THE INFLUENCE OF MEXICAN COOKING TRADITIONS on the American restaurant industry is not as confined to the Southwest as most people would believe. While living in Southern California for a short while, I realized that the Mexican influence in food choices and restaurant decor was much stronger there than in the Midwest and Eastern parts of this country. Nonetheless, it was an intricate part of our heritage as a growing nation comprised of many ethnic and geographical persuasions.
CHILI IS JUST A KISSING COUSIN OF THE GREEK CONEY SAUCE and a second cousin, twice removed of the Italian pasta sauce. It’s probably related, as well, to the Hungarian goulash sauce. With or without beans, chili has become very Americanized! Chili is more popular in Cincinnati than it is in San Diego. In fact, chili is to Cinci what beans are to Boston! It is served in many ways in the various “chili parlors” and is regarded as the only place in the United States where it is “properly” prepared and served. The fast food industry launched a new frontier devoted to expanding on the idea of Mexican cuisine with American-touches that makes it appeal to those who want a change from hamburgers.
Among some of the restaurants that will be with us for a long time to come are Taco Bell, Del Taco, The Red Onion, Casa Maria, Taco John’s, Taco Patio, Zantigo’s, Taco Time International, Taco-Tico Pub ‘N’ Taco Drive-Ins, Taco Bueno, El Taco, Pedro’s Fine Mexican Food, Taco Casa, Taco Gringo, Taco Hut and many, many more. KFC patterned their own Zantigo concept after the Taco Bell, giving the building the slump stone and cream stucco look, topped off with the authentic Spanish-style roof, offering about 15 different Mexican dishes on their menu. Del Taco offers alternatives, however, to their Mexican menu by including the usual hamburgers and fries, etc.
With my make-at-home versions of these famous dishes from famous places, I try to keep to one basic combination, from which you can make several other interesting dishes, sauces and accomplishments for your Gringo-style south-of-the-border family menu.
WHEN A VERY SUCCESSFUL HAMBURGER FRANCHISE decided to give the “Golden Arches” a little nudge in the marketplace, it won the public’s approval by adding a velvety-textured, mildly-seasoned chili to its menu, which has not been duplicated by any other food chain. Today, it’s the leading lady of Wendy’s fast food menu. Here’s my version.
WEDNESDAY’S CHILI
1 ½ to 2 pounds ground round
2 tablespoons corn oil
½ teaspoon seasoned salt
10-ounce can Campbell’s Onion Soup, undiluted
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin powder
½ teaspoon pepper
21-ounce can kidney beans, un-drained
6-ounce can tomato paste
8-ounce can tomato sauce
Brown the beef in the oil and crumble it with the back of a fork until it resembles rice; then, sprinkle on the seasoned salt and turn the heat to low, covering the pan to let it simmer gently in its own juices. Put the onion soup through a blender on high-speed until it’s smooth; then, add it to the beef mixture and mash it thoroughly again with the fork. Stir in the remaining ingredients and simmer gently for about 15 minutes or until the flavors are well-blended and the chili is piping hot! Makes about 6 servings. Left-overs keep well in a covered container in refrigerator for a week, or freeze up to 6 months, but it should be thawed/re-heated in the top of a double boiler over gently simmering water. NEVER thaw frozen meat and tomato sauce over direct heat or it may scorch. Oven-thawing tends to dry it out quicker, evaporating the natural juices more than steaming it will do.
SPAGHETTI SAUCE can be made from my Wednesday’s Chili recipe, simply by omitting the beans and using only ½ teaspoon of the cumin powder and replacing the chili powder with 1 envelope dry Italian dressing mix powder. To this, add a 28-ounce can diced tomatoes (un-drained.) This sauce can be a close relative of the spaghetti sauce served at another famous restaurant chain in the Northeast.
BAKING SODA IS THE SECRET ingredient that most restaurant chefs use to cut the acidity in tomato sauce. If you’re making chili or spaghetti sauce, as a final ingredient, about 5 minutes before removing the sauce from the heat, stir in ¼ teaspoon baking soda per 18 cups prepared sauce. Stir constantly for those last few minutes on the heat to ensure the soda has penetrated the sauce completely. It will foam a little, then you can adjust the seasonings, to taste, with a bit of sugar or artificial sweetener or with a spoonful of molasses or honey, depending on the recipe you’re using.
One of the versatile features of my Wednesday’s Chili recipe (see Index), as I’ve attempted to duplicate it, is that you can omit the beans and thicken it a little with wheat germ or finely-grated fresh carrots and you have a nutritious Coney Island sauce. I experimented for several weeks with the recipe until I was convinced that the secret of the franchise chili was more meat than beans.
CONEY ISLAND SAUCE, from the famous Greek chain, is not exactly like the other restaurant’s chili recipe, but it can be modified to make a fair duplication of it by simply browning the ground beef in a skillet until tender and all the pink has disappeared, then placing half of it into a blender with just enough water to cover the blender’s blades. Using an on/off agitation on high speed, the meat should be blended until it resembles cement mortar and then returned to the remaining beef in the skillet. Omit the beans from my chili recipe and add ¼ teaspoon garlic salt, 2 tablespoons dark molasses, ½ teaspoon dry minced-oregano leaves and ¼ cup of either bottled wheat germ or finely-grated carrots. Simmer on low until thoroughly heated, then serve over grilled hot dogs on buns; or serve on hamburger buns as a Sloppy-Joe-style sauce.
KITCHEN SINK CONEY
Make up one batch of my “Wednesday’s Chili”, but leave out the beans! Then, make one batch of my “O’Nasty’s Coney Sauce” (see Index for both recipes.) Combine the two of these in the same kettle. The marriage of the two compatible mixtures will be beautiful. If you want a thinner sauce, dilute it with Coca-Cola or Tab. If you want it thicker, stir in Grapenuts or crushed Special K cereal, a few tablespoons at a time until you achieve the desired consistency. Sufficient for 16 sensible servings or 6 to 8 silly servings! Left-overs freeze well for up to 6 months.
CHILI POWDER, HOT
This home-made version is hotter than the store-bought product!
1 tablespoon each: cayenne pepper, black pepper and powdered oregano
6 tablespoons cumin powder
4 tablespoons paprika
1 teaspoon each: garlic powder, onion powder, dry mustard and MSG (optional)
¼ teaspoon curry powder
Combine all ingredients in a small flour sifter over a small bowl. Sift these 6 to 8 times. Store mix in a covered container and refrigerate, to be used within a year or so. Makes about ¾ cup powder.
