Recipes on Continuity Cards

Continuity cards are purchased by the customer through the mail from advertising initially found in newspaper supplements, magazines, and other direct mail ads. There are many subjects of interest covered using this method like gardening, hobbies, home decorating and cooking.

Most cooks are familiar with the recipe cards. There is usually an introductory offer of 2 or 3 decks of cards with a free recipe card box to hold the cards and some other small kitchen gadget as a bonus. To increase the collection, customers continue to purchase individual card decks on a regular basis, usually every few weeks.

Betty Crocker began offering recipe card sets in 1971 and McCall's followed in 1973.

International Masters Publishers, a company that specializes in continuity publishing, offered their first set in 1981, which was called My Great Recipes. The Great American Recipes collection followed. They are currently simultaneously publishing several different collections of cards that appeal to different cooking niches: Grandma's Kitchen, Great American Home Baking Cookie Collection, Easy Everyday Cooking and Easy to Make Easy to Bake. The Easy to Make collection includes some brand name recipes.

Here's a recipe from the Great American Recipes collection. This recipe was from the Poultry at Its Best category, Card 117, Group 5. This card is dated 1989.


CHICKEN WITH TOMATO CREAM SAUCE

For 4 to 5 servings you will need:
1 frying chicken, 3 to 3-1/2 lbs., cut up
1 Tbsp. butter or margarine
3 Tbsp. finely chopped red onion
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. dried thyme leaves
1/2 tsp. paprika
1 can (14 oz.) stewed tomatoes, with liquid
2 bay leaves
2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
4 Tbsp. water
2/3 cup half-and-half
1 red or green pepper, sliced, for garnish, optional
Fresh chopped parsley or fresh thyme leaves, optional

Preparation:
1. Rinse chicken. Pat dry.
2. In a large skillet, quickly sauté chicken in butter. Remove. Place chicken in a large baking dish.
3. Sauté red onion in same pan. Sprinkle over chicken.
4. Sprinkle chicken with salt, thyme leaves and paprika.
5. Pour tomatoes with most of juice over chicken. Add bay leaves. Save remaining juice.
6. Bake chicken, uncovered, at 350 F degrees about 40 min. until cooked through.
7. Remove chicken. Strain liquid, if desired.
8. Pour liquid into saucepan. Add remaining tomato juice. Bring to boil.
9. Combine flour and water. Stir into boiling juices. Whisk and cook for about 3 min.
10. Add half-and-half. Heat. Season
11. Pour sauce over chicken in a serving dish. Garnish with bell pepper and parsley or thyme.

The recipe also has microwave instructions on the reverse side, but I'll leave that for another day.