Sunday, April 10, 2022

Sky-Hi Drive-In and Restaurant, Chicago; Eat in a Real DC-7 Airplane.

Menu Cover


Chicago's Sky-Hi Drive-In and Restaurant, in Chicago's Austin neighborhood, was at 102 South Cicero Avenue and opened in late 1963 with a staff of 22. The all-electric restaurant operated in a salvage-yard DC-7. The plane's cabin was a 10-table fine dining experience perched over a luncheonette that served drive-in customers.






Hospitality Magazine said the Sky-Hi Drive-In was the first restaurant in a converted commercial airplane in the Nation. 

The Dimas brothers, Jim, John, and Chris, evidently spent way too much money renovating and outfitting the 110-foot-long plan and the expensive professional kitchen facilities.
Drive-In, limited seating and the kitchen were on the ground level. In the roof-mounted DC-7 was a 10-table Fine Dining experience with china and quality silverware.


It may not have been the most favorable site located on a lot that previously held an auto body shop. 

Sky-Hi opened in 1963 but didn’t really take off — and closed two years later

For those of you that swear there was a Sky-Hi Drive-In at Midway Airport, you are mistaken. What was at 55th Street and Cicero Avenue was the "Trivic Airport Pines Midway Airport Restaurant."
Trivic Airport Pines Midway Airport Restaurant, 55th and Cicero, Chicago.
Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Pepper & Egg Sandwich Recipe, Chicago's Lent Tradition.



The pepper and egg sandwich was created by Italians who immigrated to Chicago in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The owner of Fiore’s Delicatessen in the West Town/Ukrainian Village neighborhood claims that his establishment was the first to start selling the pepper and egg sandwich over 40 years ago. 

The sandwich was created out of the need for meat-free alternatives to Chicago standards like hot dogs and Italian beef sandwiches. Chicago’s Italian-American community is largely Catholic, and since 1965 practicing Roman Catholics are required to abstain from meat on Fridays during Lent, the 40-day period leading up to Easter. (Before 1965, Catholics were not allowed to eat meat on Fridays all year.) 

Pepper & Egg Sandwich; A Chicago Style Recipe.

Ingredients:
  • Turano or Gonnella Baking Company's Italian Bread
  • 1 tbsp. butter or margarine
  • 3 Jumbo eggs
  • 1/2 (or more) of a green bell pepper
  • Black pepper to taste
  • Chicago-style Giardiniera (optional)
Directions:
  • Crack 3 eggs into a medium-sized bowl. 
  • Scramble the egg mixture lightly with a fork and set aside. 
  • Dice the green pepper.  
  • Heat up a skillet and melt the butter or margarine in it. 
  • Add the eggs and then the green pepper and cook until just a little loose.
  • Slice the Italian bread in half and place the egg mixture between the two slices. 
  • Add giardiniera and sprinkle black pepper on the eggs if you so desire.
Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D. 

Chicago's Very Own Giardiniera Recipe.

Even if you are a Chicago native, you may not realize that Chicago has its own version of Giardiniera. The traditional style of Giardiniera is full of cauliflower and sweet peppers meant to be served as an antipasto, which is delicious, but not like the fiery Chicago-style Giardiniera.  


Chicago-style Giardiniera is used as a condiment and is so ingrained in the culture you will find it everywhere, such as Potbelly's Sandwich Shop, Vienna Beef, and the famous Portillo's. Most of the Chicago population doesn't think twice about loading their Italian Beef, their beloved Chicago dog, or the celebrated Maxwell Street Polish with one of the spiciest concoctions you will ever taste! 

Chicago Giardiniera is mostly serrano peppers and should be the main ingredient. The flavor, however, is not just hot peppers. It is rich with oil and olives, a slight hint of sweetness from the red bell peppers and carrots, some brightness from the vinegar, and a touch of garlic and oregano. It is so much more than just spicy!

This is a large recipe and can easily be cut in half. You can make this any time of the year, as all the ingredients are available at the grocery store.

