Way OFF TOPIC: 1941 American Woman's Cookbook

TraciInLA
TraciInLA Member Posts: 1,994 Member
in Breast Cancer #1
Just have to share that my girlfriend dug out her grandmother's 1941 "The American Woman's Cook Book" to show me, and it's such a trip back into cooking (and women's) history.

It has sections on packing a healthy lunch for your child at school, which is still pretty relevant, and on "Entertaining without a Maid," which I myself find soooo tiring, don't you...?:-)

The book repeatedly advocates eating more fruits and vegetables and less meat, which sounds very modern, until you get to the "vegetarian" section, which includes beef-and-bean chili, and recommends always adding some ham or bacon to beans when cooking!

And, while it has instructions for cooking every kind of vegetable you can think of, apparently the only acceptable ways to serve vegetables in 1941 was drenched in a white sauce, or deep fried, because the book advises that deep-frying is a good way to preserve vegetables' nutrients!

So...if any of you are looking for advice on how to be a better "American Woman," I have the resource for you.

:-) Traci

Comments

  • CR1954
    CR1954 Member Posts: 1,390 Member
    #2
    Love old cookbooks!
    LOL Traci! That is a hoot!

    I love old cookbooks just because of those "ideas". Makes me wonder what people will think of today's cookbooks and the way we eat, 60 or 70 years down the road!

    My very fav recipe of all time was in a "fish" section of an old cookbook that my Mother had.

    1 large carp, freshly caught
    2 teaspoons salt
    1/2 teaspoon pepper
    Enough butter to coat fish
    1/4 cup lemon juice.
    1 1/2 to 2 foot hickory board that has been soaked in water

    Scale and clean carp. Remove head and gills. Drizzle lemon juice inside fish cavity and season with salt and pepper. Coat outside of fish with softened butter.
    Place fish on soaked hickory board and place in 350 degree oven for 30 minutes or until done and outside of fish is turning golden.
    Remove fish from board and throw away. Eat the board.

    Never tried it! LOL!

    Thanks fo rbringing back the memories!

    CR
  • BunnyJane
    BunnyJane Member Posts: 213
    #3
    CR1954 said:

    Love old cookbooks!
    LOL Traci! That is a hoot!

    I love old cookbooks just because of those "ideas". Makes me wonder what people will think of today's cookbooks and the way we eat, 60 or 70 years down the road!

    My very fav recipe of all time was in a "fish" section of an old cookbook that my Mother had.

    1 large carp, freshly caught
    2 teaspoons salt
    1/2 teaspoon pepper
    Enough butter to coat fish
    1/4 cup lemon juice.
    1 1/2 to 2 foot hickory board that has been soaked in water

    Scale and clean carp. Remove head and gills. Drizzle lemon juice inside fish cavity and season with salt and pepper. Coat outside of fish with softened butter.
    Place fish on soaked hickory board and place in 350 degree oven for 30 minutes or until done and outside of fish is turning golden.
    Remove fish from board and throw away. Eat the board.

    Never tried it! LOL!

    Thanks fo rbringing back the memories!

    CR

    Bacon?
    Traci:

    What does the old cookbook say about bacon? :)

    Jane
  • sbmly53
    sbmly53 Member Posts: 1,522
    #4
    And when you fry, don't forget to use Lard!
    I love old cookbooks, but if you use them, you need to do a lot of substituting.

    Funny!

    Thanks,

    Sue
  • lizzie17
    lizzie17 Member Posts: 548
    #5
    love old cookbooks
    We have some from many places. Lots of things are fried on soaked in bacon grease. :(

    My dad baked a lot in our house and he was excellent at it.
    The rolls, breads and cakes still sound so yummy!! Memories....the smells of a Sunday morning!!
  • VickiSam
    VickiSam Member Posts: 9,079 Member
    #6
    sbmly53 said:

    And when you fry, don't forget to use Lard!
    I love old cookbooks, but if you use them, you need to do a lot of substituting.

    Funny!

    Thanks,

    Sue

    Does this book mention anything about being in a pair
    of heels, pearls and dress while preparing dinner? I figure it should also give our tips on setting the perfect dinner table, along with the proper stem ware, and dinner conversation:? .. LOL ..

    I would get hours of laughter just thumbing thru the marvelous book.

    LOL

    Vicki Sam
  • VickiSam
    VickiSam Member Posts: 9,079 Member
    #7
    lizzie17 said:

    love old cookbooks
    We have some from many places. Lots of things are fried on soaked in bacon grease. :(

    My dad baked a lot in our house and he was excellent at it.
    The rolls, breads and cakes still sound so yummy!! Memories....the smells of a Sunday morning!!

    just remember .... the grease buckets in back of the fridge
    the best of the best drippings! yuuuuummmmm


    Vicki Sam
  • Gabe N Abby Mom
    Gabe N Abby Mom Member Posts: 2,413
    #8
    VickiSam said:

    Does this book mention anything about being in a pair
    of heels, pearls and dress while preparing dinner? I figure it should also give our tips on setting the perfect dinner table, along with the proper stem ware, and dinner conversation:? .. LOL ..

    I would get hours of laughter just thumbing thru the marvelous book.

    LOL

    Vicki Sam

    My dad had one of his books
    My dad had one of his books from a high school english class...there was a whole unit on how to have a conversation at a dinner party!!
  • GreeneyedGirl
    GreeneyedGirl Member Posts: 1,077
    #9
    VickiSam said:

    just remember .... the grease buckets in back of the fridge
    the best of the best drippings! yuuuuummmmm


    Vicki Sam

    Confession~
    I was raised by a "southern mama" and still have a coffee cup with bacon drippings in a cold spot for when I use my cast iron skillets~ I even keep a spoon in the cup for a "quick grab"......I do not fry anything that moves....like she did. Oh how we teased her about that. Nowadays.....its baked, steamed or poached it seems.
  • natly15
    natly15 Member Posts: 1,941
    #10
    GreeneyedGirl said:

    Confession~
    I was raised by a "southern mama" and still have a coffee cup with bacon drippings in a cold spot for when I use my cast iron skillets~ I even keep a spoon in the cup for a "quick grab"......I do not fry anything that moves....like she did. Oh how we teased her about that. Nowadays.....its baked, steamed or poached it seems.

    Traci I think I have that
    Traci I think I have that cookbook. It was my moms and it has a green hard cover. Will have to take it out again. As I recall they use a lot of lard in the recipes. It's a bit of a relic.

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