Thanksgiving in the 40s and an Appetizer

In 1863 President Lincoln issued the Thanksgiving Proclamation which established Thanksgiving as a national holiday to be celebrated on the last Thursday in November. This was done in an effort to promote nationalism during the Civil War. Prior to that Thanksgiving celebrations were held locally at different times throughout the fall.

This was all well and good until the date was changed by President Roosevelt. As an attempt to heal a faltering economy, in 1939 FDR proposed moving the holiday to the second to last Thursday, allowing for an early start on holiday shopping. The idea was a bust as some states moved the holiday while others didn't. Confusion ensued for two years until 1941 when congress passed a law officially moving the holiday from the last Thursday of November to the fourth Thursday.

So there we have it... the 40s gave us Thanksgiving on the date as we know it.

I will in turn give... Potato Croquettes.

I am lucky because my step-sister (a wonderful cook) hosts Thanksgiving. I do like to bring an appetizer. It's a good chance to try something new; if it's terrible it just gets lost in the fray. No harm, no foul.

The first step in making the croquettes is to make mashed potatoes. I wasn't sure whether potato flakes were a thing in the 40s, so I made the potatoes from scratch. Easy enough... right?

Well... I put too much water in the pot, so when I added the potatoes they made the water overflow, which doused my burner, killed the flame, and jacked up the stove. I disassembled the range top, dried everything out and eventually got the entire burner to light. One. flame. at. a. time.

As I write this part (waiting for the taters to boil) the house stinks of gas and I feel a bit woozy. Good times.

To make the croquettes combine 4 cups mashed potatoes with 2 tbsp milk, 3 tbsp melted butter, 2 egg yolks, 1/2 tsp salt, 2 sprigs parsley (this is apparently a popular holiday ingredient and was all sold out), and a dash of cayenne (which I forgot - this is why I'm a bad cook, well that and breaking the stove, but I digress). Beat the ingredients together "until light." Shape the mixture into amorphous oblong shapes. Roll the shapes in breadcrumbs, then egg, then breadcrumbs again.

mmm... potato twinkies

Fry those babies in hot oil (385*) until brown.

Hot action shot

Here is the finished product...

I had my reservations, but this looks pretty good

Rolling mashed potatoes in breadcrumbs is NOT easy and I imagined they would fall apart in the oil creating some funky, hot potato slime for me to clean up. I am pleasantly surprised by the results. A sneak test revealed a bland flavor, but without the parsley and cayenne I can hardly blame the recipe for that.

I made them the night before so they needed to be reheated before serving. I found the best way to reheat is to place them in an oven set to 375*.  After five or so minutes realize that you are running late and turn the heat to 425*. Listen for the sizzle, it means you are burning the breading, but not warming the filling. Give up. Remove the croquettes from the oven and wrap in tinfoil. Place the foil wrapped plate on the floor of the car and crank the floor heater to high. Drive like a mad woman for approximately 40 - 45 minutes. Perfect.

I was a little nervous on account of the unconventional reheating method, but the croquettes were a big hit. Everyone really like them, even the little ones.

I will definitely keep this one in my repertoire as a base recipe. I think they would be good served as a plated appetizer if made with garlic mashed potatoes and paired with a chipotle aioli sauce. Mmmmmm....

Let's Get to Work... My First Victims

The 1940s saw a lot of changes for women. Most notably was the entree of women into the blue collar labor force. Prior to the war it was common for working class women to have jobs like nursing, cleaning, child care, etc. However, middle class women stayed home, and quite often had domestic help. Because of the war the male, blue collar labor force was shrinking as were everyday resources which were being diverted to the troops. Thus, Rosie the Riveter was born. A marketing campaign to bring women into factories. It was quite a success and I've read that by the end of the war a third of factory workers were female. You go girls! Here are some really cool pictures of women in the 40s gettin' er done. It's amazing to me that these women did physically laborious jobs, took care of the home, and still made the time to work in fancy up-dos. These ladies are making me feel lazy.

Alright... on to the recipes. I decided to make two. One from the standard portion of the cook book and one from the wartime ration part.

The standard recipe was for Peanut Butter Cutlets. It's a vegetarian alternative to a meat cutlet which "offers both adequate protein and iron."

The recipe:
Mix 1 1/2 cups peanut butter with 1 1/2 cups hot milk. Stir in 1 teaspoon salt and some pepper. (How much pepper? Who knows? However much you think you would like in your peanut butter slush.) Dip slices of bread into the slurry and saute in hot fat. Garnish with pickles and olives.

Here it is... sizzling peanut butter bread

Can you believe I forgot to add the pickles and olives??? Blast!

My parents were our first retro dinner guests. They were starting to regret coming by when I served this up. Surely the pickles would've absolved their reservations. Oh well, next time.

The consensus was that it tasted like peanut buttery french toast. My son thought it was decent, my mom really liked it, my step-dad said it was horrible. I though it was okay, until I got a bite with noticeable pepper. Peanut butter and pepper, as you might expect, do not belong together. I have since relocated them to opposite sides of the kitchen. They have no business being near one another.

The recipe from the war ration section went over quite a bit better. It was a Rice and Chicken Casserole.

The recipe:
Bone and cube cooked chicken (or buy two cans, which is what I did). Cook up two cups rice according to the package directions. Stir in 2 beaten eggs, 2 cups milk, 1 1/2 tablespoons butter, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Pour a layer of rice mixture into a casserole dish, add a layer of chicken, and top it off with the remaining rice mixture. Bake at 350 for ~20 minutes.

This looks like food, so it's already an improvement.

The results were bland, but completely edible. My son and I liked it, but we added copious salt and pepper. My step-dad liked it and said that he would eat it again. I think he was just relieved after the cutlet. My mom doesn't like rice, so obviously a giant plate of rice wasn't her favorite. In all my excitement, I'd forgotten the first rule of hostessing. Don't serve people foods they hate. Whoops!

All in all, I'm pretty pleased with the results. I might add a little peanut butter the next time I make french toast and if I'm ever in the market for a flavorless meal, the chicken dish will definitely hit the spot.

Next weekend my sisters are coming by with their young children. Hopefully the book can produce some kid-friendly recipes. They're sure to me my toughest critics.

The Victory Binding of the American Woman's Cook Book

Here she is... is she not a thing of beauty?

Sure she's a little worn out, but who isn't these days?

I came across this book as a teenager while poking around in the basement. I had just read George Orwell's 1984 and was fascinated to learn that "Victory" was a real wartime ration thing and not just something from the novel.

Later, I developed a fascination with WWII, making this book even more of a curiosity to me. When I became an adult and ventured off to my first apartment, my step-dad was kind enough to send this much beloved cook book with me.

The book served as a great guide-post for the novice in the kitchen. There are sections that explain about measurements, nutrients, table-settings, food pairings, definitions for cooking terms, and even sample party menus.

It's also quite an interesting piece of history. The book begins with a quote from General MacArthur about the importance to the war effort of saving and doing in the home.The first three quarters of the book are loaded with everyday recipes and some bourgeois recipes. Lots of advice for the upper-middle class woman during wartime. (Did you know that it is possible to host a dinner party without the help of a maid?) The back part of the book gives recipes that can be made from wartime rations.

It is really a wonderful book which has been part of my life for quite some time. I am excited to share pieces of the book with all of you and to share the adventure of eating, not only my cooking, but some seriously vintage eats, with my friends and family.