A Handi-Book of Meat Cookery

Like her counterpart Betty Crocker at General Mills, Martha Logan was the fictional corporate spokeswoman for the meatpacking giant Swift & Company. Under the guise of Martha Logan, Swift's staff of home economists dispensed advice, recipes and tips to consumers from Swift's Chicago office, on radio shows and in cooking demonstrations across the country. Many women had jobs as a Martha Logan over the years when the various promotional situations called for a live person.

Martha Logan's Meat Handi-Book (1968, 16 pp.) was only one of the many Martha Logan promotional booklets published by Swift & Company. The booklet was designed to help consumers choose and cook their meat properly.

As in many of the Swift & Company cookbooks, a short personal note from Martha Logan is found inside the front cover:

"Hi--Meat Makes the Meal--if it's cooked properly! The fame of each cut of meat depends upon the way you cook it! For instance, a Swift's Premium Porterhouse Steak would be quite tasteless if it were braised and a low-grade round steak would be unchewable if it were broiled.

I hope this booklet will help you treat each cut right.--Martha Logan"

The booklet is made up primarily of tables and charts with no other illustrations save the one on the front cover. While similar information may be found in other cookbooks, the tables in this booklet include not only generic cuts of meat but also specific cuts and brands produced or packed by Swift such as Swift's Premium Corned Beef Brisket and Swift's Georgia Peanut Cook-Before-Eating Ham.

One chart shows the drawings of the bone shapes of beef, veal, pork and lamb, divided into tender (T-bone, rib bone, wedge bone and round bone) and those less tender (blade bone). This chart is meant to help you identify a cut of meat and predict tenderness.

Other charts and tables found inside were the Refrigerator Storage Time Chart, Freezer Storage Time Chart, Roasting Schedule for Fresh Meat, Roasting Schedule for Cured and Smoked Pork, Roasting Schedule for Poultry, Braising Schedule for Meat, a Water Cooking Schedule and a Broiling Schedule.

Short discussions on the storage methods and preparation of different types and cuts of meats and poultry are included, as well as instructions on how to use a meat thermometer.

New Boar's Head Booklet

I 'm not too excited about the selection of food stores in the small town I live in. Among a myriad of other issues, I just noticed yesterday that one of the places has been selling us bags of ice marked as 10 lbs. that actually only weigh 5 lbs. The bags kept getting lighter and lighter until I finally weighed one. When confronted about it, the owner of the store didn't seem concerned that I might feel a bit cheated, only somewhat irritated that I called her on it.

The new Wal-Mart SuperCenter coming to town is a good thing. I'm sure they, at least, have consistency, quality control and standards to adhere to

Fortunately, I'm not adverse to driving into the city (suburbs, actually) to do my grocery shopping.

One store has already moved and revamped in anticiaption of the coming competition. This resulted in the introduction of the Boar's Head brands into their store. Yesterday while I was in there picking up a basic necessity, I noticed that Boar's Head has a new recipe book out called Now You're Cooking (2006, 52 pages). You can almost always find the Boar's Head cookbooks displayed near the deli case.

There have been several Boar's Head recipe books published in the past but this new one is almost 20 pages longer than the others and has a bright, white cover. For some reason, I like the recipes in this edition better than in those of the past. Perhaps because there are more of them.

The booklet contains recipes for Appetizers, Salads, Main Courses, Sandwiches, Sides and Fun Foods. There are a few color photos of the prepared dishes, though since I'm such a visual person, I wish there were more. However, the booklet is certainly enough to whet the appetite even without a lot of pictures.

Besides the meat and cheese products a few of the recipes also call for other Boar's Head brand items: Jalapeno Pepper Sauce, Pub Style Horseradish Sauce, Delicatessen Style Mustard, Sweet and Mild Gourmet Barbecue Sauce, Sweet Vidalia Onions in Sauce and Kosher Dill Pickles.

Their entire line of meat and cheese products has expanded in the last few years and this recipe book reflects the changes with the tasty varieties of deli meat and cheeses used in the recipes.

There are 56 recipes in all. The nutritional information isn't given for the recipes, but Boar's Head does have another booklet that contains nothing but the nutrional information about their products. You can ususally find that at the deli counter too.

Some of the recipes I plan to try right away are:

• Salami Coronet (an appetizer)
• Horseradish Ham Spread Tropicale (an appetizer)
• Spicy Potato Skins (an appetizer)
• Queso Blanco Marinated in Fresh Herbs (another appetizer)
• Mimosa Salad with Spicy Orange Honey Mustard Dressing (salad)
• Pineapple Rice Salad with Ham (salad)
• Chicken Avocado Salad (salad)
• Gorgonzola Dressing (salad dressing)
• Ham and Mushroom Broth (main dish)
• Pesto Parmesan Ham Breakfast Wrap (main dish)
• Aroastica Penne (main dish)
• Cheesy Meatloaf (main dish)
• Rancher Beef Pita (sandwich)
• The Mediterranean (sandwich)
• Aroastica Chicken Wrap (sandwich)
• Not Your Daddy's BLT (sandwich)
• Hot & Sweet Sausage Sandwich (sandwich)
• Butterkase Mashed Potatoes (side)

None of these recipes call for particularly unusual ingredients, but many of them simply aren't found around this town. Although I can probably find a can of Mandarin oranges, portobello mushrooms or mixed field greens might be a stretch.

Looks like a trip into the city for me. Also, please pardon my small rant about the local grocery stores--sometimes I just get frustrated about the situation. I definitely take my groceries seriously.