ONION SOUP SEASONING MIX
This can be used as a seasoning in any recipes calling for bouillon powder. It’s also a good soup mix with the addition of boiling water, per directions below.
1 cup dry, minced onions
¼ cup scissor-snipped, fresh parsley
(or 1/3 cup dry parsley flakes)
1 teaspoon pepper
½ teaspoon finely-grated lemon peel
(or 1 teaspoon bottled lemon zest)
2 jars (3 ½ ounces each) beef bouillon powder
¼ cup onion powder
2 tablespoons onion salt
1 teaspoon paprika
2 envelopes beef gravy mix
(or ¼ cup home-made gravy mix, beef-flavored)
½ teaspoon dry Summer Savory leaves
½ teaspoon dry Thyme leaves
Combine all ingredients well. Force mixture through sieve with the back of a spoon, or put it through a blender on high-speed, using an on/off agitation for about 30 seconds or until well-combined. Store at room temperature in a tightly covered container to use within 6 months. Makes 3 cups of mix; ¼ cup is equal to 1 envelope of the store-bought product.
TO USE THE MIX FOR INSTANT SOUP: Dissolve 1 tablespoon of mix in 6 ounces of boiling water.
SLOW-COOKER CHILI
You can take the best from each of your favorite restaurant dishes, when it comes to making a good pot of chili, and combine it all into one lovely recipe. Chili is one dish that you can put on hold for a long time, providing the temperature is either hot or cold – but never left in between. If you’re going to serve it within a 3- to 4-hour period, keep it hot in a slow cooker. Otherwise, keep it refrigerated.
Prepare the chili in a large pot on top of the stove first; then, transfer it to a slow-cooker set on high for a little while then turned to low for up to 6 hours.
1 ½ pounds ground round or chuck
2 tablespoons corn or vegetable oil
15 ½-ounce jar Ragu Spaghetti Sauce, meat or traditional flavor
(or 2 scant cups of home-made spaghetti sauce)
10-ounce can onion soup
15-ounce can red kidney beans, un-drained
2 cans (11-oz each) chili beef soup
1-pound can stewed-tomatoes, un-drained
1 tablespoon each: chili powder and brown sugar
½ cup bottled apple butter
Brown the ground beef in the oil, using a 10-inch skillet, on medium heat, mashing it with the back of a fork until the pink has disappeared. Transfer meat to a 4-quart saucepan or kettle and add remaining ingredients, mixing each one in well. Cover and cook very gently on a very low heat, stirring occasionally to combine everything thoroughly. I like to stick the blades of two knives between the pot and the burner, breaking that direct contact with the heat, which can cause scorching. A round wire pie-cooling rack also works well for this type of pan protection. Cook the chili about 30 minutes or until piping hot; then, transfer it to a slow-cooker. Set the heat to “HI” for 30 minutes and then on “LOW” for up to 6 hours. Keep it covered, but still stir it about once every hour until it’s served. If it thickens too much while heating, dilute it with V-8 juice or canned beef broth (or beer for a truly hearty flavor) until it is to your liking. Serves 6 to 8. Left-overs freeze well to be used within 6 months.
MARGUERITAS
If you can’t find ice that is crushed so well it almost resembles snow, you might as well forget the whole thing. The ice makes the drink! To crush regular cubes at home, I hammer them into chips first, then put them through my blender in small portions with just a little water to make it snow-like. I fill a pitcher half-full of the “snow”. Next, into the blender I put 1 cup tequila, 1/3 cup Triple Sec and enough “snow” to absorb all the liquor. Then I add 2 cups bottled Margarita mix (non-alcoholic) and turn on the blender until it’s well-combined. Wipe the rim of your Margarita (or wine) glasses with a slice of fresh lime and dip the wet rim into a saucer of coarse salt. Put the piece of lime into the glass and add enough “snow” to fill it half-way, then add the Margarita mixture up to the rim!
STEAK AND SHAKE RESTAURANTS
In the Mid-West (especially in the St. Louis, MO area), one of the most-often requested recipe secrets from my visits with KMOX-RADIO was for Steak and Shake’s chili. On my way to Los Angeles in March of 1982, I had to change planes in St. Louis and had some lay-over time in which to visit some of the area and get a good bowl of chili! The trip was well worth it!
STAY IN SHAPE CHILI
2 cups hot, black coffee
3 cans (6 ounces each) V-8 juice
1 envelope onion soup mix
10-ounce can beef broth
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon paprika
2 teaspoons Hershey’s Chocolate Syrup (don’t faint!)
2/3 cup of my home-made “Cup of Thoup” tomato-flavored powder (see Index)
(or use 4 envelopes of the commercial product)
2 tablespoons corn oil
1 ½-pounds ground round
2 cans (1 pound each) DRAINED red kidney beans
Combine coffee, juice, soup mix, broth, chili powder, paprika and syrup in a tuna half quart sauce pan. Stir in the home-made “Cup of Thoup” powder (or the commercial product) and turn the heat to medium, stirring often until piping hot and it begins to thicken into a smooth sauce. [NOTE: I found that if the liquid gets too hot, the “Cup of Thoup” powder will “lump”; use a wire whisk or an electric mixer to smooth it out in the pan.]
Place the oil in a 10-inch skillet and brown the beef, breaking it up with a fork until all of the pink disappears. Transfer the beef and drippings to the sauce mixture and stir. Drain the cans of beans well and stir those into the mixture as well. Heat it all until it’s piping hot. Serves 6 sensibly! If you plan to freeze the chili for future servings, do not add the beans until you’re ready to thaw and re-heat it or the beans may become “mushy”.
MEXICAN SEASONING MIX - Use to season tomato sauce or your favorite Mexican dishes.
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon each: cumin powder and paprika
1 teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon each: celery salt, garlic powder, black pepper and Salt-Spice (see Index for my version)
Mix it all together and store in a covered container at room temperature for ages. Makes 1/3 cup.
