Christmas in The Post-War United States - Foods

Foods

Mamie Eisenhower's Million-Dollar Fudge Recipe was a favorite holiday treat of the Eisenhower White House years. and first appeared in Who Says We Can't Cook?, a spiral-bound collection of recipes published in 1955 by the Women's National Press Club of Washington, D.C. Mamie's husband Ike named the recipe.

1955 saw the culinary debut of Green Bean Casserole, a dish that remains a holiday favorite in America. Its ingredients include green beans, cream of mushroom soup, and, as a topping, French's Fried Onions. The casserole was created by Campbell Soup Company in order to promote its cream soups. French's reports that 50% of all French's Fried Onions consumption occurs over Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter.

Cookie cutting and decorating reached its cultural zenith during the boomer years with Christmas cookie cutouts of reindeer, trees, stars, and bells providing sustenance for kids and dads. Moms packed their favorite home baked cookies into Tupperware containers and carried them to cookie swap parties with friends and neighbors. Red plastic cutters replaced tin cutters during the war years when metal was scarce and can be found today at garage sales and flea markets.

A snack hit of the 1955 holiday season was Chex Party Mix, a combination of Wheat Chex, Rice Chex, and Corn Chex, nuts, pretzels and a dressing of melted butter, Worcestershire sauce, and onion and garlic powders. The treat remains a popular holiday snack.