Retro WW Hits the Big Time!

Hey guys! This month, Weight Watchers celebrates its 50th Anniversary.

And guess what? They released a kicky new cookbook to celebrate 50 years of eating like a Weight Watcher. The cookbook puts a modern twist on many of our favorite Retro WW classics, and even contains tons of history about the program and how the food plan has changed through the years.

No. They didn't ask for my input. Yes. That was a bummer.

But, the good news is -- I did get a chance to go on a local morning show here in Pittsburgh to talk about the new book and all things Retro Weight Watchers! I even got to show off some of my Vintage Pyrex and a few items from my Retro WW collection!

I know, RIGHT?!?

Check it out...



Now promise to meet me back here all throughout the month of May as we celebrate this momentous occasion! New recipes! Fun facts! Fifty is nifty!

Coming Out of Hibernation

If you follow me on Twitter, then you probably know that I have been incessantly complaining about the weather here in Pittsburgh for about 5 months now. Let me explain something: I despise Winter. Like it makes me evil and murderous. Couple that with the fact that my job forces me to spend a lot of time shlepping around outdoors, and the fact that this has been one of the worst Winters we have seen in ages. Well. Let's just say - Mimi has not been a happy person.

My basic attitude about everything in life has been...

"Ain't nobody got time for that. I'm too freaking cold!"

But this week, things are looking up. We even had a few days reach 80 degrees! I was ecstatic!

So I pulled out my Weight Watchers Magazine from Summer 1970 and found the perfect Warm Weather Delight!

This recipe combines two of my favorite ingredients: Knox Unflavored Gelatin and Nonfat Dry Milk. It also involves one of my favorite hobbies in the world: PUTTING THINGS IN MY BLENDER. Yahooo!

After ten minutes of spinning all of the ingredients with the Knox gelatin, a burning smell started coming from my blender, so I had to stop. But I was pleased to find that my Warm Weather Delight had really come together nicely. It was thick and smooth and creamy.

Like mayonnaise.

Ew.

It kept GROWING and getting thicker by the minute.

 I have to admit -- It did taste pretty good, though. Full disclosure: Since I didn't have any black walnut extract on hand, I used almond extract instead. Which was good, because I love me some almond flavoring.


I am hoping the warm weather is here to stay. Although as I type this post, I am wrapped in my fleece blanket and wearing my fuzzy slippers. I hear the high temperature today in Pittsburgh is going to be 50 degrees.

Uh oh. Better stay off Twitter.

1982

The year was 1982.

E.T. was phoning home. Olivia Newton-John was Getting Physical. I was lacing up my roller skates and scooting around in my fuzzy leg warmers.

And Weight Watchers re-released their infamous "Recipe Cards".

1982, baby!

The 1982 version of the recipe cards is not really much different than the original 1974 set. I suppose they just felt it was time for an update. You know - with it being a new decade and all.

Since I recently acquired a set of these "NEW" cards from my totally awesome WW pal, I thought I'd highlight some of the changes I noticed while comparing my two sets.

#1 - The Name Changes

When you grow up, sometimes you want a new identity. Like a new name or a fresh new look.

I get it. When I was a kid, everyone called me Mary-Margaret, and now I go by my shorter, more grown-up moniker: "Mimi".

So it doesn't surprise me that Weight Watchers kept many of the same recipes in the set exactly the same, but just changed the names to reflect a more mature, modern image. For example - "Fluffy Mackerel Pudding" is now simply called "Mackerel Pudding". I mean really. No one really wanted to think of mackerel being fluffy anyway, did they?

The Fluff is Gone

"Inspiration Soup" is now "Quick Vegetable Soup". Not nearly as groovy. And "Rosy Perfection Salad" is now "Sweet n' Sour Cabbage Mold". Yawn. "Fish Balls" are now "Gefilte Fish". Much more appropriate, actually.

Another update that caught my attention was the change from "Snappy Mackerel Casserole" to "Mackerel 'n' Cheese". That's just lame, but whatever.

But the name change that shocked me most of all was the switch from "Frankfurter Spectacular" to "Hawaiian Frankfurter Platter". What the hell?!? Frankly, I am outraged. In my mind, Frankfurter Spectacular shall always and forever remain: SPECTACULAR.

Blasphemy

#2 - The New Kids

In 1982 there is pizza! Tofu! Manicotti! Pasta!

And apparently an emerging and very disturbing trend of serving fish on a platter with its head still attached. And dressing it up to look all pretty.

Something is Fishy About This

#3 - The Omissions

In 1982, we said good bye to the following dishes which no longer appear in the WW Recipe Set.

They are gone, but not forgotten...

Crown Roast of Frankfurter
Liver Pate En Masque -- in fact all liver dishes? Gone. Buh-Bye.
Melon Mousse
Jellied Tomato Refresher
Mexican-Orange Shrimp Salad

Oh, and with 1982 also came the demise of the quotation marks. No more Chocolate "Brownie" Dessert or Cherry "Pie". 

The beat goes on, I guess.

So now I suppose you are all wondering if the 1982 cards are just as freaky and fun as the 1974 version and if I will attempt any of the recipes here on the blog?

Well my friends. I have two words for you:

POWERHOUSE PIZZA!

See that star in the top corner? That means it's GOOD.

Go ahead. Try and guess what is used to make the crust. I will have to leave you in suspense until next time...

Carrot Pie

Here's a little Retro Weight Watchers recipe you're sure to love if you enjoy eating freakishly small amounts of food which take a ridiculous amount of time to prepare and cook.

This is literally the smallest and least appealing pie you will ever eat. Well, OK, maybe there is one pie that is worse. Lest we forget the Frankenpie debacle of October 2012.

I digress.

