Calorie counts in classic recipes creeping up
Calorie counts in classic recipes have apparently been rising in recent years, according to recent research.
US researchers Brian Wansink and Collin Payne, writing in the Annals of Internal Medicine, have found that both calorie content and portion size have risen between 1936 and 2006.
Wansink and Payne reviewed seven editions of The Joy of Cooking, looking for recipes published in each edition (printed in 1936, 1946, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1997, and 2006).
Only 18 recipes qualified: chicken gumbo, corn chowder, plain omelet, Spanish rice, chicken a la king, goulash, biscuits, blueberry muffins, cornbread, brownies, sugar cookies, rice pudding, tapioca pudding, baked macaroni, waffles, apple pie, chocolate cake, and chili con carne.
Average calories per serving increased for 17 of those 18 recipes since the 1936 edition. That's due to a shift to larger serving sizes and higher-calorie ingredients in those recipes.
The authors suggest that, in view of the rising tide of obesity, it is time to go back to the 1936 versions of these recipes.
