tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37886248.post5183080407210731467..comments2024-03-22T00:35:19.082-07:00Comments on Casual Kitchen: Do Cookbooks Go Out of Date?Danielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02388302796031288076noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37886248.post-85422917887132195882011-07-14T07:53:04.875-07:002011-07-14T07:53:04.875-07:00It really depends on the cookbook. My grandmother&...It really depends on the cookbook. My grandmother's 1942 copy of Woman's Home Companion Cook Book still has some of the best basic recipes, but some of their assumptions and ingredients are starting to get dated (first, kill the chicken...).Davehttp://www.food-fire.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37886248.post-78052361768431737162011-07-08T04:17:43.467-07:002011-07-08T04:17:43.467-07:00I hear you Sally--you make an interesting point. A...I hear you Sally--you make an interesting point. And yes, clearly it's about maintaining sales too. It is a lot easier to kick out a "new edition" of a cookbook with minor changes than to write an entirely new one. <br /><br />DKDanielhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02388302796031288076noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37886248.post-88623924387657912962011-07-08T03:37:38.326-07:002011-07-08T03:37:38.326-07:00"For my part, I don't necessarily agree w..."For my part, I don't necessarily agree with this: for every timeless recipe, there's a Betty Crocker-esqe cookbook needlessly spiked with much salt and fat (ironically, the affiliate link here is to this book's tenth edition. I rest my case: not every recipe--or cookbook--ages well)"<br /><br />Dan, I don't think the fact that a cookbook is in it's 10th edition has anything to do with it's not aging well. It has a lot to do with the publisher wanting to continue to keep sales up by following trends in the food industry and appealing to a younger audience. Those aren't the same thing.<br /><br />Until recently I had my mother's 1940s era Betty Crocker cookbook. I'd stack those recipes against anything now. My own 1970s Better Homes and Gardens cookbook was better than subsequent editions of the book. <br /><br />Also, some of those older cookbooks have been updated to reflect the wider availability of many ethnic ingredients. My 1970s BH&G cookbook has a great recipe for lasagna that uses cottage cheese because ricotta was not widely available. Now ricotta is available everywhere. However, the recipe is still perfectly good. <br /><br />Many of the best cooks I know have one or two older editions of classic cookbooks. They've never felt a need to update. I think they might be on to something.Sallynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37886248.post-64955105948379383302011-07-06T21:55:16.130-07:002011-07-06T21:55:16.130-07:00Maybe a part of what makes a cookbook a "clas...Maybe a part of what makes a cookbook a "classic" or "outdated" is what kind of recipes it contains and how well-written they are. Super trendy topics are just that: passing trends. But then some topics just stand the test of time, like Thanksgiving dishes or ethnic specialties. And then the recipes themselves-- not the dishes, but the ingredients list and the instructions and so on-- make a big difference. A cookbook that's just a collection of untested ingredients lists with cursory instructions won't last very long, but a book that has some meat to it, like an actual <i>book</i> is more likely to be relevant (or at least entertaining) in the future.looloolooweezhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13285571872065043306noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37886248.post-62068513351163950422011-07-05T07:59:35.044-07:002011-07-05T07:59:35.044-07:00I think it depends on what kind of food you're...I think it depends on what kind of food you're looking for. I have my grandmother's original BHG cookbook from 1953, and any time I want to make a pie (especially pumpkin at Thanksgiving) I always get my recipes from there. That era was a time when people knew how to make wonderful pies/cakes, and none of those recipes have ever failed me. <br /><br />That book also highlights some main-dish meat recipes that are economical, which can be very helpful. It's insightful to see the difference in priorities from one generation to another. Back then, it was money. Now it's time and fat content. <br /><br />As far as I'm concerned, food is food, and if you enjoy it, the age of its source is completely irrelevant.The DutchMac Tribehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01108463221404795234noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37886248.post-73877904001857844442011-07-05T06:53:00.509-07:002011-07-05T06:53:00.509-07:00I think "out of fashion" rather than &qu...I think "out of fashion" rather than "out of date" would be more appropriate in the majority of cases, but because I pinch recipes from all over the place (my mum's/gran's hand-scribbled notes, cookbooks old and new, and the mighty Internet) I am forever looking up conversion tables for weights/measurements and oven temperatures - old Enlgish cookbooks only give temperatures in Gas Marks, and some recipes use imperial weights (pounds/ounces) while modern ones use grams/kilos. And then there's you Americans with your cups! So, in terms of cooking technology, I think that yes, some recipes are out of date.Elenihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14775065716340270284noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37886248.post-52633578624869069992011-07-05T05:40:29.114-07:002011-07-05T05:40:29.114-07:00Maybe it depends on how "trendy" your co...Maybe it depends on how "trendy" your cooking is? We don't tend to follow the fads - even though the fad right now is following US (frugality is tres chic!) I'm with the commenter about the orange roughy - as we become more scientifically aware, cookbooks can show their age. I struggle with recipes that incorporate margarine and (GASP) shortening. We're butter people, and sometimes they're just not interchangeable.<br /><br />That being said, the classics are called that for a reason. And the fad ones make for some entertaining reading a few decades down the road. :)Emmyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02100182709422069894noreply@blogger.com