Tag: Entree

Frankfurter-Corn Bread Shortcake

Frankfurter-Corn Bread Shortcake

by Andi Cohen-Rabiner ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

A Recipe from Pyrex Prize Recipes (1953)

About the Recipe

Okay friends, it’s time for some good, old-fashioned mid-century nonsense! I’ve actually made this recipe a few times, including once for my mother-in-law. I hate to say it, but it’s actually really really good.

That said, I’ve modernized it over the past couple of years of making it. Here’s how:

  • I use fresh veggies instead of the canned tomatoes. I like using the colorful cherry tomato medley, but any fresh tomato will give you better flavor than the canned version.
  • The husband doesn’t like celery, so I substituted broccoli in. Honestly, use the vegetables you like. Make sure you have the onion, but otherwise – have fun!
  • I like to add 2 T of sugar to the cornbread mix when I make it myself. The sweet and savory combination is really nice.
  • There is so much salt in this dish. Please feel free to cut it down. Your body will thank you.

Cooking with hot dogs is weird. But folks did it for a reason! And this recipe is a good one if you’re feeling a bit brave. Enjoy!

About the book

I had forgotten how lovely this little cookbook is. For each recipe, there’s a recommendation or photo of what Pyrex to use. The photos are, well honestly they’re awful. But I kind of love them. And this dedication is everything for those of us who like to cook vintage dishes in vintage dishes.

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green pepper
1/4 cup fat
2 1/2 cups tomatoes (#2 can)
8 frankfurters
1/2 t salt

PACKAGED TOPPING:
1 package corn muffin mix (11 3/4 oz.) or

HOMEMADE TOPPING:
3/4 cup flour
3 t double-acting baking powder
1 t salt
3/4 cup corn meal
2 T shortening
1 egg, well beaten
2/3 cup milk

Directions:

Brown celery, onion, and green pepper (or veggies of your choice) in fat in a PYREX Flameware Saucepan. Remove the saucepan from heat; add tomatoes, frankfurters cut into eighths, and 1/2 t salt. Pour into greased PYREX bowl.

Packaged Topping. If you use corn muffin mix, prepare according to directions on the package.

Homemade Topping.  Sift together flour, baking powder, and 1 t salt. Stir in corn meal. Cut shortening into flour mixture until well blended. Add well-beaten egg and milk, and mix until dry ingredients are moistened. 

Pour corn meal batter on top of tomato-frankfurter mixture in the PYREX bowl. This topping may be garnished with additional small slices of frankfurters. 

Bake uncovered about 35 minutes in a moderate (375*F) oven. 

6-8 servings. PYREX 2 1/2-quart bowl

Cranberry Meat Loaf

Cranberry Meat Loaf

by Andi Cohen-Rabiner ♥ 1 Comment

A Recipe from Ground Beef Cookbook (1967)

About the Recipe

It’s another Husband’s Choice! When this fun little cookbook arrived in the mail, my husband immediately grabbed it and started paging through. He’s a sucker for cranberry sauce. Not the good cranberry sauce made from scratch. Nope, my husband likes the kind in a can. The kind that this recipe seemed to be crying out for.

The end result? Holy wow was this delicious. Instead of cooking in a ketchup or bbq sauce mix, this loaf cooks in the cranberry sauce. It was juicy and the perfect combination of salty and sweet.

My only note: Don’t use a loaf pan. Use something a little bit bigger so that your pan doesn’t overflow like mine did. There’s some value to having the sauce squished against the loaf. That said, I’ll use a bigger pan next time to avoid the overflow.

Also (don’t tell my husband…) I’ll probably use the homemade stuff next time.

My husband is super supportive of my weird recipe habit. Every now and again, I let him pick the recipe out of a vintage book. Find more of his picks on the Husband’s Choice page.

About the book

Oh my goodness, this booklet is so darn cute. There are little handmade dolls on the front cover. Illustrations of the dolls take you on your ground beef culinary journey throughout the book. It feels like such a snapshot of its time. Enjoy!

  • This whole section is recipes from first ladies, senator’s wives, governor’s wives… I love it.

