The Unofficial Mad Men Cookbook: Just in Time for the Finale! #review #giveaway

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I don’t know about you, but I’ve been a Mad Men fan for years. As difficult of a time as the 1960s (and now ’70s) were, Mad Men has always made this decade seem so sexy and cool. I’ve had a long time love affair with mid-century decor and watching Mad Men is like TV porn for me.  The costumes are so specific and structured, the sets are so stylistic and unique, and although the food of the ’60s isn’t featured on the show as much (outside of alcohol, so, so much alcohol), the food of the ’60s was also very interesting.

When I find a cookbook from this era, I get really excited. The colorful, yet desaturated photography of the time made the food look almost plastic, and in some cases unappetizing, but I still feel a sort of whimsy when I see the recipes from so long ago.

One book that captures both the recipes of the time and the show Mad Men is The Unofficial Mad Men Cookbook: Inside the Kitchens, Bars, and Restaurants of Mad Men by Judy Gelman and Peter Zheutlin. This book delves into the food and drink that appears on the show. Featuring recipes from some of the restaurants and bars mentioned on Mad Men, and cookbooks of the time, The Unofficial Mad Men Cookbook gives us a nice sample of of the cocktails, entrees, and desserts of the ’60s. Many of the recipes are paired with a show reference, history of the dish, or a suggestion for a character from the show. This is a cookbook that informs you of the past while teaching you the recipes. I love that!

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While there is a lovely section of full-color pictures from some select recipes, this cookbook is more focused on print information than photographs of the final products. What that means is the book is packed with more than 70 recipes that represent mid-century eating and drinking and the stories that go with them. Speaking of drinking, over 25 of those recipes are cocktails alone, which isn’t a surprise when you consider alcohol is one of the most consistently prevalent things on Mad Men.

One of the recipes I tried from the cookbook was the Manhattan. I love Old Fashioned cocktails, just as Don Draper does, but since I’ve had those before, I decided to try the Manhattan. It’s a similar cocktail, using whiskey and bitters, but with less ingredients and not nearly as sweet.

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 Manhattan

  • 2 ounces rye whiskey
  • 1/2 ounce sweet vermouth
  • 2-3 dashes of Angostura bitters
  • Maraschino cherry, for garnish

Pour whiskey, vermouth, and bitters into a mixing glass with ice cubes. Stir well.
Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with the cherry.

**recipe reprinted with permission


This version of the cocktail is from the Oak Bar on Central Park South in New York where Don and Roger Sterling stop for an after-work drink in season 1 episode 7.  One thing that makes this cookbook unique, especially for a Mad Men fan, is that it points you to the episode that the drink or dish appeared, or could have appeared, in the show.

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I also wanted to try one of the desserts, since this is a dessert blog after all. I settled on the Date Nut Bread. This recipe was adapted from Pat Nixon’s recipe that appeared in the “Hints from Heloise” newspaper column in 1961.

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Date Nut Bread

Yield: 1 loaf

Ingredients

  • 8 ounces pitted dates, chopped into small pieces
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 3/4 cup boiling water
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 3/4 cup sugar**
  • 1 egg
  • 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to a 350*F. Grease and flour an 8 x 4 x 2 1/2- inch loaf pan.
  2. Place dates in a large bowl. Add baking soda to boiling water and pour over dates in bowl. Set aside and let mixture stand while mixing other ingredients.
  3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar. Add the egg and mix well. Strain water from the date mixture into batter. Add flour and beat well. Add nuts, dates, and vanilla and combine until all ingredients are well mixed.
  4. Pour the mixture into greased loaf pan. Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center of bread comes out clean.

Notes

**You can substitute 2 tablespoons of brown sugar for 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar.

recipe reprinted with permission

https://shaneskillercupcakes.com/2015/05/the-unofficial-mad-men-cookbook-just-in-time-for-the-finale-review-giveaway/

This recipe was delicious! I’ve never had date nut bread before, but I’ll definitely be having it more in the future because it’s tasty and versatile. It’s great in the morning for breakfast with some eggs, a simple snack in the afternoon with some tea, or even as a dessert at night. I could literally eat this all day long!

The blurb before the recipe that explains why this recipe was chosen for the book fascinated me. Even though this particular recipe wasn’t available to the public until after the first time date nut bread was mentioned in an episode of Mad Men, the authors got into the mind of Betty Draper and decided that when this recipe was published, she definitely would have seen the article and used it in her own kitchen. That’s the beauty of this cookbook. It’s not only a history book and a recipe book, it’s also an examination of all the Mad Men characters we’ve held so dear for the past 8 years.

The Mad Men series finale airs this Sunday, May 17th at 10/9c. This cookbook would be great for a finale party you might be having.

If you’d like to win a copy of your own, enter my giveaway for one below!

Giveaway

To Enter: Fill out the mandatory entry below with your name and email. Extra optional entries will be displayed once the mandatory one is completed.

Rules: Open to U.S. residents 18 or older. Giveaway will end at 11:59pm PST on 05/18/15. For complete Official Rules click here.

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15 thoughts on “The Unofficial Mad Men Cookbook: Just in Time for the Finale! #review #giveaway

  1. Pingback: The Unofficial Mad Men Cookbook Giveaway - Giveaway Promote

  2. Pingback: Enter to win The Unofficial Mad Men Cookbook – ends 05/18/15 | Blog Giveaway Directory

  3. I watch Mad Men and so far have only enjoyed old-fashioneds! Would love to try out some 60s food to go with my cocktail!

  4. My boyfriend LOVES Mad Men and I’ve seen a couple episodes. I keep meaning to watch it! I would love this cookbook for him!

  5. I love Mad Men…I’m watching the finale now, but I’ll save it on my Tivo and watch repeatedly,I’m sure.

  6. I hate missing get the Finale, I watched the very 1st episode and was hooked. I KNEW adults like the Drapers and all the rest when I was little and it was like visiting old friends every week.. I will miss it, here’s hoping they put it on HULU PLUS soon so I can start the whole series over.

  7. I watch Mad Men occasionally, but my husband watches it all the time! Old fashions are a recipe that we enjoy.

  8. We enjoyed reconnecting with Mad Men party bloggers — including Sidewalk Shoes, Amy s Cooking Adventures, Dinner is Served 1972 ,  MidCentury Menu, Culinary Adventures with Cam, Eliot s Eats, The Red Head Baker — and meeting new ones at The Lost Family Supper Club. On June 3, all party bloggers recipes for novel-inspired dishes and drinks will be posted

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