In 1971 food was more important than cookbooks in the Rang family. Fortunately we received two or three good ones as wedding presents, and Jerri’s trusty Dinner for Two Cook Book was still usable, even though we had a third mouth to feed by that time.
Maybe it was just the excitement of having some new recipes, but whatever the reason, we still treasure one of the cookbooks we acquired around that time. Carol Truax’s The Art of Salad Making was half of a FREE “2 IN 1” Cookbook given away by a cigarette company which explains why we could afford it.
Older folks may remember these cookbooks: At first glance they seemed to be an ordinary paperback book. However, if you tipped them upside down, you had another book, in our case The Art of Barbecue and Outdoor Cooking by the Tested Recipe Institute. I never got very excited about the recipes in that book, though the “Filled Bologna Roll” stuffed with pickle relish and cheddar cheese and roasted on a spit would have been within our means.
Inside the cover of The Art of Salad Making Jerri has written “Blue Cheese Dr p. 189.” and on that page below the recipe is a single word: “Good!” We still agree with her judgment from many years ago. This recipe uses sour cream instead of mayonnaise, so the dressing has a refreshing light flavor, less fat and fewer calories.
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup sour cream
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. dry mustard
1/2 tsp. minced onion
1/4 cup blue cheese
PROCEDURE:
Mix the first four ingredients together in a small bowl. Crumble the blue cheese and stir it into the sour cream. Let stand for at least 15 minutes before serving.
NOTES: You can use any variety of blue cheese. Gorgonzola works well. Resist the temptation to thin this dressing as it may then turn watery in a day or so. Even if it does, the dressing still tastes perfectly fine.
Courage in the Kitchen 