1970's recipes Archives - Retro Food For Modern Times

Tag: 1970’s recipes

22
Dec
2024

Eggs in Sour Cream

categories: 1970's food, 1970's recipes, Austria, Eggs, Good Housekeeping World Cookery, World Cooking

Guten Tag, friends! Today, we embark on a culinary journey through Europe, guided by the pages of Good Housekeeping’s World Cookery. Our first stop? The enchanting land of Austria, where the hills will soon be alive with the delightful aromas of delicious food. We’re starting with a simple yet elegant dish: Eggs in Sour Cream.

As the holiday season approaches, life often becomes a whirlwind of activity. It’s during these hectic times that simple, comforting meals become invaluable. Eggs in Sour Cream is the perfect solution, providing a quick, easy, and delicious meal that requires minimal effort. This Austrian dish resembles the French Ouefs en Cocotte, both involving eggs baked in a creamy mixture.

I’ve loved Ouefs en Cocotte, ever since my aunt introduced me to them during my primary school years. Discovering this Austrian variation was a delightful surprise, offering both familiarity and novelty. The tangy sour cream and the light, creamy texture create a truly divine experience. The crunchy breadcrumb topping adds a delightful textural contrast, elevating the dish to new heights.

Paired with a fresh green salad, Eggs in Sour Cream make for a perfect lunch or supper. It’s quick, easy, and incredibly cost-effective, making it a win-win. Feel free to experiment with different herbs to suit your taste preferences.

This dish was a pure comfort, a tranquil oasis after a long, busy day. While I opted for a simple green salad to accompany the eggs, you can also serve it with roasted vegetables, crispy bacon, or a slice of crusty bread. The endless possibilities allow you to customize the dish to your liking.

So, let’s dive into the recipe and experience the magic of Eggs in Sour Cream for ourselves. This dish promises to warm your soul and satisfy your taste buds, making it a perfect addition to your culinary repertoire.

Eggs in Sour Cream – The Recipe

Happy cooking, friends! Have a great week!

01
Dec
2024

Sardine Toadstools

categories: 1970's recipes, Devilled Eggs, Eggs, Fish, Sardines

Hello friends and retro food lovers. These little sardine toadstools may just be the most wonderfully whimsical vintage things I’ve ever made here! They are as cute as a button! A button mushroom, that is! The recipe for the Sardine Toadstools comes from what is fast becoming a favourite around these parts: Marguerite Patten’s 500 Recipes for Quick Meals (1972).

Imagine serving around a little tray of these at your next Halloween party. Or an Alice in Wonderland-inspired children’s party. I showed photos of these to one of my work colleagues. He loved them so much he is going to make them for his nieces on Christmas morning. Another colleague heard him talking about them and has also asked for the recipe to make for his daughters for weekend breakfasts!

Sardine Toadstools are a dish for any occasion where you want to add a touch of magic, which could also just be lunch! Your guests will be delighted and, by the way, these taste pretty good too!

Variations on The Theme of Sardine Toadstools

Now, I know that some of you, bizarrely, in my opinion, hate sardines. I feel the same way about cooked carrots. And beetroot. So there’s no judgement here. But please don’t discount this recipe if you do. You could swap in some tuna. Or leave out the fish altogether and just add mayo and mustard for a classic deviled egg.

If you want to get fancy and don’t mind the fiddliness of trying to coax the yolks out of boiled quail eggs, think how spectacular a miniature version of these would be! Use quail eggs and cherry tomatoes, and voila, not only are you magical, but you are also sophisticated!

Caterpillar took the hookah out of its mouth and yawned once or twice, and shook itself. Then it got down off the mushroom, and crawled away in the grass, merely remarking as it went, ‘One side will make you grow taller, and the other side will make you grow shorter.’

‘One side of what? The other side of what?’ thought Alice to herself.

‘Of the mushroom,’ said the Caterpillar, just as if she had asked it aloud; and in another moment it was out of sight.

Lewis Carroll – Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

The Recipe – Sardine Toadstools

As you can see, I’ve not bothered with the rounds of bread and butter, but you do you!

Please let me know if you make these! With Christmas just around the corner, many people may be wondering what to serve guests as fun finger food or a starter. These sardine toadstools could be just the thing for your entertaining needs! And if you do make them, please tag me on Instagram if you post them or ping me a photo. I would absolutely love to see how your creations turn out.

Have a great week!

03
Nov
2024

Pineapple Snow Pudding

categories: 1970's food, Desserts, Good Housekeeping World Cookery, Jelly

Hello friends and welcome to our final voyage to the South Sea Islands aboard the SS Good Housekeeping’s World Cookery. Today, we’re crafting a delightful Pineapple Snow Pudding bursting with tropical flavours of pineapple and coconut. As Good Housekeeping’s World Cookery doesn’t include many visuals, sometimes you need to use your imagination to envision the final product.

