Quick and Easy Menu
While the previous menu from the booklet contained a couple of more complicated recipes, this particular menu is designed for busy days.
Many women worked outside the home (either for pay or as volunteers) while their children were in school during WWII. Women who had previously thought of themselves as full-time mothers and home caretakers were now trying to balance outside work with their homemaking roles.
If you can imagine what it must've been like to go from cooking three full meals from scratch daily and caring for the house and children to suddenly in a situation where your husband is away at war and you're working in a factory, store, office, or volunteering in some capacity, while looking after the home, yard, children and still providing three "squares" a day. Many of us do that in modern times. But imagine not having the array of convenience foods or simplified cleaning tools or restaurants for take out or delivery that make it all possible.
Enter women's magazines and booklets that offered suggestions for quick and easy (and healthy) meals, basically from scratch.
The menu suggestions here are based on simplified recipes and using a few "healthy" prepared foods (such as purchased enriched white bread, boxed, uncooked whole grain hot cereal). The booklet suggests using the basic menu for one day, then subbing in the alternates on other days to provide variety while still working within the context of a quick and easy menu plan.
Here's the menu:
Breakfast
(A) Stewed Rhubarb (recipe)
Hot Whole Grain Cereal with Whole Milk
Enriched White Toast
Butter or Fortified Margarine
Coffee and Milk
Hot Whole Grain Cereal with Whole Milk
Enriched White Toast
Butter or Fortified Margarine
Coffee and Milk
Lunch at Home
(B) English Monkey on Crisp Crackers (recipe)
Carrot Raisin Salad (recipe)
Soya Bread (recipe) with Butter or Fortified Margarine
Apples or Bananas
Lunch Box
(C) Bologna Carrot sandwich Filling (recipe) on Enriched White Bread
Peanut Butter "Pep Up" Sandwich Filling (recipe) on Soya Bread
Wedge of Cheese
Apples or Bananas
Cocoa
Dinner
(D) Barbecued Cube Steak (recipe)
Parsley Potatoes (recipe)
(E) Pennsylvania Dutch Spinach (recipe)
Toasted Buns with Mustard Butter (recipe)
(F) Broiled Grapefruit (recipe)
Alternates
(A) Applesauce (recipe) or any canned fruit
(B) Rarebit (recipe) or Cheese Fondue (recipe)
(C) Pimento Sandwich Filling (recipe)
(D) Dried Beef Gravy (recipe) or Victory Hamburgers (recipe) or Ham and Eggs (recipe)
(E) Stewed Tomatoes (recipe)
(F) Citrus Juices and Cakes or Cookies Left from Previous Baking
Things to do ahead to get these meals on the table fast
- stew the rhubarb
- wash the spinach
Tips to make meals quick and easy
- Serve raw fruits and vegetables, if possible -- more vitamins, less time to prepare, and fewer utensils to wash. "A relish plate of raw carrots, tender greens, cabbage wedges, green onions and radishes can take the place of both a vegetable and a salad." Fresh fruit, such as berries and pineapple require little extra (perhaps a little sugar) to make a dessert.
- Serve fruits unpeeled, when possible.
- Serve small chunks or cubes of cheese along with the fruit to boost protein with little extra work.
- Cook "big" when you have the time, in order to use leftovers in future meals, not only entress and side dishes, but desserts such as cakes and cookies as well.
- Use fish and eggs as the main protein source, as they cook quickly.
- Use canned and frozen foods (judiciously, I'll add) to speed meal prep time.
- Use fewer dishes, if possible. Plan one-dish meals, such as casseroles and stews. Less to clean up afterward.
I'll be providing the recipes tomorrow. English Monkey is a dish that was around during the Great Depression. Curious sounding name, right? And the "Pep Up" sandwich filling sounds like a food I need right now. Stay tuned to find out how these dishes were made.
