Food Glorious 1950s Food

[miss landers]

The TV dinner was a creation of the fifties. There was nothing new about the food on the menu (turkey, fried chicken, etc.) TV dinners were simply a fun, time saving way to eat. Here's the history of the TV dinner:

"The TV dinner is an American invention developed by Gerry Thomas in 1954. Thomas, who worked for Swanson foods in Omaha, Nebraska, wanted to develop a way to use leftover frozen turkey meat from Thanksgiving. Making use of aluminum serving dishes, used also at that time to serve dinners on aircraft, he packaged leftover turkey with frozen peas and potatoes, each in its own compartment. Swanson had about two dozen women armed with ice cream scoops filling the trays at night.

The trays were useful: the entire dinner could be removed from the outer packaging as a unit; the aluminum tray could be heated directly in the oven without any extra baking dishes; and one could eat the meal directly out of the same tray.

The original TV Dinner sold for 98 cents in 1954 and had a first production estimate of 5,000 dinners for the first year. Swanson ended up selling more than 10 million of the dinners the first year they were in production. In 1962, Swanson stopped calling these frozen dinners "TV Dinners." The name, however, has stuck.

Thomas, who's now retired, said his bright new product idea actually stemmed from a problem: 520,000 pounds of excess turkey.

"It was a case of necessity being the mother of invention," Thomas said.

The idea of packaging the surplus as an entrée for a frozen meal dawned on Thomas, then 30, during a business trip to Pittsburgh, where he saw a box of single-compartment metal trays being tested by an airline.

Thomas, who didn't even own a television of his own at the time, saying, "We couldn't afford it," coined the term "TV Dinner" as a marketing gimmick.

"Television was the talk of the day," he said. "Television was something that if you had one, you were contemporary, you were cool. If it were today, we'd probably call it the 'digital dinner,'" he added.

Initially sold for just 98 cents, the original TV dinner featured turkey, corn-bread dressing and gray, buttered peas and sweet potatoes, all packaged in a three-compartment tray."

It's unlikely the fastidious Mrs. Cleaver would have served TV dinners to her men but for the rest of the 50s crowd TV dinners were a fun way to eat; you could actually eat dinner and watch TV at the same with little fuss or muss!

Tray Tables followed the introduction of TV dinners. Tray Tables were inexpensive foldaway tables that held your TV dinner while you watched TV from the living room couch. After dinner the tables could be folded up and stored in a closet.

Below: 1955 magazine ad for Swanson's TV dinners.

[desilu #1]

That sure is interesting info! According to the photo of the dinner, they sure gave heartier portions, now days you gotta eat 10 of those meals to get full!

[miss landers]

New and exciting canned soup flavors became available on grocery store shelves during the fifties and canned soups led to inventive casseroles. Casseroles were hot through the fifties, but I like to think June believed beyond a shadow of a doubt that a real meal meant meat, potatoes, and a vegetable cooked as separate entities and passed in a variety of attractive serving dishes. Casseroles are time saving dishes, of course, and if June ever served a casserole to her hungry men then it was simply because she was terribly, terribly pressed for time.

Here's a casserole from GRIT magazine of November 18, 1956 using canned mushroom soup. Tuna casseroles were popular during the fifties and there were many recipes. This one can be assembled within a matter of moments.

PERFECT TUNA CASSEROLE

In a 1 quart casserole dish, blend smoothly:

1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/2 c. milk

Add and mix well:

1 can tuna, drained and flaked
1 c. cooked peas
1 c. crushed potato chips

Sprinkle top with:

1/4 c. crushed potato chips

Bake in 375 degree oven for 25 minutes.

[miss landers]

This has to be one of June's most memorable lines. It's from the episode called "Part Time Genius." Sadly, we never learn what kind of cutlets June breaded. Here's a simple process for "breading cutlets" I remember from my mother's kitchen of the fifties:

BREADING CUTLETS

1. Place bread crumbs in a clean brown paper lunch bag.
2. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
3. Dip cutlet in water. Let excess water drain.
4. Drop cutlet in paper bag with seasoned bread crumbs.
5. Shake bag gently until cutlet is coated with bread crumbs.

[miss landers]

I grew up during the fifties and the few sandwich fillings I liked were peanut butter, grape jelly, baloney, American cheese, and - tuna fish. My siblings and I had our own way of making tuna fish sandwiches:

TUNA FISH POTATO CHIP SANDWICH

1 can tuna fish
1/2 c. mayonnaise
10 slices white bread, buttered
potato chips

Drain and flake tuna fish. Add mayonnaise and mix. Spread 5 slices buttered bread with thin layer of tuna mixture. Arrange potato chips neatly atop tuna fish. Cover with additional slice of bread. Makes 5 sandwiches.

My sister created a variation that omitted the tuna/mayonnaise mixture and was nothing more than a potato chip sandwich.

[miss landers]

With the close of WWII, aluminum foil began to reappear on grocery store shelves. Aluminum foil had a variety of uses around the home and became indispensable in the fifties kitchen. I remember my mom using Reynolds Wrap frequently.

