Next time you do a vintage cookbook episode it would be fun and interesting to see how the Betty Crocker cookbooks evolved. This was a lot of fun watching, pointing out the changes over the years. I agree, I love the cookbooks that really tell a story, sometimes the rag-tag conditions are a story of their own. I own my mother’s 1952 Betty Crocker cookbook, it is nearly falling apart but I love all the little notations she added. Love your channel, keep the fun coming, it is appreciated 👏👏
Hi Diana! Yes, I will do a Betty Crocker cookbook video in the future - it's another great cookbook. Wonderful that you have your mom's copy of the cookbook with her written-in notes. That's a treasure! Thanks!
You can by a reprint of that online. I have my mother's that is pieced together. I was able to buy a reprint and it was the exact same thing. I guess enough of us grew up loving that book.
I have the 14th printing (1936) edition of your 1935 one!! It was my great grandmothers! I have several of her cookbooks, including a 1942 Good Housekeeping Cookbook and HER mother's 1922 Boston Cooking School Cookbook. They are so precious to me, they all have their handwritten notes and index card recipes and newspaper clippings. I treasure them so much. There's a recipe for "Nan's Cake" in the 1936 one that I want to make because she has notes in the margin for doubling and tripling it, so it must have been a recipe she used a lot! Then there's the handwritten recipe she added for "Green Tomato Mince Meat" that has green tomatoes and apples, molasses, vinegar, raisins, and five pounds of sugar. LOL
Hi Aubrey - those cookbooks of your grandmother's are real treasures!! It's great that you have them and all the handwritten notes inside. It's a nice way to stay connected with people. Wow that green tomato mince meat must have been sweet! I don't think I've seen a recipe that called for that much sugar LOL!
Some of my favorite cookbooks are actually small community cookbooks. Of course, most of these books were not printed or distributed nationally, so its almost impossible to have a "national discussion" about one particular cookbook. I recently came across an excellent community cookbook. It was printed about 20 years ago to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Hy-Vee, a huge grocery store chain in the central Midwest. They went all out. They collected 1,000+ recipes from their employees and produced probably the "mother of all community cookbooks." 😅 It's almost as thick as the Joy of Cooking. I've enjoyed reading it and trying some of the recipes.
Hi russbear - those community cook books are wonderful! Some of them have the best recipes I've ever tried and I cherish the ones I have. I never saw the Hy-Vee employee cook book but I'll bet it was filled with great recipes. A while back I did a video on community cook books - they really are treasures. Thanks!
I always enjoy your cookbook videos!! Yes please do more of them! Better Homes and Gardens books are some of my favorites. I love the Brownie Pudding recipe in the 1953 edition.
Thanks! Love your videos and all the cookbooks and recipes you showcase!! I don't think I've tried the Brownie Pudding recipe, but the name alone has me sold!
I love watching both of your channels! I have the 1989 binder edition I received before I got married. I still make the toffee butter crunch recipe from that book every Christmas.
Love this episode. I've collected almost every BH&G cookbook from about 1960 to present (up to last year's 2022 edition). I found a lot of the old editions at thrift stores for only $1. 😊 BH&G is still one of the Bibles of American cooking.
Hi Russ - glad you liked the episode! With ten of millions of copies in print, these show up often at thrift stores, rummage sales, etc. That's where most of mine came from, also, although I have my mom's copy which I cherish. Thanks!
These books bring back a ton of memories! My mom had one of the late 70's/early 80's editions. I didn't often see her actually crack it open, but that iconic red gingham pattern is etched into my brain. I remember being a little confused by the spine saying that it was a "new" cookbook. "How did THEY know it was new?" I thought, especially after seeing it on the shef for so long. I eventually remember asking mom: "how can that cookbook STILL be new if you've had it for so long?" Today it's among my treasured cookbooks, along with more current editions of Joy of Cooking, and my favorite the America's Test Kitchen complete series (through 2019) cookbook.
Hi Marc - thanks for sharing that great memory about the "New" cookbook! Wonderful that you have your mom's copy! I also like that ATK cookbook - it has a lot of great recipes and tips! Thanks!
I left mine on the burner when I was a young wife. Lol! The back cover has a big black circle! I got a much newer copy, but they changed the recipes a lot, so I still used the one with the burn mark. 😄
Good morning Kevin!🥰 I have a couple of BH&G cook books and a couple of Betty Crocker. My prize cook books are those individual ones from the Culinary Arts Institute (from the 40s/50s). I used to love looking at them as a kid and dreaming of making and baking stuff.😊
I received my first BHG cookbook for Christmas when I was about 12 or 13. My son now has that copy but I have 3 others in my cookbook arsenal. What beautiful memories.
I loved this episode. I have my Mom's from the 50s and mine from the early 80s. Both are ripped, torn, recipes handwritten and cut out of magazines & newspapers all stuck inside both and they are well loved and have been well used.
It would be interesting to see a show about those odd 40s & 50s dishes I read about that don't look appealing and really funny like the strange hot dog casseroles etc...lol
I have my mother's Better Homes cookbook. It's the 1962 edition if not mistaken. Definitely been used, even has her notes, sometimes in green ballpoint pen. I also have a copy of my grandmother's 70's orange Betty Crocker cookbook too, with insert. I do use Mom's old Better Homes for biscuits and pancakes, and use the recipes she used and found to be good from time to time.
I love cookbooks. Just reading through them I learn so much. And, btw, I've got boxes and boxes of cookbooks of all sorts. They need a new/good home. If you'd be interested in loads of cookbooks, let me know and I'll make a trip to you and you can have them. Love you, Valli
Hi Valli! I feel the same way about cookbooks - I learn so much from them! I always have a couple on my nightstand and I read them like novels! LOL! Thank you for your kind and generous offer! If there are cookbooks that I don't have already, I would be interested in adding them to the library!
@@cavalcadeoffood Sounds great, Kevin! I have a ton of cookbooks. Can't possibly know what you might have that would be a duplicate, of course. How about I just bring the lot, you pick all, or whatever suits your fancy. Just let me know when would be a good time to meet up. Love ya, Valli
@@vallis1469 Great! Thanks so much, Valli! Please send me an email and we can figure out the date and details: cavalcadevintage@gmail.com Thanks so much!!! - Kevin
I have 2 go-to-often cookbooks. 1. The old orange Betty Crocker's Cookbook, think from the 70's, and 2. Mennonite Country-Style Recipes and Kitchen Secrets by Esther H. Shank....a simply wonderful book! The no-bake cookie recipe is used nearly monthly. HA
I have the '96 edition, found at the thrift store. Our go to's are the chocolate chip cookies, the puff pancake, and the banana bread recipes, but that book is our first reference. I love cookbooks and collect them, I uave a dedicated full length bookshelf in my dining area showcasing my collection so I appreciate this video. I also have a Betty Crocker binder cookbook in a beautiful orange color from the 1970's , I'm guessing it was their version of this cookbook. So fun!
Hi Veronica! It's sounds like you have a wonderful collection of cookbooks and glad they are on display! That orange Betty Crocker cookbook is a good one - lots of wonderful recipes! Thanks!
This was a fun episode. I have my grandma's better homes and gardens cookbook. It's put away with her other cookbooks. Very loved! It's held together with duct tape. I believe it's the 1971 edition. I will be pulling it out today after watching your video.
Hi Corey! Hope you found your grandma's copy of the BH&G cookbook - it's nice that you have it! It must have been well used if it needed to be taped up - a sign of a good cookbook! Thanks!
These are such beautiful and practical books! I love the concept of "tested recipes" as well. I really could have used one of these when I was on my own for the first time! The binder format with the tabs is a wonder way to organize and access specific information. My favorite aesthetic of all of the books shown is the mid 1950s! I'll keep my eyes open for these at my local second bookstore and at thrift shops... hopefully some of these made their way to Canada lol. Thanks Kevin! Fawn 😊
@@edgrossman8929 Thank you for the recommendation! I can certainly look it up when I get a chance. Fortunately, my cooking skills are acceptable, and I've developed friendships with others who enjoy cooking. Although I certainly could have used a basic and proficient book in my younger years! I'm dating myself, but youtube didn't exist yet when I started out on my own lol. I truly believe things like cooking, finances, etc deserve more emphasis from an educational standpoint geared towards youth to better prepare them for life as adults! Thanks again for the book rec! Fawn 😊
I have one. It must be 80s or early 90s edition. I do like the layout. I used one a lot when I first got married called the absolute beginner cookbook or how long do I cook a 3 minute egg. The title cracked me up so I got it. I got married when I was 18. While not an absolute beginner (I actually had a home ec class in middle school, shocking 😂) I was still really green
Hi Lisa - I've heard from so many people over the years that really learned the basics of cooking from cookbooks like these. I think I've seen the Absolute Beginner cookbook! Thanks!