COMPATIBLE SAUCE BASE FOR CHILI OR SPAGHETTI
1 ½ pounds ground round
3 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons beef bouillon powder
¼ cup dry, minced onion
2/3 cup bottled Wish Bone Italian Dressing
½ cup raspberry jam
2 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon garlic salt
2 tablespoons Cream of Wheat instant cereal mix, uncooked
1 ½ cups hot black coffee-maker
1 envelope tomato-flavored Cup-a-Soup powder (or use my “Cup-of-Thoup” mix - see Index)
26-ounce can tomato soup (or three 10-ounce cans)
1 tablespoon dry, minced oregano leaves
¼ teaspoon pepper
Brown the ground beef in the oil until the pink has disappeared. Transfer it to a 2 ½-quart sauce pan, drippings and all! Turn the heat to medium-high and stir in, well, each ingredient as listed. Let it heat without boiling until hot. Refrigerate it, well-covered, for up to a week or freeze it for up to 6 months.
AS A BASE FOR CHILI, when you thaw this sauce to re-heat it, add 1 tablespoon chili powder, 2 teaspoons cumin powder and 3 cans (1-lb each) un-drained, red kidney beans. Serves 6 to 8.
AS A BASE FOR SPAGHETTI SAUCE - add an additional 1 to 1 ½ pounds of browned ground beef and another 1/3 cup of the Italian dressing, plus an 8-oz can of un-drained mushrooms.
REFRIED BEANS
Cook 2 ½ cups dry pinto beans in 6 cups simmering, slightly salted water (covered) for about 3 hours or until fork-tender. Drain, rinse and place in a large heavy skillet – containing enough melted butter, Crisco, or lard to ½-inch deep. Stir and fry the beans about 4 to 6 minutes. Drain off excess fat and refrigerate until time to use in other recipes. Salt and pepper to taste. Makes about 6 cups cooked beans.
HOT PEPPER SAUCE
Combine, as listed: 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1 tablespoon each – paprika and chili powder, ¼ teaspoon curry powder, 1 tablespoon vinegar, 1-ounce vodka and ¼ cup hot water. Blend until smooth with an electric mixer or in a blender, using medium to high speed. Store at room temperature, preferably near a fire extinguisher. This is really H-O-T! One drop is equal to the commercial brand. Keeps for ages in the refrigerator in a covered container. Makes 6 ounces.
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JOHNNIE LEGA’S CHILI
“The Working Man’s Palace” was the name Pearl Beach had given to Johnnie Lega’s Bar when we lived near there for nearly 12 years. It was known around the world. Once, when Julia Lega was traveling in Europe, she was sitting in a train station in Spain where she struck up a conversation with another American who asked her what part of “The States” was she from. Julia assured him that he had probably never heard of it – the town was so small; but, when she said, “Pearl Beach, Michigan,” the American replied, “Johnnie Lega’s Bar!” He was from the East Coast, but had never forgotten his one visit through Pearl Beach area and a memorable bowl of chili at Lega’s! We were all so saddened when Johnnie passed away from cancer. But, everyone can still enjoy his unique chili recipe. You have no idea how long it took me to duplicate this recipe. Johnnie never used a measuring utensil and it came out perfect every day! I observed him making his famous dish, jotting down everything he put in the kettle – it was months later and many failures before even HE had to admit, I had it right on target!
2 pounds ground beef (chuck preferred)
1 small onion, the size of an egg
1 green bell pepper, seeds removed
5 ribs celery, sliced paper thin
1-quart water
6-ounces tomato paste
½ teaspoon garlic powder
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon oregano powder
2 tablespoons vinegar
2-pound can red kidney beans, un-drained
12-ounce can of light beer
Brown the beef in a large hot skillet without adding any oil or shortening. Chuck ground beef has enough fat in it. Chop the onion and pepper and add to the beef, stirring and cooking until the onions get transparent. Add celery, water, tomato paste, garlic, chili and oregano powders. Stir well, cover and turn heat to low. Simmer gently for 20 minutes. Then, add Johnnie’s “secret” ingredient – the vinegar – followed by the un-drained can of beans and the beer. Cover and simmer gently for about 1 hour. Leftovers taste even better the second day! Unfortunately, it doesn’t freeze well. Makes 8 servings.
I’M VERY GRATEFUL TO CHILI!
ONE OF THE NICEST THINGS ABOUT MAKING CHILI is that it goes so far! After I had walked out of the newspaper editor’s office, telling him to “mail me my check,” I didn’t know if he had fired me or if I had quit! But to go home and start my own paper was an impulsive reaction, if not foolish. It was a nice job for a housewife with 5 kids. The money wasn’t “good”, but it did buy the kids a few things we couldn’t otherwise afford. Paul was working as a draftsman for a sign company in Mt. Clemens and that weekly paycheck was spent on house payments, utilities and insurance even before it was cashed. The money I earned from writing helped and I gave it up because of pride and integrity.
The first thing I did with my writing, at that time, was to take all the recipes I had published in my newspaper column and all of the articles on recipes that I had sold to “Lady’s Circle” and “Home Life Magazine”, and secured permission to re-print my own material in a small cookbook. With Free Press columnist, Bob Talbert, to “plug” the little book, I sold all 1,000 copies in a month! Rather than re-print it at the “Quickie-While-You-Wait” printer shop, I decided I would put those recipes into a monthly publication – not exactly my own newspaper, but certainly worth the opportunity to try it and see if it would pay. We lived on a lot of chili in those days. And this chapter seems like a good place to bring this all up to you, because I am very grateful to chili! It fed our family of seven nicely – night after night – when there was no money for much else but hamburger and beans! And because I only owned 4 cooking pots – small, medium, large, and the no-life-guard-on-duty size, making chili and any of its spin-offs was substantial fare for us for the time being.
It was a good thing that I kept a complete list of names and addresses of those who wrote to me at the newspaper, requesting recipes, and all of those who purchased my first little cookbook, “The Better Cooker’s Cookbook”, for I invited each one by post card to subscribe to my monthly newsletter. The response was sufficiently enthusiastic to cause me to take on the commitment – but, without Paul knowing anything about it, for he surely would have put his foot down and said, “NO!”