DAY 1
  • 2 pounds serrano peppers, rinsed, then sliced in about quarter-inch thick circles.    (WARNING:  Wear gloves!)
  • 1 pound red bell peppers, seeded and diced small
  • 1/2 pound white onion, peeled and diced small
  • 3/4 pound carrots, peeled and diced small
  • 1/2 pound celery, diced small
  • 1 cup of salt (do not skimp on the salt the first time you make this recipe.)



Put all of the above ingredients in a stainless steel or glass bowl, toss with salt, cover and let sit overnight in the refrigerator. This salting removes some of the liquid from the vegetables, intensifying the flavors and tempers them.
DAY 2
  • Wash 10 - pint canning jars and lids. You can use smaller jars if you prefer. Place the jars on a sheet pan lined with a dishtowel and into a 200° F. oven until you are ready for them.
  • Fill your stockpot or canning pot 3/4 of the way up with water and heat the water over high heat.
  • Take the pepper mixture from the refrigerator, drain well and discard the excess liquid.
  • Prepare the next round of ingredients:
  • 12 ounces pimento-stuffed green olives, sliced 1/4" thick. Reserve the olive liquid.
  • 1 cup olive liquid from the jarred olives
  • 2 tablespoons garlic, minced
  • 2 teaspoons fresh cracked black pepper
  • 3 Tablespoons dried oregano
  • 5 cups white wine vinegar
  • 3 1/2 cups grapeseed oil
  • Combine all of these ingredients with the pepper mixture from the day before.



When the water is boiling, remove the jars from the oven and fill the jars to just below the threads for the lid. Run a knife around the inside of the jar a couple of times to remove any air bubbles. Do this gently to avoid creating more air bubbles! Put the lid on the jars and place them in the boiling water for 20 minutes.

Remove the jars from the boiling water, place them onto the dishtowel-lined sheet pan, and set them aside to cool. You should hear popping after some time; that is the sound of the jars sealing. After all the jars are thoroughly cooled, check to ensure they are all sealed. You will know they are sealed when you push down on the lid, and it doesn't bounce back. If some jars don't seal, just put them in the fridge and use them first. They are okay to use after letting the jars sit for one week, but three weeks will give you exactly the taste you're looking for. 

The rest can go on the shelf for up to a year. Label the jared date.
Giardiniera is excellent on any sandwich but especially on rich sandwiches like tuna or egg salad and grilled cheese especially loves the spice and tang of Giardiniera. It is perfect on pasta salads, smoked or grilled meats or sausages, and incredible on eggs or in an omelet.

Tuesday, April 5, 2022

Why do Chicagoans hate ketchup on their hot dogs?

A Chicago Style hot dog must have a poppy seed bun, an all-beef hot dog, yellow mustard, chopped white onions, green sweet pickle relish, a dill pickle spear, fresh tomato slices, or tomato wedges, sport peppers, and a dash of celery salt, or it is not a Chicago dog.


Prejudice for ketchup exists only for hot dogs. Let me explain why putting ketchup on a hot dog in Chicago (and the suburbs) is unacceptable unless you're 10 or younger.

The answer, it turns out, is found in science. It's really quite simple. The fresh tomatoes on the dog replace what ketchup would bring to the party in tomato sweetness. 

References to this prejudice have reached as far as the White House.

President Obama made it official with a proclamation on June 3, 2011, while visiting one of Rudy's Hot Dog stands in Toledo, OH. Obama and the mayor stopped in for a chili dog, but apparently, the subject of ketchup came up. "You shouldn't put ketchup on your hot dog," said President Obama.

"Is ketchup on a hot dog ever acceptable?" Anthony Bourdain asked the leader of the free world in an episode of "Parts Unknown." "No," the President quickly responded. "I mean that ... that's one of those things like, well, let me put it this way, it's not acceptable past the age of 8." "And I agree," Bourdain said, "I think there is a time and a place for ketchup, and I don't think the hot dog is one of them."

Bob Schwartz, a Vice President of Vienna Beef, the leading Chicago hot dog supplier, wrote a book titled "Never Put Ketchup On A Hot Dog" in 2008. He calls ketchup an "affliction."

Mike Royko, Chicago Tribune, Tuesday, November 21, 1995 Article.
"This simple little quiz is directed at those who love hot dogs.
Not any hot dog, but the true, classic Chicago hot dog."

