I’ve been collecting old cookbooks for years now, partly because of nostalgia and partly out of curiosity. Food is, of course, very important to people, to family. It is sustenance. It is comfort. It is social, a way for families and friends to get together. It can be competitive, especially within families, small towns, and with in-laws (Dare I say mothers-in-law?).
Because of its importance to the individual, family, and the community, food, especially cooking, can give us an idea of what was happening in society at certain times. In my lifetime alone, food has gone from stuff being emptied out of tin cans and served with what was passed off as salad (think gelatin), with most recipes offered by the food industry in women’s magazines, to a backlash that started with hippies and the back-to-nature movement for less processed foods. The backlash against can and boxed foods has continued, and today’s shoppers are able to find organic produce at just about any grocery store.
Ethnic Foods through the Years

In the grocery stores and kitchens of the 1950s and ’60s, ethnic meant, well, not ethnic. Italian was Chef Boyardee pizza in a box, with a powder that was mixed with water to create a crust, plain tomato sauce, and powdered Parmesan cheese. The company also offered canned ravioli (a favorite of one of my five brothers, for some strange reason) and boxed spaghetti. My mother had her own recipe for spaghetti that I will share later. It’s nothing you will want to jot down.
Chinese food? Ah, horrid memories of La Choy chicken chow mien congealing on my plate. My brothers ate it. My parents ate it. For a while I could get it down if I swallowed it with milk. Then I went on strike and refused to eat it for three meals (my father kept re-serving it to me). My lips were sealed. He finally gave up and I was allowed to have a sandwich on nights that “Chinese” was served. I thought I hated Chinese food until I was in my mid-20s when, on a business trip, I had to go to a Chinese restaurant with colleagues. Yeah, I know, even that’s not “real” Chinese, but it sure beats the hell out of what my mother was serving.
Other “ethnic foods”? Well, throw pineapple over anything that is topped with instant/minute rice and my mother called it “Hawaiian.” And that was about it. I never had “real” white rice until I was a senior in high school and my boyfriend’s mother served it one night. It blew my mind.
Different Families, Different Foods
Meanwhile, my husband and his siblings, living in the same decades, were treated to a slew of wonderful foods—most of it homemade. It was all good, if not great, my husband remembers. Why the difference with the two families? I contemplated one day. Why did one woman (my mother) go the way of processed, quick foods and another woman (my mother-in-law) not? They were about the same age. They were both raised in New England. Why the difference?
This question started me on a quest—this part of my website—that I’m calling “Cooking with Our Mothers.” It features old recipes (some good and some “WTH is this?”), a fun look at old recipe books, and information I’ve found online documenting food/meals from earlier times and why we ate what we ate. On occasion you will also find an old recipe followed by a more modern version.
Please note: I am not a dietician or a cook. I was the first girl in my high school to convince the guidance counselors that I didn’t need to take home ec (back in the late 1960s and early ’70s), and my mother hated cooking. I’ve learned a few things along the way on my own, but please, don’t take anything you read here as serious. It’s all for fun!
Enjoy!