I have 2 copies of the Canadian Cookbook. Two daughters to inherit. One from the early 60s. One, my first from the 70s. The 70s one was a textbook my sister had from her first year at university. She did not want it. It gives basic recipes and how to make variations from there. I even gave them as wedding gifts. It was the perfect Cookbook. And because it was a university book, all recipes were tested. Unfortunately it died when the Canadian government changed to metric. People stopped buying both cookbooks and measuring cups once they did that. Or they went across the boarder to buy them. By the time the law relaxed it was gone. I half to eat gluten free, lugume free and low carb now, and I have been able to convert recipes from it easily. Unfortunately very hard to get old copies. Most people never give them up.
I also have an old Cookbook that came with a Moffit stove. It teaches you how to cook a full meal in their new range. You could set the temperature for the oven to exactlymwhat you wanted.
I also have a couple of old "university cookbooks" from the early 1950s. These were actually textbooks that were used for degrees in home economics. They taught practical cooking skills and were full of solid, time-tested recipes that work. The 2 university cookbooks I have were from the University of Kansas in the 1950s.
Hi Dawn - I don't know that I've seen the Canadian Cookbook. I'm fairly close to Canada but it seems few copies made their way over from Ontario. These would have been the perfect gift for a wedding. In the mid-70's it really looked like the US was going to go to metric, but it never happened. I don't know what that would have done for all the old cookbooks. I can see why people held on to their old copies! Thanks!
reinforcements? o gosh I'd forgotten about those. I bought one of these in a used book store a few years back from around 53 and use it, especially when I feel nostalgic for the meals my mom and gram would prepare.
This was a great episode! I learned how to cook using the 1970 edition, which i bought in the late 80s. The quick breads, pancakes, cinnamon rolls gave me a huge boost of confidence. I found a dearly used & loved BHG 1948 edition that I bought. Years later I found a reprint. To tell you the truth the 1971 edition is the one i really use. Since old cookbooks weren't expensive i started buying them like mad.
Thanks, Sandra! I've heard from many who learned a lot about cooking from these books! The bread recipes in this book are all great. I'm like you - I find old cook books for fifty cents and I pick them up! Too hard to resist! Thanks!
Kevin when my mom moved out and got married in 70 or 71, my grandma bought her that years version of the cookbook because she didn't even know how to boil water! 😉 Over the years that book taught her everything she needed to know. I still have it to this day. Very soon my own daughters will be out on thier own, and you can guess what I'll be buying for them. Except, they'll probably request the kindle version! 🙄 By the way, Amazon has the 100th anniversary edition out already around $23 I think. Anyway, loved this episode! ~ Gregory
Hi Gregory - it's wonderful that you have your mom's copy of the cookbook. That's a very special thing to have especially since you know she learned a lot from that book. A cookbook like this is the perfect gift for those just starting out on their own. I'm sure they make a digital version - LOL! I'm glad they still print a paper copy. I'll check Amazon for that 100th anniversary edition. Thanks!
😊❤...MY MOM BOUGHT ME THIS COOK BOOK AFTER I GOT MARRIED IN THE 60'S...I STILL HAVE IT WITH GREAT MEMORIES!!!😊😘😊...IT WAS SUCH A HELP TO ME AS A YOUNG COOK!!!❤
Before the internet for recipes I had the Better Homes new cook book. It is well used. I really liked this episode. I enjoy your channel very much. My favorite recipe from the 1989 edition is chocolate revel bars on page 107.
I really loved this video. I too love cookbooks. The books from the beginning of WW2 and the middle of the war are the best. I could not imagine living in a city and having to live off of ration cards. At least those in the country that had small farms with chickens and cows could get along a little better. Understanding what could be substituted for one thing or another had to be learned quickly.
Thanks, outaview! I have a few war-time cookbooks where they talk about how to maximize and cook with rations. People managed somehow - it was all part of the war effort. Thanks!
This is the cookbook my Mom used, circa 1960's. I remember the pages falling out of the binder because the holes gave out. Well used. Mom gave me a nice paperback version with color photos for my birthday in 1990, I still use it. That's the recipe I use for coconut cream and chocolate pies, and apple pie. It's a great cookbook.
I always liked the Better Homes cookbooks. They also had a home decorating binder and a handyman binder. Speaking of free items in detergent. Remember the Crystal Oats dishes in the can of oats? My mother had a stack of those she saved out of the oats. They are now a big collector item.
Hi Johnny! I have the BH&G handyman binder and sewing binder - they are set up in the same way as the cookbook. We didn't have Crystal Oats here in Michigan (at least that I can recall), but I've heard about the dishes they used to put in the cartons. Thanks!
@@cavalcadeoffood I just found myself a 1971 edition, ring-bound Better Homes cookbook in mint condition for $3. I am on the lookout for the 1950s version too.
The recipes will work perfectly, My neighbor who was a fantastic cook got a Better Homes cookbook when she married shortly after WW2, She said the cream pies and lemon pie was the best of all she had ever tried.
Hans - the recipes are well written and thoroughly tested, so if you follow the instructions the recipe should turn out. I made the lemon pie from this book a long time ago and it was terrific. Thanks!!
I learned how to cook from the 1951 version. It inspired me to go into the restaurant business. Your videos are always such a pleasant reminder of wonderful days gone by. Thank you Kevin!
I was raised with The American Woman's Cookbook. My mother's 1942 wartime copy fell apart from use & I now use a 1939 version. It is still relevant. It has an instructive section which greatly assisted me when I was a Home Ec student. I also love any of the Swans Down booklets.
I come across the Better Homes and Gardens cookbooks all the time in thrift stores, garage sales, estate sales, etc. I've picked up quite a few of them. My collection of cookbooks is nowhere near as extensive as yours but, the cookbooks that I do have I cherish. I'm looking forward to more of your vlogs about your collection of cookbooks, well, pretty much any part of your awesome collections!!
I've got a collection of various BH&G cookbooks, too. I think my BH&G was my first cookbook after leaving home, early '90's. I love some of those recipes. My mil started culling hers, and I would take her cast-off editions. As well as other cookbooks she no longer wanted. And I've collected a few more since. Some older editions. I just got one off eBay, 1947, that came chock-full of hand written recipes, newspaper and other various clippings, and some leaflet cookbooks. 💚 One is a pretty substantial paperback of 100 pages for Wesson oil, 1955. One leaflet cookbook, a 1948 Merita Bread booklet, someone made some holes in it, and forced it on the binder rings. 😄 All the loose recipes in this one are simply loose, and they did not employ the pocket at the back that is provided for the purpose. 😄 This lady was all about cakes. The first cake page has come loose from the binder and almost all her extra recipes seem to be cakes. I guess she's the one in the family or neighborhood you went to when you needed a cake for an occasion or event. Lol
Wrote that before I finished watching the video. I did have some favorite recipes... I pulled my favote pages out of the binder and put in another collection of my favorite recipes I enjoyed. In high school, we had sheep. So, when I left for college... I guess my cookbook was 1989. So, before I was officially "out of the house". Because I was using it in college. We would slaughter a lamb or 2 every year and freeze all the cuts. I enjoyed taking the kebob meat. It was already cut, and a fairly tender cut of meat. Small package, enough for me for a meal and leftovers. I used a marinade in mine on those kabob chunks and would just put that in the oven. That's my stained cookbook page. 😄 My very favorite recipe I used all the time and for years and years out of that cookbook was the cornbread recipe. I also found recipes in my mom's BH&G magazine that were smaller than the regular magazine pages and made specifically to be punched and added to the binder, so I saved some of those and added to my binder when I found some I liked. My mom's BH&G was gold. Hers was most likely from 1968, when they got married. Well, probably '67. They were married New Year's Day '68. I would imagine it would have been a wedding gift. But, I don't know why either of those years would have made it gold. 1980 would have been the 50th anniversary if it started in 1930. 🤔
Hi Felecia! Sounds like you have some great old cookbooks! I always enjoy seeing the handwritten recipes - it sort of provides a look into someone's kitchen! Enjoy!
I just love your attention to detail with each show! I still have a first edition Junior Better Homes & Gardens printed in 1955 that my mom used as a teen and passed down to me! I used to "host" my little friends for lunch & would make something from the Junior cookbook, beautiful memories ❤
My mum certainly had one of these. I think the magazine also published recipes which you could cut out and insert (they had little circles showing where to punch the holes!). My "moving out" cookbook, though, was the "Joy of Cooking", which I still have some 30+ years later.