And sometimes my imagination runs a bit wild. I pictured the coconut settling at the bottom, so when I inverted it, the Pineapple Snow Pudding would resemble a miniature Mount Fuji. Unfortunately, reality didn’t quite align with my vision. I’m not even sure why I had a Japanese vision for my South Sea Island dish…maybe it was because the previous recipe from this chapter, Mainland Teriyaki, was Japanese-inspired?

No surprises but it didn’t look anything like that…

The Pineapple Snow Pudding may not have looked like how I imagined, but nor did it taste that way. It is almost impossible to describe how light and airy this is. It is almost as if you are just getting pure flavour from air! Absolutely delicious!

I loved the Pineapple Snow Pudding!!!!

It’s light and airy, fruity and tropical. Never mind Mount Fuji, this dessert tasted, if not exactly like summer, then more like the promise of summer. And with the coconut, pineapple and strawberry garnish, it also smelled of summer.

Pineapple Snow Pudding – The Recipe

This ends our trip to the South Seas and also technically ends Good Housekeeping’s World Cookery. However, those of you with a wanderlust for World Travel and 1970’s versions of classic dishes needn’t worry. For some reason, lost to time, I started cooking from this book with Swizterland which starts at page 400. So, from next month, we are heading to the start of the book to check out the best of pages 1-399!

Have a great week!

04
Oct
2024

Mainland Teriyaki

categories: 1970's food, 1970's recipes, Good Housekeeping World Cookery, Pineapple, Steak, United States of America

Today, we’re continuing our virtual journey to the South Sea Islands which started with Fish in Lolo Sauce. Our culinary adventure takes us through the pages of Good Housekeeping’s World Cookery (1972), where today we are rediscovering a classic recipe: Mainland Teriyaki.

Setting the Scene

Imagine yourself on a secluded beach. The warm sun gently warms your skin while ocean waves crash softly against the shore. Meanwhile, the air is filled with the sweet scent of tropical flowers. Then, someone fires up a grill. Soon, you smell roasting pineapple and grilling meat. That’s the essence of Mainland Teriyaki. It captures the spirit of the South Sea Islands, even though the recipe has Japanese origins.

Although Mainland Teriyaki may not be for everyone, those who love a blend of sweet, savory, and tangy flavors will be delighted. The combination of sweet pineapple, salty olives, and umami-rich, garlicky, ginger-infused marinated steak is delicious!

For me, Mainland Teriyaki brought back a wave of nostalgia. It reminded me of a time I’ve only ever experienced through the lens of film and television. Specifically, it evoked memories of Gidget, the iconic surfer girl. Additionally, it took me back to when a young, handsome Elvis Presley was playing his ukulele on the beach in Blue Hawaii.

Mainland Teriyaki is a perfect dish to enjoy on a warm summer day. Or, if you’re feeling a bit blue, it can serve as a reminder that summer is coming, even if it feels like “it’s been a long cold and lonely winter.” The combination of sweet, savory, and tangy flavors will transport you to a tropical paradise, making you forget about the cold weather.

Whatever your mood, why not fire up the grill and get ready to savor a taste of the South Sea Islands, courtesy of Mainland Teriyaki?

Mainland Teriyaki – The Recipe

At first I thought the inclusion of olives in this recipe was a bit weird. They really didnt seem to fit in with the Asian inspired flavours of the rest of the dish. But they really work together well here, just like they do on pizza!

Have a great week!

04
Feb
2024

Spinach Pancakes

categories: 1970's recipes, A-Zof Cooking, Spinach, Vegetarian

Hello friends and welcome to a return to the wonderful vintage cookbook, The A-Z of Cooking. The last time I visited this book was back in 2016/17 when I cooked a LOT of recipes from it. There were only a few recipes left that I wanted to cook and this one for spinach pancakes with tomato sauce was top of the list! I love the combination of spinach and cheese – in spanakopita, in cannelloni and these pancakes did nothing to change my mind!

The finished pancakes looked very much like cannelloni! And to be honest, while the taste was great, this was a lot of work. The sauce needed to simmer for a few hours, the pancakes took some time to cook, the wrapping and rolling was fiddly. Alas, no two of my rolled pancakes were the same size! By the time these came out of the oven I was almost too tired to eat. It was only the day after that realised this recipe was in the “Night Before” chapter of the A-Z. It would have been far less tiring to make the sauce and pancakes the day before!

Maybe because I was thinking of cannelloni, the method of cooking seemed a bit odd to me. The recipe says to fill the pancakes, place them in the baking dish and then sprinkle cheese over the top. You were then meant to serve the sauce on the side.

I did this but about half way through the cook, I gave into to the urge to pour the sauce over the top! I then added more cheese.

Deeelicious!

Spinach Pancakes with Tomato Sauce – The Recipe

My notes on the recipe

I used frozen spinach
I subbed ricotta cheese for the cottage cheese
Leave yourself plenty of time – this took me around 3 and a half hours all up.

And, if l like me you can’t get enough spinach and cheese, here are some other ways you can spin these flavours!

Have a great week!