Until the newsletter could pay for itself, Paul thought what I was earning was coming from the ironing I did each week for other people at $5 a basket. Since Paul worked late many nights and bowled two nights a week, he couldn’t keep an accurate account of how much ironing I really did. What I scraped together from the ironing money, I used as a down payment on a hand-cranked mimeograph machine so that I could print my own newsletter. For nine months, I kept this from Paul; and, with our daughter Debbie’s help, put out the publication, paid off the mimeograph and saw my subscriptions reach 100 readers. That is when I was invited to appear on Dennis Wholley’s television program, “AM Detroit” on WXYZ-TV. I had to tell Paul! He took it rather calmly, I thought; but now, in retrospect, I believe he was suffering from a mild case of shock from it all.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
HUITLACOCHE is corn smut eaten in Mexico. The large swollen growths are chopped & cooked in oil with lightly sautéed onion and garlic for about 15 minutes. For a more Mexican touch, include pieces of chili pepper and oregano. - N. Chalotta of Taco Bell, New Mexico
CINCINNATI CHILI – is a serious seminar of culinary creativity. The hallmark of Ohio’s chili is a pinch of clove and a dash of allspice!
To my Wednesday’s Chili recipe (see Index), omit the beans and, when required to add the chili powder, also add: 1/4-tsp powdered cloves and 1/8-tsp powdered allspice for this Cincinnati version.
You have one of five options for serving the sauce: (1) over the omitted beans [gently heated in a saucepan along with the liquid in which they’re canned, a dab of butter and salt & pepper to taste until piping hot, but never boiled or the beans turn to mush] or (2) over prepared spaghetti or (3) with grated cheese or (4) with fresh-chopped onions or (5) over hot dogs in buns with or without mustard & onions.
SHY LION CHILI PARLOR CHILI
When our good friend, Sherry Ellis, was helping me with my recipes, she returned from a weekend trip to her hometown in Cincinnati, bringing me a container of her favorite chili to see if I could tell how to make it at home. This is my version.
3 pounds ground chuck
2 tablespoons corn oil
1 cup minced fresh onion
2 cans (10 ounces each) beef broth
2 teaspoons cumin powder
1 teaspoon allspice
½ teaspoon powdered clove
1 ½ teaspoons onion salt
1 teaspoon each: garlic salt and black pepper
2 tablespoons chili powder
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ cup molasses
½ ounce bitter chocolate (or a half square)
1 teaspoon paprika
6-ounce can tomato paste
1 tablespoon Postum instant drink powder, OR 4 teaspoons instant tea powder
Brown the chuck and onions in the oil on medium heat, mashing the beef with the back of a fork until all the pink disappears and the onions become transparent. Add the broth and cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove about half of this mixture to a blender, using high-speed until it’s about the consistency of cement mortar and then return it to the remaining beef & onion mixture. Then, transfer all of it to a 6-qt kettle that has a tight-fitting lid. Also, add all the remaining ingredients and stir well. Cover and cook on very low heat for about an hour, stirring often. If you wish to give it a snappier flavor, add in a whole dry bay leaf, crumbled fine; as well as, a teaspoonful of Worcestershire and about half of a green bell pepper, seeded and finely-grated. If you wish to dilute the chili, do so with hot, black, strong tea. You may keep it refrigerated up to a week or freeze it up to 6 months. Serves 10.
CHILI SEASONING MIX
You can buy this mix in an envelope at your local supermarket or put this recipe together in less than 20 minutes and have a bowl of benevolent chili that’s so good, you’d bet your Gringo sombrero it came straight from Tijuana by burro! This makes about 1 ½ cups of mix.
12 Ritz Crackers, crushed or blended to a fine powder
4 envelopes Tomato-flavored soup powder
(or 1-cup of my “Cup of Thoup” – see Index)
¼ cup dry, minced onions
4 teaspoons instant tea powder
2 teaspoons each: beef bouillon and chili powders
½ teaspoon each: hickory-flavored salt, garlic salt, cumin powder and dry minced parsley
Combine cracker powder with the soup powder and remaining ingredients, stirring thoroughly. Store at room temperature in a 2-cup container with a tight-fitting lid. Keeps for weeks and weeks.
To use the mix: Brown 1-lb ground chuck in 2 tablespoons corn oil in a 3 ½- to 4-quart sauce pan or Dutch oven-type kettle, mashing the beef down with the back of a fork until all the pink color disappears. Turn heat to lowest setting and stir in 4 cups boiling water and a 15-ounce can of un-drained, red kidney beans. Then, add all the chili seasoning mix (from one batch), stirring until well-combined and it begins to thicken slightly. Serves 4 to 5.
If you like more beans, add another can, but drain it first. If you like it hotter, stir in a little dehydrated chili pepper flakes, to taste, for individual servings.
V-ACHE JUICE
16 chopped tomatoes
½ cup each: carrots, onions and celery – all chopped
2 tablespoons each: salt and lemon juice
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Combine everything and boil rapidly for 25 minutes in a roomy saucepan or kettle, until all the ingredients are very tender. Press this mixture through a fine-mesh strainer to remove the tomato seeds and skins. Take a small portion of this mixture at a time and run it through a blender until it’s as smooth as the commercial product. Ladle the mixture into hot, sterilized jars, allowing 1-inch head-space. Seal and process in a hot water bath for 15 minutes. If you don’t want to go with the hot-water-bath-canning route, ladle the juice into plastic, freezer containers with tight-fitting lids; still, allowing 1-inch head-space. Makes 2 quarts of juice. Freezes well up to a year!
SOPAIPILLAS
Mario Leal settled in Texas when he came from Mexico. He wanted, very much, to show people that good Mexican food meant more than enchiladas. He wanted to remove the image of Mexican food being mostly spicy and greasy. His restaurant, Mario’s Chiquita (in the Dallas area), is where these delicate little fried pillow-pastries were a treat for me!
4 cups flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon butter
1 envelope dry yeast
¼ cup warm water
1 teaspoon sugar (yes – more sugar)
1 ¼ cups scalded milk
about 1 ½ pints corn oil
cinnamon-sugar mix (1/2 cup sugar to 1 tablespoon Cinnamon powder)
Combine the flour, baking powder and salt with the 1 tablespoon sugar; then, cut-in the butter and set aside while you soften the yeast in the warm water with the 1 teaspoon sugar. Let stand 4 to 5 minutes, or until bubbly. Meanwhile, scald the milk and let it cool to lukewarm; then, add the yeast mixture to it. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the liquid mixture. Work into a smooth dough, kneading for about 5 minutes with lightly floured hands until dough is elastic in texture, but not dry. Roll dough out to ¼-inch thickness and cut into 3-inch triangles. In a heavy sauce pan, fry a few at a time in the oil, keeping it about 3 inches deep and about 425°F. When golden brown and puffed like little pillows, lift out with a slotted spoon to drain on paper towels. Dust with the cinnamon-sugar mix. Makes about 4 dozen. They keep well in a covered container at room temperature up to a week.
