I was watching the early talkie Our Blushing Brides (1930) the other day and one particular scene that left an impression on me. Three young ladies, mannequins at a swanky lingerie shop, Gerry (Joan Crawford), Frankie (Dorothy Sebastian), and Connie (Anita Page) are roommates, all still single and despereately poor. The three gals sit down to dinner which consists of canned salmon , bread, potatoes and some over-brewed coffee. Frankie groans at the sight of salmon yet again while Gerry says it can't be all foie gras at the Ritz. All three girls have prospective rich beaus and ruminating about their current situation just shows them how desperately they want an out.
Movies from the Great Depression are filled with scenes like this. I often remember a scene in Gold Diggers of 1933 where the roommates have a breakfast of stale bread and stolen milk. It's enough to make any dame want to be a gold digger. And how!
So how did people plan meals in the Great Depression? They had to be very creative. Not only did they have to make meals out of what was available but they also had to make do without a lot of basics that we today take for granted. Meals had to be very simple and with few ingredients.
A little while ago I found a series of YouTube videos about Depression-era cooking. A sweet 93-year old woman who lived through the Depression shares her recipes, stories and photographs in little installments called Great Depression Cooking with Clara. They are simply wonderful and I beg you to watch them. Here is one of the episodes:
So how did people plan meals in the Great Depression? They had to be very creative. Not only did they have to make meals out of what was available but they also had to make do without a lot of basics that we today take for granted. Meals had to be very simple and with few ingredients.
A little while ago I found a series of YouTube videos about Depression-era cooking. A sweet 93-year old woman who lived through the Depression shares her recipes, stories and photographs in little installments called Great Depression Cooking with Clara. They are simply wonderful and I beg you to watch them. Here is one of the episodes:
Poorman's Feast
I decided to make this for my Sunday dinner and here is the result:

This was a rather inexpensive meal to make. I got a bag of lentils for $2, sandwich steak for $1.92, 1 head of romaine for $1 and a lemon for $0.40. The rice and olive oil I already had in my pantry. In the end, this meal cost me less than $6. The lentils and rice and meat will be my lunch tomorrow, so I got two meals for less than $3 each. Pretty good. Plus it was absolutely delicious!
Attention Vegetarians/Vegans! The rice & lentils are hearty enough that with the salad it's still a full meal. You can always add a simple dessert to round it off.
For more on classic films and the Great Depression, be sure to check out Katie's excellent post on Obscure Classics. (I swear, I thought of my post before Katie posted hers! Great minds think alike).