Just for fun, I Googled ‘oddball recipes’ this morning. I haven’t done so for a long time, and was I ever surprised at what I found! Turns out a lot of recipes I consider ‘classics’ and ‘traditional favourites’ are now considered – by the new young influencers, at least – to be passé…
Bring it back? It never went away!
When I was a little kid, still relegated to just watching and not actually helping in the kitchen, there were a few dishes everybody in our extended family and my dad’s grey-collar work world knew and loved: Meatloaf, Mac and Cheese, Chicken Pot Pie, Egg Salad, Scalloped Potatoes, Shepherd’s Pie, Deviled Eggs, Bread Pudding, Jello Pudding Pies, and good old Sloppy Joes.
According to a June, 2020 post in The Daily Mail, these and other beloved childhood casseroles, appetizers and desserts have been declared redundant, superannuated, or just passé. But to its credit, the post says they should be welcomed back into mainstream family dining.
Some aren’t dead at all
Have I been consigned to history by the millennials and post-millennials (who are now on the verge of inheriting the world) as the post claims many of my old faves and go-to dishes have been?
Come on, now! Baked Alaska isn’t dead. On the other hand some of us would argue that it’s immortal! I think it fell out of popular favour because it’s so picky to make. Or was, until the propane torch arrived in the chef’s toolbox.
Icebox Cakes are great! They’re really just fancy ice cream cakes, using all sorts of cookie and wafer crumbs, whipped cream, embedded fruit and nut bits, and so on. Whatever you like. Imagine saying they need to be raised from the dead!
I guess I missed the obituary for stuffed cutlet specialties, like Chicken and Veal Cordon Bleu. The post I’m critiquing today says they should come back. I don’t think they ever left.
Chicken Pot Pie? We had one for supper last night.
Classic casseroles, like Broccoli and Cheese as a choice example, are getting short shrift these days, too. I think that’s because they take time and effort to prepare from scratch, and convenience-addicted under-30 Millennials and their spawn can’t be bothered. Except for the ever-popular Lasagna and a couple of others which can be bought frozen, ready for the oven.
Some should stay dead
I agree heartily with the post’s contention that some 50s fan faves – notably Jello Moulds and Jellied Salads – be left to rest in peace. But I can’t agree with some of the post’s choices for Frankenstein-like reanimation.
For a start, I loathe and despise Stuffed Celery – celery stalks whose groves have been filled with peanut butter, sometimes raisins on top and palmed off as hors d’oeuvres. That includes the even more yucky version stuffed with Melted Processed Cheese.
I also object to the notion that Pineapple Upside Down Cake be nominated for a comeback. I’ve always been a fan of classic, traditional layered-and-frosted cakes. And my Mom will attest that I hate gooey stuff that might get on my fingers. As a kid I loved it, but now, I just can’t stand it. Same goes for salty or sugary fingers. It’s like beach sand between the toes to me.
I’ve never tasted Grape Jelly Meatballs. That’s because the very idea makes me nauseous. Always has. Perhaps if I had tasted them at one time or another, I’d feel differently. But no, I still don’t want to, and don’t feel you have bring them back just so I can.
The 5os Food Horror Hall of Shame
Now, if you want to explore the world of really atrocious (by today’s dietary standards and tastes, anyway) 50s and 60s dishes, just surf on over to 21 Truly Upsetting Vintage Recipes. Keep in mind that many of these recipes were cooked up in the test kitchens of the makers of the primary ingredients – notably Jello and mayonnaise – and designed to sell the product, not necessarily tantalize the tastebuds. Just keep the antacids handy and steel your stomach for the coming shocks.
Come on. I dare you…
~ Maggie J.