The Mystery of Mincemeat

Today, I have decided to embark on another 50's food adventure, this time from Successful Entertaining at Home. I will be making...mincemeat.

I have heard the expression "I'll make mincemeat out of you," and I have even heard of mincemeat pie, but I have no idea what mincemeat is actually comprised of (I fail to believe it is actually comprised of a person you have a beef with - pun intended).

Further research (aka typing "mincemeat" into the search box on Allrecipes.com) led me to the conclusion that there is actually meat in mincemeat. Well, huh. This leaves me with only one logical question: Who would want to eat a pie made of meat? I'm told it used to be quite common. Well, as has become my custom, I will say only this: this should be interesting.

Page 172 of my beloved 50's entertaining book suggests cooking mincemeat in a brandy sauce and serving it over vanilla ice cream.

Mincemeat Brandy Sauce

mincemeat

brandy

Put the desired amount of mincemeat for your sauce in a chafing dish, pouring enough brandy over it for flaming just before you serve it on vanilla ice cream. The brandy is lighted and when the flame dies down the sauce is spooned over the vanilla ice cream which has already been dished into the silver goblets.

This is a very attractive service one's guests will enjoy watching, and it is just as pretty when the ice cream is scooped up from a large crystal or silver bowl, to be served by the hostess on flat crystal plates and topped by the sauce from the chafing dish.

This all sounds great, but I still don't know how to make mincemeat. I suppose I will use the recipe from Allrecipes.com which can be found at:

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Blue-Ribbon-Mincemeat-Pie-Filling/Detail.aspx

The problem is, this mincemeat recipe makes THIRTY TWO whopping servings of the stuff, and I know it's going to be a hard sell to get my husband to try one bite. My plan is to pare down the recipe to 4 servings and serve it over vanilla ice cream (not sure if I will attempt the flambe or not!). If he starts to complain, I'll just pour a little extra brandy on top...or in a glass on the side!

I'll let you know how the mincemeat goes tonight once we've tried it for dessert. Consider this part one of the mincemeat blog. And just think: part 2 might include a rant from my husband about why 50's foods are not so commonplace anymore! Get excited!

Shad NO Ring

Ugggh, I hate to start this post by complaining, but I feel I'm in a real bind here. I absolutely love all of my 50's books on entertaining and homekeeping...except for one. The cookbook. Thoughts for Food seemed like it would be a worthwhile purchase many months ago when I was starting my blog. It even came recommended by name from Amy Vanderbilt herself. But aside from my one foray into 50's cuisine, I just can't bring myself to make anything else from this book!

I'm having friends over tonight for a meeting and I thought, What a lovely way to serve them - I will plan a full 50's spread of food for them to enjoy! But as I flip through the pages of my well-worn edition of Thoughts for Food, I can't find a single menu that is entirely appealing or something I could truly accomplish before 7:30 pm when they arrive. It's now 2:19 pm. Think I'm joking?? Here's one of the menus I was contemplating, under the section titled "Guests for Sunday Night Supper":

Shad Roe Ring
Ripe Olive Roll
Cold Turkey
Assorted Cold Cuts
Cranberry Jelly
Celery Root Salad
Cheese Mixture
Crackers
Bread
Fruit Thais
Chocolate Coconut Cookies
Lebkuchen
Coffee

(p.324)

HOLY HELP ME! I mean, I look at this menu and at first I'm happy because it's essentially cold cuts with bread and cheese and cookies. Seems manageable at first glance. However, I then look at some of the recipes and my very next thought is to chuck this cookbook out the window!

First, there's the issue of Shad Roe. I believe I discussed Shad Roe in a previous post - something to the effect of: WHAT IS SHAD? WHY WOULD PEOPLE WANT TO EAT ITS ROE? WHERE WOULD ONE ACQUIRE SAID SHAD IF THEY DID? AND IN THE NAME OF ALL THAT IS HOLY, WHY, WHY MUST IT ALWAYS BE IN A RING?!

To further my point, the recipe for Shad Roe Ring is as follows:

1 1/2 to 2 shad roe
6 eggs, separated
1 1/2 pints cream, whipped
salt, pepper

Parboil roe and put through ricer. Add yolks and seasonings; fold in stiffly beaten whites and cream. Put in buttered and floured ring, cover and set in a pan of hot water. Bake in a moderate oven (350 degrees F) for one half hour (p. 324).

I rest my case. Well, not entirely.

Second, "Cheese mixture" doesn't sound all that appealing. Especially when Aloutte makes a lovely cheese dip for crackers that I'm sure doesn't involve "Pabstette cheese," as the recipe calls for...which again...I don't know what that is.

Third, "Lebkuchen," I don't know what that is either, but if a guest were to say something like, "My, this is delicious, what do you call it?" I would have to think very quickly on the fly, because I clearly do not know how to pronounce Lebkuchen! I think "Special Dessert" would scare them, and I'm not sure I'm quick enough on my feet to think of something else between now and then. And again, I'll remind you of the time. It's 2:26 pm.