TOMATOES FOR FREEZING
I want to detour here long enough to tell you about putting tomatoes away for future use, since most Italian and Mexican recipes call for tomato sauce or paste, or even stewed tomatoes. Here’s a little trick to take care of that end-of-summer bounty of tomatoes: take your whole, ripe tomatoes (intact and ripe from the vine) one at a time, being careful not to puncture their skins, and dip them into a pan of HOT (but not boiling) water for 30 seconds. Remove each with a slotted spoon and place individually in lightly-greased cupcake tins. Set these in the freezer, unwrapped, just until they’re frozen solid – about 4 to 5 hours. Working quickly, remove them and place carefully in food-storage, plastic, freezer bags; seal and return to freezer to be used within 6 months. I like to put the bags of tomatoes into plastic containers in the freezer to protect the tomatoes from getting damaged from heavier foods. When you use the tomatoes from the freezer, let them thaw only long enough so you can insert the tip of a sharp, thin-bladed knife around the core to remove it. Then place the tomatoes upside down on paper towels to let all the liquids that accumulated in the freezing process drain out. The removal of all the excess liquids will leave the tomatoes nicely firm and the skins should slip off easily by splitting each one carefully around their “equator”. You can, then, slice them up for salads or use them in cooking. The complete draining is the “secret” to a fresh-as-just-picked texture!
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PASTA PERFORMANCE TOMATO SAUCE MIX
This is a pantry-shelf friend if ever you had one! It makes up almost like my “Chili Seasoning Mix” (see Index) and is just as versatile!
12 Ritz Crackers, finely crushed to a powder
4 envelopes Tomato-flavored soup powder
(or 1 cup of my “Cup of Thoup” – see Index)
¼ cup dry, minced onions
4 teaspoons instant tea powder
2 teaspoons each: beef bouillon powder and paprika
1 teaspoon each: dry, oregano leaves and parsley flakes
½ teaspoon each: garlic salt and cumin powder
Combine cracker powder with the soup powder and remaining ingredients, stirring thoroughly. Store at room temperature in a 3-cup container with a tight-fitting lid. Keeps for weeks. Makes about 2 cups.
To use the sauce mix: Brown 1-pound ground chuck in 2 tablespoons corn oil in a 4-quart sauce pan or Dutch oven, mashing the beef down with the back of a fork until all the pink color disappears. Turn heat to medium and stir in 4 cups boiling water and a 6-oz can of V-8 Juice (and one 8-ounce can drained mushrooms - optional). Then, add all the tomato sauce mix (from one batch), stirring until smooth. Turn heat to low and cover pan with a tight-fitting lid. When piping hot, pour over your favorite prepared pasta, allowing 1 cup uncooked pasta per batch of this recipe. Serves 4 to 6 sensibly!
CONEY SAUCE MIX
As in the “Tomato Sauce Mix” recipe (above), brown the beef and put half of it in a blender with enough water to cover the blades. Blend to the consistency of cement mortar, then return to the remaining browned beef. Continue as otherwise directed (above), omitting the V-8 Juice and adding ½ cup pickle relish along with the boiling water. Also, add ½ cup Grapenuts cereal to the sauce ingredients while simmering. When piping hot, spoon sauce into split, toasted hot dog buns.
HOSTILITY SAUCE
For either tacos or burritos – this is one quick, “nasty” sauce that’s guaranteed to remove the lint from your naval, open your sinus passages and make a liar out of Rolaids!
Mix together thoroughly, 1 cup Thousand Island dressing, ¼ cup well-chopped green pepper, ½ teaspoon Tabasco sauce and 1 tablespoon each: my Mexican Seasoning Mix powder and Horseradish Cream Sauce (see Index for both.) Store in covered container in refrigerator. Makes about 1 1/3 cups.
BURRITO SAUCE
1-cup ketchup
2-TB each: horseradish cream sauce and honey
1/4-cup pickle relish
2-TB chopped green pepper
1/4-tsp Tabasco sauce (or to taste)
1-tsp onion powder
Combine all ingredients well and keep refrigerated until ready to serve over hot burritos! Makes 1 1/2-cups of sauce. Do not freeze it. Keeps 30 days if tightly covered and refrigerated.
CHILI SAUCE, LIKE BLUNTS
In a pinch, you can create your own quick chili sauce, using 1 cup ketchup (any commercial brand or use my homemade version – see Index), plus ½ cup pickle relish & ¼ cup bottled apple butter. Stir it all together thoroughly. Makes 1 ¾ cup of sauce.
CHILI MIGNON, Like Chasen’s Chili
This is a favorite of my family! It’s so close to Chasen’s Chili, which Liz Taylor & Richard Burton would always have flown to them, wherever they were in the world! From my “Better Cooker’s Crock Book” (out of print now), this was one of my most-often requested recipes!
3 pounds ground beef
1 small onion (the size of an egg), chopped
5 ribs celery, sliced paper thin
4 tablespoons corn oil
½ teaspoon season salt
10-ounce can beef broth
4 cups strong, black, hot tea
6-ounce can tomato paste
4 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin powder
½ teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon each: garlic salt and oregano powder
3 tablespoons vinegar
16-ounce can stewed-tomatoes
4 cans (1-lb each) red kidney beans, un-drained
2 cans (10-oz each) Campbell’s Chili Beef Soup
Brown the beef with the onions and celery in the oil, crumbling the beef to the consistency of rice. When the onions are transparent and the beef is no longer pink, put it in a Dutch-oven or slow-cooker and add everything else to it. Simmer it, covered, on low heat for about 2 hours – or until all flavors have blended to your taste and it’s piping hot, but never let it boil!
TEXAS STYLE: Dilute the finished chili with two 12-ounce cans Busch Light beer! Ed McMahon never had it so good! Left-overs freeze well in family- or individual-sized containers. Serves 10 to 12.
