This is the dish that I introduced to our blended family’s holidays. Well, that and eggs Benedict. It is one that everyone will eat. So it definitely, goes on the list of recipes to send our daughter out in the world with.

1 large box Strawberry Banana Jell-0 (or any red Jell-0…but I use the strawberry banana)
1 envelope Knox gelatin (optional)
1/2 cup red hots (You can use anywhere from 1/4 to 1/2 cup)
2 cups boiling water
2 cups applesauce (in the recipe I scrawled in the back of my Cookbook for Boys and Girls it says 1 can which means I always say I need a can…even though canned applesauce no longer seems to exist)

Dissolve red hots in boiling water in a small saucepan on the stove. Mix the red jell-o powder and Knox in a bowl. When red hots are dissolved, pour into gelatins and stir until dissolved. Stir in applesauce. You will want to wait until the boiled water/Jell-o mixture cools a little before adding the applesauce or go back in and stir in about a 1/2 hour. Otherwise, the applesauce will settle and it won’t be as evenly distributed. Stick it in the fridge until it gels.

Note: The Knox isn’t necessary but you will want to add it if you like a firmer Jell-0 salad OR you want to do it in a mold that you turn it out and slice it.

It is hot here. Really hot. Pink snow salad is just the thing. Really. Try it. My mother sometimes made this while we were growing up…not expensive…lots of healthy stuff in it…she actually cut the sugar quite a bit. I would be surprised if she uses more than a 1/2 cup

1 2/3 cup evaporated milk, chilled
2 tbsp. lemon juice
1 can fruit cocktail, drained
2 c. fresh sliced peaches (or 1 can)
3/4 c. sugar
1 can pineapple chunks, drained
1 sm bottle Maraschino cherries, drained reserving 3 tbsp cherry juice
1 c miniature marshmallows
1/2 c. chopped pecans

Beat milk at high speed in mixer until stiff. Add lemon juice. Fold in remaining ingredients and freeze.

It has been hotter than the blazes here this week and humid. I don’t want to even look at the kitchen, much less cook. Thus…this is appealing. It is very similar to the much loved curried chicken/curried not chicken salad I make for the family.

Luau Tuna Salad

3/4 cup mayonnaise
3/4 tsp curry powder
1 tbsp parsley flakes

Mix ingredients well

1 13-oz can tuna
1 cup pineapple chunks, drained (I use tidbits-well-drained)
1 cup celery, chopped
1 cup walnuts, chopped (I use cashews)

Combine tuna, pineapple, celery and walnuts. Fold in curried mayonnaise. Serve on lettuce leaves garnished with whole walnuts. Serves 6-8.

Well this could be called such because you can make it on a shoestring budget…but also because of the can shoestring potatoes. Do cut the amount of Mayo though or you won’t be able to reach your shoestrings. Icky to look at but a hit with the family.
Shoestring Potato Salad
1 c. mayonnaise
1 tbsp mustard
3/4 c. milk
Dash of Tabasco sauce
2 -oz cans tuna, drained
1 1/2 c. diced celery
1 4 1/2 oz can shoestring potatoes

Blend mayonnaise, mustard, milk, and Tabasco sauce. Add tuna and celery. Chill. Immediately before serving add shoestring potatoes; mix just so they stick together. Serve on lettuce leaf. Yield: 8 servings.

Myrna E Erickson
Cooperstown, ND

Salad Recipes, 1964

This is an actual recipe card from my mother (as opposed to “You remember me making this all the time” or scrawled in the back of my Joy of Cooking for Boys and Girls). This also is a recipe that I remember as getting rave reviews whenever my mother took it to a church potluck, ladies luncheon, etc. Interestingly, she often bought deli turkey for this or a “turkey loaf” from the freezer section. All the better to cube apparently.  It is good cold as well as hot. (Skip the grated cheese and potato chips)

2 cups cubed turkey
1 cup celery
1/2 cup ground nuts (Mama used pecans)
2 T lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
about 1 t. grated onion
mayonnaise to moisten

Place in individual servers (custard cups–but you can do the whole batch in one casserole dish if making for a potluck) Crumble potato chips and a few nuts on top. Top with grated sharp cheese. Place in 350 oven about 10-15 min till cheese melts and dishes are hot through.