With all that being said, I'm contemplating leaving Thoughts for Food out of my rotation of 50's books to post on. All I ever do is get frustrated and complain about the recipes in it. I hate to say it, but this could possibly be the one time Amy has led me astray. I'd love to find another 50's cookbook to use - something a little more every day...and I hate to say it, but truly...something a little more modern day. If any of you have thoughts or suggestions, I'm all ears! Until then, it's ADIOS to Thoughts for Food!

Intimidated by Cabbage

So, obviously it's been a while.

I'm so frustrated with this whole computer business and sad that it's been keeping me from blogging. My husband has been kind enough to keep bringing home his work computer so I can check email at night, but we seem to have a zillion other things going on and it's hard to find the time to sit down and blog when I have such limited access to a computer. The good news is we shipped our computer to my brother, who is very handy in such matters and hopefully it won't be long until we have it back and running better than ever. I'm quite sure this is a problem June didn't have to deal with. GOOD GRIEF!

All this time, I've been pining away to blog about my beloved 50's again...and thinking of all sorts of things to write about. I've been keeping a list so when the computer is returned in working order, I won't have to waste any time. I definitely want to try some more 50's dinners (shh...don't tell my husband just yet!) and I'd love to throw a cocktail party or something to try out all the tips I'm picking up in my lovely books.

Tonight, I was thumbing through Thoughts for Food and came across a recipe I would like to try. It's for...get ready...cole slaw. Now, this may seem odd for a couple of reasons:

1. Doesn't everyone know how to make cole slaw?
2. I don't really like cole slaw very much

To point number one I will say a firm: no. No, I don't know how to make cole slaw...I can guess the major ingredients, but I've never made it before. Also, I'm pretty sure there are lots of different ways to make it. And this 50's recipe features sour cream (which I love) in place of the usual mayo (which is ok with me, but not as a main ingredient). My husband, however, does not share my love of sour cream...so maybe I'll have to make this when we have people over for dinner. The last thing he'll be excited about is 4 lbs. of tasted but largely uneaten cole slaw.

Point 2 - well, you can guess why I don't like cole slaw. All that mayo. Blech, it's just too much!

So let me share the recipe I found with all of you and hopefully in the near future I can add it to my 50's cooking repitoire (which, admittedly, is small at the moment).

Cole Slaw

1/2 head cabbage
salt
2 tablespoons vinegar
2 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons onion juice
1/2 cup sugar
bunch of parsley, chopped
1/2 pint sour cream

Shred cabbage; salt, press with a weight, and let stand several hours. Drain off water and add vinegar, oil, onion juice, sugar, and chopped parsley. Before serving, fold in sour cream.

Now a few things about this recipe intimidate me (yes, it is possible to be intimidated by cabbage). One is: onion juice. Is this readily available in stores or is it something I'm going to have to press out of the darn things myself? Honestly, I have a hard enough time chopping onions without practically sobbing, so I'm not really sure how I'll press one without achieving a similar effect. Now you see why I've decided to blog about this particular recipe before I make it. Some of your comments have been very helpful in the past...I look forward to any advice I can get!

The next thing that worries me is that I'm supposed to "press" the salted, shredded cabbage with a weight. Umm...is this another thing I need to add to my wish list...or will my 30-lb. copy of The Joy of Cooking suffice? But that would require risking a salty, cabbage smell encroaching upon a beloved cookbook. Again, your thoughts are much appreciated.

So that's where I'll leave things for now. I'm looking forward to obtaining the ingredients and putting this slaw to the test tomorrow... or very soon, at least. If I can't find a sufficient weight, I know a pretty cute 18 lb., 12 oz. somebody who would love nothing more than to get his hands on 1/2 head of shredded cabbage...or anything else I don't want him to for that matter!

Country Apple Dessert

We had some friends over for dinner last night and I thought it would be fun to try out a 50's recipe on them. Unsuspecting guinea pigs, they were. I don't think any of them even know I am writing this blog, with the exception of my husband. We kept the dinner very simple, as Friday night dinners should be. My husband grilled out BBQ chicken and we had french fries to go with it. The 50's portion came at the end of the meal - country apple dessert.

I found this recipe in Successful Entertaining at Home and it, too, looked surprisingly simple and so, perfect for a Friday night. The recipe is:

To serve 6:

1 No. 2 can sliced apples (canned in sugar syrup)
butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1/4 cup heavy cream

One more apple dish - a country apple dessert and here's how you make it. Place sliced apples with the sugar syrup in a small, shallow baking dish and dot with butter. Mix sugar, freshly grated nutmeg, and heavy cream. Pour over the apples. Cover the dish and bake in a moderate (350 degree F) oven for 30 minutes. Uncover the last 5 minutes of baking time. Serve warm.