We never had these cookbooks but I see the one my mom used over your shoulder, "Companion Cookbook". We still have it. I love the pages that are splattered because those are the recipes she made the most. This was a great episode.
Fun to see all the different versions! My mom got one of these when she got married and along with the Betty Crocker cookbooks, made many meals for us.
I asked for a cookbook for Christmas my first year out on my own and my mom and dad bought me the 16th edition. My love of cookbooks started then! I have 7 different versions of the New Cookbook. I love finding them in good shape in antique stores.
Hello Kevin, I really enjoyed this episode! From this recipe book my mother made the Starlight Cake recipe for birthdays, so over the years the page has accumulated layers of cake dough splatter 😄. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Victoria! I've never made the Starlight Cake recipe in this book - I'm going to try it! When you see splattered pages that means there was a good recipe on that page! Thanks!
BH&G Cookbook 1989 paperback was a high school graduation present. I later bought the pocket paperback size of Joy of Cooking to supplement it. In the early 1990s I worked at HyVee in West Des Moines, Iowa where the buyer for the BH&G Test Kitchen did her marketing every morning. She would come through my checkstand with the most interesting grocery order. Later, I worked as a freelance writer and copy editor for Meredith Corp. I didn’t have any stories in BH&G (most of my writing was for their Special Interest Publications division) but I did occasionally provide temp cover to BH&G magazine for copy editing. Eating in the cafeteria at Meredith’s building on Grand was certainly the highlight of any day I needed to work on campus.
Hi ladyflimflam - thanks for sharing that wonderful story! Being a buyer for BH&G would be a dream job! I'll be she purchased some interesting items. I didn't know Meredith had a cafeteria in the building - the food must have been terrific! Thanks!
I have two of these cookbooks, a paperback and a reprint of the 1950s version. The cookbook I got when I got married is a 1971 pamphlet type cookbook called BH&G All-Time Favorites. It is such a great cookbook of easy recipes to learn how to cook. I have found used copies in thrift stores to give to my daughters and my copy has fallen apart and I put it in sheet protectors in a binder.
Hi Cynthia! I have a copy of the BH&G All-Time Favorites cookbook and it's a great one! Sounds like you have kept yours going with the sheet protectors! Great idea!
Better Homes and Gardens used to have recipe cutout pages in the magazine, i have several binders full that my Grandmother clipped back in the 50s and 60s.
I grew up with the ‘89 version that my mom had. It was my first cookbook that I learned to cook from, so there are many beloved recipes in it. I recently bought a copy of the ‘53 version, and their vegetable and salad recipes are wild to me. They loved to put vegetables in gelatin and call it a salad. Their meal planning section from the 50s is very interesting to see too. The recipes were designed to feed 8 people and had so many courses intended to be cooked for one meal. With women entering the work force in the 70’s, you can see that change reflected in the ‘89 version. More fast and easy recipes, the meal planning section was eliminated. They have some of the same recipes, but with different ingredients or proportions that I would really like to make and compare the flavor of. I might have to get my neighbors involved so I’m not eating 12 dozen peanut butter criss cross cookies.
Hi Jennifer! Thanks for sharing your BH&G story! There are many changes to the book over the years, especially between the 1953 and 1989 version. The world changed a lot in those years and so did the ways people cook. Thanks!
Thanks for this video! This was the first cookbook that I received when I got married in 1975. I still use it! They used to publish recipes in the magazine that you could put into your cookbook binder. I love the quick bread section and the cookie section of this book. I have quite of a collection of cookbooks but this is still my go to favorite! Have a great weekend!
I love these books,my sister has one of these cookbooks with the most delicious white bread recipe that you just mix in the bowl and it turns out beautifully after it’s baked! I need to find myself a copy!
I have the hard cover bound book for the cook of the ‘90’s given to me then by my cousin. I refer to it often. I have a short bookshelf and it stays right on top of it. Baking season is coming for cakes and pies, and appetizers and I always use it. Next to it is my grandmother’s 1950’s binder Betty Crocker book. And I have a box of the reinforcement tabs as well, lol. Still use those also.
Hi Donna! Your copy of this cookbook sounds like it has gotten good use - the sign of a good cookbook! I've got to get some more reinforcements but they are hard to find these days! LOL! Thanks!
My go-to cookbook is the 1971 version, given to my husband by his aunt before I met him. We’ve been married since 1974. The book has a few loose pages, and one cover is held on by silver duct tape. Well, we’re a little the worse for wear, too! I prefer the gingham on the bias, but maybe it’s just what I’m used to.
Do you have all the Sunset Magazine cookbooks in your collection? I think I have every one that they ever published. I recognize the Betty Crocker cookbooks on the shelf behind you. My mom was given one as a gift in the 1950’s. I have scanned the entire book onto my computer.
Yes, saw them in every kitchen. Never went to a bridal shower or housewarming party where there wasn't one of those or Betty Crocker cookbook given as a gift.
Hi, Kevin 😊 Great episode! While I learned most of my cooking skills from Joy of Cooking, (1966), I got a BH&G in the 80's and now it's my first go-to when researching a recipe. The binder and tab design makes it so much easier to navigate. I must have 50 cookbooks now, but BH&G and Joy get 80% of the traffic. Would love to see you do an episode of Joy, too!
Hi Julie! Joy of Cooking is another American classic cookbook that belongs in every kitchen. I'll do an episode on that book in the future. I don't have as many different editions, but I have a few. Thanks!
I love this review, Kevin! I have my mom's from when she was married in the late 60's and our house came with one that had belonged to the lady we bought our house from - mid 50's edition. I was also at an estate sale just this morning and the young man next to me was buying a copy! I often find myself using the Home Economics Teachers cookbooks. Good tried and true recipes! Cheers!
Hi Adam!! So nice that you have your mom's copy of this classic! I have a few Home Ec Teachers books, I'll have to find them and look at the recipes. I'm sure they are loaded with good ones! Thanks!!
Hi Kevin! Your video prompted me to go check my collection - I found a Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook binder from 1965. The binder is gold in color with gold letters and it says on the front, "Souvenir Edition commemorating the sale of 10,000,000 Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Books." :) It was a fun find for me... I had forgotten that I bought it years ago.
Hi Lisa! So glad you found your special edition!! That's a nice one to have and it's amazing that by 1965 they had already sold that many copies. Thanks!
I love cookbooks from the colonial era (Hannah Glass) and cookbooks connected with historic sites. I admit that collecting becomes an addiction even if you don't cook every day!
Hi Kevin. I love cookbooks. I have 2 Good Housekeeping books. A bound version of The Good Housekeeping Cookbook and The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook Revised and expanded edition 1988. At the beginning of the book it has hundreds of color illustrations of finished recipes. Do you have a Walgreens’s cookbook? The title is “Prescriptions for Good Taste.” Recipes from Walgreens former restaurants. Copyright 1995. I have many cookbooks that have that well used look. Thank you for another interesting and informative video.
Hi Bonnie! Good Housekeeping is another great cookbook! I have a few different editions of that one and it's full of great, tested recipes. I've never seen the Walgreen's cookbook. I'll bet it's a good one! Thanks so much!
My mother had one from the 1950's and replaced it with an edition from the 1990's. I rescued the 1950's on from the recycling bin and still have it. The one from the 1990's has only about a quarter of the content of the 1950's.
Hi! I have my mother’s 1953 edition, which I grew up with and learned from. I bought the 1981 edition and always refer to it. I make the Pfeffernuesse cookies every year. ( I add 1 tsp of anise). (1981 - page 163) They’re great! I want to try the Maraschino Quick Cake in the 1953 edition (page 118). I saw someone make it online, and it looked good too! Thanks for a great video!😊
What a great episode! And, yes, I believe the first edition was green and black, with a silver or gray field on the upper-left corner 🤔 It may have been the only one among the early years that the cover was in three colors. I hope that you find one to add to the amazing Cavalcade library!
Duane - I didn't find a first edition but a first edition found me! THANK YOU so very much! What a surprise - It's beautiful! I can't begin to thank you for this thoughtful donation to the Cavalcade library! It will be cherished - it's greatly appreciated!! All my best, Kevin
@@cavalcadeoffood it’s my go to source to learn how to do specific tasks and not just recipes. I have been enjoying Cavalcade of Food and Always Analog for about a year. Now I got my wife hooked watching them on television. Keep up the great videos!
My mom had the blue cover book. Not sure what year it is as some of the front pages are missing, but out of all the cookbooks she had that was her favorite and most used. I miss sitting around the table with her going through recipe books and making a list of what we were going to bake for the holidays.
@cavalcadoffood I would love it if you would run the camera over all the cookbooks you have, so we could see them. I can see several that I have but a can't make them all out. I love this episode!
