Notes From the Betty Crocker Recipe Card Editorial Meeting
Spencer: I think we need a section for housewives on a budget.
Frank: Good call. The Betty Crocker cook loves shortcuts and savings.
Arthur: So what we’re looking at here are recipes that go easy on the garnishes, yes?
Spencer: More than that. It’s not that she can’t afford the basic ingredients — the meat, say, or the onions —
Arthur: Or the can of condensed cream of mushroom soup!
Spencer: — right. That’s not the kind of poverty we’re talking about. I mean she’s cost-conscious, but doing it in a socially aware, stylish way that wouldn’t make her husband feel like he’s not providing.
Frank: I like it. Keep going.
Spencer: She’s putting a complete meal on the table every night, as always, but maybe she’s reserving a little something each week from the housekeeping in a jam jar for a family holiday, you know?
Arthur: Or to buy herself a new dress.
Frank: Or to surprise her husband with some new golf clubs!
Spencer: Anyway, it’s nothing her family would notice. It’s subtle. These are the recipes she relies upon for inspiration.
Frank: Let’s put “budget” in the title. It suggests responsibility, good house husbandry.
Arthur: Maybe she’s on a diet, she’s got her mind on reducing, the way so many women are today. She’s popping laxatives like they’re candy, smoking a pack a day, but the weight still isn’t coming off. So she’s cutting back on the food, but in a way she can keep to herself.
Spencer: But not like she’s sacrificing good nutrition. It’s still decent food; that’s important. This is a recipe collection, after all.
Frank: I’ve got it. She’s fun, right? She’s predictably unpredictable! She’s got a keen imagination. She budgets by — get this — tossing out her plates! Just think of the money she’ll save on dish soap!
Spencer: So what does she serve the meal on, Frank?
Frank: On the thing she cooks it in! Tinfoil!
Arthur: Genius.
Foil-Wrapped Dinners
The Betty Crocker Recipe Card Library, 1971
