Brand loyalty
Vintage cookbook pamphlets stand the test of time
My ever-increasing vintage cookbook pamphlet collection often gives me inspiration for my writing and makes me curious about the history of the featured brand. The manufacturers who published these booklets hoped to increase the usage of their food product or kitchen appliance by providing recipes. I’ll feature three of them today; Borden Eagle Brand Condensed Milk, Tang and the Waring Blender.
The collection includes Borden’s Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk pamphlets from 1946, 1964 and one undated. Included are some amazing facts— just one Eagle Brand recipe for Magic Lemon Meringue Pie was used more than 10 million times in 1963.
We take products for granted. Just think for a moment for those who use Eagle Brand Condensed Milk; it saves time blending and cooking, half the trick in making desserts. It practically guarantees perfect desserts every time, whether you are an expert cook or beginner. It helps the pocketbook too, because sweetened condensed milk is creamy-rich itself, using less heavy cream, eggs and other ingredients.
The “magic” began, according to the company’s website, in 1856 when Gail Borden created the product to combat food poisoning and other illnesses related to lack of refrigeration and preservation techniques. Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk was credited with significantly lowering the infant mortality rate in North America. Gail Borden’s discovery provided milk that would remain safe and wholesome—at that time, an important contribution to the nourishment of infants and children.
Recently, I stopped at a diner for a quick lunch. Yes, I do eat at diners too, especially when I am in the mood for comfort food. The lunch special included a choice of several puddings for dessert, I chose chocolate pudding. I recall my childhood when my mother made it for me. The “skin” that forms on top was, and still is my favorite part. What I didn’t know back then was chocolate pudding did not have to be made from a box. Take a look at this recipe from the pamphlet for chocolate pudding using Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed milk. It has become one of my goto quick dessert recipes. For the recipe for Creamy Rice Pudding, go to https://bit.ly/3iWFw9M
Chocolate Pudding
1 14 ounce can Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed milk
¼ teaspoon salt
2 cups water, divided
3 squares (3 ounces) unsweetened chocolate 3tablespoons corn starch 1teaspoon vanilla extract
In top of a double boiler, blend condensed milk, salt and 1 ½ cups of the water. Add chocolate. Cook over boiling water, stirring, until chocolate melts. In a bowl, gradually stir in remaining ½ cup water into cornstarch, keeping mixture smooth. Add gradually to milk mixture while stirring rapidly. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, until thickened. Stir in vanilla extract. Put into individual serving dishes. Refrigerate. Makes 6½ cup servings.
What I didn’t know until reading the pamphlets, is there are ways to use the product in savory dishes like this winning recipe from the Eagle Brand recipe contest. The grand prize winner said,” I turn to Eagle Brand® Sweetened Condensed Milk as it is my sweet secret to add a rich yet delicate base to this vibrant orange Acorn squash soup.”
Acorn Squash Soup
1 small onion
¼ cup chopped celery 2tablespoons sweet cream butter 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon ½ teaspoon dill weed
¼ teaspoon curry powder Dash cayenne pepper
2cups chicken stock
1 (14-ounce) can Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk
3 cups cooked acorn squash, mashed
Salt and pepper to taste 6bacon strips, cooked and crumbled
Saute the onion and celery in butter in a large saucepan. Stir in flour, bouillon, dill, curry and cayenne pepper. Gradually add chicken stock and sweetened condensed milk. Boil for 2minutes. Add the squash, salt and pepper. PLACE in blender; blend in batches until smooth. Pour into bowls; garnish with bacon. Serves 6
The pamphlet, “Flavor Sparkling Recipes with Tang,” published in 1965 brings back feelings of nostalgia and thoughts about when life seemed much simpler. What I find intriguing, is how so many of these products from way back exist decades later, albeit in contemporary packaging, such as Tang, introduced in 1957, not as a juice or juice product, but as an instant breakfast drink with natural orange flavor. Many people think it was developed by General Foods for the space program, which it was not; the product was invented as a consumer product several years before anyone would set foot on the moon. It was in 1962, when astronaut John Glenn brought Tang aboard Friendship 7. The powdered drink mix went along with astronauts on Gemini and Apollo space flights over the next 10 years, according to Kraft. Remember the space theme used in many of the Tang ads back then? Kraft claims, Tang was one of the sponsors of the ABCTV coverage of America’s first manned flight around the moon, Apollo 8. According to an article from Advertising Age written in June of 2011 by E.J. Schultz,” Kraft Food announced today that Tang has become its 12th billion-dollar brand, nearly doubling since 2006, thanks mostly to aggressive marketing in international markets such as Brazil, Argentina, Mexico and the Phillipines.”
