Remember those old recipes your grandmother or aunt used to make that you just don't see anymore? Whether you loved those dishes or hated them, they are sure to bring back that nostalgia of a simpler time.
Here I've compiled a few recipes that range from being thrifty to downright bizaare.
Bon Appetit!
1. Spaghetti Southern Style- From Cooking with Soup- A Campbell Cookbook
Campbells Soup seemed to be hellbent on making just about anything out of one of it's soups with tomato soup at the top of that list. Throw in a little Americana with that "exotic" Italian pasta and you have a Culinary Spaghetti Western.
You can also find the full range of recipes, from entrees to desserts HERE.
2. Little Pigs In Blankets- The Heinz Book of Meat Cookery
Not what you're expecting when you hear Pigs in a Blanket. Surprise!
3. Au Gratin Porkette Casserole- Betty Crocker 42 Hot Potato Ideas
This actually sounds pretty tasty, but why do they call it "porkette"? Is it a dainty female pig? And is anyone in the mood for a quickie? This recipe pamphlet was published in 1967 and has a lot of groovy recipes for the busy hippie housewife.
4. Gingerbread Upside Down Cake- The Secret Ingredient In Cooking, Beer Creates Exciting New Recipes for Convenience Foods
In this cookbook it's all about putting beer where it doesn't really belong. Put out by the United States Brewers Association in the 1970s (?) to sell more beer, as if it's not selling well enough to begin with.
I get it. It's really to add carbonation- and beer.
5. Potato Mushroom Scallop- Dishes Children Love-264 Favorite Recipes of All Children
Since the beginning of time, moms have been trying to figure out new ways of putting healthing ingredient into their children's food.
This is the perfect storm of using soup, science and and a little ingenuity to make an unsuspecting child eat mushrooms. Hail the mighty mushroom!
6. The Breakfast Cocktail- Sunkist Recipes for Every Day
This recipe is from a Sunkist recipe book published back in 1936 when you could still drink a raw egg and not get salmonella. You could probably do this today, but I think it's outlawed in NJ. The sunny side up law. Anyway, enjoy the nice vintage illustrations and additional recipes.
7. Scrambled Eggs with Avocado Balls- Betty Crocker's Party Book
This book, published in 1960 by General Mills, was ahead of its time. Eggs and avocado together, but much classier, with avocados scooped into balls and watercress to top it all off.
Toast? How pedestrian.
Betty Crocker covers all kinds of holidays in this book, including Lincoln's birthday and May Day. She's got you covered all year!
And last but not least-
8. Tuna Salad Casserole- The General Foods Kitchens Cookbook
The crowning jewel in any 1950's housewives repertoire of penny pinching recipes, this recipe uses the cheapest ingredient known- canned tuna.
Heck, you could even switch out the cheddar and make it swiss. Whatever is around the house that you can use.
This recipe is the lobster version, but at the bottom there is the switch out to use the canned tuna in case there was a housewife out there that didn't get the memo.
I've also seen this recipe using Cream of Mushroom soup instead of straight up mushrooms.
But wait...There's more!
A Bonus Recipe
These are a little bit like the Pigs in a Blanket. Let's see what happens when we put everyone's favorite food (bacon) with everyone's least favorite food (chicken livers). Surprise!
Hope you enjoyed this culinary journey back in time!
To find more awesome recipes from the past, visit my Etsy page China Cat Vintage Books to see more cool vintage cookbooks
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