I found a pre-Betty-Crocker General Foods baking book - hardcover - entitled “All About Baking”; third edition, 2nd printing in June, 1936, original copyright 1933.
Product placement, 1930s-style!
Color photography, however, hadn’t caught up to marketing, apparently.
Those cinnamon rolls are both enticing and repellent at the same time.
i never find cinnamon rolls repellent, haha
Yeah, those totally belong in the Gallery of Regrettable Foods.
They haven’t changed the Calumet baking powder can at all, except to give it a plastic lid instead of screw-top.
But the the glaze…it’s…grotesque in its weird color.
CMYK color matching is hard, yo. it’s not that bad.
I love her chapter titles:
30 Day-by-day Entrees or The Rock Pile
The Leftover or Every Family Needs a Dog
Vegetables, Salads, Salad Dressings or This Side of Beriberi
Spuds and Other Starches or Ballast is a Girl’s Best Friend
Potluck Suppers or How to Bring the Water for the Lemonade
Company’s Coming or Your Back’s to the Wall
Luncheon for the Girls or Wait Till You Taste Maybelle’s Peanut Butter Aspic
Canapes and Heartburn Specials or Who Started This Business?
Desserts or People are Too Fat Anyway
Little Kids’ Parties or They Only Came for the Balloons
Last-Minute Suppers or This is the Story of Your Life
Household Hints or What to Do When Your Churn Paddle Sticks
Good Cooksmanship or How to Talk a Good Fight
Equivalents, Et Cetera or Dreary Details That You Certainly Have No Intention of Remembering
She’s such a funny writer.
Okay [deep breath] I am about to make a batch of peach jam all by myself. Last time I had anything to do with such things, I was a teenager helping my parents.
I’m using this recipe if anyone’s interested:
Good luck and don’t forget to sterilise your jars.
Thank you! The peach chunks are “steeping” in sugar and lemon juice right now.
I’m going to follow this for the sterilisation:
it’s tedious, but that’s the best way, for sure. if you have a newer dishwasher and it has a “sterilize” setting, i’ve used that successfully, too.
We’ve used both the oven and dishwasher (on hot) with no problems, but I don’t see any harm can come from overkill.
I have four 340 mL jars of jam.
Despite boiling half of Lake Ontario, I’m not convinced they will seal. I think I have made four jars of freezer jam. I did try to leave generous head space, just in case.
This is all for a canning swap group, so there’s extra pressure (ha!) to get things to work.
i am not an expert, but i seem to recall something about “more head space does not equal good” from all my readings… if your recipe recommends a certain amount, try to follow the amount it says and don’t try to add more “for safety’s sake.”
i’ll try to find more specifics, though…
I just filled the jars until just under the part where the screw threads start for the lids. Seemed to make sense. Bonus: I only had a couple of spoonfuls of jam left over in the pot.
Did the lids suck in (audible ping when they do)?
I didn’t hear any pings – that’s how my parents always tested their preserves – but the recipe said to wait until the jars had cooled to room temperature, and then check if the lids flexed when gently pressed, or stayed down.
Mine are staying down, but I put them in the freezer, just to be safe. They cooled overnight, so I doubt the jars will crack in the freezer.
I liked the taste of the few spoonfuls left in the pot, but overall this was a complete pain to do solo. My parents always did the work together, press-ganging any kid old enough to reach the stove to peel and chop fruit, stir the pot, etc. There were several occasions last night where I was wishing for an extra pair of hands.
Meanwhile, my friend who organised this has made noises about how peach jam is insufficiently exotic or something. I love peach jam, so I’m thinking I’ll just keep it for myself and forego the swap. That way I’m the only one who has to deal with the jam, and I don’t have to worry about other people.
I’ve made on-purpose freezer jam before, and I like cooking, but this is something else again.
Absolutely snarfle your peach jam up! No point at all trading it away to someone who doesn’t appreciate it!
What does sufficiently exotic mean in context, does it mean spicy? I have a peach chutney recipe somewhere around here
