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I am very excited to announce a temporary change in programming here at Mid-Century Menu! Over the next couple of weeks, Emily Marshall, the food stylist from the new ABC series “The Astronaut Wives Club” is going to be partnering with me on a series of posts to share some behind-the-scenes photos of the mid-century food she re-created every week for the filming of the show! Emily had a blast doing the mid-century themed food styling, with a little help from some vintage cookbooks and Mid-Century Menu, so she decided to get in touch with me to share some of the great dishes she whipped up, and to answer some questions for all of you!

pink and green food

According to Emily, she has always had a fascination with vintage cookbooks.  A few years ago she picked up a Joys of Jell-O book at a garage sale for a quarter, and ended up reading it from cover to cover. After that, she picked up vintage cookbooks here and there and ultimately ended up making collages and altered art out of the amazing pictures. But she always felt guilty cutting them up, more than any other ephemera.

shrimp tree

She is trained as a visual artist and loved making props, so when the prop master from “The Astronaut Wives Club” asked her if she would be interested in trying to re-create some mid-century food for the show, she was thrilled and excited. And the rest is Technicolor mid-century food history.

christmas overview

Food, especially pot luck food, plays an enormous roll in the show. The club from the title was actually a support-group club, where the wives of the astronauts would all gather together to have a potluck meal during the space launches. These “Launch Parties” get a lot of screen time in the show, and so does Emily’s food!

molded potato salad

In the upcoming weeks, we are going to take a closer look at many of the dishes Emily made, hear about how she re-created them for filming under hot lights, and share with you the actual vintage recipes they are based off of! In the meantime, be sure to catch “The Astronaut Wives Club” Thursday at 8:00 pm on ABC to see all of Emily’s hard work!

tuna loaf

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