Old‑School American Food Favorites Resurface

A 1983 Montgomery Advertiser–winning baked chicken recipe from Debbie Roberts is highlighted alongside the healthy-eating regimen it represented—favoring chicken and fish, whole‑wheat flours, limited salt, salads and Southern vegetables—rooted in Roberts’ longtime role as family cook. Martha Stewart remains a touchstone for home cooks with simple, refined recipes such as her creamy cold potato soup, and she admits to old‑school guilty pleasures like liverwurst sandwiches and sneaking American cheese slices. Nutmeg, once a luxury spice and the subject of historic conflicts over its control, resurfaced as a midcentury home‑cooking staple and still evokes nostalgia for many who remember their grandmothers’ kitchens. On The Late Show, Barbra Streisand cited her favorite leftover sandwich—dark turkey with coleslaw and Russian dressing on rye—underscoring the enduring appeal of uncomplicated comfort food. Collectively, these pieces illustrate a throughline in American food culture: treasured, often old‑fashioned flavors and practical recipes passed down, revived, and celebrated by everyday cooks and public figures.