To make the WW Carrot Pie (Hot Stuff Cookbook 1978) - one must peel & grate some carrots until you get 1/2 cup. Blend the grated carrots with some brown sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon - and then you are ready to pop the sucker into a 350 oven for 30 minutes. NOTE: The recipe calls for a "very small pan". Luckily I happen to posses the smallest pie pan on Earth (Thank you, Pyrex).

Not Worth the Effort - Trust Me

Here is the finished product. I have positioned it next to some household objects. I thought it may help display the utter foolishness of this recipe and the puny portion size.

If Your Pie is Smaller than a Post-It, You've Got Problems

In case you were wondering - it makes one serving, it tastes like soggy carrots, and it is disgraceful to call this a pie. So there you have it.

The Liver Rule

I swear. Everything I do is a freakin' production.

This month is my 3-year blogging anniversary. And I needed to do something BIG. So I decided to eat Liver.

But I couldn't just quietly eat some liver like a normal person, could I? Nope. 

First, I held a full-blown "liver election" to help me choose the perfect dish. I pestered everyone I know on Facebook and Twitter and asked them to vote.

Next, I conspired with my WW buddy, Carl, who also happens to be the head butcher for a local gourmet grocery chain. He agreed to provide the livers. I was beyond excited! It was my first blog-related "freebie"! And it was a pound of Chicken Livers! What could be better?

Then, I made the journey to pick up the livers. All the way - snapping pictures of every moment.

My Local Purveyor of Fine Organ Meats

Liver Me Up!

One Pound of Raw Livers for Your Viewing Pleasure

Finally came the super-exciting, epic, fantabulous day when I decided to COOK THE GODDAMN LIVER for the love of Pete!

The chosen recipe, based on your votes, was Chopped Chicken Liver from the 1974 Weight Watchers Recipe Cards - Make Ahead Main Dishes category. I was super relieved that this was the winner, because it seemed like the least horrifying one of the three.

I started by cooking the liver in a skillet and sprinkled it with salt, garlic powder and cayenne pepper.

An Assault on the Senses

At first it smelled pretty good, and I thought to myself, "Maybe this won't be too bad."

But then after about 5 minutes - it began to smell bad. Like really bad. Like I had to crack a window because my dog started running around looking for a way out. The more it cooked the worse it smelled. I began to worry that I may not be able to do this.

But I did.

I cooked. I mixed. I chopped and pureed.

You Know Those are Dehydrated Onions on Top

I served it up with a fancy cucumber.

That's Right. I Scallop My Cucumbers.

I ate it. Not all of it, mind you. But a decent portion.

And now I am sitting here feeling kind of silly. All that drama over some liver. It wasn't even that bad, really. It wasn't that good either. It sorta tasted like mushy meatloaf or beefy hummus. I don't know. It's really hard to describe. 

It's all over now. The Retro Weight Watcher gals of the 60's and 70's were required to eat liver once per week. But, my friends, I can tell you with total confidence - I will never eat liver again. Put that in your pipe and smoke it, Ms. Jean Nidetch!

So with that - Happy Anniversary to me! And thanks to all of you for putting up with me for three whole years! Cheers!

Go Big or Go Home

OK. I am just gonna put this out there...

This month, I will celebrate 3 years of Retro Weight Watchers Blogging.

Three years of hideous gelatin molds, cottage cheese concoctions, and nauseating tuna dishes. Three years filled with celery and bean sprouts in place of pasta. Three years of "desserts" made from bread crumbs and food coloring. Three years of chicken broth "martinis" and malted milk "cocktails".

However. If you are a true, die-hard Retro Weight Watcher -- you may have noticed one critical item has been conspicuously absent from my menu of shame.

Can you guess what it is?

That's right. Go ahead. You can say it.

LIVER.

Liver was required once per week on the 1972 Weight Watchers plan. Required.

And I have never eaten it. Never.

So here's the deal: To commemorate my 3-year Retro WW Anniversary, I am going to freaking eat some disgusting liver. Ugh.

And you, dear loyal followers get to choose which Retro WW liver dish I will prepare and eat right here on the blog.

Your choices are:

Baked Livery-Milky Goodness!

My Food Processor Will Never Be the Same Again

Liver and Pineapple on a Stick!

So yeah. I am already a little sick to my stomach. God help me.

Now please go vote for the liver dish you want me to prepare & consume! You may cast your vote in the comments section or on the ballot at the top right corner of the blog. Voting closes on February 10th!!! Liver! Liver! LIVER!!!!!!

Another Sad Soup

I took an un-official snow day.

So now I am sitting here at home watching the flakes fall and trying to figure out what to have for lunch.

Salad? Soup? Soup and salad?

Then it hit me. I am a Retro WW gal - I can have my salad and slurp it too!

That's right folks, for those of us who can't decide between soup or salad, and just can't be bothered to eat both, there's finally a solution...

LETTUCE POTAGE!

 

1/2 Head Lettuce

Water

2/3 cup skim milk

2 chicken bouillon cubes

Dash nutmeg

Combine 1/4 lettuce and 1/4 cup in blender; process at low speed. Empty into sieve. Repeat until all lettuce is chopped. Combine chopped lettuce, milk, broth mix, and nutmeg in saucepan. Cook over low heat for 5 minutes. Makes 2 servings.

Wow. This soup was, by far, the blandest thing I have ever eaten. And that's saying a LOT when you consider I have eaten this:

Chicken Buttermilk Loaf - the ultimate barf inducer!

And this...

 Cucumber Gel - it's worse than it looks!

OK, so my lunch was a major disappointment. Bummer. Therefore, I am officially declaring that this is the last time I will puree my lettuce. Ever.

And I don't think I'll be whipping up any more Potages anytime soon. Lettuce or otherwise.