1950s Springtime Fancy Cake is the perfect April dessert

The days are getting longer, the air is alive with a thousand and one fresh, earthy scents, and the skies are, well, if not blue quite yet, than at least less likely to be chocked full of snowflakes.

For many north of the equator, spring has sprung and for those who are still wrestling with the final days of wintry weather, it soon will. Though we may have a ways to go before we're in the mood to sport an air conditioner as a hat or eschew any type of footwear that isn't a sandal, the warmth of spring is slowly emerging and before long, we're be into the thick of the hottest months of the year.

Before we hit that point though, let's take full advantage of our ovens and put them to good use in whipping up this super simple, budget-friend Springtime Fancy Cake recipe from 1953.

As with just about all vintage recipes that call for it, if shortening isn't your cup of tea, then by all means swap in your favourite butter, margarine or vegan cooking fat substitute instead.



{Sweet, fun and super easy to make, this delightful mid-century cake calls mainly for ingredients that most of us have to hand already and telegraphs a sense of spring as marvelously as the first blooms of the season. 1950s cake recipe ad image source.}


At its heart, this is a very basic white layer cake, but with the addition of sprightly mint green frosting and some really pretty daisies made from slices of white marshmallows and yellow gumdrops, it becomes a splendidly festive dessert offering that would easily see you through a myriad of spring and summer events, as well as lovely everyday meals alike.

For those, like myself, who are gluten-free, a cake like this is a total cinch still, too. Just put your favourite white or golden cake recipe to work or use a GF boxed mix for either.

You could change the frosting colour and/or candies used here as well, but I personally like it exactly as it stands now. This cake radiates with the spirit of spring, is pretty as a picture, and could easily be turned into cupcakes (with one candy topped flower on each cupcake), if so desired.

I’m elated that that spring is here again and love that vintage recipes like this help to capture to the elegance and joy of this season alike.

Today’s charming 1950s layer cake is bound to be a hit all throughout April and May, then clear through to June and summertime itself, where its adorable candy daisies will be every bit as at home then as they are right now while spring finds its sea legs once again.

Flickr Favourites: June 14, 2015

{1959 illustration by Paul C Burns ~ Totally Mystified}      
 


{Polka Dot Milkshakes ~ Jamie Anne}  


{Who's watching the movie? ~ Salty Cotton}  


{1950s smiling couple riding tandem bicycle built for two ~ Arnold Kabini}  


{1952 Dunlop ad ~ Totally Mystified}  


{Love Beach ~ Patrick Hayes}


{Montgomery Ward Summer 1959 catalog ~ Capricorn One Vintage}  


{Pink Dining ~ Salty Cotton}

  {For Young America at Play ~ Salty Cotton}  


{Kookie Vol 2 EP by Edd Byrnes ~ Totally Mystified}



{All images above are from Flickr. To learn more about a specific image, please click on its title to be taken to its respective Flickr page.}

♥ ♥ ♥


Like many vintage lovers, I count 1978's classic musical movie Grease amongst my favourite films of all-time, as well as one that had a powerful influence on my passion for the past as a youngster (another biggie was A League of Their Own, as I chatted about here way back in 2009). I can't help but think of this movie whenever the hottest season the year looms into sight again and often find myself singing or humming Summer Nights as it does.

While I'm not searching for a warm weather romance (I'm already blessed with to have found my boy, by which I mean, man, who is definitely "cute as can be!"), I do love the spirit of this hit song and how it makes me think not only to the season at hand, but to the countless times I watched Grease on VHS as a child. I knew it verbatim at one point and can still mouth most of the lines when I watch it these days.

Though one obviously looks at Grease with different eyes as an adult than they do as a poodle skirt wearing six year old who loved to dance and was nothing short of infatuated with the era (some things never change! :D), I still have a serious soft spot in my heart for this musical and make a point of catching it at least once a summer.

The images in this month's edition of Flickr Favourites are not specifically from, or relating to, Grease, but they all call to mind the same kind of feel good, toe tapping, happy-go-lucky take on the mid-twentieth century that this classic movie does. They're warm, fun, summery, and perpetually appealing, much like Sandy and Danny's ability to each break into the same song simultaneously while chilling with their respective group of friends.

