Christmas Time's A-Coming!

If you are like me, then you are shocked every time you look at the date on the bottom of your screen. I just can't believe that it's already December 12th! Where does the time go?!? I have been wrapping some presents these last couple of evenings and have been thinking about my Christmas baking list. Usually, I already have a plan for everything that I'm going to make, when I'm going to make it, and have usually already mentally assigned recipients for all my Christmas goodie. However, this year, I'm still just trying to accept the fact that Thanksgiving has come and gone and Christmas is just around the corner.

I love Christmas, and since I obviously love vintage things, I am constantly looking for ways to combine the two. This usually results in me thumbing through many of my vintage cookbooks for holiday recipes which I have not yet tried.  For the past several years, it seems that my baked goods repitoire has consisted of the same--albeit delicious--recipes.  And I have been in search for some time now for undiscovered "new" classics.

I recently decided to consult the internet for inspiration, and came across this cake recipe (pictured above) which was published in a women's magazine from 1952.  I haven't been much of one to include candy in a cake (or in this case, the frosting) but I have to admit that it does look rather festive.

 

Then, there are petite fours, which I have always wanted to make, but never quite seemed to muster up enough courage to tackle such a deceptively simple task. They are so delicate, dainty, and just a perfect presentation for any special occasion, I would love to try them. After all, hardly anything says "1950s" like tiny little cakes on a saucer accompanied by a steaming, hot cup of demitasse. I found these, which I think are not only festive but also quite 1950s in appearance.

Then there are some vintage recipes which should probably be kept in the past, such as this Fruit Cake which uses Campbell's Tomato Soup as a main ingredient. Now maybe I'm jumping the gun by just assuming that this wouldn't be very good; after all, the cake's title is prefaced by "Another wonderful Tomato Soup Cake" which implies that this is only one of many delicious tomato soup-based cakes. I do admit that the cake does look good! If ever I decide that I want to chance wasting some flour, confectioner's sugar and a perfectly good can of tomato soup, I'll try it out and make sure to report my findings.



Since cookies are a staple of Christmas baking, I have been on the look-out for new (old) cookie recipes. I usually make some form of sugar or gingerbread cookie, white chocolate rice crispie cookies, butterfingers (Mexican wedding cookies), among some other occasionally called-upon treats. While reaserching "1950s Christmas cookies" I came upon this lovely gingerbread house.

I have often thought about making a gingerbread house, but once again, this is an increadibly daunting task. Maybe I will first purchase the gingerbread house kits found in the store and eventually graduate to my own, homemade, 1950s version.  On a side note, I like how the caption at the bottom of the advertisement says "this year bake your gifts!" I don't know if baking your Christmas gifts was an as-unpopular decision as it would be today, but wouldn't it be nice if people would be perfectly content if all you gave them for Christmas was some homemade goodies, all wrapped in a bow?

Then, just when I thought the gingerbread house would be the mother of all Christmas baking tasks, I found this: a Christmas cookie tree! Who ever knew such a thing existed!?

I have to admit that it is a rather novel idea and it's cute in its own sort of kitschy way.  It just seems like an awful lot of effort to use as a centerpiece!

I will leave you with some inspiration for the traditional Christmas butter cookie, from a magazine published in 1957. After all, butter cookies are both vintage and timeless, and they offer endless possibilities in terms of flavorings, frostings, shapes and decorations.

Happy Christmas baking!

Is Perfect Frosting a Figment of my Imagination?

Well, another week has flown by and it's been days since I've posted anything.  It's because I've been pretty much consumed with preparing for my sister's household shower which was held today.  My mother decided to throw the shower, but as she teaches and this was finals week at school, she really had no time to make the necessary preparations for such an event.  So...since I'm no longer working, I told her that if she wanted to turn me loose on the matter, I would be happy to help. After I convinced her that I was being sincere and that it would help keep me occuppied, she agreed that it would be a big relief. So between me, my best friend, and my grandmother, we shopped (and shopped...) for decorations, party supplies and food the earlier part of the week and spent the latter on the actual preparations. Now, I can't say I have ever thrown a party for anyone, and I don't really consider myself to be a decorator, so this was all somewhat challenging for me. In the end, I think all turned out well and was especially pleased with the flower arrangements I came up with which were earlier causing me great pains and much stress.