TOMATO PASTE
4-quarts ripe tomatoes, peeled and sliced ¼ inch thick
2 tablespoons table salt
1-quart oil – corn, vegetable, or safflower
Place tomatoes in a shallow pan and sprinkle with the salt. Let them stand for 4 hours; then, put them in a 4-quart kettle (without adding any other liquids) and bring them to a slow and easy boil. The heat will force the tomatoes and salt to draw their own juice. Stir constantly until soft. Press this mixture through a fine-mesh strainer to remove seeds and skins. Return to kettle to cook gently (or into a slow-cooker to prevent scorching) until it’s reduced to a puree, thick enough to spread with a knife over the surface of a lightly-greased roasting pan or jelly roll pan. Score the paste in several places with the knife. Oven-dry it at the lowest heat setting, leaving the oven door open an inch, until the paste is thick enough to shape into 1-inch balls. Place the balls in a container with a loose-fitting lid and let them stand at room temperature for 4 days (mark the time down so that you give the balls at least 72 hours of drying time), at which time, knead the tomato balls into a smooth mixture. Shape the mixture, again, into smaller balls, ½ inch in diameter. Dip each ball into the oil (important to cover them completely in oil) and then drop them back into the container, keeping the container covered with wax paper or cheese cloth that’s secured with a rubber band (or use a Mason jar with a Snap-On-type of sealing top.) Aunt Angela preferred Olive Oil when she made these; but, with cholesterol of such concern these days, I try to stick with the lighter oils…it’s up to you.
To reconstitute the balls, mash the tomato paste into a measuring cup and measure out an equal amount of warm tap water, stirring it into the paste until smooth. Then use it in place of any commercial-type tomato paste. It keeps at room temperature for months. If you plan to use the ½-inch tomato paste balls for specific recipes you can season the oil to your liking with garlic powder, or onion powder, or finely-crushed oregano leaves (however you like) before dipping the balls into it. If the balls seem to dry too quickly, you can drizzle a little more oil over them while in the storage jar after a week or two, depending on the amount of humidity in the room. You can freeze them to keep for years too. This recipe makes about 50 balls, ½ inch in diameter.
SALSA – MILD SAUCE
1 pound can stewed-tomatoes
6-ounce can tomato paste
¼ cup raspberry jam
1 tablespoon my Mexican Seasoning Mix (see Index)
¼ teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1 teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon garlic powder
3 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
Put everything in a blender on high-speed until smooth. Keep refrigerated in a covered container until time to serve with your favorite corn chips or other dipping items. If you like it “5-alarm” style, add more hot seasonings, to taste. This will keep refrigerated up to 6 weeks. Makes about 2 cups of sauce.
TACO BEEF SAUCE
1 ½ pounds ground round
3 tablespoons oil
8-ounce can pizza sauce
1 teaspoon each: onion powder and dry oregano leaves
½ teaspoon each: chili powder, onion salt, season salt, pepper and cumin powder
2 teaspoons sugar
Brown the beef in the oil, crumbling it with the back of a fork until it resembles rice. When all the pink is gone from the meat, turn heat to low and add remaining ingredients as listed, stirring thoroughly as you go. Cover and simmer 20 minutes. Refrigerate left-overs in a covered container up to a week. Freezes well, up to 6 months. Use as needed to fill taco shells. Serves 4 to 6.
TACO LAYERED SALAD
Prepare the taco beef sauce (above) as directed. To the finished sauce, add 2 cans (1 pound each) red kidney beans, drained. Let this chill in the refrigerator while you grease a 9 x 12 x 2” baking dish well with corn oil. Slice half a head of lettuce into shreds and spread evenly over the bottom of the oiled dish. Over the lettuce, arrange about 2 cups fresh diced tomatoes (with some of the seeds and juicy parts removed.) Over the tomato-layer, sprinkle the finely-sliced stems and tips of 4 green onions. Drizzle 1 ½ cups Thousand Island dressing over that layer; then, sprinkle that with 2 cups shredded Cheddar or Monterrey Jack cheese. Now, spoon on chilled Taco Beef Sauce, with added beans. Arrange 3 cups crushed corn chips over the beef-layer. Spoon one batch of my Guacamole recipe (see Index) over the chips. Chill thoroughly before serving to six!
TOSTADO SALAD – Shape tortillas to fit an oiled salad bowl. Add the same fillings as in the Taco Salad (above); but, rather than Thousand Island dressing, use an equal amount of your favorite taco sauce. Serve it well-chilled to 6.
GUACAMOLE – Authentic Mexican-Style
Peel 2 ripe avocados and remove their pits – reserve these. Place avocados in a bowl and mash to a chunky consistency; then, add the following: 4 teaspoons lime juice, 1 large fresh tomato (seeded & chopped), 2 tablespoons dry minced onions, 2 tablespoons finely-chopped fresh red onion, 1 well-chopped (bottled) chili pepper with 1 tablespoon of the liquid in which it’s bottled, as well as 1 teaspoon powdered coriander. Beat it all together with an electric mixer on high-speed – or run the mixture through a blender – until pureed. Press the reserved pits into the mixture and refrigerate for 1 hour before serving. Remove the pits and discard when ready to serve. Makes 2 cups.
THE SECRET TO A GOOD CONEY SAUCE is simple – brown and crumble the beef; then put half of it through the blender with just enough water to cover the blades until it’s the consistency of cement mortar, mixing back in to the other half. Jack McCarthy of Detroit’s Channel 7 (WXYZ-TV) confessed to me that this was the secret to good, authentic Greek Coney Sauce, when he came to our home on Christmas Eve [1977] to do a film about us. Apparently, Jack’s a gourmet cook! When he traveled, he’d take a lot of kidding about carrying, with him…a crepe pan in a tennis racket cover.
O’NASTY CONEY SAUCE – Don’t be over-whelmed by the number of ingredients! It’s an everything-in-one-kettle dish, that can’t go wrong!