I was a little concerned that my apples may have been Number 1 or Number 3, as opposed to Number 2 (I have no idea what that means), but they were the canned kind in syrup used for apple pie filling so I figured they would work. I had to use 2 cans (so the number 2 did come into play at some point) in order for there to be enough to serve 6.

I think it was a hit, although I realized late in the game I didn't have aluminum foil to cover the baking dish...so uncovered it went, into the oven. It was basically like baked apples, which is a favorite of mine, and this was much simpler to prepare. Of course, I cheated a bit by not grating my nutmeg freshly. But it's all the same right? Anyway, it tasted good and hit the spot after dinner. I have to admit I was a little disappointed no one shared either my love of coffee or the 50's way of serving dessert enough to indulge in after dinner coffee with me. And, to avoid my caffeine addiction coming to light, I try to avoid drinking alone.

That's all I've got for today...the little one is teething and needs a cuddle from mama. Ah, now there's something that I imagine transcends all decades.

First Foray in 50's Dining

Well, I did it! I successfully made my very first 50's family dinner. I used a cookbook that Amy Vanderbilt specifically refers to in her book on gracious living. It's called Thoughts for Food and was authored by a group of women known only as "The Chicago Hostesses." The book's subtitle is: "A menu book and a cook book for those who like exceptional cooking." The book is divided into several sections including luncheons, family dinners, buffets, and many others. I suppose if it's good enough for Amy, it's good enough for us! And so I entered my first cooking experiment of the 1950's.

I pretty much randomly flipped to a page in the "Family Dinner" section of the cookbook and thought I would make whatever menu I landed on there. Tonight, we feasted on:

Ragout of Beef
Noodle Ring
Peas and Carrots
Pickled Tomatoes
Palatschinken (don't ask me to say it!)
Coffee

I'm going to include the recipe for the Ragout of Beef, in case anyone else out there is daring and would like to try what my husband and I both agreed was the best part of the meal.

Ragout of Beef

4 lbs. beef, cut into 2-inch cubes
1/2 cup dried mushrooms
2 large onions
1/2 cup poultry fat or butter
2 bay leaves
2 sliced bermuda onions
1 green pepper, chopped
2 tomatoes, peeled and sliced
1/2 lb. mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, grated
salt
pepper
paprika
flour
1/2 teaspoon kitchen bouquet

Soak dried mushrooms overnight. Brown onions in fat. Add meat, dried mushrooms, and the water in which they were soaked, and bay leaves. Cover and simmer for an hour. Add remaining vegetables, season and simmer until the meat is tender. Thicken gravy with flour blended with water and kitchen bouquet.

And that's all, folks. But notice with me the complete lack of explicit instructions. How much paprika? How much flour? What exactly is a kitchen bouquet?! I'm used to today's recipes, where each and every tiny detail is spelled out clearly for me. Here, I'm told simply to "add the water in which the mushrooms were soaked" - but it never says exactly how much water to soak them in in the first place...what if I make it too soupy? Or too thick? I can honestly say I've never eaten ragout of beef before, so I have no idea what it's supposed to look or taste like. I filled a small bowl with water, soaked the mushrooms, poured it all in, and thought...I truly have no idea what I'm doing here.

I will spare you all the details on what it took to prepare a 5 course dinner after an 8 and a half hour work day and a 45 minute commute. Not to mention feeding my baby and getting him ready for bed when I got home. Dinner was on the table at 8:00. We normally eat around 6:30. I called my mom halfway through making it and wondered aloud how the heck women in the 50's managed all this. And she hit me with it: " They didn't work!!" Duh. Hopefully this is the last week I will have to wonder such things.

The highlights of the dinner preparation were: my feet actually hurting from being on them all day and then cooking for 2 hours, reading and re-reading the recipes for each menu item and wondering if I have a Master's degree, shouldn't I be able to do this with a bit more ease?, and turning the noodle ring into a "noodle loaf" because my kitchen is not stocked with a "ring mold." I knew the lady we registered for wedding gifts with at Crate and Barrel was forgetting something!

Some quotes from my husband as we dined:

"I'm a little concerned that these 50's dinners are going to have a high cost to enjoyment ratio."

(It's true, all of these recipes made an enormous amount of food. I did not make 4 lbs. of beef for the two of us - I used 1.30 lbs. but still there will be ragout leftovers for days).

"This noodle thing is terrible."

I think that one's my personal favorite. I was not at all offended because I a) asked for his completely honest opinion, b) I was not the noodle loaf/ring's biggest fan either and c) if it was me coming up with a way to serve noodles, I can pretty much guarantee neither ring nor loaf would be involved.

It was definitely an interesting meal, and just fun to experiment. My poor husband asked at the end of the meal, "So, how often are we going to be dining from the 50's?" Only time will tell.