I was thinking of doing a collection of them but doing it based on the different color pages since they changed about every decade. I have noticed that the pre-WWII ones are harder to find.
Hi Scooter! The colors did change over the years, and the photos, etc. It would be a fun way of collecting the books. The older ones are not as common as the "New" cookbooks. Thanks!
Howdy and hello, I have the 1930 edition of the better homes and gardens cook book and it is a dark green with light green and stripes. You might find a copy on the net for sale if you look hard enough. I have a 1937 copy that has seen better days and I am always looking for copies of old cook books all the time when I get the chance. And last but not least I have another Westinghouse waffle maker from 1924 with the original cord and line switch.
Thanks, Robert! I always have my eye out for the 1930 edition - hope to run across it someday. Your Westinghouse waffle iron should make wonderful waffles! Enjoy!
Kevin, this was a great episode! I, too, marvel at the changes in style & content from year to year. I don't remember my parents having one in the kitchen, however, I did see mom's Joy of Cooking (light blue w/ white pinstripe) over your right shoulder. Would be curious to see an episode on that. What year was that particular book? Sorry we missed Maryann & Ralph. Hope all are well. God bless.
I cant remember what company it was from but it was the early 1900s it gave recipes for cooking oatmeal and rice making sandwiches how to cook meats make coffee and tea my mom told me back in the olds they bought a lot of things out of barrels or you had flour sacks and the recipe was not necessarily on the box thanks
Early 1900s? Could it have been Washburn & Crosby, I'm guessing? That company still exists today but it's called General Mills. 😅 In the early 1900s Washburn & Crosby produced cookbooks to sell their wares, especially Gold Medal Flour. Eventually their cookbooks morphed into Betty Crocker, the undisputed Queen of American Cooking. When you look at it that way Betty Crocker has actually been around for 120+ years. She looks good for 120. 😅😅
Hi Pam - way back then a lot of food was still bought in bulk. You would go to the local store and get a pound of this, a pound of that, etc. Early cookbooks often didn't have standard measurements or cooking instructions. They might just say "bake until done." Thanks!
@@russbear31 not sure my mom found the book in a Chicago second hand store cover was off along with the first pages but the recipes are great it was the first time I had seen a recipe to make a ham and cheese sandwich and recipe for herb butter to go on it or to make oatmeal with amount of water and oatmeal like you would see on the side of the box mom liked a lot of the recipe it only cost 50 cents back around 1942. Mom always said it was well worth it
Beautiful penmanship ! Did you attend Catholic school ? Penmanship was a big deal in first grade. Chalk boards had lines marked with half lines in dashes. You were corrected if your letters did not conform to the spacing ! Love your channel. BTW, I collect cookbooks and have a collection of Better Home and Gardens Cookbooks with my mother's notes wedged between pages. Her penmanship was beautiful !
Thank you! I did not attend Catholic school - I went to public school but my teachers were all very strict about handwriting. We were told good handwriting was a sign of good character. I don't know if that was always the actual case, but it was a lesson learned at an early age!
Hi Kevin! Another great video! I do love the BH&G plaid cookbook! The copy my mom had in the 1980 when growing up always sees lots of use. My sister got our grandmothers copy from the 60s which I think is a really nice edition Since you have such a library of BH&G books, do you happen to have all of the "Joy" editions?
Hi bbymks - I believe that your recipe book is not the same as the BH&G. The Boston Hearald-Traveler was a newspaper and you book may be a collection of recipes from that paper. Thanks!
Meredith Publishing company is no longer in business, they were taken over by a digital media company took control of the company and ended the printing of books. Corporate offices were moved from Des Moines to New York City.
Hi PLK - I know that Meredith got bought out by another company. Looks like Amazon is selling the 100th anniversary edition of the book, so I guess some company is printing it, but it doesn't look like a binder-style book, it's a hard cover. Thanks!
Regarding unreliable recipes on food blogs on the internet: preach it, Kevin. I won’t use any American cookbooks, except Julia Child’s, written after about 1960. There’s too little testing.
Hi Nathan! I can't tell you how many cookbooks there are out there -especially new ones - where the recipes are not thoroughly tested. I've tried a few and followed the recipe to the letter, but it failed. I think the America's Test Kitchen cookbook is a good example of a modern American cookbook where the recipes are well tested. Thanks!
Lay means "to place something down flat," while lie means "to be in a flat position on a surface." You would lay the book down, but it LIES flat. Enjoy this and your other vids.
Next time you do a vintage cookbook episode it would be fun and interesting to see how the Betty Crocker cookbooks evolved. This was a lot of fun watching, pointing out the changes over the years. I agree, I love the cookbooks that really tell a story, sometimes the rag-tag conditions are a story of their own. I own my mother’s 1952 Betty Crocker cookbook, it is nearly falling apart but I love all the little notations she added. Love your channel, keep the fun coming, it is appreciated 👏👏
Hi Diana! Yes, I will do a Betty Crocker cookbook video in the future - it's another great cookbook. Wonderful that you have your mom's copy of the cookbook with her written-in notes. That's a treasure! Thanks!
You can by a reprint of that online. I have my mother's that is pieced together. I was able to buy a reprint and it was the exact same thing. I guess enough of us grew up loving that book.
I have the 14th printing (1936) edition of your 1935 one!! It was my great grandmothers! I have several of her cookbooks, including a 1942 Good Housekeeping Cookbook and HER mother's 1922 Boston Cooking School Cookbook. They are so precious to me, they all have their handwritten notes and index card recipes and newspaper clippings. I treasure them so much. There's a recipe for "Nan's Cake" in the 1936 one that I want to make because she has notes in the margin for doubling and tripling it, so it must have been a recipe she used a lot! Then there's the handwritten recipe she added for "Green Tomato Mince Meat" that has green tomatoes and apples, molasses, vinegar, raisins, and five pounds of sugar. LOL
Hi Aubrey - those cookbooks of your grandmother's are real treasures!! It's great that you have them and all the handwritten notes inside. It's a nice way to stay connected with people. Wow that green tomato mince meat must have been sweet! I don't think I've seen a recipe that called for that much sugar LOL!
Some of my favorite cookbooks are actually small community cookbooks. Of course, most of these books were not printed or distributed nationally, so its almost impossible to have a "national discussion" about one particular cookbook. I recently came across an excellent community cookbook. It was printed about 20 years ago to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Hy-Vee, a huge grocery store chain in the central Midwest. They went all out. They collected 1,000+ recipes from their employees and produced probably the "mother of all community cookbooks." 😅 It's almost as thick as the Joy of Cooking. I've enjoyed reading it and trying some of the recipes.
Hi russbear - those community cook books are wonderful! Some of them have the best recipes I've ever tried and I cherish the ones I have. I never saw the Hy-Vee employee cook book but I'll bet it was filled with great recipes. A while back I did a video on community cook books - they really are treasures. Thanks!
I always enjoy your cookbook videos!! Yes please do more of them! Better Homes and Gardens books are some of my favorites. I love the Brownie Pudding recipe in the 1953 edition.
Thanks! Love your videos and all the cookbooks and recipes you showcase!! I don't think I've tried the Brownie Pudding recipe, but the name alone has me sold!
I love watching both of your channels! I have the 1989 binder edition I received before I got married. I still make the toffee butter crunch recipe from that book every Christmas.
Love this episode. I've collected almost every BH&G cookbook from about 1960 to present (up to last year's 2022 edition). I found a lot of the old editions at thrift stores for only $1. 😊 BH&G is still one of the Bibles of American cooking.
Hi Russ - glad you liked the episode! With ten of millions of copies in print, these show up often at thrift stores, rummage sales, etc. That's where most of mine came from, also, although I have my mom's copy which I cherish. Thanks!
I bought mine in 1998! Three ring binder. My favorite 💖
My Mom has one from 1962
This really interests me 😁
I am fixing to do the bread and pastry recipes! 😋
I Always enjoy every episode you share and do. Thank you for everything you Do Kevin.
You're welcome, Raymond! Appreciate you watching!
These books bring back a ton of memories! My mom had one of the late 70's/early 80's editions. I didn't often see her actually crack it open, but that iconic red gingham pattern is etched into my brain. I remember being a little confused by the spine saying that it was a "new" cookbook. "How did THEY know it was new?" I thought, especially after seeing it on the shef for so long. I eventually remember asking mom: "how can that cookbook STILL be new if you've had it for so long?" Today it's among my treasured cookbooks, along with more current editions of Joy of Cooking, and my favorite the America's Test Kitchen complete series (through 2019) cookbook.