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef
1 cup cooked rice
1/2 cup tomato juice
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 1/2 t salt
2 cups whole cranberry sauce
1/3 cup sugar
1 T lemon juice

Directions:

Combine beef, rice, tomato juice, egg, onion and salt. Shape into loaf; put into pan. Mix remaining ingredients; pour over loaf. Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Yield 6-8 servings

Yummy Porcupine Meatballs

Yummy Porcupine Meatballs

by Andi Cohen-Rabiner ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

A Recipe from A Campbell Cookbook Cooking with Soup (1970)

About the Recipe

It’s Memorial Day weekend, which means the kiddo and I are hanging out with Aunt Becky – and it’s time for another Weekend at Becky’s recipe! This one was a perfect, easy addition to dinner that everyone enjoyed.

Porcupine meatballs are actually a depression era recipe combining ground meat, rice, and canned soup – all inexpensive staples. They’re called “porcupine” not because we’re eating cute little spiked animals, but because traditionally when cooked the meat shrinks. That leaves the little rice grains spiking out of the meatballs, giving them the appearance of small porcupines.

For these we did an easy substitute of ground turkey for the beef (neither of us are red meat eaters, generally). It was absolutely successful. I’ll give my usual recommendation here to use the ground meat or “meat” of your choice. I have no doubt that any would work. But honestly – that’s it! This recipe is very easy, and very delicious. Sure to be a staple in my house in the future.

For more recipes from a Weekend at Becky’s, click here!

About the book

This is another family book, owned by Becky’s grandma, and clearly very well used. She put little check marks next to recipes she made. And in this book, she left a little list of page numbers at the front of the book. The meatballs came from one of her indexed pages, and it’s clear to understand why.

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

1 can (10 3/4 oz.) condensed tomato soup
1 lb. ground beef (or any ground meat or “meat” of your choice)
1 cup packaged pre-cooked rice
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 t salt
1 small clove garlic, minced
2 T shortening
1/2 soup can water
1 t prepared mustard

Directions:

Mix 1/4 cup soup with beef, rice, egg, onion, and salt. Shape firmly into 16 meatballs. Brown meatballs and garlic in shortening; pour off fat. Blend in remaining soup, water, and mustard. Cover; simmer for 20 minutes or until done. Stir now and then. 4 servings.

Susan’s Turketti

Susan’s Turketti

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A Recipe from Good Housekeeping’s Casserole Book (1958)

About the Recipe

Today is husband’s birthday! In honor of his day, we have another Husband’s Choice. This one is a play on turkey tetrazzini – pasta and turkey in a warm, savory sauce topped with cheese. Y’all know I love a casserole, and this one is pure magic. It’s a make-ahead, so I made it on a Sunday afternoon when I had some time. The time spent in the refrigerator allows the pasta to really soak up the broth and soup. The result is a super savory, comfort casserole, perfect for a cozy family dinner.

The “Susan” mentioned here is yet another fictional cook that came out of this advertising trend. She’s a teen cook who loves to whip up easy to follow recipes in the kitchen. My feeling is that any recipe labeled with Susan’s name is probably a little bit more simple than the average recipe in this book. But that’s just my gut feeling. If anyone has any more information about Susan, I’d love to hear about it!

A few quick notes to help make it amazing:
– I used turkey breasts that I marinated in salt, pepper, and a little bit of olive oil for a few hours before cooking them up in a skillet. You could also use Thanksgiving leftovers or rotisserie chicken to make this really quick and easy.
– Any short pasta will work in this recipe. Don’t use the full strands of spaghetti without breaking them as it’ll be difficult to mix and serve.
– Any sort of broth will work in this recipe as well, including a bullion cube dissolved in water. I love Penzey’s soup bases and use the turkey one for literally every recipe that calls for a poultry based broth.
– Because I salted my turkey and the broth and mushroom soup are already high in sodium, I didn’t add the additional salt in the recipe. Trust me when I say it was salty enough.

For more Husband’s Choice recipes, click here!

About the book

I love these little Good Housekeeping booklets. They’re the ones that used to live in the grocery store aisles. There’s a whole set of them, and usually you see them at antique or vintage stores for $1 or so each. If you see one, grab it. The recipes are easy to follow and use common ingredients. The illustrations are so mid-century it hurts.