2 ½ to 3 pounds ground chuck
2 teaspoons cumin powder
a few grains of cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon crushed oregano leaves
3 tablespoons beef bouillon powder
6-ounce can tomato paste
3 cups hot, strong black tea
1 envelope onion soup mix
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon garlic salt
3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1 cup ketchup
6-ounce can V-8 Juice
½ teaspoon Kitchen Bouquet
Brown the chuck in a large skillet (when using lean beef, brown in a few tablespoons of oil), mashing it with the back of a fork over medium-high heat until all the pink disappears. Cover the blades of your blender with about 1/3 cup water, then put half of the browned beef in and blend on high speed with an on/off agitation until smooth. Return this to the skillet to mix with the rest of the browned beef. Stir in cumin powder, peppers, oregano, bouillon, tomato paste and hot tea. Turn off heat and transfer everything to a 2 ½-quart saucepan, then add remaining ingredients. Cook and stir frequently over medium heat until piping hot. Spoon mixture over grilled hot dogs in buns – or just into plain buns with plenty of diced onions on each serving. Leftovers will keep up to 2 weeks in refrigerator. Freeze mixture up to 6 months. Makes 8 to 10 servings.
FOR A GREAT CHILI – to the above recipe, add 3 cans (1 pound each) red chili beans in chili gravy and double the amount of chili powder.
LOOSE HAMBURGER
In Kansas City, this is a close kissing-cousin to a Sloppy Joe, but referred to merely as “loose hamburger.”
2 pounds ground chuck
1 envelope onion soup mix
2 envelopes Tomato Cup-A-Soup
(or use my “Cup of Thoup” - see Index)
½ cup chopped onion
¼ cup ketchup
¼ cup pickle relish
2 tablespoons dry, minced green pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon garlic salt
½ teaspoon pepper
¼ teaspoon Anise extract
1 tablespoon dry parsley flakes
1 tablespoon Worcestershire
¼ cup all-purpose flour
Press ground chuck into a non-greased 10-inch skillet to cover pan evenly. No additional oil is needed since the chuck has enough of its own fat to grease the pan as it cooks. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and simmer slowly for 15 minutes to bring out the natural juices in the beef. Remove the lid and break up the meat with the back of a fork and stir it around, adding each of the remaining ingredients as listed EXCEPT the flour! Pack the mixture back over the bottom of the pan, keeping heat on low to medium. Now, add the flour; but, dust it evenly over the meat mixture, allowing it to absorb the flour. Stir it gently just to incorporate the flour. Pack it down again with the back of a large spoon and cover the pan tightly again. Simmer it very slowly for 10 minutes. If you like a thicker sauce, stir in 1/3 cup Grapenuts cereal during the 10-minute-simmer time! Spoon the mixture into split, toasted hot dog buns for 8. Left-overs can be refrigerated for up to a week if tightly covered. Frozen left-overs should be used within 3 months.
MAN-WITCH SLOPPY JOES
Prepare the Loose Hamburger exactly as directed above except, after stirring in the flour and just before the last simmering period, you should also add a 1-pound can stewed-tomatoes, ¼ cup bottled Italian salad dressing, 8-ounce can tomato sauce, 8-oz can jellied cranberry sauce (mashed well with the back of a fork), 6-ounce can V-8 Juice and 10-ounce can tomato soup. Stir well. If the skillet in which you prepared the hamburger doesn’t look like it will accommodate all the additional ingredients, transfer the meat mixture to a pan that will, then add the Man-Witch ingredients. Spoon the mixture into split and broiler-toasted hamburger buns. Sufficient for serving 8 with leftovers, which can be refrigerated up to a week if tightly covered. Freezes well up to 3 months.
LEADING-PARENTS’ WORCESTERSHIRE SAUCE
2 tablespoons ketchup
3 green onions, minced
2 anchovies, finely chopped (or 1 teaspoon anchovy paste)
½ teaspoon powdered cloves
1-quart dark vinegar
Combine ingredients in top of a double boiler over simmering water, stirring until thoroughly heated. Never let it boil, nor put it on direct heat. When thoroughly heated, remove from double boiler and let it stand in a covered container at room temperature for 48 hours. Strain it several times and then bottle it. Keep it tightly-capped and refrigerate. It will keep for many months. Makes almost a quart of sauce.
It’s amazing how this Mexican form of bread could be a 2nd-cousin-twice-removed (probably on its mother’s side of the family) to the Jewish Matzah; and on its father’s side of the family, it could be a cousin-by-marriage to the Arabian flat bread, or the Far-East pita bread.
Mix 2 cups Quaker Masa Harina (or see Index for my version) and 1 cup cold water into a smooth dough, adding just enough more water to keep it moist and smooth. Divide the dough into 12 equal-sized balls. Work with one at a time, keeping the rest in plastic bags so they won’t dry out. Roll each portion into a paper-thin circle between two sheets of waxed paper and stack (with wax paper between layers) and then – just as if you’re making pancakes – brown them very lightly on a slightly oiled, hot griddle. Keep them soft, not crisp. You can, then, freeze them to be used in other recipes within 6 months – or refrigerate to use within a week. Makes 12 tortillas.
TACO SHELLS – Heat 1-pint corn oil in a 12” skillet. Fry your prepared tortilla shells (above), one at a time in hot oil, using a pair of tongs to fold each, loosely, in half while it’s frying to a crispy, golden brown. Remove from hot oil and let it drain on paper towels until all have been fried. It’s all in the way you shape the tortilla!
FLOUR TORTILLAS – Prepare these easily with 2 cups self-rising flour, 1 tablespoon Crisco and ½ to ¾ cup lukewarm water. Follow the same method in my Tortilla Shells recipe (above) as it directs for rolling out and browning them.
CORN CHIPS – Prepare the corn or flour tortillas, but shape and roll out into paper-thin circles, 3” in diameter. Brown on a lightly greased griddle as in the tortilla recipe (above); but, while still hot, dust with your favorite butter-flavored popcorn salt.
TOSTADOS – Just like the tacos method (above); but, deep-fry the tortilla flat. Layer each tortilla with beef-filling, shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes and shredded cheese. Add taco or burrito sauce on the side or drizzle it over the top.
NACHOS CON CARNE
Stewart Anderson’s Black Angus Restaurant (Lakewood, CA) served an appetizer in the lounge that consisted of a platter of corn chips, arranged in a single layer over the bottom of the plate, with a little taco beef filling spooned between the chips and a side dish of melted cheese. To re-enact the dish, pour an 8-ounce jar of Cheez Whiz into the top of a double boiler (over simmering water) with 3-ounces cream cheese, stirring until melted and smooth – or use an electric beater on low speed as it is melting. Then stir into this: ¼ teaspoon hot pepper sauce, 1 teaspoon chili powder and 1 tablespoon of the liquid in which yellow peppers are bottled, plus 1 pepper – finely chopped. Serve the sauce warm on the side of corn chips and beef. Serves 4 nicely.
