Looking for them hot school lunch recipies from the 60's and 70's

Hi all, newbie here Hmm! have to look this site over real good. I am looking for some of the recipes for hot lunches that I had when I was in elementary and high school back in the 60's and 70's any one have any ideas where to search or how to search for them. Thank you, the Sloppy Joes in elementary school and the  pizza burgers in high school.
 
Thank You
Bob
 

Here's a couple of discussions in the past you might enjoy:
http://www.roadfood.com/Forums/tm.aspx?m=263707
http://www.roadfood.com/Forums/tm.aspx?m=42857

Welcome aboard Bob. I wish I could direct you to a specific thread. We've had a few here. My interest is 50's-70's institutional cooking . While I haven't found any books on the subject in print, you might want to look for a book that was published by Schoolastic Book Services that sold books to kids in school when we were kids. You probably remember them. They had a book ca. '72 that I remember was a collection of school cafeteria favorites from all over the States. I don't know if the recipes were similar all over, but the one in the book that I remember as Sloppy Joes in that book had Chicken Gumbo soup in the base. I do remember what was called SJ back then when I was in elementary school isn't anything like what's served now in a BBQ or spicy Manwhich type sauce. That may be the taste that your remember. You might also want to look into friends parents cookbook collections of church,schools,beauty parlor, institution's collabrative cookbooks where people submitted recipes for a yearly anthology to raise a few dollars. Many times you'll find many school or church cafeteria recipes submitted in those plastic looped bound cookbooks. Good luck.

Awesome information, trying to find these old school hot lunches has been a searching nightmare. I went to the elementary school and asked if they happen to have any information to some of those old recipes and I was told that that stuff is long gone, the lunches are all contracted out and nothing is the same as it was, Duh! boy did she have a sense of history lurking in her heart... Ok anyways I will start with some of these postings and go from there.
 
I even thought I would do a Youtube video asking or giving a request of sorts, still thinking about what I could come up with on this...
 
Have a nice weekend
 
Bob
 

Bob, here's something else you might want to check out...
http://www.hungrybrowser..../mpschoolcafeteria.htm

Here's the recipe for a cheeseburger from my High School, St. John's, in Wash DC, circa 1960-64.
Take 1, 2 oz, 50-50 meat to oatmeal blend burger patty, cook it on a flat top for 7 or more hours, add a slice of plastic cheese, before it can melt. have the guy with the biggest foot stomp on it, serve cold, mmmmm great grub!!

Here is one that was given to us by my aunt who worked in the LAUSD during the 50's-70's, for the rolls.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees  
Bake the rolls for about 12 minutes, or until golden brown.
 
3 cups warm water
1 tablespoon white sugar
2/3 cup white sugar
3 (.25 ounce) envelopes active dry yeast
1/4 cup milk
2 eggs
1 tablespoon salt
10 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup shortening
1/4 cup butter, melted
Method In a large bowl, mix together the warm water and 1 tablespoon sugar. Sprinkle the yeast over the top, and let it stand for about 10 minutes, until the yeast is foamy.
 
Mix the milk, eggs and salt into the yeast. Measure the flour into a separate bowl, add 2/3 cup sugar, and crumble the shortening into it using your fingers until it is barely noticeable. Gradually stir the flour into the wet ingredients. Mix using a wooden spoon until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and starts to form a ball around the spoon. Cover with a hot wet towel that has been wrung out, and set in a warm place to rise until double in bulk. This should take about 45 minutes.
When the dough has risen, pour the melted butter over it, and knead for about 2 minutes. Let the dough rest for a few minutes, then roll out on a lightly floured surface to 1 inch thick. Use a knife to cut into 2 inch squares. Roll squares into balls, and place into greased round pans, spacing about 1 inch apart. Let rise again until doubled in size. You could also refrigerate the dough, and let it rise overnight for baking the next day.
 
Note: The dough will be thick and so are the rolls. You may want to make them a tad smaler, however the taste is very delicious!
 
BUTTER CINNAMON ROLLS (I USED TO LOVE THESE! )

2 Cups Self Rising Flour
1/2 Cup Shortening -
1/2 Cup Milk -
1 stick (1/2 Cup) Butter, softened  (or margerine)
1/4 Cup Sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Milk Sauce:
2 Cups milk
2/3 Cups Sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
In large bowl, mix together flour and salt. Cut shortening in really well with a fork. Stir in milk. On a floured surface, dump out dough and press together with your hands to form a ball. Roll out into a rectangle (about 7×10 in size). Spread softened butter over dough and then sprinkle 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon over top. Roll it up like a jelly roll and press it together lightly. Cut into nine slices about one inch thick each. Place into a lightly greased 8×8 baking dish.

