Look what I found! THIS is the cookbook I learned to cook with. My mom went to work when I was 12. I had to come straight home from school to watch my younger sister and make dinner. Bored silly, I dug out this cookbook, read up on how to make different things, and over time taught myself to cook.
Subsequent editions involved less scratch cooking and more convenience items. I never liked that, and secretly coveted my mother's dog-earred, falling apart cookbook. And there it was at the book store, fresh and new - just waiting for me to take it home!
My son and I had a good chuckle at "The Kitchen of Tomorrow." He pointed out that it was rather sexist. All the testers in the Betty Crocker test kitchen were female. Maybe men didn't eat in the 1950s? LOL
I'd forgotten the comical graphics! Too bad the cookbook didn't come with that magic wand. I'd like to get my hands on one of those!
I love the musical score, sprinkled generously with hearts, wafting through this kitchen. Here we see only women and children engaged in "Cooky Shines." No, wait - I take it back. I see one male face, apparently poking his head through the door in the upper left corner of the picture.
I absolutely LOVE this picture. Having known relatives that came from the old country to America, this picture warms my heart. I like to imagine what their daily lives - and those of their parents and grandparents - may have been like.
Much of the food science (such as how to make a good cake)in this book is unchanged to this day. That's what makes this book such a great resource! And of course, it will allow me to reproduce some of the meals I grew up on. Such a nice surprise! I'll have to modify the recipes to be gluten free, of course. I wonder how many GF cookbooks existed in 1950???
On Easter I'm gonna sneak a look at my mom's book. She got it as a wedding gift some 58 years ago! She just might be due for a new one. Would make a great Mother's Day surprise. :)
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