3 ms·

I'm wondering what actually happened to make these images so un-appetizing. Was it the quality of color photography and printing in the day? I remember that my

I'm wondering what actually happened to make these images so un-appetizing. Was it the quality of color photography and printing in the day? I remember that my mom had some of those books, and my spouse remembers the same, but neither of us think that our moms actually used those recipes. She recalls that the books were given away for free at the supermarket. There were also recipe binders, and recipe cards, where you picked up new recipes every week at the supermarket. For reference, I'm 60.

jfengel 2y ago
My mother definitely bought the checkout line cookbooks, mostly titled things like "101 More Things To Glop On Top Of Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts". I think she occasionally cooked from them, but mostly she just read them. I actually do that too, though I'm reading Cook's Illustrated, so it's appropriately nerdy. I'm just a bit younger than you.
chuckadams 2y ago
It’s partly the photography, but I’ve seen eldritch horrors quivering in jello molds during my childhood, so the terror of the genuine article was not to be underestimated.
steve1977 2y ago
It might have been that they photographed actual food instead of today’s photoshopped fake props.
- analog31 2y ago
  An amusing anecdote... One of my aunts got hired to make the Thanksgiving turkey for the front cover of a magazine. As directed, she made two, in order to have a spare. She figured she'd take them home after the shoot, and get a few suppers out of them. The first thing they did with the turkeys, was to shellac them, so they'd be more shiny in the picture. Also, there's an urban legend that mashed potatoes were used in photos requiring ice cream, because the potatoes don't melt.
  - euroderf 2y ago
    > Also, there's an urban legend that mashed potatoes were used in photos requiring ice cream, because the potatoes don't melt. Not an urban legend. I remember reading exactly this, probably in TV Guide.
lifestyleguru 2y ago
The modern photos don't contain edible food or they aren't even photos. They're designed to make you salivate.

jfengel 2y ago

My mother definitely bought the checkout line cookbooks, mostly titled things like "101 More Things To Glop On Top Of Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts". I think she occasionally cooked from them, but mostly she just read them. I actually do that too, though I'm reading Cook's Illustrated, so it's appropriately nerdy. I'm just a bit younger than you.

chuckadams 2y ago

It’s partly the photography, but I’ve seen eldritch horrors quivering in jello molds during my childhood, so the terror of the genuine article was not to be underestimated.

steve1977 2y ago

It might have been that they photographed actual food instead of today’s photoshopped fake props.

analog31 2y ago
An amusing anecdote... One of my aunts got hired to make the Thanksgiving turkey for the front cover of a magazine. As directed, she made two, in order to have a spare. She figured she'd take them home after the shoot, and get a few suppers out of them. The first thing they did with the turkeys, was to shellac them, so they'd be more shiny in the picture. Also, there's an urban legend that mashed potatoes were used in photos requiring ice cream, because the potatoes don't melt.
- euroderf 2y ago
  > Also, there's an urban legend that mashed potatoes were used in photos requiring ice cream, because the potatoes don't melt. Not an urban legend. I remember reading exactly this, probably in TV Guide.

lifestyleguru 2y ago

The modern photos don't contain edible food or they aren't even photos. They're designed to make you salivate.