Food DJ: 2014-03-02

It's been a long time..now I'm coming back home..I've been away now..oh how I've been alone..

Well not really alone.. but I have missed writing this blog- a lot!!

I wont even try to catch you up all at once - except to say- Doug and I are still together! And our time is amazing.. truly.

And that's ll there is to know....

I hope everyone has been well... It's been a tough winter here in the Northeast and in Ontario too.. but we are made of tougher stuff... like recipes I grew up on...whew... and I made it out alive. It was the late 50's and 60's and food had taken a dramatic turn. Refrigeration and home freezers changed the world- the food world anyways.. and in my house definitely- so I thought I would give you a smattering of REAL 60's cooking .. I realized almost every one of my mom's recipes used "prepared" food of some kind- since we were Italian, jarred tomato sauce was a mortal sin- but I swear she snuck it in when my Nonna wasn't looking!!

These was the Glory Days of Casseroles!! Take a bunch of stuff- fry it, dump cans of stuff in and cream of mushroom soup. bake for 45 min- looks like you cooked all day. Canned food- ahh yes. NO longer drudgery in the kitchen making healthy, delicious food- NOOOO.. make mushy stuff over rice. Where would we be without cream of mushroom soup and minute rice??

Here in all their canned splender are the recipes - my mom saved, handwritten yet- and not all of them, I mercilessly left out jello molded EVERYTHING- CURSE YOU JELLO MOLDS!!!

Anyways, back to reality, let's see I will start with my dad (who was from England)- his favorites and his country of origin will explain a lot! and then again ... maybe not!

Mary's Chinese Pepper Beef

(no, she was even remotely Chinese- don't even ask- she did watch Joyce Chen on PBS a lot however.)

2 lbs of flank steak
2 TBSP olive oil
1 TBSP garlic powder ( not fresh garlic- God forbid)
1 TBSP sugar (hey it was the 60's)
1/4 Cup soy sauce (Chun King, if I remember correctly)
2 TBSP cornstarch
2 green peppers (the pepper in the pepper beef)
2 tomatoes, quartered
2 TBSP brown sauce (and the note beside it said "Chinese" hence the Chinese in the Chinese Pepper Beef- I am guessing black bean sauce, no guarantee however)

Slice steak into strips. In a bowl, put steak, garlic powder, sugar, soy sauce and cornstarch. Marinate for 1-2 hours (or as long as your soap was on - General Hospital).
In a fry pan (not a frying pan, I guess) put olive oil and stir fry sliced green peppers (by the way, red were too expensive). Remove peppers and put them in a dish.. Stir fry steak. To that pan of steak strips add 2 TBSP of brown sauce (the mysterious) and 1 and 1/2 cups of cold water and make a gravy- it's magic- it just happens, the gravy part- it does! Add the peppers and tomatoes and simmer for 1 minute!! Serve over Minute Rice- cooked I presume.

To that concoction of my mom's, I added red pepper strips, water chestnuts, thinly sliced onion and bean sprouts- it was definitely better-

AND WE MOVE ON-

Mary's next recipe was given to her from her friend, Gloria. From the name don't expect much.

Gloria's Poor Man's Dish

you heard it right- creamed corn and canned peas AND a casserole?? does it get any better than this??

1 lb ground beef
4 Cups mashed potatoes (instant probably)
1 large can of creamed corn (normal size-you would buy- does anyone really buy the tiny cans?)
1 large can of peas (read above)
salt and pepper to taste
1 small onion, chopped- optional (God forbid a fresh vegetable would slip in)
2 tsp olive

Grease a 4 quart casserole (with oil, I presume). In skillet saute onion, if using it. Add hamburger and cook. break it up with a fork and set aside.
Bake at 350 degrees about 35-40 minutes. Serve with French's Beef Gravy (optional- depends on that week's budget, I guess)

AND yet another gen from Gloria....

American Chop Suey

(at least Gloria was American) American Chop, as we called it, was the bane of every potluck church supper- I would NEVER eat it- snobby brat I was)

4 or 5 green peppers, chopped
3 onions, chopped
1 lb of hamburger meat (Gloria never went heavy on meat, it seems)
2 cans of tomato soup (I never ate this- EVER.. you can tell from the tomato soup addition Gloria was NOT Italian)
1 can of water (soup can I am guessing)
4 TBSP oil
1 lb casserole noodles or elbow macaroni (I am guessing here that casserole noodles are wide egg noodles- I never saw American Chop made with anything but elbows)
salt and pepper to taste (goos luck on that one)

In a skillet, heat oil. Add chopped peppers and onion. Saute until nicely browned (I am assuming the onion because the peppers would be gross browned). Add hamburger meat, break up with a fork, cook until meat is well done. Add tomato soup and water. Cook until bubbly.
In a large pot, boil water and cook elbow macaroni according to package directions. Drain well and add hamburger mixture... and serve!