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups (about 3 oz.) spaghetti, broken into 2″ pieces
1 1/2 to 2 cups cut-up, cooked or canned turkey (or chicken or cooked veal)
1/4 cup diced pimentos
1/4 chopped green pepper
1/2 chopped small onion
1 can condensed cream-of-mushroom soup, undiluted
1/2 cup turkey broth or water
1/2 t salt
1/8 t pepper
1 3/4 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese (about 1/2 lb.), divided

Directions:

Early in the day or night before, if preferred:
Cook spaghetti as package directs; drain. Place turkey, pimentos, green pepper, and onion in 1 1/2 quart casserole. Pour in mushroom soup and turkey broth; add salt, pepper, 1 1/4 cups of grated cheese, and spaghetti. With two forks, lightly toss until all is well mixed and coated with sauce. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup grated cheese on top of turkey mixture; refrigerate.

About 1 hour before serving: 
Start heating oven to 350*F. Bake casserole mixture 45 min, or until bubbly throughout. Makes 4 servings

PS. – If you’re having 8 for dinner or a help-yourself supper, early in day make twice above recipe, using 3-qt casserole; refrigerate. At mealtime, bake about 1 hr. or until bubbling hot.

Chicken Hawaiian (Simplified)

Chicken Hawaiian (Simplified)

by Andi Cohen-Rabiner ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

A Recipe from Simple Hawaiian Cookery (1964)

About the Recipe

Y’all – look at this mid-century nonsense. Beige on beige on beige. Canned Campbell’s soup, canned pineapples, and slivered almonds. When we sat down to the table to try it, we all had that apprehensive look on our faces. That look that says – this might have been a mistake. I prepared to start writing a “Danger, Will Robinson!” post. And then we tried it.

Friends – it was absolutely, unequivocally delicious. Even my toddler, Maxx said “Mm, mm! Delish!”

A few quick notes on this one:
– I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs. I marinated them in a little salt, pepper, and olive oil and then cooked them in a skillet. A rotisserie chicken will work really well. Great use for any chicken leftovers that don’t have a super strong flavor.
– Go a little heavy on the pineapple if you can. The extra acidity and sweetness cut really well through the heavy soup. I used about 3/4 of a 20 oz. can.
– Mushroom chunks will make a great addition to this in the future. I’ll add them with the garlic and peppers.
– Pour the pineapple juice in first to deglaze the pan. You’ll get better flavor out of it.
– I’m pretty sure that if you don’t want to use the pre-made soup, you could make a velouté with a roux and some chicken stock and it would work just as well (and maybe a little bit better). Use 2 T flour and 2 T butter to make your roux and then add 2 cups stock.

About the book

I’m so in love with these little Peter Pauper books. There are folks out there who specifically hunt them, and I definitely understand why. The mid-century illustrations and little poetic touches are just so wonderful. Enjoy!

  • Poultry Section Illustration

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

1 large green pepper, cut in strips
1 to 2 cloves garlic, minced
2 T salad oil
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 (13 oz.) can pineapple tidbits with juice
2 cups cooked chicken, cubed
2 T soy sauce
3 cups cooked rice
1/4 cup toasted almonds, slivered

Directions:

In saucepan, cook green pepper with garlic in oil until tender. Blend in soup and pineapple juice; add chicken, pineapple tidbits, and soy sauce. Heat, stirring now and then. Serve over rice. Top with almonds. 6 servings.

Tuna Salad Crescent Bake

Tuna Salad Crescent Bake

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A Recipe from 100 Bake-Off Recipes…from the 20th annual Bake-Off (1969)

About the Recipe

When I first saw this recipe, I thought – oh that looks like one that will become a staple! And don’t get me wrong, it’s really good, it just needs a few adjustments. Give this one a try for sure, but half the amount of mayo and half the amount of cottage cheese and you should be good. I actually liked this one a little bit better cold, but it would have been marvelous hot if it hadn’t been so wet.

