Imagine time traveling to the 1970s. I can easily tell you about this time period due to the fact that I actually lived through this era, however, the culinary adventures in this time were fascinating. We had everything from gelatin that encased food to new recipes that defied the laws of cooking and gravity. It seems these eras will be looked upon as the genesis of new experimental cooking. Today’s foodies are going to scratch their heads in utter confusion. Without further ado let us take a very nostalgic and slightly terrifying trip down memory lane.
Table of Contents
- 1 1. Perfection Salad: The Crown Jewel of Aspics
- 2 2. Ham and Bananas Hollandaise
- 3 3. Watergate Salad
- 4 4. Spam Upside-Down Pineapple Cake
- 5 5. Crown Roast of Frankfurters
- 6 6. Tuna and Jello Mold
- 7 7. Carrot Ring with Creamed Peas
- 8 8. Seven-Layer Gelatin Salad
- 9 9. Liver Sausage Pineapple
- 10 10. Frosted Lime Walnut Salad
- 11 11. Salmon Mousse in Fish Mold
- 12 12. Hot Dog Spectacular
- 13 13. California Prune Whip
- 14 14. Cheese-Wrapped Stuffed Olives
- 15 15. Surprise Spread Loaf
1. Perfection Salad: The Crown Jewel of Aspics
The first creation that comes to mind is that of vegetables encased in gelatin. This showstopper had a whole bunch of shredded cabbage and carrots, along with celery, and placed them inside an aspic. Believe it or not this was the height of elegance for culinary creation, and it was often served with a bed of lettuce and a dollop of mayonnaise.
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2. Ham and Bananas Hollandaise
The next creation actually takes your mind somewhere else. Imagine your hand wrapped, and put some hollandaise sauce on there and wrapped that in banana as well. Then cover it with bananas and you have a new combination. It was in a cookbook from 1973, and it was probably the most confusing food ever created.
3. Watergate Salad
This fluorescent salad was a mixture of green pistachios, pineapples, and marshmallows. It was a shame that with a big gathering, people had to put up with this through their with every single holiday.
4. Spam Upside-Down Pineapple Cake
This cake brought about the 1970s love with canned vegetables. Instead a plate of cherries on top of the cake, they used a whole bunch of spam cubes. The combination of salty and sweet really did just that times food sarcasm.
5. Crown Roast of Frankfurters
Using hot dogs, sauerkraut, and mashed potatoes, they created a cheap imitation of a crown roast. Also, it had hot dog caps, which are little paper caps used to make it look fancier.
6. Tuna and Jello Mold
In the 70s, the combination of seafood and gelatin created dishes that are a little concerning. This particular dish had tuna, celery, and peas, and the whole thing was suspended in some sort of savory gelatin with a mayo and olive garnish. This dish (sometimes called a casserole) was a staple in women’s luncheons and bridge clubs.
7. Carrot Ring with Creamed Peas
The use of a molded carrot and breadcrumb mixture served to hold creamed peas. This design, which has all the regular creamed peas molded in it, was something quite a lot of magazines of the time promoted as a classed-up alternative. It was a sure expectation for an upclassed dinner.
8. Seven-Layer Gelatin Salad
This dish involves a massive amount of time and effort, as well as 7 layers of gelatin in different colors. It can also contain a variety of ingredients, including but not limited to cream cheese and fruit cocktail. Each layer has to set before you can add the next layer. Because of this, it takes multiple days to complete. This dish is sure to make a statement at any church potluck.
9. Liver Sausage Pineapple
As impressive as it was, this dish of liver, sausage, and real pineapple leaves shaped into a pineapple was also quite disturbing. The outside was often colored yellow to resemble a pineapple.
10. Frosted Lime Walnut Salad
The 70s were also great for creating odd food combinations! This particular dish consisted of lime gelatin with cream cheese, mayonnaise, and whipped cream mixed together along with crushed pineapple and chopped walnuts. The odd-sweet and oddly savory combination was something of a classic for the decade.
11. Salmon Mousse in Fish Mold
A salmon mousse shaped like a fish is all you need to be seen as a classy hostess. Made with cream cheese, gelatin, and canned salmon, you can keep it in the center of the table and add cucumber fins, pimento glass eyes and olive pimento fins. Guests would say “how original” when they saw this showstopper.
12. Hot Dog Spectacular
Imagine a steaming mountain of baked beans surrounded by a cheesy, bacon, and hot dog stuffed with cheese wreck and costume party. In the 70s, if you topped it with a pineapple ring and maraschino cherry, your meat-and-fruit-couple recipe would fly to the stars.
13. California Prune Whip
Prunes were good for a person’s health, so their combination with whipped cream, gelatin, and sometimes (yes, for real) mayonnaise makes a healthy dessert. This “healthy” dessert was served in a fancy glass with a cherry on top to look sophisticated.
14. Cheese-Wrapped Stuffed Olives
To amuse cocktail guests, this dish seems fit. They were olives, with pimento cheese and gelatin to wrap them, and then they were formed and chilled. Only the look of the dish has been questioned; cocktail and gelatin cheese wrapped olives have kept them in high class parties.
15. Surprise Spread Loaf
A party loaf cake has been made by removing the crusts of a loaf of bread. It’s surprise layers of different spreads are coated with a cream cheese and mayonnaise frosting. It looks like a cake when you cut it, as the whole thing is filled with the decorated spreads.
