- The Pacific Grill, above, is “suitable for any meal of the day”, according to Anne Mason’s A Treasury of Australian Cooking, 1962.
Bibliography:
-
Mason, Anne. A Treasury of Australian Cooking. London: Andre Deutsch, 1962.
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Interesting food styling from 1962
1 DecCrimes against pizza – 1. Vita Brits Pizza
2 Nov
Vita Brits Pizza - A criminal act?
For too long now, the pizza – that most humble of Neapolitan inventions – has been the target of overzealous recipe writers, “creative” chefs and idiot advertising types who think it is best made with canned dough and served with teriyaki sauce, chicken, pineapple, and both fetta and cheddar cheese.
While there have been many moves to defend the pizza, mostly from Italians concerned that their culinary heritage is being destroyed, little has been done to name and shame the worst perpetrators of these horrifying and indecent acts.
Over the next few weeks, this special Lamingtons & Lasagna investigation promises to open cold cases where the rights of the pizza were trampled over, its victim impact statement never heard. Until now, that is.
While Lamingtons & Lasagna does not advocate a return to culinary luddism – where what was authentic was sometimes even deadly – the “pizzas” in this series have jumped the shark, or, as the kids these days might say, nuked the fridge, from imaginative interpretations to crimes against cuisine.
So, without further ado:
Crime number 1: Vita Brits Pizza
Accomplice: Australian Women’s Weekly
Date of crime: Wednesday 15 October 1958
Motive: There’s only so much money a company can make selling breakfast food for breakfast. But if they give you “delicious, new round-the-clock recipes” which mean you can enjoy “different and delicious luncheon or supper treats”, then they can make a lot more money.
Modus Operandi: “Butter VITA BRITS (use one or two VITA BRITS per serve) and place them on a greased oven tray. Place thin slices of cheese on each VITA BRIT. Cover this with a little well-drained tinned tomato, or peeled fresh tomato slices. Season with salt and pepper and top with another thin slice of cheese; dot with a very little butter. Bake in moderate oven about 10 minutes or until cheese has melted and slightly browned. If desired anchovies may be added (one fillet for each serve).”
Evidence: 
Verdict: Guilty
Sentence: Never eat Vita Brits again (which is fine, because I prefer Weet-Bix anyway).
See more Crimes against pizza
Bibliography:
- “Delicious, new round the clock recipes.” The Australian Women’s Weekly, 15 October 1958, 75.
English breakfast
25 Mar
English breakfast in London circa June 2010. Is it that different from what Isabella Beeton is proposing?
Never know what to serve for breakfast? Think cereal is ok? Maybe toast and jam? Isabella Beeton, that 19h century doyenne of all things cooking, would think you were a jelly short of a proper luncheon. Here’s what she recommends for the “comfortable meal called breakfast”:
Broiled fish, such as mackerel, whiting, herrings, dried haddocks, &c.; mutton chops and rump-steaks, broiled sheep’s kidneys, kidneys à la maître d’hôtel, sausages, plain rashers of bacon, bacon and poached eggs, ham and poached eggs, omelets, plain boiled eggs, oeufs-au-plat, poached eggs on toast, muffins, toast, marmalade, butter, &c. &c.
I wonder if it’s low GI…
Btw if you have any interest in Mrs Beeton at all, and even if you don’t, be sure to read Kathryn Hughes’ biography – once you’ve read it, you’ll never think of Isabella in the same way again.
Lamingtons & Lasagna 