Editor’s note: It’s our birthday, and we’re leaning into the nostalgia. Flipping through bound archives of the Arkansas Times’ 50-year history yields pure gold.
Here’s our favorite least-favorite recipe we’ve unearthed so far, although there are plenty of contenders. This savory gelatin concoction shared a page with a chicken recipe that called for onion soup mix, apricot preserves and thousand island dressing.
The headline for this April 1982 piece by Mary Dee Terry, which ran in the sporadic Arkansas Gourmet department, was “It May Sound Terrible But it Tastes Sooo Good!” We’ll take her word for it.
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Occasionally somebody will recommend a recipe with a combination of ingredients so bizarre it takes an act of faith to put them into a single dish. Yet these are often among the most rewarding experiences in the kitchen, becoming family favorites.
In the course of writing this column, I’ve offered at least one such recipe, asking that you “trust me” when I recommended heavily coating a four-inch thick sirloin with sugar. No joke. I know for a fact that despite the high price of beefsteak, that is good advice. Of course, it must be combined with charcoal fire and an adjustable grill. And I know that the fella who first served such a succulent piece of steak to me is no spendthrift, given to tossing ten pounds of meat to the beagle, though he is obviously a bit adventuresome.
What other considerations come into play in the creation of a recipe requiring a disclaimer such as “It tastes much better than it sounds!”? That disclaimer is what Mrs. Eugene McCrory added to an offering for the “River Road Recipes” cookbook, prepared by the Junior League of Baton Rouge, more than 20 years ago. (Even the title of her recipe — Horseradish Souffle — is a little scary. However, dauntless food columnists know that it doesn’t pay to judge a recipe by its title; the proof is in the souffle, as it were, and Mrs. McCrory is absolutely right about it tasting better than it sounds.)
Everything about this recipe would indicate that the ingredients were chosen deliberately, and although it seems to be a unique combination, it turns out to be workable. Perhaps it was done as a bet … you know, “Bet you can’t make anything edible with both horseradish and whipping cream in it.”
If there’s a Horseradish Council, like the Poultry Federation or the Cling Peach Advisory Board, maybe there’s an annual contest with which I’m not familiar.
Horseradish Souffle
- 1 package lemon gelatin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 Tablespoon vinegar
- 1/2 pint whipping cream
- 1 bottle horseradish
Dissolve gelatin according to directions; add salt and vinegar. When partially set, whip cream and add along with horseradish. Pour into mold and allow to set. Unmold and garnish with parsley. This is very good served as a relish with almost any meat, or it can be served on lettuce as a salad.