Another note – I might try this in a 9″ pie dish next time. I’m guessing that the crescent rolls used to be packaged a little bit differently, because this certainly wasn’t close to a square.

For more recipes in the Pillsbury Challenge, click here!

About the book

It seemed appropriate to use this very American cookbook on the 4th of July. Something about 1969 screams stars and stripes throughout cultural references to the time, and certainly this book with it’s “GREAT AMERICAN EVENT” on the inside cover stands as the same.

One more note on this one – Ann Pillsbury, our wonderful cookbook narrator has been replaced! Further research reveals that Ann Pillsbury, much like Betty Crocker, never really existed in the first place. “Ann” could be a reference to Charles Alfred Pillsbury’s wife, Mary Ann (pure speculation, I have found no research to support this).

At any rate, she disappears for Bake-Off #20 being replaced by the Director of the Pillsbury Consumer Service Kitchens, Barbara Thornton. This, like the cookbook title, continues to evolve over the next few books. Stay tuned!

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

1 can (8 oz.) Pillsbury Refrigerated Quick Crescent Dinner Rolls
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 1/3 c grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 c salad dressing or mayonnaise (NOTE: Use half this amount for less mushy dish)
6 hard cooked eggs, chopped
1 family-size can (9 1/4 oz) chunk style tuna, drained
1 c peas*
1 c creamed cottage cheese (NOTE: Use half this amount for less mushy dish)
6 slices processed American cheese
1/2 c soda cracker crumbs
Paprika

Directions:

Unroll crescent dough and place in an ungreased 9-inch square or 12×8-inch (2 qt.) baking dish. Press over bottom and 1 1/2 inches up sides to form a crust. In small mixing bowl, combine beaten eggs with Parmesan cheese. Spread half of egg-cheese mixture over crust. Set aside remaining mixture for topping.

In large mixing bowl, combine salad dressing, hard cooked eggs, tuna, peas, and cottage cheese; mix well. Spoon mixture into crust; spread evenly. Top with cheese slices. Spread remaining egg-cheese mixture over cheese slices. Sprinkle with cracker crumbs and paprika.

Bake at 400*F for 20-30 minutes until light golden brown. Serve warm or cold.

Egg Baskets

Egg Baskets

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A Recipe from 100 Prize Winning Grand National Recipes from Pillsbury’s 6th Grand National $100,000 Recipe & Baking Contest (1955)

About the Recipe

Every now and again a breakfast recipe comes along and it feels like a lot of work just for some eggs in a flaky crust… Thankfully, this recipe is worth every minute of effort.

The cheesy crust is flaky and light and bakes just right around the eggs. There’s a dash of paprika on the top of each basket for a little bit of extra flavor, and that sauce is just right to finish off the dish.

That said, it’s a lot of work. If I make it again, I might try a pre-made crust with some cheese buried inside as opposed to making the whole thing from scratch. It was a rough crust to deal with, and the pre-made would make this go so quickly.

There’s also something to be said here for playing with the flavors a little bit – some hot sauce or veggies hidden somewhere would go a long way to taking this from good, to great! I went ahead and substituted fresh dill weed for the dill seed below and it was super successful. If you make this recipe and make any changes, leave your notes in the comments below!

For more recipes in the Pillsbury Challenge, click here!

About the book

For some reason this book’s recipes never spoke to me the same way the others did. This was my first time baking out of it after finding it in an antique mall in North Carolina just over a year ago. That said, it’s still a solid book, and the egg baskets have given me more confidence in the quality of the other recipes.

About the glassware

I’m so excited to pull out my Colonial Mist Pyrex pitcher for this one! My husband got it for me for Hannukah this year, specifically to match the Correlle platter. It makes me smile every time I have the opportunity to pull it out.

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups sifted flour
1/2 t salt
1/2 cup Crisco
1/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese
5-6 T cold water
6 eggs
salt & pepper
paprika

Cheese Dill Sauce:
1/3 cup butter or margarine
1/3 cup flour
2 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
2 T chopped parsley
2 t crushed dill seed
1/2 t salt

Directions:

Sift together flour and salt into mixing bowl. Cut in Crisco and cheddar cheese until particles are the size of small peas. Sprinkle cold water over mixture, a little at a time, while tossing and stirring lightly with fork. Add water to driest particles, pushing lumps to side, until dough is just moist enough to hold together. Form into a ball. Flatten to about 1/2-inch thickness. Smooth dough at edges.