Mike Royko said it better than anyone in a November 21, 1995 column: "No, I won't condemn anyone for putting ketchup on a hot dog. This is the land of the free. And if someone wants to put ketchup on a hot dog and actually eat the awful thing, that is their right. It is also their right to put mayo, chocolate syrup, toenail clippings, or cat hair on a hot dog. Sure, it would be disgusting and perverted, and they would be shaming themselves and their loved ones. But under our system of government, it is their right to be barbarians."

Okay, I've got to ask, which one would you choose;
  1. Fresh Tomatoes
  2. Heinz Tomato Ketchup — Ingredients: Tomato concentrate from ripe red tomatoes, Distilled Vinegar, High Fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, salt (160mg), spice, onion powder, and natural flavoring. (Serving = 1 Tbsp, 17g)

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D. 

Sunday, April 3, 2022

The History of Green River Soft Drink.

Green River pop (a midwestern term for soda, soda-pop, or soft drink) was introduced to Midwesterners in 1919, just as Congress passed the 18th Amendment establishing Prohibition. Green River soda was first created in 1916 in Davenport, Iowa, by Richard C. Jones, who owned a local confectionary shop. 
Antique Green River Soda Fountain Syrup Bottle. Circa 1915.
In 1919, Jones sold his recipe to the Schoenhofen Edelweiss Brewing Company of Chicago. Before 1920, the brewery produced the popular Edelweiss beer, and Schoenhofen began manufacturing Green River and other soft drinks to survive the Prohibition Era. 
Schoenhofen Brewery - Edelweiss Beer, Chicago.


It was also made by the Sweetwater Brewery in Green River, Wyoming.

When Prohibition officially took effect on January 16, 1920, some breweries turned to produce a nonalcoholic drink called 'Near Beer,' while others were churning out ice cream, and some breweries just closed.


The Schoenhofen Edelweiss Brewing Company was located in the Pilsen neighborhood on 18th Street and Canalport Avenue. Two of the remaining 17 buildings can still be found at that location.

The lime-based pop with a hint of lemon was poured into old beer bottles and sold in the market. The vivid green color and great flavor were an immediate success. It was popular as a soda fountain syrup, trailing only Coca-Cola in popularity throughout the Midwest.
 
Following the closing of the Edelweiss company in 1950, the Green River recipe was passed from one manufacturer to another. This period of Green River history is murky. Sources agree that by the 90s, the beverage was on the ropes—it was only being sold in Seattle (which has a Green River of Green River Killer fame), and it was unclear if anybody else was making more.

Around 1995, the rights and recipe were sold to Clover Club Bottling Company, 356 North Kilbourn Avenue, Chicago, a small independent bottler in Chicago (bottles "Dogs N Suds Root Beer"). Clover Club brought Green River back to life, and then WIT Beverage Company (WBC) took over the brand in 2011 and continued Clover Club's work.

In October of 2021, WIT Beverage Company passed the torch to none other than Sprecher Brewing Company in Glendale, Wisconsin, another Midwestern craft soda icon. As Milwaukee's Original Craft Brewery, Sprecher knows what it means to preserve a legacy and plans to let Green River shine again by re-introducing it to the country that has loved it for over one hundred years.
A Visual History of Green River Bottles.


Green River is frequently marketed as a nostalgia item, and its sales increased in March due to the association of the color green with St. Patrick's Day. 




Chicago celebrates St. Patrick's Day by dyeing the Chicago River green.



While not widely commercially available, it can be purchased at some Chicago area grocery stores and retailers and is served in some Chicagoland restaurants.

With a unique visual appeal, including its bright green color, Green River takes people back to a pleasant time in their life, in the 1950s and '60s, at a time of corner pop fountains and drive-in movies.

According to John Fogerty, the Creedence Clearwater Revival album Green River and Al Jolson's song "Green River" was inspired by the soft drink. 
John Fogerty & Creedence Clearwater Revival Play the song "Green River."