In medium sauce pot, combine all milk sauce ingredients. Heat over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture begins to bubble lightly. Pour over rolls in pan. Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes, or until rolls are lightly browned on top. Allow to sit for a few minutes once it is done for the rolls to soak up more sauce. After you put each roll on a plate, spoon more sauce over it.

here ya go
 
http://www.hungrybrowser..../mpschoolcafeteria.htm
 
& here;
 
http://www.hungrybrowser....aedrus/mostpopular.htm

If you could find a couple of retired ladies who worked in school cafeterias you would hit the jackpot. Suggest checking with school cafeteria people. They may know how to reach some of them.

I ran a school cafeteria during the 90s and was very impressed with the goverrnment recipes. Unfortunately, I left the recipes when I left.

The Motherload:
http://www.nfsmi.org/Temp...lEPTEwMiZpc01ncj10cnVl
 

The most memorable lunch I had in HS circa 1973 involved what was described as "pizza", right along with a vegetable side of canned turnip greens.  Alas, that was the last HS meal I had the pleasure to partake in.  After that it was a Hardee's Big Twin and fries; prepared to order right next door to the school.  And for those who remember; the Hardee's chain was indeed quite good back then...

I attended Tara Elementary School in Jonesboro, Georgia (Clayton County Public Schools) between 1989 and 1994. A recipe that I so desperately need is their square pizza recipe. I remember going to school so excited on days that I knew we were going to have pizza. I remember that it always a rectangle shape and it was always delicious. Please I need someone's help in locating the recipe and/or the company that the school system gets them from. I willing to pay for the recipe. Also, I will never forget the days that I would show up extra early for school because during breakfast they would sometimes serve what they called a breakfast pizza. I remember that it was always a smaller rectangular shape. It had sausage and cheese on top. In place of the pizza sauce, it tasted like they used some delicious gravy sauce instead. I would always go back through the line for seconds. I am desperate for this recipe as well.
...I am very tempted to go back to my old elementary school and see if I can speak with the Cafeteria Manager in regards to getting these recipes...lol.....
 

sconiers check out Sam's Club - ours has boxes of those rectangular pizzas that taste identical to rectangular pizza I had in school in the 80's (I hated them but bought some when we had children visit and they commented that they were "school pizza!").  Re the recipe, I don't know.

Don't forget school lunches from the 1950's & those ladies in their white uniforms,hair nets & a colorful hankie tucked in their chest pocket.  I always loved the spagetti, beef stew, beef & noodles.  All of the baked goods were from scratch-cakes, cookies & don't forget the yeast rolls.  At Thanksgiving & Christmas those ladies roasted whole turkeys, cooked homemade bread dressing, from scratch mashed potatoes.
In high school clearing the tables was a highly sought job by all the boys, especialy the football team.  The guys got to stay late & eat as much as they wanted for free!!!  

Turkey Tetrazini was my favorite lunch meal in the elementary school cafeteria.
 
In high school the mashed potatoes and gravy for a nickel  was my meal of choice after I discovered it.  I probably already mentioned it on this thread or somewhere.
 
 

Turkey tetrazini is one of my all time favorite comfort foods.

Hi there! Maybe I can help you. I've worked in a high school kitchen for the past 5 years. Our pizza was rectangle shape and we served either just cheese, or pepperoni. They were 'Tony's' brand and we got them from 'Gordon's Food Service' (GFS). I'm in Ohio and 'Gordon's' (GFS) is similar to Sysco, etc. except the pubic Can go shopping at their locations. I hope this is what you are craving.

Hi there! I've answered your pizza question in post#18 and I wanted to also tell you that those breakfast pizzas. Well, they are from 'Tony's' too! You can get those at 'Gordon Food Service' (GFS) as well!! You can get them with a pizza type sauce too and I like those better than the regular lunch pizzas. The red sauce is spiced differently on the breakfast pizzas. The red sauce breakfast pizzas don't have any egg on them, just sausage and cheese. The ones you describe have the egg, sausage and cheese on them. I hope this fills your craving!

