Melody's Luau Lulu

A super unusual sandwich from 1960!

This last post in my Hawaii inspired series is one of the most unusual sandwiches I've ever eaten. I know the ingredients are probably going to be a bit of a hard sell to some readers - even I was pretty dubious about how it would actually taste! - but trust me, this treat from 1960 is definitely not to be missed. 

But I can't take credit for discovering this unicorn of a sandwich. I was first introduced to it by reading The Mid-Century Menu, one of my favorite historic cooking blogs. If you aren't reading Retro Ruth's stuff, you're really missing out! Check out her post about the Luau Lulu, and read on to see how our version turned out!

Kaya's Smoked Salmon Scrambled Eggs

The star of this Kaya inspired breakfast!

Kaya is one of my favorite historical dolls. That may sound silly because I genuinely love all of AG's historical characters, but Kaya has always had a special place in my heart. Her books are great, and she goes through a real journey, learning how to become less selfish and what makes a good leader. Her collection enchanted me from the second I saw her in the catalog for the first time, especially because I'd had to do a major research project on the Nez Perce a few years before she was released! Seeing so much of what I'd studied come to life in doll form was really exciting, and even though I was starting to feel a little too old for dolls (if only middle school me could see me now!), I asked for her for Christmas. 

But something that's always disappointed me is that despite how well researched and crafted her stories and collections were, she missed out on the neat supplemental material the Pleasant Company produced for their historical characters like craft books... and cook books! I'm still slowly working through making the recipes from the Pleasant Company cook books, but had the idea that I'd try my hand at making a Kaya inspired breakfast the way it might have appeared in an official American Girl cook book. 

The main course? Smoked salmon scrambled eggs, of course!

Nanea's Lomi Lomi Salmon

A classic luau side dish that's easy to make no matter where you live!

Last year, I told you all about my research project about the history and influence of tiki bars. In that whole long, exhausting, fun, frustrating process, I ended up finding out quite a lot about the history of how Americans have interpreted and interacted with Hawaiian food over the years. Something I found very interesting - although not necessarily surprising - was that at the height of the tiki culture craze in the 50's and 60's, there tons of recipes and cookbooks being published saying they were examples of authentic Hawaiian recipes, but most of them were written by white Americans, most of whom had very little interaction with Hawaii themselves. 

The recipe I'm about to share with you today is one of the major exceptions to that rule: Hawaii Cookbook & Backyard Luau by Elizabeth Ahn Toupin. It's one of the many vintage cookbooks I acquired to write my article, and I've been dying to crack it open and try out some of the recipes. This past weekend, I finally had the time to do just that and I'm very excited to share the results with you guys!

Melody Makes JFK's Fish Chowder

A favorite of a fan favorite president!

Although warmer weather has been periodically making a comeback in my neck of the woods all month, it's still been chilly enough to want a nice warm bowl of soup after work. Being from New England, the idea of a rich, creamy chowder is definitely a comforting thought on chilly days, and I've always been interested in trying to make one from scratch. 

This dish isn't the New England clam chowder my home region's famous for, but it was a favorite lunch snack of a certain mid century president! I've been wanting to spotlight this recipe for a while, but never could quite work out the best time to give it a shot. This year, I decided I wasn't going to let another winter go by without sharing it with all of you.

Maryellen's Crab Rangoon Dip

Inspired by a classic from the world famous Trader Vic!

It felt appropriate for my long awaited return to an actual recipe themed post to tie into that big research project I’ve been dropping hints about for literal months, on Instagram in particular. As part of my Master’s program, I wrote two article length papers that I’m trying to get published in an academic journal rather than a dissertation. One of them – you might be surprised to hear – has to do with American Girl, and the other focuses on something that’s really become my historical wheelhouse: the history and influence of tiki bars on shaping American perceptions of Polynesia! 

Since this blog is pretty G rated and has a lot of younger readers, I’m unfortunately not going to be sharing any of the famous rum based cocktails that cemented the tiki bar as an icon of midcentury American cuisine. Instead, the recipe I’m sharing with you today is an interpretation of a dish invented by one of the most famous people involved in stoking the tiki craze: Trader Vic!

Viva Las Vegas, Maryellen! Plus, the History of the Shrimp Cocktail

There’s more to Sin City than meets the eye!

A few weeks ago on Instagram, I posted a picture of Maryellen on a beach chair and asked everyone where they thought she might have traveled off to. I bet no on guessed Las Vegas! 