In Zen Studios' (acquired Bally And Williams Pinball Licences in 2018) recreation of the Williams pinball machines "The Party Zone" and "The Champion Pub," Zen Studios' computer pinball game "FX 3" has replaced depictions of beer with Green River. It was a precautionary act of censorship to avoid the repercussions of having the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) rating of "Everyone 10+" changed to a more restrictive rating.
Fans of Green River know that it's not just another soda pop; it's nostalgia in a bottle. 

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Friday, March 25, 2022

Borden Dairy Company and Elsie the Cow, Chicago's Favorite.

The History of Gail Borden, Jr.
Gail Borden's story begins in Norwich, New York, where he was born in 1801. 
Gail Borden, Jr. 1801-1874
After a few years, the family moved to Kentucky and then to Indiana. In his early 20s, Gail followed his brothers south, eventually working as a surveyor in Mississippi. By 1835, Borden—now married—had settled in Texas, working first as a surveyor and then as a newspaper editor, which is interesting since his only formal education took place during his two years in Indiana, learning to be a surveyor.

"Telegraph and Texas Planter" Newspaper (1835-1837)
In February 1835, Gail and his brother John Borden partnered with Joseph Baker to publish one of the first newspapers in Texas. Although none of the three had any previous printing experience, Baker was considered "one of the best-informed men in the Texian colony on the Texas-Mexican situation." The men based their newspaper in San Felipe de Austin, centrally located among the colonies in eastern Texas. They ran the first issue under the "Telegraph and Texas Planter" banner on October 10, 1835, days after the Texas Revolution began. However, the later issues bore the name Telegraph and Texas Register. As the editor, Gail Borden worked to be objective.

Soon after the newspaper began publishing, his brother John Borden left to join the Texian Army, and their brother Thomas took his place as Borden's partner. Historian Eugene C. Barker describes the Borden newspaper as "an invaluable repository of public documents during this critical period of the state's history." The early format of the paper was three columns to a page with a total of eight pages. The Telegraph printed official documents and announcements, editorials, local news, reprints of articles from other newspapers, poetry, and advertisements.

As the Mexican Army moved east into the Texian colonies, the Telegraph was soon the only newspaper in Texas still operating. Their 21st issue was published on March 24. This contained the first Texans who died at the Battle of the Alamo. On March 27, the Texas Army reached San Felipe, carrying word that the Mexican advance guard was approaching. A later editorial in the Telegraph said the publishers were "the last to consent to move." The Bordens dismantled the printing press and brought it with them as they evacuated with the rear guard on March 30. The Bordens retreated to Harrisburg. On April 14, as they were in the process of printing a new issue, Mexican soldiers arrived and seized the press. The soldiers threw the type and press into Buffalo Bayou and arrested the Bordens. The Texas Revolution ended days later.

Lacking funds to replace his equipment, Borden mortgaged his land to buy a new printing press in Cincinnati. The 23rd issue of the Telegraph was published in Columbia on August 2, 1836. Although many had expected Columbia to be the new capital, the First Texas Congress chose the new city of Houston instead. Borden relocated to Houston and published the first Houston issue of his paper on May 2, 1837.

The newspaper was financially unstable, as the Bordens rarely paid their bills. In March, Thomas Borden sold his interest in the enterprise to Francis W. Moore Jr., who took over as chief editor. Three months later, Gail Borden transferred his shares to Jacob W. Cruger.

Borden was an inventor, although only sometimes successful. In the early 1840s, he experimented with disease cures and mechanics. His wife, Penelope, died of yellow fever on September 5, 1844. Frequent epidemics swept through the nation, and the disease had a high rate of fatalities during the 19th century. Borden began experimenting with finding a cure for the disease via refrigeration, and no one understood how it was transmitted.

The "Terraqueous Machine"
One of his inventions was the Terraqueous Machine (of land and water). Accounts of his first—and only—journey are not kind.

In the late 1840s, a crowd of curious onlookers and a few hardy volunteers gathered on a Galveston, Texas, beach to meet Gail Borden and witness the unveiling of his new amphibious machine.

