In addition to hand-written recipes on weathered index cards, I also found lots of newspaper and magazine clippings in my grandmother’s recipe box. I have to say they are highly amusing.
You had me at “vitamin cereal.”
Astrologers. Ripping people off since…forever.
I’m not confident of what a “wheat nut” is. I see wheat pictured, but it is in the nut section. A most intriguing mystery.
The cookiers out there will appreciate this one. If the 1960′s was the “electronic age,” what the heck are we in now?
I also found this intriguing recipe:
So, naturally, I had to try it out!
Ingredients
- 1½ cups light brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1⅓ cups sifted all-purpose flour
- ⅔ cup cut-up orange segments (about half of one large orange). I divided the orange into segments and cut each wedge into several pieces, leaving on the white skin.
- ⅔ cup chopped pecans
- 2½ tablespoons heavy cream
- ⅔ cup powdered sugar
- Zest of one orange
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9×13 pan.
- Beat together the eggs and brown sugar with a stand or hand mixer for approximately 2-3 minutes on medium. Mixture should become lighter in color.
- Slowly stir in the flour until incorporated. Fold in the orange pieces and pecans. Mixture will be quite thick.
- Press into greased 9×13 pan. Bake for about 30 minutes or until light golden brown and firm to the touch.
- While bars are baking, make the glaze by whisking together the cream, confectioner’s sugar, and zest. Spread on warm bars.
- Allow bars to cool before cutting.
Notes
From Betty Crocker – 1960′s is my best guess!
{ 12 comments… read them below or add one }
I’ve tried Wheat Nuts! I’m allergic to nuts, so they intrigued me. They’re squeaky! I remember liking them, but not enough to continue buying them. They still exist, so maybe I am missing out…
Fun post! I love finding old coupons or recipes.
Huh, interesting! Would you like an old and probably expired coupon for them?
I’m glad that someone knows what they are!
The clippings are too funny!!
And I’ve never heard of orange in cookies like that before, but I am intrigued.
I know, me too! That’s why I had to try it. I was nervous about leaving on the white skin of the oranges, but I just trusted the recipe. It is pretty yummy!
The old ads are my favorite part of old magazines…okay, the recipes rank pretty high too. But they tell you a lot about the era…astrologers! Ha!
Haha – it is so funny! But, I guess not all that different than the “text you and your boyfriend’s name to 347673 to see if you’re a match!” type schemes. I can’t believe people fall for those things:)
How were the orange caramel bars? Are they worth making again?
They are super orange-y, with not only the chunks of orange in the batter, but also lots of zest in the glaze, so if you love oranges, it is a great treat! Orange is not my husband’s favorite, but he still took two bars for his lunch today
I probably won’t make them again any time soon, but that is because I have too many new treats to create! 
I am really enjoying your posts about your grandmother’s recipes. I have some from my grandmother and I adore the random hand-written notes and clippings I found.
Thanks so much, Liz! Aren’t they so special? When I’m making one of her recipes, in her handwriting, it makes me feel like she is kind of there with me
This recipe is my 1961 Betty Crocker’s “New Picture Cook Book” which I purchased in 1962. The pages are crumbling, and the tabs are falling apart, but I still use it a lot!! I had to buy a new binder years ago. The heading states that it is Simply delicious, and was borrowed froom food artist Helen Corbitt of Neiman-Marcus in Dallas, who in turn had gotten the recipe from Miss Fanny andrews.
The recipe calls to spread batter in a greased jelly roll pan 15 1/2″ X 10″ X 1″
It is different and very special!
Hi Joy – thanks so much for the background on this recipe! It is fun to learn about its history