cooking Archives - Awful Library Books

Republican Cooking

November 7, 2022 Holly You Ate What? 10 comments

How to Eat Like a Republican: Or, Hold the Mayo, Muffy – I’m Feeling Miracle Whipped Tonight
Townsend
2014

Submitter: This book was just weeded at my public library. It was weeded for low checkouts and there’s a reason why. It’s trying too hard to be funny and the recipes don’t look good at all.

Holly: I bet if you replaced “Republican” with any other group of people, political or not, you’d get the same basic recipes submitted. It’s definitely tongue-in-cheek, and I bet there are libraries where this kind of thing circulates well. I agree that the recipes look kind of dumb. For me, that’s actually what makes it funny! Some of the reviews on GoodReads are pretty funny too.

Eggstatic Recipes

February 1, 2022 Holly You Ate What? 8 comments

300 Ways to Serve Eggs: From Appetizers to Zabaglione
Culinary Arts Institute
1941

Submitter: I was eggstatic to find this book sitting on the shelf in our cookbook section. Marvel in the wonders of what egg dishes you could make in 1941. I love how staining on the pages adds to the ambiance of this classic.

Holly: I like a good egg as much as the next gal, but 80 years of egg splatter is a bit much.

(Curious about what zabaglione is? Alton Brown to the rescue!)

Microwave Everything!

October 14, 2021 Mary Kelly You Ate What? 22 comments

Sunset
Microwave Cook Book
Gaulke, ed.
1976

The Sunset books have been featured here more than a few times. They covered everything: camping, home decorating, fashion/crafts, and of course cooking/entertaining. I am sure we have only scraped the surface of the awful possibilities. Back in the olden days, I probably would have bought them for the collection, just because they were so well known.

Microwave cooking was all the rage in the mid 1970s. However, as I remember my mother (and myself) trying to microwave something, I swear the food always turned a grayish color and looked awful.

Saucy Wieners

May 19, 2021 Holly You Ate What? 6 comments

Microwave Cooking from Sears
Sears, Roebuck and Company
1971

Submitter: Come see the scary side of Sears… Not sure if that’s regular wear and tear on the cover, or food stains. Either Way – this one has now been liquidated from our collection.

Holly: I can tell you what I’m NOT having for dinner tonight: “Saucy Wieners.” Recipe is below if you’re into that sort of thing.

More Salad Trauma

November 13, 2018 Mary Kelly You Ate What? 13 comments

Betty Crocker’s Salads General Mills 1978 I don’t know why salad books have been on my radar, but I have had a couple show up in the last few weeks. So here is the Betty Crocker version of salads. I

Soyfood

September 6, 2018 Holly You Ate What? 8 comments

Soyfood Recipes for the American Table: Favorite Dishes from the Folks at White Wave White Wave 1998 Submitter: I really like tofu, especially if it’s breaded and fried and has a fantastic sauce. What I don’t like about this cookbook

Groovy Guys Cooking

February 16, 2018 Mary Kelly Guy Stuff, You Ate What? 14 comments

Cooking From Scratch The Single Man’s Guide to Making Out in the Kitchen Warberg 1976 Direct from the 1970s, we have a cookbook made especially for those guys who are single, or the wife is working and the poor guy

Leftovers in 2018

January 2, 2018 Mary Kelly You Ate What? 16 comments

Left Over for Tomorrow
Tenison
1971

Time to kick off 2018 with some helpful advice about leftovers. Hopefully you have some remnants of holiday dinners to try out with this book. At any given time in our fridge are the remnants of take-out food. (Some complete with moldy fuzz!) To me, this is leftovers. The author, however, is not exactly on the same page. The leftover recipes in this book are almost as complex as the original recipes. This book is more about versatile cooking than reheating some day-old food. This author turns leftovers up to 11. I get the feeling she is one step above dumpster diving.