Hi Marc - thanks for sharing that great memory about the "New" cookbook! Wonderful that you have your mom's copy! I also like that ATK cookbook - it has a lot of great recipes and tips! Thanks!
I left mine on the burner when I was a young wife. Lol! The back cover has a big black circle! I got a much newer copy, but they changed the recipes a lot, so I still used the one with the burn mark. 😄
Hi Anna! Keep that one with the burn mark - it's a great story to tell and the sign of a well used cookbook!! Thanks!
I bought a copy of this book when I moved into my first apartment. Years later, I gave copies to young friends who were just getting out on their own.
Hi brownsuga! You gave those friends the most perfect gift for someone just starting out on their own! Thanks!
Good morning Kevin!🥰 I have a couple of BH&G cook books and a couple of Betty Crocker. My prize cook books are those individual ones from the Culinary Arts Institute (from the 40s/50s). I used to love looking at them as a kid and dreaming of making and baking stuff.😊
Hi GSM! I always loved the illustrations of those Culinary Arts Institute cookbooks - everything looked so elegant and delicious! Thanks!!
I received my first BHG cookbook for Christmas when I was about 12 or 13. My son now has that copy but I have 3 others in my cookbook arsenal. What beautiful memories.
Hi Jane! It's wonderful that you passed your copy on to your son!! Thanks!
I loved this episode. I have my Mom's from the 50s and mine from the early 80s. Both are ripped, torn, recipes handwritten and cut out of magazines & newspapers all stuck inside both and they are well loved and have been well used.
Hi windingroad - those are the signs of a good cookbook! Glad you still have yours and your mom's!
It would be interesting to see a show about those odd 40s & 50s dishes I read about that don't look appealing and really funny like the strange hot dog casseroles etc...lol
I seen these Better Homes And Gardens CookBook in hardcover from the 50s plus back in those days cookbook would be wedding presents to the women
Hi RugbyFootballer! Yes, I bet many of these books were given to new brides as wedding/shower gifts. Thanks!
I bet a lot of these cookbooks ended up in thrift stores after the divorce. 😅😅😅
I have my mother's Better Homes cookbook. It's the 1962 edition if not mistaken. Definitely been used, even has her notes, sometimes in green ballpoint pen. I also have a copy of my grandmother's 70's orange Betty Crocker cookbook too, with insert.
I do use Mom's old Better Homes for biscuits and pancakes, and use the recipes she used and found to be good from time to time.
Hi John - great that you have copies of your mom's and grandmother's cookbooks! These are treasures to have! Thanks!
I’ve been watching all of your videos. Please don’t ever stop producing videos - I love it!!! Very nostalgic.
Thanks for watching, tinag! Glad you enjoy the videos!
I love cookbooks. Just reading through them I learn so much. And, btw, I've got boxes and boxes of cookbooks of all sorts. They need a new/good home. If you'd be interested in loads of cookbooks, let me know and I'll make a trip to you and you can have them. Love you, Valli
Hi Valli! I feel the same way about cookbooks - I learn so much from them! I always have a couple on my nightstand and I read them like novels! LOL! Thank you for your kind and generous offer! If there are cookbooks that I don't have already, I would be interested in adding them to the library!
@@cavalcadeoffood Sounds great, Kevin! I have a ton of cookbooks. Can't possibly know what you might have that would be a duplicate, of course. How about I just bring the lot, you pick all, or whatever suits your fancy. Just let me know when would be a good time to meet up. Love ya, Valli
@@vallis1469 Great! Thanks so much, Valli! Please send me an email and we can figure out the date and details: cavalcadevintage@gmail.com Thanks so much!!! - Kevin
I have 2 go-to-often cookbooks. 1. The old orange Betty Crocker's Cookbook, think from the 70's, and 2. Mennonite Country-Style Recipes and Kitchen Secrets by Esther H. Shank....a simply wonderful book! The no-bake cookie recipe is used nearly monthly. HA
Hi Valli!! The orange BC cookbook is a great one! I don't know if I've seen the Esther H. Shank cookbook but I'm going to check it out! Thanks!
I have the '96 edition, found at the thrift store. Our go to's are the chocolate chip cookies, the puff pancake, and the banana bread recipes, but that book is our first reference. I love cookbooks and collect them, I uave a dedicated full length bookshelf in my dining area showcasing my collection so I appreciate this video. I also have a Betty Crocker binder cookbook in a beautiful orange color from the 1970's , I'm guessing it was their version of this cookbook. So fun!
This edition is my favorite too! I love all of the categories ❤
Hi Veronica! It's sounds like you have a wonderful collection of cookbooks and glad they are on display! That orange Betty Crocker cookbook is a good one - lots of wonderful recipes! Thanks!
This was a fun episode. I have my grandma's better homes and gardens cookbook. It's put away with her other cookbooks. Very loved! It's held together with duct tape. I believe it's the 1971 edition. I will be pulling it out today after watching your video.
Hi Corey! Hope you found your grandma's copy of the BH&G cookbook - it's nice that you have it! It must have been well used if it needed to be taped up - a sign of a good cookbook! Thanks!
These are such beautiful and practical books! I love the concept of "tested recipes" as well. I really could have used one of these when I was on my own for the first time!
The binder format with the tabs is a wonder way to organize and access specific information. My favorite aesthetic of all of the books shown is the mid 1950s!
I'll keep my eyes open for these at my local second bookstore and at thrift shops... hopefully some of these made their way to Canada lol. Thanks Kevin!
Fawn 😊
The Fanny Farmer cook book taught me how to cook
@@edgrossman8929 Thank you for the recommendation! I can certainly look it up when I get a chance.
Fortunately, my cooking skills are acceptable, and I've developed friendships with others who enjoy cooking. Although I certainly could have used a basic and proficient book in my younger years! I'm dating myself, but youtube didn't exist yet when I started out on my own lol.
I truly believe things like cooking, finances, etc deserve more emphasis from an educational standpoint geared towards youth to better prepare them for life as adults!
Thanks again for the book rec!
Fawn 😊
Hi Ed! The Fanny Farmer book is another great one!
Hi Fawn! I'm certain these were available in Canada. Keep an eye on the thrift stores and book sales, I'm sure you'll run across a copy. Thanks!!
I have one. It must be 80s or early 90s edition. I do like the layout. I used one a lot when I first got married called the absolute beginner cookbook or how long do I cook a 3 minute egg. The title cracked me up so I got it. I got married when I was 18. While not an absolute beginner (I actually had a home ec class in middle school, shocking 😂) I was still really green
Hi Lisa - I've heard from so many people over the years that really learned the basics of cooking from cookbooks like these. I think I've seen the Absolute Beginner cookbook! Thanks!
I have the 1976 printing I received for a wedding shower gift. My families favorite comfort dish is the chicken pot pie recipe.
Great that you still have yours from your wedding shower! My mom would make that chicken pot pie recipe - it's wonderful! Thanks!
I have 2 copies of the Canadian Cookbook. Two daughters to inherit.
One from the early 60s. One, my first from the 70s. The 70s one was a textbook my sister had from her first year at university. She did not want it. It gives basic recipes and how to make variations from there.
I even gave them as wedding gifts. It was the perfect Cookbook.
And because it was a university book, all recipes were tested.
Unfortunately it died when the Canadian government changed to metric. People stopped buying both cookbooks and measuring cups once they did that. Or they went across the boarder to buy them.
By the time the law relaxed it was gone.
I half to eat gluten free, lugume free and low carb now, and I have been able to convert recipes from it easily.
Unfortunately very hard to get old copies. Most people never give them up.
I also have an old Cookbook that came with a Moffit stove. It teaches you how to cook a full meal in their new range. You could set the temperature for the oven to exactlymwhat you wanted.
I also have a couple of old "university cookbooks" from the early 1950s. These were actually textbooks that were used for degrees in home economics. They taught practical cooking skills and were full of solid, time-tested recipes that work. The 2 university cookbooks I have were from the University of Kansas in the 1950s.
Hi Dawn - I don't know that I've seen the Canadian Cookbook. I'm fairly close to Canada but it seems few copies made their way over from Ontario. These would have been the perfect gift for a wedding. In the mid-70's it really looked like the US was going to go to metric, but it never happened. I don't know what that would have done for all the old cookbooks. I can see why people held on to their old copies! Thanks!
reinforcements? o gosh I'd forgotten about those. I bought one of these in a used book store a few years back from around 53 and use it, especially when I feel nostalgic for the meals my mom and gram would prepare.
Hi Knitter - nice that you found an old edition and use it once in a while! Enjoy!
This was a great episode! I learned how to cook using the 1970 edition, which i bought in the late 80s. The quick breads, pancakes, cinnamon rolls gave me a huge boost of confidence. I found a dearly used & loved BHG 1948 edition that I bought. Years later I found a reprint. To tell you the truth the 1971 edition is the one i really use.
