Cookbook Challenge # 3 - Betty Crocker’s Cookbook (1978)
Some of the cookbooks on The Shelf are family inheritances—including three separate editions of Betty Crocker’s Cookbook, all of which my husband and I claimed when clearing out his mother’s house after she passed away a few years ago. This is the newest of the bunch, with the other two copyrighted 1969 and 1950.
Of course, 1978 isn’t exactly recent (she says with a wince, given that she was alive and in elementary school at the time). This cookbook mostly features plain, hearty American fare, heavy on the roasts and casseroles. There’s barely any pasta to be found, and beef rather than chicken is the protein source featured most prominently. Really, it’s got me looking at the older cookbooks on my shelf with some trepidation.
Since this doesn’t really reflect how we eat in this Year of Our Lord of 2026, it took me some time to settle on what to cook. I finally decided to focus on frugality, choosing recipes that would allow me to take advantage of ingredients already in my pantry or freezer—specifically half a bag of lentils, a pie crust, and a pound of ground beef. So last night’s dinner was Beef-Lentil Soup with a dessert of Southern Peanut Butter Pie. And they were…surprisingly good, as it turns out. The soup was plain and hearty in a good way, though I think if you left out the optional red wine it would be too bland. The pie was a bit one-note, sort of like if a peanut butter cookie or peanut brittle became a pie. If I make it again, I’ll throw in some chocolate chips or make a chocolate sauce to go with—sort of an homage to those “you got your chocolate in my peanut butter!” Reese’s commercials of roughly this cookbook’s vintage!
Beef-Lentil Soup
1 lb hamburger
1 med onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 4 oz can mushrooms stems and pieces (I’m sure fresh would also work, but I went with canned because authenticity and also it was cheaper)
1 16 oz can stewed tomatoes (I used 14.5 oz because I guess at some point the standard medium can size changed?)
1 med stalk celery, sliced (about 1/2 cup)
1 large carrot, sliced (about 3/4 cup)
6 oz dried lentils (about 1 cup)
3 cups water
1/4 cup red wine (optional)
1 bay leaf
2 T snipped parsley (I think snipped = fresh? That’s what I used, anyway)
2 tsp salt
1 tsp instant beef bouillon (I used Better Than Bouillon base, which I think is roughly the same thing, but I’m sure you could use a dried bouillon cube or just replace some or all of the water with beef broth)
1/4 tsp pepper
Cook and stir hamburger, onion, and garlic in Dutch oven until hamburger is light brown; drain. (Since hamburger runs leaner these days, I used a splash of canola oil and didn’t drain. I also went ahead and added the salt and pepper earlier than instructed.) Stir in mushrooms (with liquid) and remaining ingredients. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, until lentils are tender, about 40 minutes.
Southern Peanut Butter Pie
Pastry for a 9-inch one crust pie
2/3 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1 cup dark corn syrup
1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
3 eggs
1 cup salted peanuts
Heat oven to 375. Beat sugar, salt, corn syrup, peanut butter, and eggs; stir in peanuts. Pour into pastry-lined pie plate.
Bake until crust is golden brown, 40 to 50 minutes. (Center of filling may be slightly soft but will become firm as pie cools.) Cool slightly; refrigerate. Serve with whipped cream or ice cream if desired.