TACOS
The Mexican answer to the Big Mac – its beef mixture, lettuce, cheese, onions and “special sauce” are piled artistically into a crisp (or soft) taco shell!
1 to 1 ½ pounds ground chuck
2 tablespoons oil
2 cups V-8 Juice
12 Ritz crackers, crushed to a powder
1 tablespoon chili powder-for1/2-tsp paprika
½ teaspoon each: garlic salt, season salt and pepper
½ teaspoon Tabasco Sauce (or to taste)
¼ cup finely-grated green pepper
¼ cup dry, minced onions
2 teaspoons beef bouillon powder
Brown the beef in the oil until the “pink” disappears. Stir constantly and mash with a fork until it’s the consistency of rice. Turn heat to low and add remaining ingredients, stirring frequently. Keep meat mixture warm as you fill 12 taco shells with it. Top each one off with shredded lettuce, shredded Monterey-Jack or sharp cheddar cheese, chopped fresh onions & taco sauce. Makes 1 dozen tacos.
FIVE-ALARM TACO SAUCE
Prepare 1 recipe of my “Big Match Special Sauce” (see Index) and add to it: 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon chili powder and ¼ teaspoon Tabasco sauce (or to taste). Sufficient to top-off a dozen tacos.
MASA HARINA IMITATION
Combine 1 cup all-purpose flour with ¼ cup yellow or white cornmeal and ¼ cup finely-crushed cornflakes cereal. Sift the mixture together 3 times and store in a covered container at room temperature for up to 60 days. Multiply the ingredients as needed. Makes a good understudy for the commercial corn flour.
ENCHILADAS
These are like burritos, but they are filled and rolled up with two ends open. After browning your tortillas, dip them in hot oil for 10 seconds or just until limp. Fill them with my Burrito Mixture and Re-Fried Beans (see Index.) Roll up and arrange in a shallow baking pan at 425°F for 12 minutes or until crispy. Top with shredded cheddar cheese, chopped green peppers and either my Hostility Sauce or Burrito Sauce.
SMORGASBORD – FREEDOM OF CHOICE
It’s a mistake to think of the fast food industry as being confined to hamburgers and fries and buckets of chicken or fish. It is really a more versatile banquet of menu selections than the critics give us time to consider. The public is fickle and very easily swayed by the aggressive opinions of self-styled experts who preach the evils of fast food with all the charisma of a revival tent evangelism; and we, the believing public, will go in whatever direction the wind blows the strongest!
Nobody dreamed that the step-child of the food industry would ever have endured this long – for, to everybody’s surprise, “fast food” has, indeed, become the “Liza Doolittle” of the restaurant industry. The humble streetcar diner of the 50’s and 60’s has blossomed into the Cinderella of the commercial dining division of the food industry. It has soared in sales while all other major enterprises have suffered set-backs in the shadow of the recent economic gloom! [NOTE: That was originally written in 1982, showing that history does repeat itself.]
The reason the fast food industry has become a virtual smorgasbord of appealing menu selections is that it is affordable! People who work hard for their money and have little of it left after essentials have been paid for, look for leisure and escape hatches by which they can derive a little pleasure for the money they have left to spend on such luxuries. Fast food chains cater to crowds with very little fuss, but surroundings that reflect informality. The costs of eating out, however, have increased along with everything else. Now it’s becoming less and less appealing to spend the same money on one fast food meal that would also buy a bag of groceries that could make several meals at home!
So, we can have our cake and eat it too! We can dine in as if we’re eating out – whether we choose to be catered to by wine stewards and parking valets or whether we wish to impersonate the plastic palaces of the fast food kingdom – eating out at home can be a pleasant experience.
SECOND THOUGHTS
FAST FOODS HAVE ARRIVED IN OUR CULTURE at a point in our growth as a society, when “time” is of the essence… held cheaply, spent foolishly, and made to be one of the most aggressive influences in our lives.
The calendar and the clock have given a sense of order to civilization. Our lives are, both, governed by and regulated by the limitations of these two man-made inventions. In a world created and perpetuated by an infinite Spirit, man has adjusted to the divisions of time. The records of one’s birth and death are accounted for by date and moment; and all the time in between is categorized by years, months, weeks, days, hours, moments—even seconds. We are hardly conscious of the limitations to which we submit ourselves by confining our lives to the measurements of calendar and clock divisions.
Without even realizing it, we are constantly meeting deadlines in our lives. We catch a bus, a train, a plane in accordance with the hour and minute scheduled. We compete in and watch sports that honor seconds by which winning and losing and records are determined.
It is, with some frustration, that man attempts to occasionally free himself of the obligation to live within the framework of the deadline. Our work is subject to how much we can accomplish within a repeating allotment of time. Our leisure is limited by the number of hours and minutes that remain.
Even the successful results of the foods we prepare is completely dependent on the timing we employ. From this, we have derived “instant coffee”, “the 3-minute egg”, “day-old bread”, “Minute Rice”, “Hour-by-Hour” deodorant soap, “the 5-minute phone call”, “the 12 Days of Christmas”, and on and on. We can have a “good time”, a “great time”, a “bad time”. About the only thing not governed by, nor subject to, time is love. So, “Fast Foods” arrived when it could be most appreciated and most recognized. “Fast” indicates – or, at least, implies – that there will be time left over one would not ordinarily have with food that was NOT “fast”. Most food preparations require a lot of time. But “Fast Food” was capitalized on by the promotional people as being something the on-the-go generation could enjoy and would buy, because they had better things to do than sit around restaurants waiting to be waited on; when, instead, they could run in and out with a meal and be on their way to the fun things in life – or on the way to the more time-consuming things in their life, such as work or business of one kind or another.
But with the extensive research into the effects of stress, pressure put upon many people from having too little “time” to be relaxed, to enjoy leisure, freedom from worries, there has been a turn-around in the fast food promotional field. Now they are gradually – without you hardly even being aware of it – changing to a “family” restaurant theme. They want to bring back the old-fashioned, close-knit, solid family unit. Back and forth, like the pendulum of a clock, the gimmicks are given a new face and flavor. The public will eventually become conditioned to the new theme and “fast food” will take on a cosmetic change that we will hardly even notice.