Can I also just add that I have made more frosting this week than possibly all the other times in my whole life put together.  We opted to make cupcakes instead of a typical cake, so that naturally meant that making cupcakes means making frosting to top them off. First of all, I hate confectioner's sugar frosting (or what some call American Buttercream), so I began early in the week in search of what I will call the "perfect frosting" (which I am thinking is quite likely a figment of my imagination.)  I wasn't confident that a 7 Minute or White Mountain frosting would hold up for the necessary amount of time, and I absolutely refused to use confectioner's sugar frosting, so I tried a multitude of various frosting recipes that came with the highest of recommendations (all from the internet) and tossed all 6, 8, 10 or...?? in the trash. Sadly, I'm not exaggerating for dramatic effect--I kid you not. (And can you imagine how much weight I've probably gained just from taste-testing all that stuff!?) To make a long story short, I ended up settling on two batches of frosting (both of which I'm pretty sure I could never make again, even if I had to) but was truthfully not pleased with the results. (Key word here is settled.) So, I am still in search of the alleged "perfect frosting."  If you know of one, please be a dear and share your recipe!
The actual wedding is this coming Saturday, so now we have all week to make preparations for that! I have a feeling that this week is going to go by just as fast as the past one. I, however, am not responsible for any frosting-making this week (thank goodness!) as my grandmother is going to make the wedding cake herself. I am looking forward to this little break from my culinary frustration (although there's an excellent chance I will be helping her with the cake) as I'm just not accustommed to having such trouble in the kitchen. So again, please, if you know of a perfect frosting that preferably 1) doesn't use confectioner's sugar and 2) doesn't use shortening, I beg of you--please share the love!!

I hope you all have a wonderful week!

How to Make Perfect Coffee



Image courtesy of
 www.freeretroclipart.com



Today's recipe on my recipe blog was for Cafe Mexicain,  a whipping cream-topped coffee recipe which came from one of my new-found treasures, Betty Crocker's Guide To Easy Entertaining. (Click here to view the recipe.) This got me thinking about coffee in general, and what an important part it played in home entertaining in the 1950s. Any cookbook from that time period will have instructions for making coffee, as well as instruction on appropriate methods of serving it. When I first got my  Betty Crocker's Picture Cookbook, I was surprised to find two entire pages devoted to coffee. It explains how to make coffee according to the kind of coffee maker you have, although most people nowadays only use drip coffee makers.  (I, too, normally use a drip coffee maker, but will occasionally pull out one of my shiny, stainless-steel percolators for something a little different.)  It also gives six essentials for making good coffee, which I will paraphrase below:

Six Essentials for a Cup of Good Coffee:

1) Fresh Coffee: Coffee looses freshness quickly when exposed to air. Keep it tightly covered and buy it often.

2) Use the Right Grind for the Right Maker:  If you grind your coffee at home, your grinder will tell you which setting to use depending on your maker.

3) Use a Clean Coffee Maker:  Wash your coffee maker with soap and water after each use. Use boiling water with soda to remove stains.  Follow cleaning instructions on your coffee maker.

4) Use Fresh, Cold Water:  Always start with cold water; do not use hot water from tap or kettle. Bring to a full, rolling boil before putting the coffee container itself into the coffee maker.

5) Use Enough Coffee for Desired Strength: 

    For weak coffee: 1 T. to 3/4 c. water

    For medium coffee: 2 T. to 3/4 c. water

    For strong coffee: 3-4 T. to 3/4 c. water

6) Serve Coffee as Soon as Possible:  If you must let coffee stand, be sure to remove the grounds (i.e. percolated coffee). Keep very hot until serving; cold coffee loses flavor if it is reheated.



Coffee advertisement from
New York Tribune, 1919



Upon reading this, one of the first things I noticed was the coffee proportions according to the desired strength.  Today, instructions on coffee cans usually read "use 1 tablespoon of coffee for each 6 oz (3/4 c.) of water and adjust amount according to taste."  I was shocked to read that coffee from 1950 was prepared much stronger compared to our standards today.  My! Like so many other things, it seems that even our coffee standards have lowered over the years! (However, I definitely fall into the strong coffee-lover category, and may therefore, be somewhat biased about this conclusion...)

Serving guests with "after dinner coffee," which is a very strong, black coffee served, you guessed it...after dinner, was a staple of good hospitality. Any decent hostess would never serve a meal, formal or informal, without offering the required after dinner coffee.  While people of that time period also had their own preferences for coffee strength and preparation, the "after dinner coffee" largely remained unchanged.  After dinner coffee was served in small, "after-dinner" cups, or demitasse cups, which is a French word for "half cup."  (Because of the unique cups, after dinner coffee was also sometimes known by that name-- Demitasse Coffee.)  It is coffee that is made stronger than usual; for instance, my trusty, vintage Betty Crocker cookbook actually recommends using 3-4 T. coffee to 3/4 c. water for each serving (the same proportions prescribed for their strong coffee recipe).    