Since old cookbooks weren't expensive i started buying them like mad.
Thanks, Sandra! I've heard from many who learned a lot about cooking from these books! The bread recipes in this book are all great. I'm like you - I find old cook books for fifty cents and I pick them up! Too hard to resist! Thanks!
Kevin when my mom moved out and got married in 70 or 71, my grandma bought her that years version of the cookbook because she didn't even know how to boil water! 😉 Over the years that book taught her everything she needed to know. I still have it to this day. Very soon my own daughters will be out on thier own, and you can guess what I'll be buying for them. Except, they'll probably request the kindle version! 🙄 By the way, Amazon has the 100th anniversary edition out already around $23 I think. Anyway, loved this episode! ~ Gregory
Hi Gregory - it's wonderful that you have your mom's copy of the cookbook. That's a very special thing to have especially since you know she learned a lot from that book. A cookbook like this is the perfect gift for those just starting out on their own. I'm sure they make a digital version - LOL! I'm glad they still print a paper copy. I'll check Amazon for that 100th anniversary edition. Thanks!
😊❤...MY MOM BOUGHT ME THIS COOK BOOK AFTER I GOT MARRIED IN THE 60'S...I STILL HAVE IT WITH GREAT MEMORIES!!!😊😘😊...IT WAS SUCH A HELP TO ME AS A YOUNG COOK!!!❤
Hi d.watson - so glad you still have your copy! What a great gift from your mom!!
Before the internet for recipes I had the Better Homes new cook book. It is well used. I really liked this episode. I enjoy your channel very much. My favorite recipe from the 1989 edition is chocolate revel bars on page 107.
Thanks so much! I'm going to check out that recipe for the chocolate revel bars - sounds great!
I really loved this video. I too love cookbooks. The books from the beginning of WW2 and the middle of the war are the best. I could not imagine living in a city and having to live off of ration cards. At least those in the country that had small farms with chickens and cows could get along a little better. Understanding what could be substituted for one thing or another had to be learned quickly.
Thanks, outaview! I have a few war-time cookbooks where they talk about how to maximize and cook with rations. People managed somehow - it was all part of the war effort. Thanks!
👩🍳I'm so glad I clicked on this video! Thank you for highlighting this Iconic Cookbook 🥰
I'm glad you clicked on it too! Thanks - glad you enjoyed the video!
This is the cookbook my Mom used, circa 1960's. I remember the pages falling out of the binder because the holes gave out. Well used. Mom gave me a nice paperback version with color photos for my birthday in 1990, I still use it. That's the recipe I use for coconut cream and chocolate pies, and apple pie. It's a great cookbook.
Thanks, sputnik! There's a reason this cookbook has been so popular for so many years. Great recipes. Thanks!
I always liked the Better Homes cookbooks. They also had a home decorating binder and a handyman binder.
Speaking of free items in detergent. Remember the Crystal Oats dishes in the can of oats? My mother had a stack of those she saved out of the oats. They are now a big collector item.
Hi Johnny! I have the BH&G handyman binder and sewing binder - they are set up in the same way as the cookbook. We didn't have Crystal Oats here in Michigan (at least that I can recall), but I've heard about the dishes they used to put in the cartons. Thanks!
@@cavalcadeoffood I just found myself a 1971 edition, ring-bound Better Homes cookbook in mint condition for $3. I am on the lookout for the 1950s version too.
The recipes will work perfectly, My neighbor who was a fantastic cook got a Better Homes cookbook when she married shortly after WW2, She said the cream pies and lemon pie was the best of all she had ever tried.
Hans - the recipes are well written and thoroughly tested, so if you follow the instructions the recipe should turn out. I made the lemon pie from this book a long time ago and it was terrific. Thanks!!
I learned how to cook from the 1951 version. It inspired me to go into the restaurant business. Your videos are always such a pleasant reminder of wonderful days gone by. Thank you Kevin!
You're welcome, cscs! Glad you enjoy the videos and I appreciate you watching!
Yes this was truly memorable I’ve got my parents old joy of cooking probably from the 1950s❤
Hi Connie! Thanks so much! The Joy of Cooking is another classic - great that you have your parent's copy!
I was raised with The American Woman's Cookbook. My mother's 1942 wartime copy fell apart from use & I now use a 1939 version. It is still relevant. It has an instructive section which greatly assisted me when I was a Home Ec student. I also love any of the Swans Down booklets.
Hi mrruggles - I think I have a couple of editions of the American Woman's Cookbook. Swan Down did put out a number of wonderful recipes!! Thanks!
I come across the Better Homes and Gardens cookbooks all the time in thrift stores, garage sales, estate sales, etc. I've picked up quite a few of them. My collection of cookbooks is nowhere near as extensive as yours but, the cookbooks that I do have I cherish. I'm looking forward to more of your vlogs about your collection of cookbooks, well, pretty much any part of your awesome collections!!
Thanks, Ma Pooh! Sounds like you have a nice collection that you really enjoy! I'll do more of these - thanks!
Very interesting. Think my mom had one. I'd like to have a Betty Crocker Cooky book.
Thanks, TW!
I've got a collection of various BH&G cookbooks, too.
I think my BH&G was my first cookbook after leaving home, early '90's. I love some of those recipes. My mil started culling hers, and I would take her cast-off editions. As well as other cookbooks she no longer wanted. And I've collected a few more since. Some older editions.
I just got one off eBay, 1947, that came chock-full of hand written recipes, newspaper and other various clippings, and some leaflet cookbooks. 💚 One is a pretty substantial paperback of 100 pages for Wesson oil, 1955.
One leaflet cookbook, a 1948 Merita Bread booklet, someone made some holes in it, and forced it on the binder rings. 😄
All the loose recipes in this one are simply loose, and they did not employ the pocket at the back that is provided for the purpose. 😄
This lady was all about cakes. The first cake page has come loose from the binder and almost all her extra recipes seem to be cakes. I guess she's the one in the family or neighborhood you went to when you needed a cake for an occasion or event. Lol
Wrote that before I finished watching the video.
I did have some favorite recipes... I pulled my favote pages out of the binder and put in another collection of my favorite recipes I enjoyed. In high school, we had sheep. So, when I left for college... I guess my cookbook was 1989. So, before I was officially "out of the house". Because I was using it in college.
We would slaughter a lamb or 2 every year and freeze all the cuts. I enjoyed taking the kebob meat. It was already cut, and a fairly tender cut of meat. Small package, enough for me for a meal and leftovers. I used a marinade in mine on those kabob chunks and would just put that in the oven. That's my stained cookbook page. 😄
My very favorite recipe I used all the time and for years and years out of that cookbook was the cornbread recipe.
I also found recipes in my mom's BH&G magazine that were smaller than the regular magazine pages and made specifically to be punched and added to the binder, so I saved some of those and added to my binder when I found some I liked.
My mom's BH&G was gold. Hers was most likely from 1968, when they got married. Well, probably '67. They were married New Year's Day '68. I would imagine it would have been a wedding gift. But, I don't know why either of those years would have made it gold. 1980 would have been the 50th anniversary if it started in 1930. 🤔
Hi Felecia! Sounds like you have some great old cookbooks! I always enjoy seeing the handwritten recipes - it sort of provides a look into someone's kitchen! Enjoy!
I just love your attention to detail with each show! I still have a first edition Junior Better Homes & Gardens printed in 1955 that my mom used as a teen and passed down to me! I used to "host" my little friends for lunch & would make something from the Junior cookbook, beautiful memories ❤
Hi Elle - what a nice memory! I think I have an old copy of the Junior edition - many fun recipes in there for young cooks! Thanks!
My mom had a Betty Crocker cookbook in the same binder style
Hi Mark! Yes, my mom had the BC and BH&G in binders. I'll do a video on the Betty Crocker books in the future. Thanks!!
My wife got hers for a wedding gift in 1979. we love the brownie recipe.
Hi Fred - that's a good brownie recipe!! Thanks!
My mum certainly had one of these. I think the magazine also published recipes which you could cut out and insert (they had little circles showing where to punch the holes!). My "moving out" cookbook, though, was the "Joy of Cooking", which I still have some 30+ years later.
Hi - I remember those old tear out recipes in the magazine. The Joy of Cooking is another wonderful classic cookbook. Thanks!
We never had these cookbooks but I see the one my mom used over your shoulder, "Companion Cookbook". We still have it. I love the pages that are splattered because those are the recipes she made the most. This was a great episode.
Hi Peggy - those pages that are torn and splattered are the sign of a good recipe!! Thanks so much!