Try this forum. They have links to books you can download for free from the 30's and 40's, plus one from 62. Interesting reads. The one from 62 tells you how to start up a kitchen, and is very long. I think the recipes START at page 340 or something.
 
http://forums.cooking.com/showthread.php?t=10802

I think the recipes that most people on the this forum are looking for, are the recipes the public schools stopped serving about 25 years ago. I'm 51 and I totally remember the delicious lunchs serviced by the public schools in Yakima, Wa. Since budget cuts many years ago, all those delicious nutritous meals went right out the window and were replaced by some sort of high fat low nutrition  fast food. Some of the lunches I remember to be the best was the spaghetti with the melted cheese on top served with an ice cream scooper, the turkey gravey on mashed potatoes around Thanksgiving, the square slices of pizza that were about 3/4 inch thick, the cheese zombies and tomatoe soup and the baked chicken that was coated with something like shake and bake and it was usually served with a scoop of rice and gravy, and last but not least the chocolate cake that was to die for. I would really like to know if the Yakima school district has those old recipes laying around in a book and if so, I would gladly purchase it. 

gostillerz

Try this forum. They have links to books you can download for free from the 30's and 40's, plus one from 62. Interesting reads. The one from 62 tells you how to start up a kitchen, and is very long. I think the recipes START at page 340 or something.
http://forums.cooking.com/showthread.php?t=10802

THIS IS A WONDERFUL LINK!!
It lead to this link:
 http://www.archive.org/details/schoollunch00cronrich

I found a bunch of old recipes for stuff they served in my school back in the day!
I created a pdf of the whole book!
All the recipes are for 50 servings so you need to play with the units of measure and the quantities.
I made copies of several sandwich recipes. Do you remember these??????
Cream Cheese Celery and Deviled Ham Sandwich Spread
50 Servings
1/2 c. milk
2 c. celery, chopped
6 lb. cream cheese
1 c. deviled ham spread
Add milk to cream cheese to soften to spreading consistency.
Add celery and ham, and mix well.
Spread on bread.
 
Frankfurter Pickle Sandwich Filling
50 Servings
35 frankfurters, cooked
1/2 c. lemon juice
1 pt. pickle relish
1/2 c. mustard
21/2 c. mayonnaise
Grind cold frankfurters.
Add pickle relish, lemon juice, mustard and mayonnaise.
Mix thoroughly.
Can't wait to make them!!
AND the All-Time #1 Favorite:
Beef Macaroni Casserole
50 Servings
5 lbs. beef, ground
1/2 TBSP. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 c. onion, chopped
1 #10 can tomatoes
1/2 c. green pepper
3 lbs. macaroni
2 c. cheese, grated
Brown beef on top of stove, add seasonings.
Cook macaroni in rapidly boiling salted water eight to ten minutes.
Drain.
Sauté onion and green pepper in fat.
Mix macaroni, hamburger, tomato and onion; spread in baking pans.
Sprinkle with grated cheese.
Bake at 350° F. for forty minutes.

I went home for lunch!!!

Otherwise I would have prayed that the nuns were still allowed to beat kids with rulers and erasers...in the 70s.

Lock me in the closet during lunch...Sr. Helen!! Please!

CCinNJ

I went home for lunch!!!
Otherwise I would have prayed that the nuns were still allowed to beat kids with rulers and erasers...in the 70s.
Lock me in the closet during lunch...Sr. Helen!! Please!

Correction:
They beat you with rulers.
They THREW Erasers at you!
Sister Mary Elizabeth could have pitched for the Yankees!
Deadly accurate from her desk to the last row!

chefbuba

Poor Child, You don't know what deliciousness you missed!

We had no cafeteria in our school.  You either brought your lunch (I did) or went home.
I dunno, but that food doesn't sound so great to me.  My sandwiches on homemade bread (meatloaf, hamloaf, roast beef, roast pork, chicken) were delicious!  Throw in a couple of homemade cookies and you were ready for another afternoon of classes.

Foodbme

Correction:
They beat you with rulers.
They THREW Erasers at you!
Sister Mary Elizabeth could have pitched for the Yankees!
Deadly accurate from her desk to the last row!

 
I think they must have trained those nuns in eraser accuracy. They rarely missed.

Our nuns had happy hour. That was no help to us.

Maybe it was the fun memories of childhood...and that food was just part of the picture in your mind.

If a restaurant "School Lunch" opened what is on the menu?

The milk and orange drink warming in the hall. Check!

Frozen crinkle cut french fries. Heat oil to 175 degrees. Put them in. Ok good take them out. They need to be pale and soggy.

PIZZA!  (ca. 1962 - 65, Wilmington Area HS, New Wilminton, PA:  "Go Greyhounds"!)
 
Take a slice of Woner Bread, cover with tomato sauce, sprinkle with dried basil, dried oregano, and dried parmesian.  Bake and serve.
 
Actually it came in frozen from Augustine's, but that was their basic recipe. 
 
For those of us for whom pizza was a novelty (New Wilminton was then and still is 100% WASP:  90% Presbyterian, 10% Methodist) it was a treat. 
 
Curiously, they are still in business:  http://www.augustinespizza.com/ .