The machine was rigged with a mast, a square sail, a rudder, and a steering device for the front wheels. This sail-powered wagon was designed to travel over land and sea but was designed more specifically for the western prairies. Borden enlisted some friends to ride with him on the machine's maiden voyage, but whether those people remained friends after the demonstration is still being determined. The machine's sail caught the wind and zipped along at a clip fast enough to terrify his fellow passengers. They panicked when Borden steered into the waves, and the Terraqueous Machine tumped over, spilling its inventor and his passengers into the surf. Anxious moments passed until some drenched and unlucky passengers emerged from the waves onto the shore. When asked where Borden was, one of the disillusioned riders said, "I sincerely hope he has drowned." Borden didn't drown. The Terraqueous Machine was his first invention, and though it never caught on, the idea lingered.

Meat Biscuit aka Soup-Bread
In 1849, Borden turned his attention to inventing a stable meat biscuit for travelers and folks in rural America. Specifically, he created a Meat Biscuit or "Portable Desiccated (having had all moisture removed) Soup-Bread," similar to Native American pemmican. The meat biscuits were immensely popular during the California Gold Rush because the 49ers needed compact, lightweight, non-perishable supplies, and Borden's meat biscuits fit the bill. The idea was to preserve the concentrated nutritional properties of flesh meat, combine it with flour, and bake it into biscuits. One pound of this bread contains the extract of more than five pounds of the best meat, and one ounce of it will make a pint of rich soup. The idea was to preserve the concentrated nutritional properties of flesh meat, combine it with flour, and bake it into biscuits. One pound of this bread contains the extract of more than five pounds of the best meat, and one ounce of it will make a pint of rich soup. Biscuits were made from beef, veal, fowl flesh, oysters, etc., and were not intended to be eaten. 

In 1851, Borden traveled to the 1851 London World's Fair. The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations, also known as the Great Exhibition or the Crystal Palace Exhibition, was an international exhibition in Hyde Park, London, from May 1 to October 15, 1851. His biscuits were well-received, winning a Gold Medal at the Great Council Exhibit. He also experimented with coffee, tea, and cocoa. Borden was able to make concentrates from apples, currants, and grapes.
Meat Biscuit aka Soup-Bread. The recipe is at the end of this article.
In a letter dated March 23, 1850, to Dr. Ashbel Smith, Borden relates the way he made this discovery and describes how to prepare the Soup-Bread and how it tastes:
"I was endeavoring to make some portable meat glue (the common kind known) for some friends who were going to California—I had set up a large kettle and evaporating pan, and after two days labor I reduced one hundred and twenty pounds of veal to ten pounds of extract, a consistency like melted glue and molasses; the weather was warm and rainy, it being the middle of July. I could not dry it either in or out of the house and unwilling to lose my labor, it occured to me, after various expedients, to mix the article with good flour and bake it. To my great satisfaction, the bread was found to contain all the primary principles of meat, and with a better flavor than simple veal soup, thickened with flour in the ordinary method.

The nutritive portions of beef or other meat, immediately on its being slaughtered, are, by long boiling, separated from the bones and fibrous and cartilaginous matters: the water holding the nutritious matters in solution, is evaporated to a considerable degree of spissitude—this is then made into a dough with firm wheaten flour, the dough rolled and cut into a form of biscuits, is then desiccated, or baked in an oven at a moderate heat. The cooking, both of the flour and the animal food is thus complete. The meat biscuits were prepared to have the appearance and firmness of the nicest crackers or navy bread, being as dry, and breaking or pulverizing as readily as the most carefully made table crackers. It is preserved in the form of biscuit or reduced to coarse flour or meal. It is best kept in tin cases hermetically soldered up; the exclusion of air is not important, humidity alone is to be guarded against.

For making soup from a meat biscuit, a batter is first made of the pulverized biscuit and cold water—this is stirred into boiling water—the boiling is continued some ten or twenty minutes—salt, pepper, and other condiments are added to suit the taste, and the soup is ready for the table.