Fun to see all the different versions! My mom got one of these when she got married and along with the Betty Crocker cookbooks, made many meals for us.
Thanks, mathgeek!
I asked for a cookbook for Christmas my first year out on my own and my mom and dad bought me the 16th edition. My love of cookbooks started then! I have 7 different versions of the New Cookbook. I love finding them in good shape in antique stores.
Hi Barb - sounds like you have gathered a nice collection of these cookbooks! They are one of the best! Thanks!
Hello Kevin, I really enjoyed this episode! From this recipe book my mother made the Starlight Cake recipe for birthdays, so over the years the page has accumulated layers of cake dough splatter 😄. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Victoria! I've never made the Starlight Cake recipe in this book - I'm going to try it! When you see splattered pages that means there was a good recipe on that page! Thanks!
BH&G Cookbook 1989 paperback was a high school graduation present. I later bought the pocket paperback size of Joy of Cooking to supplement it. In the early 1990s I worked at HyVee in West Des Moines, Iowa where the buyer for the BH&G Test Kitchen did her marketing every morning. She would come through my checkstand with the most interesting grocery order. Later, I worked as a freelance writer and copy editor for Meredith Corp. I didn’t have any stories in BH&G (most of my writing was for their Special Interest Publications division) but I did occasionally provide temp cover to BH&G magazine for copy editing. Eating in the cafeteria at Meredith’s building on Grand was certainly the highlight of any day I needed to work on campus.
Hi ladyflimflam - thanks for sharing that wonderful story! Being a buyer for BH&G would be a dream job! I'll be she purchased some interesting items. I didn't know Meredith had a cafeteria in the building - the food must have been terrific! Thanks!
I can’t believe I don’t have one of these cookbooks! I’m on the lookout now! Another very educational and interesting video, thanks 😊
Hi Judy - you'll find one! There were tens of millions printed over the years, so they show up frequently at sales.
I have two of these cookbooks, a paperback and a reprint of the 1950s version. The cookbook I got when I got married is a 1971 pamphlet type cookbook called BH&G All-Time Favorites. It is such a great cookbook of easy recipes to learn how to cook. I have found used copies in thrift stores to give to my daughters and my copy has fallen apart and I put it in sheet protectors in a binder.
Hi Cynthia! I have a copy of the BH&G All-Time Favorites cookbook and it's a great one! Sounds like you have kept yours going with the sheet protectors! Great idea!
My mom has a paperback Better Homes and Gardens cookbook that has fallen apart from frequent use. This was an interesting video. :)
Better Homes and Gardens used to have recipe cutout pages in the magazine, i have several binders full that my Grandmother clipped back in the 50s and 60s.
Hi Hans - I remember seeing those cut out pages when I was a kid. My mom subscribed to BH&G and Good Housekeeping off and on. Hope all is well!
LOVE this channel!!! It takes me back to my childhood.
Thanks, Carolyn!
I grew up with the ‘89 version that my mom had. It was my first cookbook that I learned to cook from, so there are many beloved recipes in it. I recently bought a copy of the ‘53 version, and their vegetable and salad recipes are wild to me. They loved to put vegetables in gelatin and call it a salad. Their meal planning section from the 50s is very interesting to see too. The recipes were designed to feed 8 people and had so many courses intended to be cooked for one meal. With women entering the work force in the 70’s, you can see that change reflected in the ‘89 version. More fast and easy recipes, the meal planning section was eliminated. They have some of the same recipes, but with different ingredients or proportions that I would really like to make and compare the flavor of. I might have to get my neighbors involved so I’m not eating 12 dozen peanut butter criss cross cookies.
Hi Jennifer! Thanks for sharing your BH&G story! There are many changes to the book over the years, especially between the 1953 and 1989 version. The world changed a lot in those years and so did the ways people cook. Thanks!
Thanks for this video! This was the first cookbook that I received when I got married in 1975. I still use it! They used to publish recipes in the magazine that you could put into your cookbook binder. I love the quick bread section and the cookie section of this book. I have quite of a collection of cookbooks but this is still my go to favorite! Have a great weekend!
Thanks, Terry Sue! I also love the quick bread section of this book - a lot of good recipes! Thanks!
I love these books,my sister has one of these cookbooks with the most delicious white bread recipe that you just mix in the bowl and it turns out beautifully after it’s baked! I need to find myself a copy!
Hi CC! These books are out there! I'll have to look at that bread recipe - it sounds wonderful! Thanks!
I have the hard cover bound book for the cook of the ‘90’s given to me then by my cousin. I refer to it often. I have a short bookshelf and it stays right on top of it. Baking season is coming for cakes and pies, and appetizers and I always use it. Next to it is my grandmother’s 1950’s binder Betty Crocker book. And I have a box of the reinforcement tabs as well, lol. Still use those also.
Hi Donna! Your copy of this cookbook sounds like it has gotten good use - the sign of a good cookbook! I've got to get some more reinforcements but they are hard to find these days! LOL! Thanks!
Oh my gosh! Picked up a 1953 edition today from an estate sale! Funny timing. Love it!
Hi Thissandthat! The 1953 edition is a great one in this series - lots of terrific recipes and photos from the period. Glad you picked it up! Enjoy!
@@cavalcadeoffood so excited to start using it! Thank you!
My go-to cookbook is the 1971 version, given to my husband by his aunt before I met him. We’ve been married since 1974. The book has a few loose pages, and one cover is held on by silver duct tape. Well, we’re a little the worse for wear, too! I prefer the gingham on the bias, but maybe it’s just what I’m used to.
Hi Carolyn - sounds like your edition has seen a lot of use! That's the sign of a great cookbook! Thanks!
Do you have all the Sunset Magazine cookbooks in your collection? I think I have every one that they ever published. I recognize the Betty Crocker cookbooks on the shelf behind you. My mom was given one as a gift in the 1950’s. I have scanned the entire book onto my computer.
Hi wmalden - I have a few Sunset cookbooks in the library, but not everyone. They published so many of them over the years with great recipes! Thanks!
Good show 👍
Thanks so much, Charles!
Loved this! I have a 1953 and 2008 edition and I love them! Could you do a series on Betty Crocker next? Thanks!☺
Hi Marsha! Enjoy your editions! Yes, I'll do one on Betty Crocker in the future! Thanks!
Yes, saw them in every kitchen. Never went to a bridal shower or housewarming party where there wasn't one of those or Betty Crocker cookbook given as a gift.
Hi Carolyn - yes, I seemed to see this book in almost every kitchen. I can imagine a lot of these were shower gifts!
Hi, Kevin 😊 Great episode! While I learned most of my cooking skills from Joy of Cooking, (1966), I got a BH&G in the 80's and now it's my first go-to when researching a recipe. The binder and tab design makes it so much easier to navigate. I must have 50 cookbooks now, but BH&G and Joy get 80% of the traffic. Would love to see you do an episode of Joy, too!
Hi Julie! Joy of Cooking is another American classic cookbook that belongs in every kitchen. I'll do an episode on that book in the future. I don't have as many different editions, but I have a few. Thanks!
I love this review, Kevin! I have my mom's from when she was married in the late 60's and our house came with one that had belonged to the lady we bought our house from - mid 50's edition. I was also at an estate sale just this morning and the young man next to me was buying a copy! I often find myself using the Home Economics Teachers cookbooks. Good tried and true recipes! Cheers!
Hi Adam!! So nice that you have your mom's copy of this classic! I have a few Home Ec Teachers books, I'll have to find them and look at the recipes. I'm sure they are loaded with good ones! Thanks!!
Hi Kevin! Your video prompted me to go check my collection - I found a Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook binder from 1965. The binder is gold in color with gold letters and it says on the front, "Souvenir Edition commemorating the sale of 10,000,000 Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Books." :) It was a fun find for me... I had forgotten that I bought it years ago.
Hi Lisa! So glad you found your special edition!! That's a nice one to have and it's amazing that by 1965 they had already sold that many copies. Thanks!
I love cookbooks from the colonial era (Hannah Glass) and cookbooks connected with historic sites. I admit that collecting becomes an addiction even if you don't cook every day!
Hi Amy! I'll bet there are some interesting recipes from the colonial era cookbooks! It's easy to get hooked on cookbooks! Thanks!
I love this episode. Can you please do Betty Crocker’s cookbooks and show us your BC collection.
Hi Grace! Yes, I'll do one on the Betty Crocker books in the future -that will be fun! Thanks!
Hi Kevin. I love cookbooks. I have 2 Good Housekeeping books. A bound version of The Good Housekeeping Cookbook and The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook Revised and expanded edition 1988. At the beginning of the book it has hundreds of color illustrations of finished recipes. Do you have a Walgreens’s cookbook? The title is “Prescriptions for Good Taste.” Recipes from Walgreens former restaurants. Copyright 1995. I have many cookbooks that have that well used look. Thank you for another interesting and informative video.
