Mid-Century Menu Monday for July 13th to 19th

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The dog days of summer are here . . . you know, the ones that are so dog-gone hot that you can’t think about anything but swimming pools and popsicles. At least here, anyway! This year we caved and bought an above-ground pool; we now have so many kids, it’s cheaper than passes to the pool. Anyway, here are some height-of-summer meals from the 1940s for your Mid-Century Menu Monday for July 13th to 19th!

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Mid-Century Menu Monday for July 13th to 19th

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I’m trying something new this week. I am adding notes on exactly how I alter the menus and recipes to suit the ingredients I have on hand, etc. For example, I am replacing at least one vegetable dish a day with zucchini since it is clearly a zucchini year! I am notorious for cooking like a Great Depression farmwife. And I will always change a menu or recipes rather than run to the store. So, starting this week I will be adding notes on how a vintage housewife might alter menus and recipes to suit her pantry. If you like it, let me know in the comments, and let me know if you’d be interested in a workshop on how to stock a pantry and cook like a vintage housewife.

Monday

I will replace the kohlrabi with fresh zucchini from the garden. And apparently chilled cocoa for all is not just chocolate milk — but that’s probably what I will make instead.

Tomatoes aren’t in season yet, so I will replace the broiled tomatoes with zucchini and canned stewed tomatoes, baked en casserole. Also, all the local cherries succumbed to a difficult spring, so I will replace the sweet cherries with a black cherry Bavarian.

In my house, there is no such thing as leftover pot roast, so I will make a cheese souffle.

Breakfast

  • Cantaloupe wedges
  • Broiled bacon
  • Toast with butter
  • Preserves
  • Coffee for adults, milk for children

Lunch

  • Jellied bouillon
  • Crackers
  • Kohlrabi with cheese sauce
  • Whole-wheat bread
  • Red plums
  • Chilled cocoa for all

Dinner

  • Meat souffle (using leftover pot roast)
  • Quick escalloped potatoes
  • Broiled tomatoes
  • Head lettuce, French dressing
  • Bread and butter
  • Sweet cherries
  • Coffee for adults, milk for children

Tuesday

No sliced bananas — baked rhubarb from the garden instead.

Cucumbers aren’t ready here yet (we had a frost at the end of May), so the lunch sandwiches will be pan-fried zucchini, onion, and lettuce sandwiches.

It’s too hot for peas, so we’ll have buttered green beans from the garden instead. And instead of raspberries, we’ll have a lemon meringue pie from pantry ingredients.

Instead of lamb, I will be using beef. Usually, I sub chicken in curry, but there was not a lot of chicken the last time I went shopping.

Breakfast

  • Sliced bananas on prepared cereal with top milk
  • Poached eggs on toast
  • Coffee for adults, milk for children

Lunch

  • Cucumber, onion, and pickle sandwiches
  • Cottage cheese
  • Prune and orange jelly
  • Milk for all

Dinner

  • Curried lamb
  • Boiled rice
  • Buttered peas
  • Tomato and lettuce salad
  • Whole-wheat bread and butter
  • Red raspberries
  • Coffee for adults, milk for children

Wednesday

Tomato and zucchini soup instead of tomato and cabbage soup, and zucchini with mushrooms instead of corn on the cob (which we won’t have for another month). The fruit salad will have whatever fresh or canned fruits I have on hand.

Also, no tongue, and no veal. Veal is just not available in a world where people boycott stores for selling it. And tongue is greatly in demand, and thus expensive, around here. So probably simmered pork bones or homemade sausages (one of my husband’s current projects).

Breakfast

  • Stewed prunes
  • Whole-wheat toast with butter
  • Marmalade
  • Coffee for adults, milk for children

Lunch

  • Tomato and cabbage soup
  • Crisp crackers
  • Fruit salad
  • Iced tea for adults, milk for children

Dinner

  • Boiled fresh tongue with currant jelly
  • Hashed brown potatoes
  • Corn on the cob
  • Grated carrot and raisin salad
  • Bread and butter
  • Lime fluff
  • Coffee for adults, milk for children

Thursday

No new apples yet, so ordinary applesauce at breakfast and dinner. Canned peaches or watermelon instead of cantaloupe wedges. Zucchini instead of wax beans in the Creole wax beans recipe.

Baked chicken leg quarters instead of pork chops, since I subbed in pork last night.

Breakfast

  • Chilled new apple sauce
  • Scrambled eggs
  • Toast with butter
  • Coffee for adults, milk for children

Lunch

  • Kidney bean salad
  • Bacon sandwiches
  • Cantaloupe wedges
  • Iced tea for adults, milk for children

Dinner

  • Baked pork chops with apples
  • Creamed potatoes
  • Creole wax beans
  • Whole wheat bread and butter
  • Jelly roll
  • Hot or iced coffee for adults, milk for children

Friday

Zucchini instead of fresh corn, and canned tomatoes in the casserole. Sunbonnet salad instead of cantaloupe and cherry salad, since it comes from the pantry. Creamed zucchini and carrots instead of peas and carrots. Sausage loaf instead of lamb patties.

Breakfast

  • Orange and grapefruit juice
  • Prepared cereal with top milk
  • Toast with butter, jelly
  • Coffee for adults, milk for children

Lunch

  • Fresh corn and tomato casserole
  • Bread and butter
  • Cantaloupe and cherry salad
  • Cold baked custard
  • Hot or iced tea, milk for children

Dinner

  • Lamb patties
  • Parsley buttered potatoes
  • Creamed peas and carrots
  • Bread and butter
  • Peach shortcake
  • Hot or iced coffee, milk for children

Saturday

No local fresh plums, so canned plums it is. Probably rhubarb instead of blackberries. Zucchini cups instead of tomato cups. And pork instead of veal.

Breakfast

  • Plums, fresh red or blue
  • Soft-cooked eggs
  • Toast with butter
  • Jelly
  • Coffee for adults, milk for children

Lunch

  • Baked beans in tomato cups
  • Rye Melba toast
  • Blackberries with top milk
  • Iced tea for adults, milk for children

Dinner

  • Veal a la king
  • Buttered or crisp noodle or toast
  • Cole slaw
  • Rye bread and butter
  • Chocolate marshmallow pudding
  • Coffee for adults, milk for children

Sunday

Calabacitas (New Mexican zucchini and corn dish) will replace the fried corn. Fresh apricots will probably be replaced by rhubarb pie.

Breakfast

  • Sliced peaches on prepared cereal with top milk
  • Toast with butter, jam
  • Coffee for adults, milk for childrren

Sunday Dinner

  • Steak roll
  • Mashed potatoes
  • Fried corn
  • Whole-wheat bread and butter
  • Celery and radishes
  • Watermelon
  • Coffee for adults, milk for children

Sunday Supper

  • Tossed vegetable salad
  • Melba toast
  • Fresh apricots
  • Iced tea for adults, milk for children

Of course, ANY of this is subject to change, usually at the whim of my husband! He is prone to deciding that he wants traditional New Mexican food for lunch or dinner, so we switch gears and have frijoles and tortillas.

If you would like, you can check out the rest of my mid-century dinner menus. And if you make the menus, share a pic on Instagram and tag me! (Are you following me on Instagram? I share a lot of vintage homemaking quick wins over here!)

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