A Week of Menus for Mid-November (Mid-Century Menu Monday)

Meal planning is the hardest part of eating at home all the time.

Being creative, coming up with new ideas, and then getting those meals onto the table on time is tough.

Here are 7 vintage dinners for mid-November to inspire your adventures in square meals.

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A Week of Menus for Mid-November

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There are many vintage cookbooks that contain complete menu plans for a full year, based on providing nutrition and variety to the vintage housewife’s meals. The best one is Meta Given’s The Modern Family Cookbook, but only the earliest editions. Some of my favorites are:

• Modern Meal Maker by Martha Meade, 1933
• The Alice Bradley Menu Cookbook, 1944

These are hearty warming meals from one of my vintage meal plans. They all center around cold-weather dishes and seasonal foods. Here are some other menu plans for November:

• Mid-Century Menu Monday: November 11-17
• Mid-Century Menu Monday: November 18-24
• Mid-Century Menu Monday: Thanksgiving Edition

Seasonal Foods For Mid-November

The idea of sticking to the foods that were in season was very important to the thrifty vintage housewife! It saved money and helped to keep people healthy. Here are some of the things that are in season right now:

Fruits

• Apples
• Cranberries
• Grapes
• Oranges, pears, persimmons, quinces, almonds, filberts, butternuts, chestnuts, walnuts.

Vegetables

• Beans
• Beets
• Broccoli
• Cabbage
• Carrots
• Cauliflower
• Celery
• Cucumbers (hothouse)
• Kale
• Lettuce
• Onions and garlic
• Potatoes
• Sweet potatoes
• Pumpkins
• Winter squash
• Spinach
• Turnips, rutabagas, and swedes
• Various herbs.
• Canned green beans
• Canned tomatoes
• Canned corn

Meat and Fish

• Beef
• Mutton
• Pork
• Veal
• Chickens
• Geese
• Fowls
• Turkeys
• Blackcock (no idea what this one is — a kind of game bird)
• Goose
• Grouse
• Opossum (no, thank you)
• Partridges
• Pheasants
• Quails
• Rabbits
• Snipe
• Venison
• Woodcock.
• Bass
• Carp
• Chub
• Cod
• Dace
• Eels
• Flounder
• Haddock
• Halibut
• Perch
• Pickerel
• Pike
• Plaice
• Smelts
• Sprats
• Trout
• Turbot
• Whitefish
• Whiting
• Crabs
• Crayfish
• Lobster
• Oysters
• Prawns
• Shrimp

Monday’s Dinner

• Meatloaf
• Quick escalloped potatoes
• Baked hubbard squash
• Whole wheat bread and butter
• Shredded lettuce with dressing
• Sweet potato pudding
• Coffee and milk

Tuesday’s Dinner

• Roast Boston pork butt and gravy
• Mashed potatoes
• Savory creamed spinach
• Cornbread and butter
• Applesauce cake with whipped cream
• Coffee and milk

Wednesday’s Dinner

• Beef stew with vegetables
• Cole slaw
• Whole wheat bread and butter
• Old-fashioned rice pudding
• Coffee and milk

Thursday’s Dinner

• Chop suey (basic vintage version above)
• Boiled rice
• Buttered carrots
• Bread and butter
• Sliced cucumber salad
• Tapioca cream with canned cherries
• Coffee and milk

Friday’s Dinner

• Baked firm white fish with tartar sauce
• Fried potatoes
• Stewed tomatoes
• Grapefruit salad
• Bread and butter
• Apple dumplings
• Coffee and milk

Saturday’s Dinner

• Liver and onions
• Mashed potatoes
• Creamed peas
• Bread and butter
• Carrot and cabbage salad
• Lemon chiffon pudding
• Coffee and milk

Sunday’s Dinner

• Chicken pie
• Baked sweet potatoes
• Buttered green beans
• Whole wheat bread and butter
• Lettuce wedges with 1000 Island dressing
• Pineapple upside-down cake
• Coffee and milk

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References

The Modern Family Cook Book, Meta Given, 1961

Sunset All-Western Cook Book, Genevieve Callahan, 1933