Tasting History with Max Miller
Published Apr 9, 2024

Back before airlines could compete with lower prices, they competed with the quality of atmosphere, service, and, of course, food.

I’d be happy to have this pot roast on the ground, let alone on an airplane. The meat is so tender that it falls apart, the vegetables and herbs give it wonderful flavor, and you get the added bonus of it making your house smell awesome as it simmers.

Beef Pot Roast by Chef Emil Salzmann

Ingredients:
2.5 lbs (1 kg) beef chuck or round
Flour, for dredging the beef
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons (28 g) butter or other fat
1 lb (1/2 kg) veal or beef bones
2 medium onions, quartered
1 cup (140 g) diced carrots
1/2 cup (70 g) diced celery
1 sprig parsley
2 bay leaves
6 whole cloves
10 whole peppercorns
2 cups (475 ml) beef stock
2 teaspoons (9 g) minced garlic
6 oz (170 g) tomato paste
1 cup (235 ml) dry red wine

Instructions:

1. Season the beef on all sides with plenty of salt and pepper. Put some flour in a large bowl or plate and turn the seasoned beef over in it until it’s coated on all sides with flour.
2. Melt the butter in a large pot over medium high heat. Add meat and bones. Let them cook on one side for several minutes until it gets a nice sear, then flip them over and let them cook on the other side.
3. Once the meat is browned all over, add the onions, carrots, celery, parsley, whole cloves, bay leaves, and peppercorns. Reduce heat to medium and cook for 15 minutes.
4. After 15 minutes, add the stock, garlic, tomato paste, and wine. Stir it all together and bring it to a simmer. Put the lid on and cook at a simmer, reducing the heat if necessary, for about 2 hours until the meat is falling apart.
5. When the pot roast is cooked, take the meat out of the pot. Simmer the remaining liquid until it’s reduced by half. Strain the liquid, saving the onions and other vegetables to serve with the roast.
6. Serve the roast, vegetables, and sauce forth with Delmonico Potatoes and Heavenly Delight Salad for a full meal from the Golden Age of air travel.

Cheesy, rich Delmonico Potatoes

City/Region: United States of America

Time Period: 1954

It’s hard to go wrong with potatoes, cream, and cheese. Dishes like this would have been standard fare during the Golden Age of airline travel, when airlines went to great lengths to draw customers in with excellent food.

After tasting, I think the texture would be better and the cream mixture would be distributed better if the potatoes were chopped smaller. The recipe below calls for smaller sized pieces of potato than I show in the video. This would also make excellent mashed potatoes.

Ingredients:
8 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped in about 1/4″ (5 mm) pieces
1/2 cup (96 g) chopped pimentos
2 cups (475 ml) half and half
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper
Plenty of grated parmesan cheese to cover the potatoes

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
2. In a large bowl, toss the potatoes and pimentos together. Put the mixture into a baking dish.
3. Mix together the half and half, salt, and pepper in a saucepan. Heat it just until it simmers, then pour it over the potatoes. You want the half and half to cover most of the potatoes. Bake for 1 1/2 hours, or until the potatoes are cooked through.
4. Take the potatoes out of the oven and turn the heat up to 400°F (205°C). Sprinkle a generous amount of the parmesan over the dish (the amount is up to you, use as much or as little as you want. I made sure to cover the entire dish with it). Return the dish to the oven for 5 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and lightly browned.
5. Serve it forth with Pot Roast and Heavenly Delight Salad for a full meal from the Golden Age of air travel.

Creamy, ambrosia-like Heavenly Delight Salad with Pot Roast and Delmonico Potatoes

City/Region: United States of America
Time Period: 1954

This fruit salad has a very retro feel typical of food from the 50s and 60s, the Golden Age of air travel. It would have been served as part of one of the elaborate meals that were standard fare at the time.

Heavenly Delight Salad is very much a dessert, though it’s not as sweet as I thought it would be. The tart apples and lemon juice balance the honey and maraschino cherries well, and this kind of reminds me of ambrosia.

Ingredients:
4 tart apples, peeled and chopped in 1/2″ (12 mm) pieces
32 mini marshmallows
8 maraschino cherries, cut into quarters
1 cup (235 ml) heavy cream
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoons mayonnaise
1 1/2 teaspoons honey
Lettuce leaves for serving, optional
Whole maraschino cherries for garnish, optional

Instructions:

1. Toss the apples, marshmallows, and cherries together.
2. Whip the cream to stiff peaks. Fold in the lemon juice, mayonnaise, and honey.
3. Add the whipped cream to the apple mixture and stir it together. Dish it into a cup made of lettuce leaves if you want to try to play up its salad-ness, and garnish with a maraschino cherry if desired.
4. Serve it forth with Pot Roast and Delmonico Potatoes for a full meal from the Golden Age of air travel.