Providing recipes like these, from the pamphlet, I am sure, also increases demand for the product; one motivator food manufacturers had in publishing these booklets. The crunchy topping for this recipe is made with orange flavored crumbs using Tang.
Sunny Coffee Cake
1 ½ cups sifted all-purpose flour ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar 2 tablespoons Tang, divided 2 teaspoons baking powder ¼ teaspoon salt
1⁄3 cup shortening
1 egg, well beaten
¾ cup milk
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¾ cup soft bread crumbs* 2tablespoons butter, melted 2 tablespoons chopped nuts Sift together flour, ½ cup sugar, 1 tablespoon Tang. Baking powder, and salt. Cut in shortening. In a small bowl, combine egg and milk and add to flour mixture, stirring
only until flour is dampened. Spread in a greased 8-inch baking pan.
Mix 2tablespoons sugar, 1tablespoon Tang and cinnamon. Add to the bread crumbs. Add butter and toss lightly to mix. Add nuts. Sprinkle over cake batter. Bake in preheated 400degree oven for 35-40 minutes until done. Serve with butter. Makes 8servings. * To make soft bread crumbs, tear slices of fresh white, French or whole wheat bread into 1inch pieces and put into a food processor. Pulse to make coarse crumbs.
For the recipe for the cold soufflé please go to https:// bit.ly/3iRR2U6
What happened when an inventor joined forces with an entertainer in the 1930s? The blender was born. It is probably the most versatile small kitchen appliance ever invented. According to Appliance Magazine, 85 percent of households own a blender. Whether it be for making a smoothie, frozen drink, milkshake, pancake batter, pureeing soup, or crushing ice, can you imagine your kitchen without this appliance.
Prior to 1937, no one had ever heard of such a thing: next year will mark the 85th anniversary of the introduction of the Waring Blendor ®, the first blender in history, and an invention that brought an unprecedented level of convenience to food and beverage. Whether or not you are a foodie, the appliance’s history is interesting.
According to the company, Waring’s roots date back to 1936 when an inventor named Fred Osius approached Fred Waring, a popular entertainer of the 1930s, ‘40s and ‘50s, with his latest invention. Osius was seeking support for a new mixer that would “revolutionize people’s eating habits.” Waring, who had just finished a radio broadcast in New York’s Vanderbilt Theatre, was intrigued with the concept of a mixer such as the one Osius described, and he agreed to back the new product, even when the prototype failed to work the first time.
After another six months of trying, another $25,000 spent on a prototype, it still didn’t work. The company’s product timeline says, “Waring’s background as a mechanical engineer kept him enthusiastic, and ultimately he helped perfect the final product, then called the new “Miracle Mixer,” in time to introduce it at the National Restaurant Show in Chicago in 1937. The Waring Blendor® name was adopted shortly thereafter, and in 1938, the product was officially renamed the Waring Blender.”
The timeline states that “World War II temporarily halted blender production; but in 1946, Waring sales took off again as consumer demand grew. Product innovations continued with the introduction of color-coordinated blenders with solidstate controls and attachments that crushed ice and ground coffee. In the 1950s, new uses for the blender were constantly emerging, including applications in research laboratories. Dr. Jonas Salk used a Waring Blender with an aseptic dispersal container attachment to develop his lifesaving polio vaccine.”
The company has a Pennsylvania connection, with its manufacturing facility in McConnellsburg.
Check out this video featuring vintage Waring Blenders from the 60’s & 70’s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_D9qZWduBWM&t=44s
Stephen Fries, is a professor and coordinator of the Hospitality Management Programs at Gateway Community College, in New Haven, CT. He has been a food and culinary travel columnist for the past 13 years and is co-founder of and host of “Worth Tasting,” a culinary walking tour of downtown New Haven, CT. email me at Stephen@stephenfries.com For more, go to stephenfries.com.