I think that for just about all of us, whether we're big musical film fans in general or not, there is something about Grease that speaks to our souls as vintage lovers and that makes us yearn to spend at least a little time at Rydell High. For it there that a very idealized version of the fifties exists, no one says a word about the fact that the "teenagers" look like they're in their 30s, puppy love can turn into something so much more, and the sun is always shining right up until those Suuuuummmeeerrrrr Niiiiigggggtttttttssss roll around and anything suddenly seems possible so long as you want - and sing about - it enough! :)

Flickr Favourites: February 22, 2015

{Vogue August 1942 ~ Amara}  


{Sparkling Silver ~ Joy Russell}  


{1954 winter fashion-skirt suit 2 ~ Mo}  


{February 1940, Jeanette MacDonald ~ Amy Jeanne}  


{Avondale Fabrics, February 1949 ~ The Bees Knees Daily}  


{Vintage winter ~ Svenia Schreiner}  


{Miss Marzie Brown - 2 ~ LLF archives2}  


{Our Siberian Husky Mishka, loving the snow! ~ Sheila Bobeldijk}  


{1951 ~ File Photo}  


{Coeds Enjoy Winter ~ University of Wisconsin-Madison Archives}  

{All images above are from Flickr. To learn more about a specific image, please click on its title to be taken to its respective Flickr page.}

♥ ♥ ♥


Does serenity have a colour? A season? A language all its own? I think that the answer to each of those questions is a resounding “yes!”. However, what classifies as such for me, may not be the same for you. The experiences you've lived, the part of the world you call home, the things that bring you peace, and myriad other elements will all factor in there.

I believe that serenity can be found in every season, though some, such as winter, do lend themselves more so to this powerful state of mind and being. February often gets a rather bad rap. Though the shortest month of the year, it can at times feel like the longest, and for many it's the last full month of winter weather, which makes us yearn for it to just be done and over with all the more.

Here in Canada, we're apt to experience wintry weather and temperatures until April (and for some, especially in more northerly locations, until May), but nevertheless, that almost palpable sense of longing for energetic new blooms, citrine hued sunshine, and open toed shoes start to kick in right about now all the same.

This is perfectly normal and okay, of course, but if even you're feeling “so done with winter” already, I encourage to stop and savour the ingrained serenity that February delivers all the same. There is a peaceful beauty to the way the world looks, smells and feels on a bracingly chilly winter's eve, just as there is to its colour palette of steely greys, powerful whites, gentle blues, and weathered browns.

As much as you may pine for spring and summer, take a moment and think about the last time you were melting faster than a crayon on hot pavement in July, when the whole world felt dizzyingly alive, pulsating with sticky electricity, and tell me you wouldn't have happily swapped at least one night of sleeping in front of the fan, in little more than your birthday suit, covers long kicked to the floor, for the chance to take a quiet walk in the snow on a frosting February morn?

It is human nature to want what we can't have and to long for the idyllic elements of life, but as we must take the seasons as they are dished out to us (save, of course, for hopping on a plan and embarking on a holiday somewhere warm, or conversely, chilly) and serve our spirits well by enjoying the best that each has to offer. Even if doing so can, admittedly, be a bit tricky when you're shoveling the driveway for the seventy-ninth consecutive day in a row or piling on so many layers you could practically stand on a street corner, undress, and have your own pop up clothing shop.

Do I miss summer? You better believe it, but I also long for certain aspects of winter, when June, July and August are here, so for now I'm content to put up with snow chains, steep heating bills, and short hours of daylight in order to enjoy and savour those elements of the season that I know I'll yearn for when I'm practically boiling on the beach in a sundress in half a year's time. Chief amongst which will always be, the immensely lovely serenity and stillness of winter.

A very 1950s spin on shepherd's pie

For most of us, there are certain dishes - the mere mention of which - instantly brings a flood of happy childhood meal times memories rushing to the surface. I would argue that, further still, a good many of these are tied to certain months of the year, especially if you grew up with a family that cooked in keeping with the seasons.

Hands down one of the most iconic and classic wintertime meals from youth was my mom's awesome shepherd's pie (technically, cottage pie as it was made with ground beef, whereas shepherd’s pie, by its original definition, involved ground lamb - but we, like most folks in North America and even the UK, where both versions originated, called it shepherd's pie all the same). To this day, my stomach stirs and my taste buds perk up at the mere idea of it.

With the season of ice and snow (and even more snow!) out in full force here still, I got to thinking about shepherd's pie - that comfort food of ground meat, chopped veggies, tomato sauce, and mashed potatoes (or, as my mom sometimes did, a mixture of white rice and cheddar cheese instead of spuds) that millions of people have enjoyed sitting down to a steaming hot plate of for over two hundred years now.

My recent ponderings - and craving for - shepherd's pie led me to discover today's 1950s recipe for Crown o 'Gold Meatloaf, which is really neat twist on this hearty winter staple food. Instead of spuds (mashed or one of my favourite ways, topped with shredded hash browns), rice, dumplings, mashed cauliflower, or the like for the lid, it uses fluffy egg whites to create something that is akin in a way to the top layer of a lemon meringue pie.