I have eaten the soup several times,—it has the fresh, lively, clean, and thoroughly done or cooked flavor that used to form the charm of the soups of the Rocher de Cancale. It is perfectly free from that vapid unctuous stale taste that characterizes all prepared soups I have heretofore tried at sea and elsewhere. Those chemical changes in food which, in common language, we denominate cooking, have been perfectly affected in Mr. Borden’s biscuit by the long-continued boiling at first, and the subsequent baking or roasting. The soup prepared of it is thus ready to be absorbed into the system without loss, and without tedious digestion in the alimentary canal, and is in the highest degree nutritious and invigorating."
The recipe for these biscuits is at the end of the article.

Sailing back from London's World Fair, The Great Exhibition in Hyde Park in 1851, Borden was horrified seeing several children and two cows die from drinking contaminated milk; the milk wasn't fresh... but had not soured yet. He wondered if there was a way to preserve milk indefinitely and found inspiration from the Shakers with whom he had spent some time, possibly in Kentucky. He recalled that the Shakers had developed a process of evaporating fruit juice by vacuum and making it "shelf-stable," in today's terms. 

The invention of canned milk can be attributed to Gail Borden in the early 1850s. He is credited with inventing condensed milk, which has had some of the water removed, making it thicker and more shelf-stable. Borden was motivated by the need to find a way to preserve milk, as it spoiled quickly at the time and was often contaminated. Condensed milk was initially sweetened with sugar and marketed as a healthy and convenient food for infants and children. Borden's method involved heating milk to remove a significant portion of its water content, then sealing it in airtight cans. This process killed harmful bacteria and extended the shelf life of the milk to several years. Initially known as "Eagle Brand," his invention was initially met with skepticism, but it soon gained popularity and became widely used by soldiers during the American Civil War. In short order, he founded the New York Condensed Milk Company. Borden's invention of condensed milk was a major breakthrough in food preservation. It made it possible to transport and store milk safely, improving millions of lives.

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Al Capone and his Brother Ralph are responsible for milk expiration dating. Capone convinced the Chicago City Council to pass a law in 1933 that clearly stamped the date on milk bottles so that the consumer could read and understand it.

Borden opened factories across New York State, including Craryville, Copake, and Ancram.
Borden's Country Bottled Milk Station No. 20, Ancram, New York, Plant.


Borden was enshrined in the "Inventors Hall of Fame" in 2008 for inventing condensed milk, U.S. Patent No. 15,553, on August 19, 1856.

By 1858, Eagle Brand Condensed Milk was a trusted brand selling briskly. The Union Army supplied the troops with Eagle Brand during the Civil War, an enormous windfall for Borden.
Advertisement for Gail Borden's Eagle Brand Condensed Milk from an 1898 guidebook for travelers in the Klondike Gold Rush.



In later years, Borden returned to Texas, where he supported the poor, minorities, and teachers. He became a well-known philanthropist, and he helped organize a school for negroes. Borden also helped build six new churches. He died in Borden, Texas, 1874 and was buried in Woodlawn Cemetery in New York.
An amber Signature Quality Borden's Dairy Farm Milk Bottle with
Gail Borden's signature (bottle age unknown).
Borden's was once the largest U.S. producer of dairy and pasta products. He also sold snacks, processed cheese, jams, jellies, and ice cream. Borden's consumer products division sold wallpaper, adhesives, plastics, and resins. The company sold Elmer's Glue and Krazy Glue. The Borden Brand eventually became the Eagle Brand and sold such labels as Mott's and Cremora. Smucker's acquired Eagle Brands in 2007.

Gail Borden invented a lot of useful products. Throughout his life, he always respected science. He was a very reputable man.

The New York Condensed Milk Company lived on, and in 1899, the company renamed itself Borden Milk Company in his honor.

