I am not sure which adjective to use for these posts: vintage or retro. I want to default to the one that sounds the coolest and does not sound ancient. I’m revisiting the late 90s through the 2020s with some old magazines. That might seem antique to some of you, but to me it doesn’t seem that long ago.
I found this helpful chart at The Spruce:
So, I guess I’m delving into “almost” vintage.
I’m not a hoarder because I will go through my “collections” and do a culling quite frequently. That being said, I have hung on to all of the Gourmet magazines I had on hand when it went defunct in 2009. I have also saved a few holiday editions of Martha Stewart Living before they closed up shop in 2022. For many years I have wanted to revisit these vintage magazines during November and December and highlight a few recipes at Eliot’s Eats.
This is the year.
There will be recipes but there will have to be some social commentary on the changing times.
My November 2001 Martha Stewart Living is a hefty 292 pages. Twenty years later, the November 2021 edition is 112 pages. The 2001 magazine is full of high end ads for Lladró, Ralph Lauren, Lancôme, Dooney & Bourke, and Swarovski. The 2021 magazine has fewer ads and they tend to be more mainstream like Aveeno, Hershey’s, McCormick, and Kraft.
As I perused through the 2001 mag, I wasn’t greatly impressed. Remember, I am looking for recipes not how to collect Chinese export porcelain, find someone to re-tin my copper pans, or the intricacies of napkin folding. I also really don’t care what color Martha was using to decorate her Bedford, New York home. (It was red tones.)
I’m also not hosting Thanksgiving this year so I was looking for more November-themed recipes (pumpkin, Brussel sprouts, etc.) not recipes for serving ten or more people.
All in all, I do think I was able to come up with enough to get through the month of November. Then, I will move on to December.
What to look for? Definitely some appetizers, some fall pasta, and/or a great dessert. Stay tuned.
Here were the last holiday-themed post I did. It’s been a while.
Jelly of the Month Club (December 2019)
Gifts from the Kitchen (December 2011)
Twelve Days of Christmas Gifts (December 2010)
Don’t judge those early posts!
I wonder how dedicated I will be… Only time will tell.
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