Foods throughout the decades

Sitting here at Sonitrol at nights, I have time to stop and check out some of the funniest things on the internets. One of my favorite spots is Lileks.com, where James Lileks has done an awesome job reprinting old Knudsens recipe's and cook books from the 1950's and 60's. His website also boasts some other hilarious pages of clothing and decor of the era and many others.

For me, the food section of the website really makes me cringe and laugh.



Then dry heave.

The picture above is that of two separate types of gelatin, one being a somewhat disturbed vegetable cocktail of leftover opened cans of items leftover in the fridge and pink food dye for good measure, and the bottom is labeled as a corned beef gelatin loaf.

That's right kids, cold meat cake.



First thing is first. I am 27 years old. My concept of gelatin based foods is the Jell-o brand type where it is offered as a dessert, created with artificial fruit flavorings and is served at the end of a meal and is by no means gross. Some of the pictures and recipe's described as far back as the 1920's tout gelatin as a staple of food dishes served on the American table as early as the first commercially produced refridgerators came to market.




GELATIN SHOULDN'T BE USED AS A MEDIUM TO FLOAT VEGETABLES!

That image is just wrong on so many levels. I understand that at the heart of gelatin lies a morbid sinister secret. I accept it. Matter of fact, IM ok with that. I guess it was a generation thing.

Thanks to Bill Cosby's efforts to put a box of pudding in your cupboards, today's youth & generation aren't familiar with the use of gelatin as (barf) an actual ingredient/ preparatory method. We have pull tabs on our Jell-o brand pudding, we do Jell-o brand shots, but we do not under any circumstances put meat, vegetables or anything that isn't sugar laced in our gelatin!

Ah Cosby, you have probably freed us from the shackles of fucked up foods forever. With that, we owe you a heap of thanks.