When I was young and just starting to learn how to cook, I always gravitated to cookbooks based on children’s books that I enjoyed. The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook, the American Girl cookbooks, The Secret Garden Cookbook and the Nancy Drew Cookbook were some of the first I ever read. However, an attempt to recreate… Continue reading Cookbook Reviews
Bess’s Secret Chocolate Waffles
About the Name: This is named after Bess Marvin, one of Nancy Drew’s best friends. Blonde, blue eyed Bess is the feminine one. She pays more attention to fashion and flirting than her friends. Bess is typically the most timid of the trio, hesitating to join her friends in adventure, but she never turns her… Continue reading Bess’s Secret Chocolate Waffles
Hidden Staircase Biscuits
About the Name: This is named for the second Nancy Drew book, The Hidden Staircase. As one of the earliest books, it is one of the most racist. I’ve heard that the villain of the book is Jewish. It never says it in the text and I am unfamiliar with whatever stereotypes people used to draw… Continue reading Hidden Staircase Biscuits
Bungalow Mystery Salad
About the Name: This is named for the third Nancy Drew book, The Bungalow Mystery. There are two versions of the book. they are largely similar, the rewritten versions cuts out more of the “Nancy having fun at camp” plot and adds more things for Nancy to do at home, such as planning a wedding and… Continue reading Bungalow Mystery Salad
Hannah’s Souffle
About the Name: This is named for Hannah Gruen, I haven’t learned anything else about her since the last recipe named after her. The only thing I can think of to mention is that she is often stylized as “Mrs. Gruen” But there is no mention of a Mr. Gruen. This might actually be a… Continue reading Hannah’s Souffle
Burt’s Pizza
About the Name: This is named for Burt Eddleton. In the earlier books, Ned would often bring friends with him when visiting River Heights so that Bess and George would have dates. This is the boyfriend that stuck for George Fayne. He made his debut in the 21st book, Clue in the Jewel Box, as… Continue reading Burt’s Pizza
Muskoka Salmon Salad
About the Name: This is named after the river that runs through River Heights, the Muskoka River. It is mentioned in several books and appears to be a rather large river. In one book Nancy takes a ferry to cross the river, in other books bridges are mentioned. In some books, Nancy takes sailboats or… Continue reading Muskoka Salmon Salad
Keene Soup
About the Name: This is named after the author of the Nancy Drew books, Carolyn Keene. Many people have written the Nancy Drew books, but all have done so under the name of Carolyn Keene. *Edit: I forgot to mention when I first posted this that this recipe only appears in the old version of… Continue reading Keene Soup
