Vintage February Desserts and Treats

I know that Valentine's Day is now in the rear view mirror. However, I thought I'd share some photos from my vintage 1959 Better Homes and Gardens Holiday Cookbook and my vintage 1963 Better Homes and Gardens Birthday and Family Celebrations Cookbook. Not all are Valentine's oriented. I included a couple of the recipes so you could get an idea of how those items would be made. Enjoy!

Six February desserts
starting at top:
Pink Meringue Hearts
Washington Pie
Chocolate Chiffon Pie
Frozen Valentine Rounds topped with Gelatin Heart Cutouts
Red Devil's Food Cake
Red Cherry Pie

large: Valentine Cake
individuals: Strawberry Hearts (gelatin dessert)

the recipe for Washington Pie (for Washington's birthday)

a blurry close-up of the Washington Pie
more of a cake and not a pie with a vanilla pudding
filling, vanilla glaze, and chocolate drizzle

another Washington birthday treat

For Lincoln's birthday -- no photo of the finished Lincoln Log cake.

From reading the recipe, it's a chocolate jelly roll cake with peppermint ice cream filling

 and chocolate glaze over the rolled cake.

Valentine Ring-around Salad
gelatin salad with cottage cheese, cream cheese, gelatin, salt, seedless
green grapes, pecan pieces, chopped chives, whipping cream,
then topped with raspberry gelatin heart cutouts

Salad Hearts made with fruit cocktail, lemon jello, maraschino
cherry syrup, lemon juice, cream cheese, mayonnaise, mini
marshmallows, cherries, whipping cream, red food coloring

heart cutout sandwiches

Cherry Meringue Torte
large round meringue, baked
then filled with a layer of whipping cream, then cherry pie filling,
and finally a heart made of remaining whipping cream

Since we have to eat: Cheap & Cheerful Suppers for the Week

A little over a week ago I wrote about my meal plan for that week. I had a beef roast and a whole chicken to use for meat for the week. By Friday I had roasted the chicken and used it in 2 meals. Friday is our pizza night, so we set the chicken aside for a day, then used the last of it Saturday and Sunday. Here are the meals we made this week.

Friday

scratch pepperoni pizza

steamed spinach

tangerines

applesauce snack cake

Saturday

chicken, vegetables, and dumplings

applesauce snack cake

Sunday

chicken and vegetable tortilla soup

dried prunes

applesauce snack cake

Monday

tuna-macaroni salad

avocado slices

gingered pears

pecan pie (My daughters baked us a pecan pie over the weekend. Wasn't that sweet of them?)

Tuesday

ground beef stroganoff

brown rice

steamed broccoli

tomato slices

pecan pie

Wednesday

spinach frittata

turkey bacon (I said yesterday that I didn't buy any treats when grocery shopping last. I forgot about 3 packs of turkey bacon -- on sale -- and 1 pack of pork bacon for Valentine's Day.)

oven fries roasted in beef fat

avocado, celery, cabbage salad in homemade apple cider vinaigrette (This is the apple cider vinegar that I made in the fall.)

tangerines

Thursday

beef fajita enchilada casserole (slow-cooked beef, peppers, onions, canned tomatoes, seasonings layered with corn tortillas and topped with cheese, then baked)

canned green beans

sautéed cinnamon apples

By Friday I just wanted to bake something sweet, but I wanted it to be easy. So I went with an applesauce snack cake. I've posted this recipe before, but I'll add it here again. It's a winner and so easy to make. It freezes well, so you could cut the cake into squares or in half, wrap and freeze some for another day. No eggs, no milk. And you can mix the batter right in the (ungreased) pan.

Applesauce Snack Cake

1  2/3 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup brown sugar (or white sugar with a spoonful of molasses added to the liquids)

1  1/2 teaspoons ground allspice (or cinnamon, cloves, ginger, nutmeg or any combination)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup applesauce

1/2 cup water

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon vinegar

Mix flour, sugar, spices, baking soda, salt with a fork in an ungreased 8 X 8 X 2-inch baking pan. Stir together the liquid ingredients and incorporate with the dry in the pan.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes at 350 degrees F, or until the top springs back when pressed lightly.

This Saturday we're planning a Valentine's brunch for the four of us. It'll be low-key, but I hope tasty. I'm planning on waffles, preserves and homemade fruity syrup, bacon, sausage, and a fruit salad using fresh pear, apple, banana, and tangerine. I'm not sure what I'll make for dinner, but I am planning a cherry pie for dessert. 

What was on your menu this past week? Have you planned anything for Valentine's Day? Have a lovely weekend!