oz.) crushed pineapple (don’t drain)
1 1/2 c cooking oil
1 1/2 t. vanilla
3 eggs
2 c. diced bananas

Directions:

Oven temp 350*F. Grease an 8 or 8″ tube pan; set aside, sift together dry ingredients. Add undrained pineapple, cooking oil, vanilla, eggs and bananas to dry mixture, mixing until blended. Do not beat. Bake for 1 hr. 20 min. Cake will crack slightly on top. Cool in pan on rack.

Apple Cinnamon Waffles

January 16, 2021 by Andi Cohen-Rabiner ♥ 1 Comment

A Recipe from WAFFLES how to make ’em and take ’em (1938)

About the Recipe

Waffles are a special treat in my house. In a year, we’re lucky if we do waffles once. With this recipe – that might change.

As recipes go, this one is a little bit more complicated than perhaps we’re used to for breakfast. That said, it’s definitely worth the work. The end result is a light, fluffy, slightly sweet waffle. It has a great rise to it and was full of lovely air bubbles throughout.

Take the note about it taking a little bit longer to cook. The apples add moisture, which means that you’ll see a ton of steam coming from your iron (don’t be nervous when you see it) but it also means that it takes a bit longer to cook. But trust me on this – it’s worth the wait.

About the Book

This is another treasure from the giant box from my cousins. Produced in 1938 by the Manning-Bowman Company (a purveyor of fine waffle irons), this book has 24 waffle recipes, and a dozen or so games that you can play with friends. This is clearly marketed toward more wealthy members of society, as the average waffle iron advertised is $9 – $160 in 2020! I guess if it’s 1938 and you’ve got money, there’s not much more to do than eat waffles and play games!

Rather than go farther this time around, I’m going to let this book speak for itself…

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 t salt
1 t cinnamon
1 t sugar
2 t baking powder
2 eggs
1 cup milk
2 cups diced apple
4 T melted shortening

Directions:

Mix and sift the dry ingredients. Beat yolks of eggs until light and add milk. Combine the mixtures, beating until smooth, and add the finely diced apple. Add shortening and then fold in whites of eggs which have been beaten until stiff. Serve with butter and brown sugar.

Note: It is necessary to bake these waffles a little longer than other waffles.