Have I killed your appetite yet- or is this some weird nostalgia?

Onward we go-

Debbie's Hawaiian Pork Chops

- Debbie was another friend of my mom, who could not cook, nonetheless- my mom copied this recipe from her- Debbie was not Hawaiian

4-6 pork chops
1 and 1/2 cups pf fruit cocktail (it was the 60's - canned fruit cocktail was the rage)
3 TBSP brown mustard
1 TBSP brown sugar
1/4 cup orange juice

Brown pork chops in a fry pan (famous fry pan-Jeez) Combine all remaining ingredients and pour over pork chops. Simmer 45 minutes. You can use this with cooked rice spread on your dish, add frypan ingredients on top (word for word...promise)

and last but not least

Gail's Crunchy Chicken Casserole - should chicken casserole be CRUNCHY?? Gail bravely said YES! It's a CANNED food extravaganza!!!

1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 Cups milk
2 Cups of cubed chicken (cooked, I am guessing, as most casseroles were made of earlier meal leftovers
1 Cup rice (uncooked)
1 can cut green beans, drained
1 jar of sliced mushrooms, drained
1 Cup of grated Cheddar cheese
1 (3 oz can) of French Fried Onions

In a large saucepan, combine soup and milk, heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in cooked chicken, rice, beans and mushrooms and 1/2 the can of french fried onions and cheese.
Pour into a 2 quart casserole; stir. Bake covered for 40 minutes. Top with remaining cheese and french fried onions. Bake uncovered 5 minutes longer. Makes 5 servings

I almost forgot my manditory BACON entry=

Marie's Baked Boneless Chicken

- these were the days BEFORE you could buy chicken cutlets or boneless breasts.

2 whole chicken breasts- split, skinned and deboned
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
4 slices of bacon
1 Cup sour cream

Wrap each piece of chicken with a strip of bacon.. Line them in a baking pan. Mix soup and sour cream. Pour over chicken. Cover with foil and bake at 275 for 3 hrs (HOLY SHREDDED PIG FLESH- 3 HRS!!)
Serve with rice and use the creamy sauce with it- (I didn't write this merely copied it- I swear- bacon fat, cream of mushroom soup and sour cream??? Soggy bacon- ugh)

Serves 4 (if they are hungry, I guess).

Since today is Friday and it IS Lent.. I will add a lenten specialty- no meat

Debbie's Clam Cakes

- a different Debbie-

1 can of clams and juice
1 and 1/3 Cups of flour
3 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
2 eggs, slightly beaten
oil for frying

Heat Oil. Mix all ingredients together. Drop by teaspoons into hot oil. Turn once until golden brown.

Debbie never was one to mince words- or clams for that matter

Enjoy my little foodies!!!! And remember this is how people USED to eat!!!

More about Campbell Cream of Mushroom Soup

How bad could it be those fat cute Campbell Kids ate it all through the depression and never lost and ounce!! They gave them the axe because Campbell's decided they were too fat!! END FAT DISCRIMINATION... Little Fat red cheeked kids are humans too- ohh wait... they aren't.... they were an ad campaign for when fat people were rich, healthy people- and skinny was a curse of the poor- they were just cartoon kids!

One of my favorite recipes from Campbell's cream of mushroom soup was a SOUP SHAKE- I kid you NOT!! I never ate it..but the idea intrigued me!

and I quote " Add a can of cream of mushroom soup to a cup of cold milk (3/4 cup if you like thick shakes. You will be surprised (and pleasantly) with the flavor!"

I am not exactly sure WHY you would want a soup shake...

My favorite line from this recipe says, “You’ll be surprised, too (and so pleasantly), with the flavor of the Cream-of-Mushroom Soup Shake.” - See more at: http://nwamotherlode.com/archives/34206#sthash.Ri32ghyx.dpuf

My favorite recipe from the Campbell’s cookbook was for “Soup Milkshakes.” The recipe said to combine a can of Campbell’s Cream-of-Chicken, Cream-of-Celery, or Tomato Soup with a can of ice cold milk. (Or 3/4 a can of

milk if you like THICK soup shakes. I’m not making this stuff up.) My favorite line from this recipe says, “You’ll be surprised, too (and so pleasantly), with the flavor of the Cream-of-Mushroom Soup Shake.” Yeah, buddy, you betcha. I guess I’d better go to the hardware store and look for a box of HUGE drinking straws - See more at: http://nwamotherlode.com/archives/34206#sthash.Ri32ghyx.dpuf