One of my two beloved percolators

So, those of you who are coffee drinkers:  How does this 1950s coffee methodology compare to your own, and would your after dinner coffee make you the hostess with the most-est?

Nifty Betty Crocker Books

A short while ago, I shared my favorite vintage beauty manual as well as my favorite vintage cookbooks.  So, today I thought I would pass along some other great new (old) finds to you as well. My friend, Jess, told me about a neat, old cookbook she came across and recommended it to me: Betty Crocker's Party Book.  I immediately looked for one on eBay and found a neat duo up for auction:

Two of my recent discoveries!

Can you believe I only paid $.99 (plus about $4 shipping) for both!?  Also, they are first editions, and are in excellent condition.  I can't imagine why anyone would want to sell such treasures--and for so cheap!--unless they had multiple copies or something.  Needless to say, I'm glad there is someone out there who likes to practically give away great cookbooks--you know what they say: one man's trash is another man's treasure. (And am I glad this was somebody's trash! Haha!)  After my books finally arrived, (you know how slow that media mail can move sometimes!)  I sat down, immediately delved into them, and quickly discovered that I was not to be disappointed with my find!

Betty Crocker's Party Book is very interesting as it has lots of recipes (I believe over 500!) and it gives great advice on giving parties.  It has suggestions for children's parties, all with different themes and suggested menus according to age group, as well as holiday party menu suggestions and tips.  When I say holiday, I'm not just talking about the to-be-expected, typical Thanksgiving, Christmas or Easter party (sure, those are all in there, too!), but it also includes suggestions for St. Patrick's Day, Independence Day, President's Day as well as some other less-celebrated holidays.  I don't have any children, nor do we give any parties, but I was thinking how nice it would be to have a special holiday-themed meal each month--just for fun! (I kept intending to go out to the grocery sometime this week in order to purchase corned beef as it is the suggested main course for the St. Patrick's Day party. However, I have--yet again--managed to effectively postpone this necessary but tedius task.)  Who knows--maybe we'll celebrate St. Patrick's Day a little late... 

Betty Crocker's Guide To Easy Entertaining was also a delightful read.  As I mentioned, I never really do any entertaining (if we do have a crowd here, it's always our family for a cookout or very informal gathering, and if I tried to turn that into a semi-formal affair, it would be just flat-out facetious).  Because of this, I knew when ordering that I probably wouldn't be using this book to the extent of its potential.  However, it too, has many good recipes (some of which are for coffee that I plan to post about at a later time...) and would truly be a very helpful resource in helping one in the planning of a successful gathering.  It contains many pertinent suggestions which could be of great use when trying to determine things such as: what to serve at a party, how to properly extend invitations, the best way to serve food according to the occasion and the space you have, etc.  I know that, sometimes, these vintage guides are somewhat out-dated when it comes to being practical for us "modern," sophisticated people nowdays, but much of the information from this guide is still very applicable.  (Now if only I could find a Betty Crocker's Guide to Housekeeping! Haha!!) Happy homemaking, ya'll!

Awesome Vintage Cookbooks!

I guess since I love "all things vintage" it only makes sense that I would love to cook as well (check out my recipe blog if you want). I also love to collect old recipes.  My grandmother, who was one of the best cooks I've ever known, gave me two facsimile editions of 1950s cookbooks, and I absolutely LOVE them!  They are not only informative due to the culinary information they provide, but they are also packed with super-neat vintage tips and advice.  Everything us vintage-loving housewives should want to know about retro cooking is in there.  Granny gave them to me as Christmas presents over the last two holidays before she passed away, and I simply couldn't put them down for days.

The first one she gave me was the facsimile edition of the 1950 Betty Crocker's Picture Cookbook

It has a lot of very useful homemaking information in it, and it can be easily used by either a novice or experienced cook.

The last one she gave me was very similar: it was a facsimile of the 1953 edition of Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook

It is easily my second favorite cookbook (although, I do have to admit that I'm really just starting to seriously collect vintage cookbooks...)  Either of these books would be great for anyone who is interested in how cooking and meal-planning was done back in the mid-century.