10 Helpful Cooking Tips from 1950s Housewives

We can learn a lot from 1950s housewives and their cooking skills. They shared a lot of their great cooking tips in homemaking magazines and now you can read them as well.

One of my favorite thing to read in vintage magazines is the tips sent in by real housewives. They couldn’t share their tips on social media or blogs so they sent them into magazines. 

It’s such a real peek into these 1950s housewives lives because it’s not some magazines writers ideal, picture-perfect, view of the time but what real women were doing.

I have a file on my computer where I share these kinds of tips as I find them. I love to read them occasionally and try them out. I thought you may want to also try some of them out or at least get a little look into what the housewives of the 1950s were doing.

Helpful Cooking Tips from 1950s Housewives

Fix Dried Out Donuts. Cut day-old donuts in half and toast under broiler. While still warm, spread butter and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon.

Avoid Mess While Peeling Produce. Peel apples, potatoes, carrots, and other fruits and vegetables over several pieces of newspaper. Paper will catch damp trimmings and peels. When you’re done, roll up the paper and toss it out. The paper absorbs extra moisture. (My note: You could also throw this in a compost bin!)

Natural Way to Tint Coconut. To tint coconut for a cake topping, put shreds in a bowl with grated orange or lemon peel. Rub with a wooden spoon. Citrus peel adds flavor as well as delicate color.

Make Better Whipped Cream. Use confectioners’ sugar instead of granulated sugar to sweeten whipped cream. The cream will hold up longer.

A Better Way to Grease Cookies Sheets. Stop greasing the full baking sheets. Grease only the area under each cookie and grease it lightly. This avoids burning fat that is so hard to scour off at dishwashing time.

The Easiest Way to Shave Chocolate. Use a vegetable peeler to shave chocolate finely, quick and easy.

Less Time Spent Cooking. Take advantage of your oven’s roomy oven. When you bake a casserole for lunch, slide in a cherry pie for tonight. Doubling up in the oven will save on energy costs and give you a head start on the next meal.

Prepare Ice Cream Ahead of Time. Fix scoops beforehand, place on a jelly-roll pan lined with wax paper and put uncovered in the freezer. Pull out when your guests arrive and place the ice cream in dishes.

Bake Once, Eat Twice. When making a cake mix cake go ahead and make two and freeze the second, unfrosted for last-minute guests.

Organize Your Freezer. Use a different color of tape for each type of meat so you can quickly find the kind you are looking for.

More Helpful 1950s Tips

• 1950s Cleaning Schedule
• Household Tips from 1950s Housewives
• Self-Care in the 1950s
• 1950’s Housewife Morning Routine