{Mustard, horseradish (omit if desired, a little garlic could easily take its place), green onions, ground beef, and eggs combine in this meat loaf meets shepherd's pie inspired fifties dish that as easy to make as it is wonderfully filling. Image source.}


This twist is definitely fun and has very, very mid-century feeling to me. Of course, if you prefer (or, like me, aren't able to eat eggs for whatever reason), you can always used mashed spuds here and get a dish that for all intents is strikingly similar classic cottage or shepherd's pie. You can also easily ditch the yolks in the body of the meat loaf/meat pie here, too. If doing so, I'd just use a little bit of gray, tomato sauce, white sauce, cheese sauce or shredded cheese as a binding agent.

Feel free to vary the meat. Ground chicken, turkey, veal, pork, or a vegetarian/vegan meat substitute all work wonders in dishes like this. Though the only veggies called for here are green onions, feel free to add in any and all others that call your name. Carrots, parsnips, peas, green beans, sundried tomatoes, corn, and even squash would all be awesome choices to use in this stick-to-your ribs cold weather staple.

I've been making a spin of my mom's classic shepherd's pie recipe for decades now, but sometimes I like to shake things up and try other versions, too - especially when they're of vintage nature like this great 1950s recipe, which I'd be apt to serve with a green salad, light vinaigrette, hot butter (GF, in my case - ditto for the bread crumbs in today's recipe) rolls, and homemade apple sauce for a hearty dinner that is sure to combat even the biggest cold weather induced appetites, no problem!

Are you a fan of shepherd's/cottage pie, too? Does this mile high egg white topped version appeal to you or would you rather stick with the mashed potato version?

Flickr Favourites: November 28, 2013

{Thanksgiving Cheer ~ The Paper Doll}


{Jay's of Regent Street advertisement ~ totallymystified}


{Furry Friends ~ hanthomas}


{Campanha publicitária Feno de Portugal ~ Biblioteca de Arte-Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian}


{B&W/Duotone Ads, 1953 ~ alsis35}


{Harvest ~ Georgia George}


{Fredric Varady ~ oldcarguy41}


{1940s Coca-Cola Thanksgiving advertisement ~ bergholm}


{Strand of flower fairy lights ~ Holly Pickering}


{Western Family, 1956 ~ alsis35}

{All images above are from Flickr. To learn more about a specific image, please click on its title to be taken to its respective Flickr page.}


♥ ♥ ♥

Thanksgiving falls late in the month for my wonderful neighbours to the south (much as our own Thanksgiving did here in Canada last month, making an appearance on October 14th, the furthest into the year it can ever be, as it falls on the second Monday in October), less than a month away from Christmas. Though, like many I'm sure, my mind is already racing with thoughts of of gingerbread men, holiday card lists, tinsel decked trees and stockings hung by the chimney with care, right here and now, like those in the US, I'm stopping to give thanks and appreciate the bounty of autumn while this beautiful season is still here.

Faster than Santa taking off from the North Pole, it will be winter again, and while the weather here has already mimicked it numerous times over the past few weeks, there are still a few lingering elements of fall, not the least of which is the seasonal produce that is so celebrated today. I'm grateful for each late season apple, pumpkin, and pear, as well as those foods - hearty root vegetables, for example - of the coming season that are starting to appear once more. They all factor into my feasts - be they quick snacks or dinner for ten - that appear, generally piping hot from the oven - during the final days of November.

The palette outside is tinged with dampness and sallow light, it hasn't faded to the degree of late January, but it's a far cry from mid-September, and soon it will be all but hidden under a a duvet of thick Canadian snow. November, a month that I actually quite like, is dark, but not bleak. It turns ones thoughts to the long season of chilliness ahead, yet still finds ways to remind us periodically that it is, every last day of it, wholly a part of fall - and one that is a reason to be thankful unto itself.

From the bottom of my heart, my dear friends, I wish all those celebrating the togetherness, delicious riches, and beauty of Thanksgiving a truly resplendent holiday, and hope that one and all the world over enjoy a beautiful last few days of the final full month of autumn.

More than 7,000 vintage ads at your fingertips

It's scarcely a secret that - like many of you as well - I wildly adore vintage ads and images. Be they for use here in blog posts or my own personal inspiration, rarely does a day go by when I don't spend time peering at yesteryear ads (and, fairly often, pinning them in the process).

