I have written a couple of posts related to cookbooks and recipes recently. So, when I saw this 1952 Ophelia Ladies’ Aid cookbook from Exira, Iowa at a flea market, I could not resist buying it for $1. My Mom graduated from high school in 1952 and shortly thereafter she married my Dad.
On page 68, I found this unusual recipe for Preserving a Husband.
Be careful in your selection; do not choose too young and take only such varieties as have been reared in good moral atmosphere. When once decided upon and selected, let that part remain forever settled and give your entire thought to preparation for domestic use. Some insist on keeping them in hot water, even poor varieties may be made sweet, tender and good, by garnishing them with patience, well seasoned with smiles and flavored with kisses to taste. Then wrap well in mantle of charity, keep warm with a steady fire of devotion, and serve with peaches and cream. When thus prepared they will keep for years.
I guess I needed this recipe back in 1983 when I married and maybe my husband did too. I failed at “preserving my husband” after 21 years of marriage. Maybe I should have been more “careful in (my) selection.” No regrets though as I have been happily divorced for nearly 19 years now.
You just never know what little nuggets you find in these old cookbooks. What’s in yours?
