Menu planning

On paper you would think I am an organized person.  I'm always on time and often early, I think ahead about most things, and I rarely find myself in situations when I feel unprepared or like I've left something at home.  But as it turns out, I can be pretty scatterbrained too.  I often panic when I realize in the middle of the day that I have to make dinner that night and all we have is yogurt, ketchup, and baking soda in the fridge.  I wish I could be one of those people who sits down on Sunday night and makes a meal plan for the week.  At some point I will accept that I never will be.  In fact, I really don't know anyone who has the time to do that anymore.

But, many many years ago, lots of people did.  My grandmother was one of them.  One of the most exciting finds in her cookbook that included such delights as "Shrimp a la Harriet Ross" (her neighbor) and a recipe that called for "39 cent caviar" was a list of menus for the week.  She told me she wasn't sure whether she actually cooked everything on these lists, or whether it was just that my grandfather requested them, but she did make meals just like these, every night.  There was always an appetizer, (and sometimes soup too), a main, two sides and a dessert.  Imagine four courses of food, every night, in your own home.

This menu was for the week of "Feb. 17, 1947" and is written in my grandfather's handwriting.  If you can't read from the photos, I have typed out what he wanted below:

Menu
Week of Feb 17, 1947
Monday:
Grapefruit supreme
Soup du jour (vegetable)
2 double boned lambchops
Brussel (sic) sprouts
Mashed potato
Lettuce and tomato salad (Russian dressing)
Chocolate eclair
Beverage

Tuesday, Feb 18, 1947
Tomato juice cocktail
Celery and olive appetizer
Broiled liver with onions
Peas
Baked potato
Danish pastry
Beverage

Wednesday, Feb 19, 1947
Fruit Salad
Broiled Sirloin Steak
FF Pot (french fried potatoes)
String beans
Pound cake
Beverage

I don't have time to post more now but will continue to post the great finds from this cookbook soon.  If only I had spent the last 10 minutes menu planning and not blogging maybe I could get 4 courses on the table tonight. . .