One of the problems with using old cookbooks is that sometimes prepackaged ingredients change completely. So I’m not sure if the recipe I just made for chocolate soufflé was bad or if the only chocolate pudding we could find that didn’t have caramel color in it (DC2 allergy) was chemically different than what was called for back in the 1980s.
I told her I could very much relate (and this post is based on the comment I left there!). Two examples from my own recipe repertoire came to mind:
First -- I was going to make a easy coleslaw salad recipe of my mother’s that she got from a friend about 40 (!) years ago, and that we've had almost every year at Christmastime since then. I've often made it to take to potlucks, etc., and I committed to bringing a salad (i.e., the coleslaw) with me to dh's cousin's cottage this spring, when ALL the cousins from that side of his family were coming and asked to contribute something to the food for the weekend.
Besides a package of coleslaw/cabbage mix, the salad ingredients include two packages of ramen noodles, and one of the flavouring/seasoning/broth powder packets that comes with them, to use in the dressing. The ramen noodle packages were small square packages, about an inch thick, probably enough to serve one person, maybe two. I don't remember the brand name, but my mom bought them at the local Co-op grocery store (I think they were a Co-op house brand?) — and although we don’t have the same brand here in Ontario, I was able to find something similar at the supermarket where we shop (from the Loblaws yellow label No-Name line).
At least I USED to be able to find something similar. The day before we were leaving for the cottage, I went to the supermarket to get the ingredients I needed to make the salad — and I couldn’t find the ramen packages I always used to buy. They had other kinds of noodles in similar packaging — and BIG packages of ramen noodles — but that would have meant trying to figure out the right quantities to use, plus the flavouring packet wasn't included (and even if it was, would it have tasted the same as the stuff I usually used?? -- even the ramen packages I got here did not taste quite as good as what we used at my parents' house).
I started to panic, which irritated dh... he thought I should be flexible and "just improvise." It’s one thing to improvise when it’s just for him & me, but when it’s for a family gathering and I need to make something up THAT NIGHT to take with us TOMORROW MORNING (not much time to do something else if it was a flop -- and some of his cousins are really good cooks…! and I had other things I needed to do before we left, too).
I finally did improvise a bit: I left out the ramen noodles entirely, and made a simple vinaigrette dressing (basically, the usual dressing from the recipe, but without the ramen flavouring packet). It lacked the body of the original recipe, but it was okay as far as coleslaw goes -- the almonds and seeds helped add a bit of texture/crunch --and it did get eaten up.
I guess I will need to find something else to bring to future gatherings...!
When I was visiting my dad this summer, I checked at the Co-op to see if THEY had the ramen packages we always used -- as recently as last Christmas — and they didn’t have them anymore either!
Sigh… I really liked that recipe too!
Example #2: My aunt had a recipe for a really great vodka slush (also from the early 1980s -- in fact, I think she served it at my bridal shower!). It used cans of frozen orange juice and frozen lemonade (the frozen concentrate itself, straight from the cans), as well as some apricot nectar (hard to find, even then) — and vodka! You mixed up the ingredients and put them in a big container (like an ice cream pail) in the freezer, and it made a slushy mix. A couple of scoops in a glass, topped up with 7-Up or Sprite, was great to serve at parties, or as something cold and refreshing on a hot summer day.
But! Earlier this year, Coca-Cola stopped making Minute Maid and other frozen concentrate drinks!! (in both Canada and the U.S.). Most other manufacturers (e.g., Old South) had already exited the market. They cited changing tastes and declining consumer demand. (My personal theory is they figured they could make more money on the ready-made stuff vs people paying less and doing the mixing-up work themselves.) We'd always made up our morning OJ from concentrate, and have reluctantly made the switch to bottled juice (which is much more expensive). But what to do to make slush?? (something that's mentioned in the article I linked to above!).
(Another complicating factor for this and other older recipes -- as someone pointed out in one of the responses to Grumpy Rumblings' post -- a lot of food manufacturers have recently switched to cheaper/inferior ingredients, and reduced quantities -- while keeping the packaging and price the same, of course. Also: in the late 1970s/early 1980s -- around the same time my aunt gave my mom this recipe -- Canada switched (mostly) to the metric system of measurement, including from ounces to millilitres for food packaging -- so the quantities probably aren't exactly the same either...!)
This summer, Loblaws and other major Canadian grocery chains announced they will be bringing frozen concentrated drinks back to their stores?? But so far, I haven't seen anything in the freezer cases at the supermarket where we usually shop.
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And now (because I know someone is bound to ask...!), here are the recipes (for what they're worth... good luck finding the ingredients!):
"Asian" Coleslaw
Chopped green onions to taste (1 or 2)
2 packages ramen noodles (chicken flavour)(vegetable would probably work too )
½ cup sunflower seeds
½ cup slivered almonds
Mix the coleslaw mix & green onions together in a large container.
Break up the noodles in the packages, before opening them. Set aside the flavouring packets that came with the noodles. Set a colander inside a large pot and and pour the dry noodles into the colander. Pour a kettle full of boiling water over the noodles (use enough water to cover the noodles) and let them sit & soften for about a minute/60 seconds. Lift the colander out of the pot, drain the noodles and add to the cabbage mix.
Toast the almonds & seeds under the broiler for a few minutes & add to the mix.
Make the dressing and pour it over the salad (mix together/shake to blend in a small jar or container):
¼ cup white sugar
¼ cup vinegar
½ cup oil
You can find more of this week's #MicroblogMondays posts here.
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