I am still going through these old editions of the Microwave Know How recipe collection published by Cavendish Marshall in the mid 1980s. It’s a collection I’ve carried with me for over 30 years, even though I’ve donated most recipe books to charity shops.
Recipe books are good, but the Microwave Know How series explained and taught all about microwave cooking, which is how I came to be so confident with tossing things into the microwave and producing most of my meals over the years!
This third edition of Microwave Know How provided pages for: Braising Beef, Perfect Vegetables, Romantic Dinner for Two, Apple Appeal, Custard Creams, Storecupboard Specials, Pizzas from the Freezer.
- Braising Beef was in the Meat & Poultry section and looks at cooking topside and silverside joints of beef in a microwave. Recipes include Pot Roast with Courgettes, Fruity Pot Roast, Swedish Pot Roast, Barbecued Beef and Braised Topside.
- Perfect Vegetables is in the Microwave basics section and covers how to microwave grated carrots, peas, tomatoes and spinach. It also shows how you can dress up vegetables and there’s a handy “10 Golden Rules” page for microwaving vegetables covering carrots, onions, asparagus, potatoes, sweetcorn, stuffed tomatoes, mixed vegetables and the techniques to use to cook these in the best way.
- Romantic Dinner for Two is under Easy Entertaining
- Apple Appeal is in Vegetables & Fruit, with recipes for Stewed Apples, Apple Crisp, Cinnamon Apple Pie, Wholewheat Pie Case, Apple Stuffing and how to microwave Baked Apples.
- Custard Creams is in Desserts & Baking and covers how to make smooth creams or custards in a microwave, as well as elegant party desserts. Recipes include Vanilla Custard Cream, Brandy Alexander, Creme au Chocolat and a range of Flavoured Creams including Chocolate, banana, coffee walnut, butterscotch, eggnog and strawberry.
- Storecupboard Specials and Pizzas from the Freezer are both in the Speedy Snacks section. Storecupboard Specials shows how you can bring together ingredients you’ve already got into a fast meal. Recipes include Tuna Crisp Casserole, Layered Turkey Bake and Spicy Bean Stew. Pizzas from the Freezer shows how you can take a pizza from freezer to table in 10 minutes, with tips on how to microwave a frozen pizza and a lookup chart for microwave times for frozen pizzas.
This information is about a series of recipes published by Cavendish Marshall that I’ve owned for over 30 years. To read more about what’s in the set, see: Microwave Know How Vintage Recipes. The whole collection spanned 92 parts, of which I’ve got 42 at present.