Remember the LITB episode in which Eddie tells Mrs. Cleaver his folks are having squab for dinner? Here's a recipe for grilled squab that uses a sheet of aluminum foil during the cooking process. The recipe is from "Hints, Recipes for Faster, Easier, More Delicious Casual Cooking" published by the Reynolds Metal Company, 1954.

SQUAB

Clean squab and rub inside with salt and pepper mixture. Stuff bird with dressing made from stalk of celery (including leaves) and 2-3 slices of onion. Sear directly on grill, until brown on all sides. Then place with bacon slices (for greasing) on sheet of Reynolds Wrap laid on grill. Cook 20-25 minutes longer, turning frequently.

Below: Early 50s ad for Reynolds Aluminum Foil.

[miss landers]

Think Aunt Martha and think Milk Toast. Milk Toast dates from 1900 and was a dish often served to invalids and the ailing. Here's a recipe from the Net:

MILK TOAST

Toast bread. Dip each piece of toast quickly in boiling water then place in baking-pan. Cover toast with scalded milk. Bake for fifteen minutes in a moderate oven. Serve in soup plates. Dust with cinnamon-sugar mixture if desired.

[miss landers]

In "Cleaning Up Beaver" Larry Mondello and Beaver are seen in the school cafeteria. Beaver begins lunch with a banana while Larry eats a piece of chocolate cake. Larry eats his dessert first because he's afraid he won't have room for it if he starts with his sandwiches. Here's a "Chocolate Banana Cake" for the boys.

CHOCOLATE BANANA CAKE

1/2 cup margarine, softened
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
3 squares unsweetened chocolate, melted
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups mashed, ripe bananas
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Cream margarine and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time. Beat thoroughly after each. Stir in the cooled melted chocolate. Sift dry ingredients together and add to the batter alternately with the mashed bananas; stir in vanilla.

Pour into 2 greased and floured 9-inch layer cake pans. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 35 to 40 minutes, until cake tests done. Frost the cake with your favorite frosting.

[miss landers]

In "Next Door Indians" Beaver wants to pal around with the big guys and tries to convince them that an Indian battle took place near his home. Beaver and his buddies may have enjoyed this traditional American dish called INDIAN PUDDING. It was served at the first Thanksgiving and a recipe for the dish can be found in Amelia Simmon's "American Cookery" of 1786. Our recipe (with its up-to-date measurements) is from "Feast Day Cookbook" (1951) by Katherine Burton and Helmut Ripperger.

INDIAN PUDDING

· 4 cups milk
· 1/3 cup corn meal
· 1 cup dark molasses
· 1/4 cup butter
· 1 teaspoon salt
· 1/2 teaspoon ginger
· 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
· 1 egg, beaten
· 1/2 cup raisins (optional)
· 1 cup milk (optional)

Boil the milk in the top of a double boiler. Stir in the corn meal and cook for about twenty minutes over boiling water. Then add the molasses and cook for another five minutes. Remove from the fire and add the butter, salt, spices, the beaten egg, and the raisins if used. Pour into a greased baking dish and bake at 300° F. for two hours. If you would have a soft center, pour the milk over the top. Serve with Hard Sauce or cream, though it is a New England custom to serve the pudding with vanilla ice cream.

Below: The First Thanksgiving

[miss landers]

When Ward asked Beaver what he thought an apt punishment would be for some misdeed, Beaver told him no stewed figs for dessert. Ward reminded Beaver he didn't like stewed figs and that was not quite an appropriate punishment.

STEWED FIGS

Rinse and drain figs. Place in pan and cover generously with water. Cover the pan and cook slowly over low heat for 35 minutes. Add sugar after cooking if desired. Stewed figs will keep in the refrigerator for use at breakfast or as a healthful and delicious dessert.

from "48 Family Favorites with California Figs"

[UncleBilly]

Here is a web site that is all about food from days gone by. Some of it is absolutely gross. But it sure is interesting to check out.

http://www.lileks.com/institute/gallery/index.html

[miss landers]

Beaver had French Toast for breakfast in the "hooky" episode. Here's a recipe from the 50s.

French Toast

2 eggs
1-2 Tbsp. milk
1-2 Tbsp. sugar
pinch of cinnamon and nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste
4 slices of day old bread
1 Tbsp. butter

Blend all ingredients smoothly in a pie plate. Melt butter in an iron skillet or on a griddle. Dip bread slices one at a time into egg mixture, covering both sides. Put egg coated bread into skillet. Brown bread on one side then turn and brown the other side. Serve with butter, sugar or maple syrup.

Today's versions of French Toast have countless little variations that include Texas-bread (very thick slices of bread), French bread, Italian bread, vanilla extracts, powdered sugar, brown sugar, marmalade toppings, strawberry toppings, etc.

[Coffeecup]

98 cents for the first tv dinner. Seems high in price. Even today you can get some (I called microwave them dinners) for about .50 cents to a dollar more. Somehow they seem cheap today but 1950's a dollar seemed so much.