I love the artistry, the workmanship, the creativity, (at times) the quirkiness, the immense variety, and the sense of how life was perceived (if only from a marketing standpoint) of early and mid-twentieth century advertisements. Many were illustrated by some of the foremost artists of their day, whereas others continue beautiful photography, and some are little more than text, but those words usually speak volumes both for the product in the ad itself, and for how the company behind it viewed their audience.

In today's world we're constantly bombarded with a seemingly unending array of ads across all manner of media channels, but back in the 1930s or 40s, for example, less of these channels existed (TV was in its infancy and the internet as we know it today was still decades away) and so marketers often relied on print ads as their most powerful and important way of reaching a broad demographic. I think that this point is part of the reason why so many vintage ads were so effective, and why they continue to appeal to many people to this very day.

In the hunt for vintage Christmas images to use here last December, I ran across something that I don't encounter all that often any more (having years of online ad hunting experience under my belt, that is): a new (to me) source of vintage ads.

This isn't just a wee little roundup, or even a modest sized one, we're talking about a full on Aladdin’s cave of old school advertisements, care of the fine folks at Duke University. Their Ad*Access website is an amazing digital collection of more than 7,000 vintage ads that are free to be viewed by anyone, and most of which are available for personal use (they have a copyright information page, if you need more specifics regarding terms of use).

At present, the ads in this hefty online collection span the years from 1915 to 1955, and are primarily centered around five categories: radio, television, transportation, beauty and hygiene, and World War II. According to the collection's about page, the "advertisements are from the J. Walter Thompson Company Competitive Advertisements Collection of the John W. Hartman Center for Sales, Advertising & Marketing History in Duke University's David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library".

For the first couple of days after I discovered this site, I spent as much of my free time as possible, pouring though the bevy of fascinating, entertaining, and sometimes just plain old practical, ads it houses, yet only began to scratch the surface of viewing all 7,000+ that appear there.

Over time I plan to check them all out, especially since I'll then have a solid knowledge of exactly what the collection contains, and thus can (hopefully) call to mind an ad I saw there that would be perfect for a future post while I'm putting it together.

Beyond the blogging side of things though, it's just plain fun to pursue so very many terrific 1910s-1950s ads (like the elegantly beautiful Elizabeth Arden advert from 1936 pictured below) in one handy-dandy spot.





I hope that you find Duke University's Ad*Access digital library as fascinating, helpful, and enjoyable as I did - and that you unearth an ad or two (or five hundred!) that you can use for your own vintage image related purposes, too.

Happy advertisement viewing, my dears!

Flickr Favourites: June 27, 2013

{Rowntree's Fruit Gums advertisement ~ totallymystified}

{Bliss ~ riekhavoc}

{Cadillac 1953 Vintage Automobile Car Advertisement ~ Christian Montone}

{Chivers Jellies advertisement ~ totallymystified}

{Yellow ribbon ~ Katarina 2353}

{Florida Bathing Beauties Postcard ~ StevenM_61}

{Yellow Balloons ~ frank3.0}

{1950s riot of flowers print dress ~ Small Earth Vintage}

{Yellow Rose ~ spr0cket}

{French's Canary & Parakeet Food Ad, 1954 ~ alsis35}

{All images above are from Flickr. To learn more about a specific image, please click on its title to be taken to its respective Flickr page.}

♥ ♥ ♥

Late June, ahhh, how I absolutely adore this time of the year. In my mind, I'm whipped back to the atmosphere that permeated this part of the month as a youngster, when school was just on the cusp of wrapping up, the local lakes were starting to become warm enough to swim in again, and "birthday season" (a sixteen day stretch between June 24th and July 10th when both mine and my little brother's birthday's fall) was in high gear.

These days are bathed in sunshine so gorgeous it deserves to be called opulent, the start of sauna warm nights full of diamond laced skies, lemonade by the gallon full, Motown music (my parents always played it during the summer when I was child and I've carried on the tradition ever since), gauzy sundresses, and the kind of languid early summer afternoons you wish with all your might could last until the very last moment of time.

More often than not, it is the tail end of June and the start of July that stand as my favourite days of summer, and I suspect this year will be just the same. Each moment of this season has its own special brand of sizzling magic, but there's just something about the brand new days of summer that make me love it with an unending passion.

I'm eager for summer - the start, middle and end one and all - and the sun drenched memories that I know lay ahead. Picnics aplenty, fantastically juicy peaches, golden sands so warm they rival burning coals, Canada Day fireworks, and as many yard sales as I can possibly get to.

This is a season of abundance and pleasure, which holds timeless favourites and oodles of new discoveries in its folds, and that promises to delight, entertain and instill joy in one's soul from the very first to the very last moment.