Hi Bonnie! Good Housekeeping is another great cookbook! I have a few different editions of that one and it's full of great, tested recipes. I've never seen the Walgreen's cookbook. I'll bet it's a good one! Thanks so much!
My mother had one from the 1950's and replaced it with an edition from the 1990's. I rescued the 1950's on from the recycling bin and still have it. The one from the 1990's has only about a quarter of the content of the 1950's.
Your mom probably had a version of the 1953 edition, which is one of the best! Glad you saved it!
What a great collections of cookbooks you have
Thanks, Earl! I get a lot of inspiration from these books!
@@cavalcadeoffood Great keep on cooking
Hi! I have my mother’s 1953 edition, which I grew up with and learned from. I bought the 1981 edition and always refer to it. I make the Pfeffernuesse cookies every year. ( I add 1 tsp of anise). (1981 - page 163) They’re great! I want to try the Maraschino Quick Cake in the 1953 edition (page 118). I saw someone make it online, and it looked good too! Thanks for a great video!😊
Hi corashell! Thanks for the tips on the Better Homes & Gardens recipes you like!
What a great episode! And, yes, I believe the first edition was green and black, with a silver or gray field on the upper-left corner 🤔 It may have been the only one among the early years that the cover was in three colors. I hope that you find one to add to the amazing Cavalcade library!
Duane - I didn't find a first edition but a first edition found me! THANK YOU so very much! What a surprise - It's beautiful! I can't begin to thank you for this thoughtful donation to the Cavalcade library! It will be cherished - it's greatly appreciated!! All my best, Kevin
You are so very welcome, Kevin 😊 I'm glad to have made even a small contribution to the awesomeness that is Cavalcade of Food ❤
Hi, I have the 1996 edition. My first copy got lost in a move. I go to this as a reference and I make the candied sweet potatoes every year.
It's about that time of year for candied sweet potatoes! I'll have to look at that recipe. Thanks!
I bought a large softcover around 1990 and have used it to pieces.
Hi Jake - sounds like your copy has had a lot of good use! it's a great cookbook!
@@cavalcadeoffood it’s my go to source to learn how to do specific tasks and not just recipes. I have been enjoying Cavalcade of Food and Always Analog for about a year. Now I got my wife hooked watching them on television. Keep up the great videos!
My mom had the blue cover book. Not sure what year it is as some of the front pages are missing, but out of all the cookbooks she had that was her favorite and most used. I miss sitting around the table with her going through recipe books and making a list of what we were going to bake for the holidays.
Thanks for sharing that wonderful memory of your mom and this cookbook!
@cavalcadoffood I would love it if you would run the camera over all the cookbooks you have, so we could see them. I can see several that I have but a can't make them all out. I love this episode!
Thanks! I'll try to show more of the cookbooks in the future!
I was thinking of doing a collection of them but doing it based on the different color pages since they changed about every decade. I have noticed that the pre-WWII ones are harder to find.
Hi Scooter! The colors did change over the years, and the photos, etc. It would be a fun way of collecting the books. The older ones are not as common as the "New" cookbooks. Thanks!
Howdy and hello,
I have the 1930 edition of the better homes and gardens cook book and it is a dark green with light green and stripes. You might find a copy on the net for sale if you look hard enough. I have a 1937 copy that has seen better days and I am always looking for copies of old cook books all the time when I get the chance. And last but not least I have another Westinghouse waffle maker from 1924 with the original cord and line switch.
Thanks, Robert! I always have my eye out for the 1930 edition - hope to run across it someday. Your Westinghouse waffle iron should make wonderful waffles! Enjoy!
I have a BH&G, 1936 4th edition and 1944 - 1976…..
Hi Robin - those are all wonderful editions! Enjoy!
Kevin, this was a great episode! I, too, marvel at the changes in style & content from year to year. I don't remember my parents having one in the kitchen, however, I did see mom's Joy of Cooking (light blue w/ white pinstripe) over your right shoulder. Would be curious to see an episode on that. What year was that particular book? Sorry we missed Maryann & Ralph. Hope all are well. God bless.
Hi Sallie - I believe that old edition of Joy of Cooking is from the 50's. I plan to do an episode on that iconic cook book, also. Thanks!
I cant remember what company it was from but it was the early 1900s it gave recipes for cooking oatmeal and rice making sandwiches how to cook meats make coffee and tea my mom told me back in the olds they bought a lot of things out of barrels or you had flour sacks and the recipe was not necessarily on the box thanks
Early 1900s? Could it have been Washburn & Crosby, I'm guessing? That company still exists today but it's called General Mills. 😅 In the early 1900s Washburn & Crosby produced cookbooks to sell their wares, especially Gold Medal Flour. Eventually their cookbooks morphed into Betty Crocker, the undisputed Queen of American Cooking. When you look at it that way Betty Crocker has actually been around for 120+ years. She looks good for 120. 😅😅
Hi Pam - way back then a lot of food was still bought in bulk. You would go to the local store and get a pound of this, a pound of that, etc. Early cookbooks often didn't have standard measurements or cooking instructions. They might just say "bake until done." Thanks!
@@russbear31 not sure my mom found the book in a Chicago second hand store cover was off along with the first pages but the recipes are great it was the first time I had seen a recipe to make a ham and cheese sandwich and recipe for herb butter to go on it or to make oatmeal with amount of water and oatmeal like you would see on the side of the box mom liked a lot of the recipe it only cost 50 cents back around 1942. Mom always said it was well worth it
Cool 😀
Thanks, Michael!
Beautiful penmanship ! Did you attend Catholic school ? Penmanship was a big deal in first grade. Chalk boards had lines marked with half lines in dashes. You were corrected if your letters did not conform to the spacing ! Love your channel. BTW, I collect cookbooks and have a collection of Better Home and Gardens Cookbooks with my mother's notes wedged between pages. Her penmanship was beautiful !
Thank you! I did not attend Catholic school - I went to public school but my teachers were all very strict about handwriting. We were told good handwriting was a sign of good character. I don't know if that was always the actual case, but it was a lesson learned at an early age!
Hi Kevin! Another great video! I do love the BH&G plaid cookbook! The copy my mom had in the 1980 when growing up always sees lots of use. My sister got our grandmothers copy from the 60s which I think is a really nice edition
Since you have such a library of BH&G books, do you happen to have all of the "Joy" editions?
Thanks! I don't have every edition of Joy of Cooking, but I have a few. I'll have a video on that book in a few weeks.
Ha. I have the one from the 90s. I wish I had the Betty Cocker cookbook from the 50s that mom had.
I see the old Betty Crocker books out there from time to time. I think they reprinted the original edition a few years back. Thanks!
Are you selling any of those cookbooks?
Hi - I'm not a store, just a collector. I don't sell anything. Thanks!
I have a 1926 Better Homes Recipe Book by Marjorie Mills Boston Hearald-Traveler; is this different than BH&G or when did they add the &G?
Hi bbymks - I believe that your recipe book is not the same as the BH&G. The Boston Hearald-Traveler was a newspaper and you book may be a collection of recipes from that paper. Thanks!
@cavalcadeoffood thank you! I was almost positive it wasn't, but it never hurts to ask.
You should do a betty crocker cook book review :)
I'll do one in the future. Thanks!
I have always preferred Betty Crocker to BH&G and have my grandma's old 1950s copy!
🤩
Who made a better cookbook.... Betty crocker or better homes and gardens??
Hi Tamara - that's very hard to say because they were both excellent in their own ways.
Meredith Publishing company is no longer in business, they were taken over by a digital media company took control of the company and ended the printing of books. Corporate offices were moved from Des Moines to New York City.
Hi PLK - I know that Meredith got bought out by another company. Looks like Amazon is selling the 100th anniversary edition of the book, so I guess some company is printing it, but it doesn't look like a binder-style book, it's a hard cover. Thanks!
Regarding unreliable recipes on food blogs on the internet: preach it, Kevin. I won’t use any American cookbooks, except Julia Child’s, written after about 1960. There’s too little testing.
Hi Nathan! I can't tell you how many cookbooks there are out there -especially new ones - where the recipes are not thoroughly tested. I've tried a few and followed the recipe to the letter, but it failed. I think the America's Test Kitchen cookbook is a good example of a modern American cookbook where the recipes are well tested. Thanks!
Lay means "to place something down flat," while lie means "to be in a flat position on a surface." You would lay the book down, but it LIES flat. Enjoy this and your other vids.
Thank you, Arthur!