A few years ago I set out to collect my family’s recipes. It’s one of those things people are always encouraging you to do, like meditating or contributing to your 401K. Recipes can act as a bridge between generations, and in an age when every conceivable dish is a Google search away many of them are disappearing.
What I didn't know is that my family's culinary bridge doesn't extend too far back. While neither of my grandmothers grew up in the U.S., they did learn to cook for their own families here. As young wives and mothers struggling to build homes thousands of miles away from their own mothers, they turned to a different woman for cooking advice: Betty Crocker.
Instead of a box of lovingly handwritten pages, my Irish grandmother gave me her copy of Betty Crocker's Picture Cook Book when I inquired after recipes. Actually, she was sweet enough to order me a brand new copy—hers was illegible from decades worth of dog ears and soup splatters.
Published in 1950, this cookbook had a huge influence on American cuisine in the latter half of the 20th century. It was written to be accessible to the complete beginner. There are instructions for boiling pasta, setting tables, and even operating refrigerators and gas stoves, which were fairly new at the time. Even if some of the tips are dated, the book is worth perusing for the delightfully retro pictures alone.
In the 1950s, the ideal American woman was expected to spend all day bettering her home while also taking advantage of new technologies that made life more convenient. This led to the rise of "semi-homemade" recipes that turned convenience foods into labor-intensive projects, JELL-O salad and Campbell's soup casseroles being some infamous examples.
This recipe for Lumberjack Macaroni definitely falls into that category. In case you're wondering how Americans felt about mac and cheese in the 1950s, it's one of a 16 macaroni recipes listed in the Supper Dishes section. According to the recipe note, the dish was actually conceived by General Mills founder James Ford Bell. The book describes him as a "world traveler and epicure," though I don't think you need to be either to be inspired to mix canned chili sauce with mac and cheese.
I chose this recipe to kick things off because, while it's definitely old-school, it also sounds pretty tasty and is totally something I would make for myself. It may not have originated in a grandmother's kitchen, but it's a good reflection of how many real people—including my own grandmother—used to cook for their families and still do today.
If any of you end up making it, please let me know how it turns out!
Lumberjack Macaroni
Spread out on hot large platter...
-Boiled Macaroni (8oz. uncooked)
Sprinkle with...
-2 cups grated American cheese (1/2 lb.)
-2 to 4 tbsp Worcestershire sauce or more
-1/4 cup chili sauce
Pour over all…
-3/4 cup piping hot melted butter
Mix with 2 forks until sauce is creamy.
Serve at once on hot plates.
AMOUNT: 6 servings.
If you made it this far, thanks so much for being here! The plan is to share one new, old recipe every week or so, with it likely hitting your inbox on a Monday. I'm excited to see what this project becomes and hope you stick around for the ride. If you’re not already a subscriber, you can fix that now: