The 1950s and 1960s are my two favorite culinary eras. With French influence from a role model of mine, Julia Child, and stately influence from another role model, Jacqueline Kennedy, parties were a bit more glamorous, and suburban high life included backyard barbecues, fondue nights, and cocktail parties. The drinks of the day included Vodka Gimlet Cocktails, and people gathered to gossip over a Cheesy Fondue. Families sat down to home-cooked meals, consisting of anything from No-Peek Chicken & Wild Rice Casserole to Homemade Sloppy Joes. Dinner parties were a place to conduct business, impressing clients and the boss over Beef Wellington and Grasshopper Pie. And traveling on vacation meant staying at a hotel and enjoying a Waldorf Salad.
We’re in the revival era of midcentury entertainment with long-gone TV and movie franchises etching their mark on modern-day media. Shows like Mad Men have had many of us hooked. Baby names of eras past have surged in popularity. Reycling the best concepts from the past becomes a way to connect with others in the present—especially around food. (I particularly love the abundance of cheese found in many old-school appetizers!) You’ll find common ground in shared experiences, between reminiscing over Grandma’s version of Old-Fashioned Tuna Noodle Casserole or laughing with your kids while making Old Time Popcorn Balls just like you made growing up. And while there’s a nostalgic elegance to recipes from the ’50s and ’60s, they still fit right at home in today’s cooking. I love to make Egg-in-a-Hole on Saturday mornings while I snuggle on the couch, binge-watching reruns of Leave It to Beaver and I Love Lucy. My Southern Deviled Eggs are greedily snatched up when I invite friends over for a dinner party.
Cooking food from the past allows you to escape into a time-travel portal. For an hour, you don’t need to update your phone or check up on your social media accounts. No matter how your family’s schedules intersect, you can all find comfort in Reliable Chicken and Dumplings and delight at Easy Strawberry Shortcake. The past brings people together, and when you can share a memory about a beloved dish, you spark deeper connections, turning mealtimes into the best parts of the day.
I hope this book inspires you to seek out those connections. Call up your siblings and see if they remember your grandparents’ version of Classic Meat Loaf. Create memories of your own by making Homemade Chocolate Fudge Candies. It’s your opportunity to laugh, reminisce, and turn what’s old into something new by following in the footsteps of cooks from decades past. Why 103? When you come to our house, we want you to know you can always bring a friend, or two, or three. And when looking back on the best from the past, there’s always time for a few more recipes.
—Addie Gundry