Elsie the Cow
Elsie, the Cow, was the first Mascot of Borden Dairy Company, appearing in 1936 to symbolize the "perfect dairy product." Since the demise of Borden in the mid-1990s, the character has continued to be used in the same capacity for the company's partial successors, Eagle Family Foods (owned by J.M. Smucker) and Borden Dairy. 
Elsie the Cow in a 1948 ad.
Elsie's real name was "You'll Do Lobelia." At seven years old, she was beautiful, photogenic, good-natured (and a bit of a ham); she was christened Elsie and became a star. Long before, there was Adele, Beyoncé, Brandy, Britney, Cher, Elvis, Fergie, Halsey, Kesha, Kylie, Madonna, Pink, Prince, Rihanna, Selena, Shakira, Tiffany, and Usher, there was Elsie. ♫♪♫♪

The first Elsie was a registered Jersey heifer selected while participating in Borden's 1939 New York World's Fair "Rotolactor" exhibit (a cow 'merry-go-round' that could milk cows much faster and more efficiently). 
The "Rotolactor" was displayed in the Futuristic Farming exhibit at the 1939 New York "World of Tomorrow" World's Fair.


When the other cows were not being milked, Elsie would ride the Rotolactor alone, wearing her trademark chain of daisies around her neck and a blanket with her name on her back—waving her tail to the crowd.

Elsie was a smash, and the Borden display was a big success. Elsie gave a "Bovine Ball" for the press at the season's end, which proved so popular that other appearances followed.

At the height of her career, Elsie was noted as the most famous icon in America, not an easy feat when you are up against such formidable competitors as The Campbell Soup Kids, the Marlboro Man, and The Jolly Green Giant.

According to Ad Age magazine, Elsie became one of the top 10 advertising symbols of the twentieth century.

Borden's "None Such Mince Meat" (1940-41)


Sniff the spicy fragrance when it comes out of the oven! Roll the hearty, country-kitchen flavor over your tongue! A-s-h! It's Borden's None Such Mince Meat Pie!

Borden's None Such Mince Meat is made of 20 choice ingredients—hand-picked apples, sun-wrinkled raisins, tart citrus peel, and spices from the far corners of the earth—aged and blended in a New England recipe 56 years old (from 1884). It's spicier, fruitier than "ordinary" mince meat—yet costs but a few cents more!

So demand genuine Borden's None Such Mince Meat. Look for the None Such Girl on the bright Red package!

A new idea book from Borden. "The Touch of Taste from None Such Mince Meat: a New Idea Book from Borden" was published in 1977.

Borden's "HEMO" Chocolate Powder (1942-1946)


Here's HEMO—made for every man, woman, and child who needs more vitamins and minerals to get a new kick out of life!

Hemo has a deep, rich, malty flavor. Tastes like the slickest malted milk you ever drank—only better!

But HEMO is more—far more—than just a grand-tasting drink! HEMO is crammed with vitamins and minerals—enough to really do some good! One glass of Hemo daily—yes, just one—gives you one-half the total daily adult requirements of Vitamins A, B1, D, and G, plus iron! And extra needed calcium and phosphorus, too!
Added to a usual diet, that makes up almost any shortage of all these vital food elements! Enough HEMO to make one drink costs only 2½¢!

Start drinking HEMO today. Lean back and enjoy every sip. See if you don't start feeling better, looking better, and tackling each day with more pep! Get HEMO now! 24 delicious drinks at your grocer or druggists for 59¢.


Elsie had a fictional cartoon mate, Elmer the Bull, whose drawing is on every bottle of Elmer's Glue-All. Elmer was created in 1940 and lent to Borden's then-chemical division as the mascot for Elmer's Products.
Elmer the Bull, circa 1941.






The pair were given offspring Beulah and Beauregard in 1948 and twins Larabee and Lobelia in 1957.
"Don't women handle money better than men do?" Asked Elsie, The Borden Cow.
Elsie has been bestowed honorary university degrees as "Doctor of Bovinity," "Doctor of Human Kindness," and "Doctor of Ecownomics." In Wisconsin, home of the Dairy Princess, Elsie was named "Queen of Dairyland."

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The Wisconsin "Queen of Dairyland" gave the dairy industry hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of free publicity.

The Seneca (Iroquois) Tribe named Elsie (Iroquois: awsғ:iyo jó:sgwa:ön = Beautiful Flowers Cow) an honorary Chief. She holds keys to over 200 cities. 
Elsie, the first flying cow, goes to War.





But best of all, Elsie helped sell more than $10 million in U.S. War Bonds.


