This weekend I was at a complete loss for an answer to that oft-asked question, "What's for dinner?" and decided to page through some cookbooks. I've weeded out most of the cookbooks that never got used, but there are still a few that I've kept for sentimental reasons. This one was my grandmother's from 1927.
My grandmother was an excellent cook, but I never saw her use a recipe. I was surprised to come upon this one when we were cleaning out her things and I had to keep it.
This warning in the beginning gave me pause, but I trust that anyone reading this will not demand that Ioan the book to them, forcing me to "borrow it back." But I'm going to throw caution to the wind and give you some recipes that I decided not to have for dinner.
Despite the ease of preparation, I did not serve Broiled Frogs' Legs as an appetizer.
There was also no Celery Custard on the dinner table.
I can hardly picture how this entree is prepared, but it seems to involve slicing bananas, placing them inside split round steak, laying strips of bacon across the top, and baking for 40 minutes (or just 30 minutes if you like your Baked Banana Steak rare).
And we also did not have Peanut Butter Soup. I was a little curious about how this might taste, but I definitely would have left out the onion.
For the record, I did make Spaghetti Pie, which I like better than regular spaghetti. It's something my grandmother used to make with leftover spaghetti, and I think it's much tastier than Baked Banana Steak.
What are you having for dinner tonight?
LOL This is why I enjoy looking through and reading cookbooks so much. That banana steak recipe is just plain weird though. I do remember my brother ordering frogs legs once at a restaurant and saying they tasted just like chicken (how there is ANY meat on a frog's leg is beyond my imagination). C&M were away for the weekend and at an Oaxacon restaurant the waiter brought them some tacos off-menu which included "Mexican caviar"...aka ant eggs. YUCK!!!
ReplyDeleteLooking through old cookbooks is such fun, especially when you come across gems like Banana Steak!
ReplyDeleteWe're having tacos tonight -- something I'll bet is not in that cookbook!
I am dying, Bonny! These are so hilarious! And the adjacent recipes are not bad either... Savory cauliflower... does that mean there is a sweet cauliflower? And the Goulash recipe... "enough paprika to make it pink" obviously Katharine Fisher never knew a Hungarian because it's all paprika, all the time with them! (and does Heinz make Mushroom Ketchup and if so, what does it taste like?)
ReplyDeleteOh, Bonny! What a treasure you've got there! I cannot quite imagine . . . Peanut Butter Soup. But the Baked Banana Steak recipe really stopped me in my tracks! Thanks for sharing these delightful snippets . . . of life in the kitchens of 1927!!! XO
ReplyDeleteI'm seriously considering that Celery Custard. May I borrow your cookbook?
ReplyDeleteOh my! What fun you must be having paging through that cookbook. I really want you to make the Baked Banana Steak, though. I mean, the blog community deserves to know just how awful it is!
ReplyDeleteIsnt't it fun to read through old cookbooks? Celery Custard and Baked Banana Steak to not appeal to me, but I do remember my grandmother making a dish very similar to the Savory Cauliflower. She also fixed Frog's Legs as a treat for my grandfather!
ReplyDeleteI'm also not going to be preparing Celery Custard and baked Banana Steak, but it's quite interesting to know that someone was eating Frogs' Legs and Savory Cauliflower back in the day!
DeleteIt is fascinating how our tastes really do change over time! I bet the PB soup is pretty good... I often see recipes for some version of "African peanut soup" in my books. If you haven't tried savory PB yet, maybe start with a cold noodle salad with a PB dressing? So yummy! I think we are having zucchini fritters tonight with some zucchini from a friend's garden. And tomatoes.
ReplyDeleteFor some reason it didn't recognize me at first. That was Janelle in case you didn't deduce it on your own!
ReplyDeletepeanut butter soup is something I have never ever heard of nor would I eat in a million years.
ReplyDeletehow fun! and cool to have a cookbook from your grandmother (don't you wish she'd written notes in it to let you know her thoughts about the recipes?!). and isn't it amazing that Americans found "foreign food" ... foreign?!
ReplyDeleteThanks to their dad, my kids grew up eating Cream of Celery Soup, so the Celery Custard doesn't sound so far out to me. Frog legs are on MANY supper club menus around here, though I've never had them myself (and have always heard that they taste like chicken). The steak dish & soup are truly far out... and, also, YUCK!! I do love a spaghetti pie. Mmm. Haven't had spaghetti at all in a while (and it's close to lunch time... I'm hungry now)!
ReplyDeleteI used to make a Sphaghetti Pie and haven't thought about it for ages. Those are some recipes but banana steak takes the prize. What an odd combination. Last night we had Martha Stewart's Light Sesame Noodles and tonight we had a BLT and watermelon because I still have some fresh tomatoes on the counter. What's for dinner? It is the eternal question for me.
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