amylsacks' photos

"There is ample proof that American housewives have known the lure and charm of Baker's Chocolate for generations. I have a worn little diary which belonged to my husband's great-great-grandmother. On one page she has written, '27 March 1798. Prepared sweet pastries this day, using the precious Baker's Chocolate purchased for me in Boston town. Rufus and Abigail gave generous expression to their pleasure...'" Yeah, thanks, Mrs. Ken Burns. Glad your day went well. :P

Other frosting types: Chocolate Butter, Mocha Creole, Bittersweet Chocolate, Chocolate Wonder, Hungarian (?), and... Clever Judy Frosting...? Your guess is as good as mine. o_0

"Chocolate Velvet Cream" aka Poop Emoji Stonehenge. o_0 Originally posted to flickr on February 3rd, 2011.

"Little cakes and cookies are for those individual moments, when guests drop in on us. And what a charming variety of guests we do have on these occasions! Small, grimy persons trudging home to us from school, friends coming in for tea, a group of young things foraging in the kitchen. And those crisp, crunchy chocolate cookies or those plump, little chocolate cakes just fill the bill. And isn't it a relief to know in the back of your busy mind that there is a generous supply of them on hand and that many, many more can be made with the least possible effort?" I wouldn't call my own kids "small, grimy persons," but that's just me.

Sometimes Mrs. Barton places a recipe right beneath its corresponding photo. Sometimes she doesn't. Frankly, I think she just likes messing with us.

19 ingredients in the fruitcake recipe (not shown). But none of them are booze. The angels play a mournful lament before hopping into that hole. Hoping to emerge in another dimension where they let a working stiff have some real holiday cheer at Xmas, if you get my drift. Originally posted to flickr on February 3rd, 2011.

Seems like the wrong name for a cake where the layers aren't, in fact, the chocolate part. But okay, Mrs. Barton. Have it your way. [shrug]

Three other evil permutations on the opposite page: Red Devil's, Prize Devil's, and Sour Cream Devil's. "Runnin' With The Devil" had a very different meaning in the first half of the 20th Century.

From the 5-page essay up front: "My share in the preparation of this master book of Baker's Famous Chocolate Recipes has been an interesting and delightful task. For through all of my years of varied experience in cookery-- as a student, as a teacher, and as a busy mother-- working with chocolate has pleased me most. And of course it is Baker's Chocolate that I have always used. For there is something so irresistible about each richly gleaming bar of pure, fragrant Baker's chocolate, that the very sight of it tempts me to put on my apron and make something new and delicious!" --Frances Lee Barton

All those marchers and dancers in The Nutcracker Suite were amateurs, I tell you! Amateurs!! Gaze at the left side of the image long enough, and the desserts appear to be floating an inch or so above the tabletop. I'd give anything to know if the photographer did that on purpose. Front and back covers from a 66-page booklet published by General Foods Corporation, New York. Originally posted to flickr on February 3rd, 2011.

I'll need to buy a piano one of these days to justify the expense of all this sheet music.

Later, he'd go to work for Ty-D-Bowl to please his AA sponsor.

It's amazing how back then you could display your Sack O'Sauce™ just... hanging out like that. o_0 From the March issue of American Home magazine.

On the back: "This space for correspondence. Published by Edw. H. Mitchell. San Francisco." For more about this historic landmark (near the Oregon border) and other postcards with alternate views of the same region, click here .

Oh, yeah! I just love a smidge of ground beef with my giant glass of "catsup." Don't you? From the March issue of Western Family magazine.

I kept you all waiting over a month for... chemical foam. :o I'm a terrible host, I know... From the May issue of Better Homes & Gardens .

Notes from a November 13th, 1985 Christie's catalog: "Signed, inscribed with title and dated 1955-- gouache on paper "10 1/2 X 13 3/8 in. (26.5 X 34 cm.) Provenance: Galerie des 4 Mouvements, Paris $3,000 - 5,000

Notes from a November 13th 1985 Christie's catalog: "Signed, inscribed with title and dated 1954- gouache over pencil on paper "9 1/2 x 12 1/2 in. (24 x 32 cm.) "Provenance: Galerie des 4 Mouvements, Paris $3,000 - 5,000