Recipes for Thanksgiving
Marshmallow Delight: A No-Bake Date Loaf from 1951
In November 1951, the Norfolk Daily News ran a Thanksgiving Recipe Contest in its "Kitchen Nuggets" column, edited by Blanche Pease. Readers mailed in their holiday favorites, and one of them came from a new mother who admitted she'd been meaning to send something for ages. She said she clipped every recipe in the column, hoping to try them someday, but a new baby kept her too busy to cook much. So she sent the two she knew by heart. This was one of them.
Marshmallow Delight is the kind of dessert that shows up in a lot of mid-century church cookbooks. Graham cracker crumbs, marshmallows, dates, and nuts get stirred together with thick cream, shaped into a loaf, and left overnight to firm up. There's no oven involved. You slice it the next day and serve it with whipped cream. It's sweet, chewy, and very much of its time, which is exactly why it's fun.
Makes 1 large loaf, about 12 to 16 slices. Takes about 20 minutes, plus an overnight chill.
Source: "Kitchen Nuggets," edited by Blanche Pease, Norfolk Daily News, Monday, November 19, 1951, page 4.
Ingredients
As printed in 1951
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1 pound graham crackers, rolled fine
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1 pound marshmallows, cut up
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1 pound dates, chopped
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1 cup chopped nuts
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1 cup thick sweet cream
What to use today
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1 pound graham crackers, crushed into fine crumbs
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1 pound regular or mini marshmallows (cut regular ones into quarters)
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1 pound pitted dates, chopped
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1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
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1 cup heavy cream
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Whipped cream, for serving
Method
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Crush the graham crackers into fine crumbs. A food processor is fastest, or put them in a zip-top bag and roll with a rolling pin.
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Set aside ½ cup of the crumbs for coating the loaf.
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In a large bowl, mix the rest of the crumbs with the marshmallows, dates, and nuts.
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Pour in the cream and mix thoroughly with your hands or a sturdy spoon until everything holds together.
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Shape the mixture into a firm loaf on a sheet of wax paper or plastic wrap.
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Roll the loaf in the reserved crumbs until it's coated all over.
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Wrap it and refrigerate overnight.
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Slice and serve with whipped cream.
A few things worth knowing
Keep it in the fridge. The 1951 recipe says to "let stand overnight," which in a lot of kitchens back then meant a cool pantry or an icebox. Because this has a full cup of cream in it, chill it in the refrigerator and keep leftovers there too.
"Thick sweet cream" means heavy cream. Old recipes used "sweet cream" to mean fresh cream, not sour cream or buttermilk. Heavy cream or whipping cream is the closest match today.
Cut marshmallows with oiled scissors. If you're using regular marshmallows, a little oil on the blades keeps them from sticking.
Use soft dates. Medjool or Deglet Noor dates both work. If they're dry, soak them in hot water for 10 minutes and pat them dry before chopping.
Slice it cold. A sharp knife dipped in hot water gives you clean slices.
It's sweet. A full pound each of marshmallows and dates makes a very rich dessert. Cut thin slices, and let the whipped cream (unsweetened, if you like) balance it out.
Good with
Hot coffee after Thanksgiving dinner. It's also handy when the oven is full of turkey, since you make it the night before and it needs no baking at all.