Roll out on floured pastry cloth or board to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut out six circles (about 5 inches across). Fit each inside a muffin pan or individual tart pan, pressing pastry against sides and bottom of pan to form a smooth lining. Let pastry edges extend 1/4-inch above pan for a rim.

Cut out six more circles (about 4 inches across), re-rolling dough for the last few circles. Cut a gash in the center of each. Break 6 eggs into the pastry-lined pans. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Cover with the small circles. Seal edges of top and bottom crusts by pinching together to form a rim. Sprinkle with paprika. Bake in a hot oven (450*F) for 20-22 minutes until golden brown. Serve hot with sauce.

Cheese Dill Sauce:
Melt butter or margarine in a saucepan. Blend in flour. Gradually add milk; cook over low heat, stirring constantly until thickened. Remove from heat and stir in cheddar cheese, parsley, dill seed, and salt. (Dill seed may be crushed between two sheets of waxed paper with a hammer.) Cover if sauce must stand before serving.

Down East Crabmeat Pie

Down East Crabmeat Pie

by Andi Cohen-Rabiner ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

A Recipe from 100 Prize Winning Recipes from Pillsbury’s 4th Grand National Recipe & Baking Contest (1953)

About the Recipe

What an absolutely delightful way to kickoff my Pillsbury Challenge. This recipe was a bit like eating a crab cake pie. It made me think of afternoons picking crabs and drinking beer in the Baltimore Inner Harbor – basically a perfect afternoon.

It took some looking around to find the right “chili sauce” which nowadays means any sauce made from a chili and can range from sriracha to habanero sauce to regular old Heinz. Research notes that in the ’50s this would have been a plain old jar of Heinz so that’s what I went with. Quick note here – I would definitely sub out half of the plain chili sauce for something a little bit more spicy and exciting to give it more of a kick. While this pie is far from bland, it would be served well by a little something extra.

For more recipes in the Pillsbury Challenge, click here!

About the book

Published in 1953 for Pillsbury’s 4th Grand National contest, this book was one of my first, and is still one of my favorites. The recipes are so indicative of the time – lots of “pre-bake” or “freeze for later” notes from the cooks. If you ever see one of these books in the wild, grab it. You won’t be sorry.

About the glassware

Unfortunately, this pie pan is a fraud – a modern pan to accommodate a large pie. With the pandemic, I’m separated from my vintage pie pans, but this one is still lovely and was a gift from a close friend.

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

1 cup flour
1/2 t salt
1/3 cup Homogenized Spry (Crisco)
3-4 T water
2 cups (two 6.5 oz cans) crabmeat or other seafood
2/3 cup chili sauce
1/2 cup cooked green pepper, chopped
1/2 cup cooked celery, chopped
1/4 t salt
1 1/2 t grated onion

For the Cheese Sauce:
3 T butter or margarine
3 T flour
1/4 t salt
1/2 t Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup milk
1 cup grated processed cheese

Directions:

Sift together the flour and salt. Cut in the Spry until particles are the size of small peas. Sprinkle water over mixture, tossing lightly with fork until dough is moist enough to hold together. Form into a ball.

Roll out on floured pastry cloth or board to a circle 1 1/2 inches larger than inverted 9-inch pie pan. Fit pastry loosely into pie pan. Fold edge to form standing rim; flute. Prick crust with fork. Bake in hot oven (450*F) for 10 minutes.

Combine crabmeat, chili sauce, green pepper, celery, salt, and onion. Blend well. Turn into partially-baked pie shell. Pour cheese sauce on top. Bake in moderately hot oven (400*F) for 25 to 30 minutes. Serve hot.

CHEESE SAUCE:
Melt butter or margarine in top of double boiler over boiling water. Blend in flour, salt, Worcestershire sauce, and milk. Cook until mixture begins to thicken, stirring constantly. Blend in processed cheese.