Las Vegas is a post World War II boomtown that really came into its own in the 1950’s and 60’s, partially thanks to the mob and nuclear weapons. I wasn’t ever particularly interested in visiting because I’m not one for gambling or the bombastic shows the city’s famous for, but when a research trip for work had me going there, I figured I’d make the most of it. 

As it turns out, Vegas is a really interesting city with some cool entertainment, food, crime, and nuclear history. There was so much to see and do that I actually feel like I need to go back to make sure I actually see it all! Since it’s not usually a city that’s well known for anything other than Elvis impersonators and slot machines, I thought it might be fun to show you all a little bit of Vegas beyond the Strip… and some of the Strip, too! 

Now, fair warning, the content of some of this post is a little more murder and mayhem than some past places we’ve visited because Vegas was basically founded by the Mob, and one of the museums we visited goes into that history pretty explicitly. There’s also going to be a little discussion of gambling – hard not to get into that when talking about Vegas! – so if any of that isn’t in your (or your kids’!) taste, feel free to skip this one. Let’s say it leans a little more PG than most of my previous posts.

Lily's Wasabi Tuna Onigiri, Complete with Cherry Blossoms

And perfect for a picnic!

It’s cherry blossom season in Washington, which means hordes of tourists flocking to the Tidal Basin to view the gorgeous Japanese cherry trees lining the walk ways and monuments. Of course, trees all over the city are in bloom, but these are undoubtedly the most famous, and with good reason. They’re gorgeous, and people have been appreciating and documenting their beauty long before the invention of the selfie stick. 

But why does Washington boast such a beautiful variety of cherry blossoms? And who is this character you’re using to represent this post?

Ivy Revists Tuna Noodle Casserole

A peek into what I’ve been eating for the last year…

We’re kicking off the start of a new school year with yet another throwback post because last year I had really great intentions about keeping pace with the blog… and then reality kind of threw those off. Whoops. This time, instead of a relic from when I was still living at home, we’re going to take a look at one of my first culinary adventures in my new kitchen. 

So when I first got to grad school, I got really, really sick. Like, can’t hold down any solid food for a week sick. So did my dad apparently, and we think it was either fruit at the hotel we had stayed at’s buffet, or a chicken sandwich, but my mom and brother were eating basically the same food as us, so who knows. Either way, not a good first introduction to a new life in a new city. 

Once I got better, I was faced with the task of making sure I was eating more or less three times a day without the help of anyone else. This sounds fine at first, but in reality takes a bit of adjusting to, even for someone who enjoys cooking like I do. I know that probably sounds silly or maybe even embarrassing that I as a 25 year old hadn’t been fully responsible for feeding myself on a regular basis before this. I ate in dining halls on campus in undergrad and my mom usually made dinner when I lived at home, so this was my first real exposure to how daunting and repetitive meal prep can be. 

Figuring I could make a habit of mixing meal prep with future blog posts – an endeavor that apparently died with this recipe… - I decided to whip out my Betty Crocker New Boys and Girl’s Cookbook and give their recipe for tuna noodle casserole a shot.

Kailey's Box Lunch Tuna Rollwich

Trying to recapture one of my favorite parts of summers past!

When I was a kid, I had the good fortune of visiting my grandparents and other extended family up on Cape Cod. We'd go up for at least a few days every summer and enjoy the beaches, hiking trails, mini golf, local shops and - especially - the food. There's nothing like getting some fried fish after a day on the beach, or going to a lobster pool on the water where you can watch the sun go down over the marshes!

Unfortunately, my grandma sold the Cape house after my grandfather passed away, and it's been a while since I've gotten to enjoy some of my favorite Cape Cod treats. But as much as I miss the ice cream and fried shrimp, there's one thing I crave over everything else, and any attempts at recreating it just don't do it justice.

I'm speaking, of course, about the wraps at Box Lunch.

Kaya's Salmon with Blueberry Pan Sauce

Stay with me: fish with fruit sauce is actually a pretty stellar combination.

As much as I love Kaya both as a character and doll, and have a lot of respect and appreciation for the history of the Nez Perce, she can be frustrating to cook for. A lot of the regional treats she would have grown up eating are tricky to find on the opposite side of the country... or a hard sell to my taste testers!

This recipe falls in the latter category, because while my mom loves salmon, my dad, brother and sister are not fans of fish, and my dad hates salmon. I've actually been sitting on featuring this recipe or something like it pretty much from day one of the blog, and the stars had never really aligned until this past weekend. I'm not the biggest salmon fan myself, but I have to admit, this was very tasty and won the approval of everyone who tried it, even my sister's notoriously picky boyfriend!

A few people I've told about this thought putting fruit on top of fish sounded crazy, but read on and I'll show you how it's definitely not.