Tragically, on April 16, 1941, Elsie was traveling on a highway when her truck was slammed from behind, severely damaging her vertebrae. She was rushed back to Plainsboro, New Jersey, to a veterinarian. Various treatments were considered, including traction, but nothing was to be done. Elsie was euthanized on April 20 and buried at the Walker-Gordon Dairy behind the carpenter shop. A headstone was later created to mark her resting place. 
Elsie the Cow TV Commercial, Circa 1950.

In 1997, Elsie and the Borden name were sold to the Dairy Farmers' Association of America. Her "i-cow-nic" image is still in use on various cheese products. People still love Elsie. She is definitely the Queen among cows, and that's no bull. 










  Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D




Borden's Homemade Meat Biscuits aka Soup-Bread Recipe
A Borden's meat biscuit from this recipe.
INGREDIENTS
  • Bouillon: Beef, Chicken, Fish, Ham, Lobster, Turkey, Vegetable. (Bouillon Paste)
  • Flour
  • Water
INSTRUCTIONS
  • Mix flour with bouillon. If the bouillon is a paste, mash it with a spoon until it is thoroughly mixed and looks like whole wheat flour. Do not use too much flour; you are not making bread. You are making a stabilizer for the bouillon.
  • Add just enough cold water to make a very, very stiff dough. It should hold together but not be sticky.
  • Roll out quite thinly and cut into pieces.
  • Bake at 300° F. for 30 minutes or until completely dry and hard.
PREPARING THE BISCUITS
To make into soup, smash it up in cold water with something heavy, like a meat tenderizer, then boil in more water.

CRITICS COMMENTARY
It was okay! The broth was pretty weak in the end, but more biscuits would have helped that. I thought the flour would have thickened the soup, but instead, it made little crumbly sediment, which was expected. I can see how this would be a useful addition to a wagon headed west. These meat biscuits never became popular, but more than one wagon included a barrel of them amongst their supplies. (Anonymous)

Monday, March 21, 2022

"Chicago Dog Sauce," a new condiment, was introduced by the Kraft Heinz Company in 2017.

Chicago is an amazing city full of traditions. One of them, as well known, is never putting ketchup on your Chicago Dog unless you're 10 years old or younger.

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H.J. Heinz Company and Kraft Foods Group, Inc. announced on March 25, 2015, an agreement to merge. The merger was completed on July 2, 2015, creating The Kraft Heinz Company.

Heinz, the Pennsylvania-based condiment company that merged with Chicago-based Kraft in 2015, tried to convince people to test its new "Chicago Dog Sauce" for National Hot Dog Day to help ketchup-loving Chicagoans save face. The new condiment looks like ketchup, tastes like ketchup and turns out to be ketchup. It's an insult to Chicagoans.




While Heinz claims to respect this time-honored Chicago tradition, the brand hopes Chicagoans will reconsider their anti-ketchup stance. Heinz's new "Chicago Dog Sauce was a limited-time marketing ploy that disguises the company's regular ketchup with a new label. 

Grilled, instead of raw onions, may be optional. The famous Fluky's "5¢ Depression dog," an all-beef hot dog on a poppy seed bun topped with yellow mustard, chopped white onions, neon green sweet pickle relish, a dill pickle spear, tomato slices, sport peppers, and a dash of celery salt is a masterpiece. 

You wouldn't put lipstick on the Mona Lisa!

By the way, Fluky's "2¢ Garden on a Bun" was the Depression dog without the hot dog. It's estimated that Abe "Fluky" Drexler saved thousands of depression-era people from starving to death.

This Heinz TV commercial showed gobsmacked Chicagoans purportedly trying the ketchup Chicago Dog Sauce and, to the great betrayal of their forefathers, liking it.
Heinz Unveils Chicago Dog Sauce
for National Hot Dog Day.

One person's Tweet: "Never in a million years will you find such a condiment on my hot dog. Nice try, Heinz, but it's a huge NO for me."

Ketchup is for french fries and for the enjoyment of children in Chicago.

Obviously, the entire thing was intended to be good fun. Heinz even set up a website where people could order "limited edition 14oz glass bottles of Heinz Chicago Dog Sauce" featuring the Chicago Dog Sauce label designed just for this ad campaign.
       
Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.