This is not actually a retro Jell-o mold but a remake of a classic from The Passionate Vegetarian by Crescent Dragonwagon. I LOVE this cookbook. You simply must buy this cookbook whether you are a vegetarian or not. Lots of yummy recipes. Lots of great stories. This is a go-to cookbook for me and has been for a number of years.

Carrot Orange Crown Salad

2 lemons
4 oranges
About 3 cups carrot juice
1 tablespoon agar powder (not flakes or bars)
3 tablespoons honey or sugar
3 carrots, grated
Orange twists, carrot curls, fresh mint (optional)

Lightly spray a mold with cooking spray, set aside. Grate the rind of 1 lemon and 1/2 of 1 orange. Set aside. Juice both lemons, as well as the orange whose rind you just grated. Pour the juices into a 1-qt measuring cup, and add sufficient carrot juice to = 3  cups + 2 tablespoons liquid. Whisk in agar powder and let stand 5 minutes.
Peel section and dice the three remaining oranges in pieces small enough to hit with a fork but large enough to be distinct. Set aside.
Combine the agar juice mixture with honey or sugar in medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, and boil for a few seconds. Remove from heat and let cool until the mixture starts to thicken, 15-20 min. Then stir in reserved rinds, orange sections, and grated carrots. Immediately turn into prepared mold. Refrigerate, covered, until set, 1 to 2 hours. Serve garnished if desired with an orange twist, curl of carrot and a sprig of fresh mint.

You knew this was coming sooner or later–the marriage of two of my favorites in one lovely retro Jell-0 dish. Just how many recipes have all that AND GRATED cream cheese?

1 pkg raspberry gelatin
1 pkg cherry gelatin
1 large can crushed pineapple
1 can seedless white cherries (good luck finding them…I can’t…use maraschino cherries instead)
1 cup pecans
2 coca colas (partially frozen)
1 8 oz pkg cream cheese (frozen)

Dissolve gelatin in juices (heated) from cherries and pineapple. Add cokes, cherries, pineapple and nuts. Grate frozen cream cheese over the top of mold. Place in refrigerator until firm. Serves 10.

This time of year says horseradish to me. That comes from many years of attending Passover Seders. This salad, oddly, never was served. Too bad…tasty stuff here.

1 pkg lime gelatin
1 1/4 cup hot water
1 pt cottage cheese
1/2 c. mayonnaaise
1 sm can crushed pineapple
2 tbsp grated horseradish

Dissolve gelatin in hot water. Cool until syrupy. Add cheese, mayonnaise, pineapple and horseradish. Mix well; pour into mold. Serve on lettuce. Yield: 10-12 servings.
Mrs Gabriel Raba
New Underwood, S.D.
Salads,  1966

I hope to scan in the picture later…it is adorable in a retro food sort of way. In any case- a thrifty recipe with great use of leftover rice and you could use leftover chicken or some such instead of tuna. I am a big fan of curried chicken salad as well as curried tuna. As always, I will tell you to REDUCE THE MAYO.

Rice and Tuna Salad

2 cups cooked or leftover rice
1 6 1/2 oz or 7-0z can tuna, drained and broken up
1 cup shredded carrot
1 cup diced celery
2 tablespoons chopped onion
1 cup salad dressing or mayo
1 teaspoon curry powder
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
Carrot curls
Parsley sp

rigs

Combine rice, tuna, carrot, celery, and onion; toss lightly. Chill. Combine salad dressing, curry powder, lemon juice, and salt; mix until well blended. Chill. To serve, toss mayonnaise mixture with tuna mixture. Garnish with carrot curls and parsley. Makes 4 servings.

This is a tasty retro jell-o way to use up the last of the ham and hard boiled eggs from Easter. Sort of a tomato aspic meets ham salad. I prefer using V-8 in this dish. In fact, I am doing just that later today. Watch for pics.

Chopped Ham Salad Mold

1 tbsp unflavored gelatin
1/4 c. cold water
1 1/2 c. tomato juice, heated
1 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
3 hard cooked eggs, chopped
1 c. chopped celery
1/2 c. chopped cucumber
1/2 c. bell pepper, chopped
1 tbsp chopped onion
1/2 c mayonnaise

Soften gelatin in cold waater. Add hot tomato juice; stir until dissolved. Add lemon juice and salt; chill until partially set. Soak cucumbers in salted water; drain. Combine with all remaining ingredients; fold into thickened gelatin. Pour into mold; chill until firm. Yield: 6 servings

~Daphne Smith
Winnsboro, TX

Favorite Recipes of America, Salads