This past weekend I went somewhere I hadn’t been in a few years and hunted through 72,000 square feet of antiques, collectibles, and weird-ass junk looking for cool geeky treasures. The Exit 76 Antique Mall is about 30 miles south of Indianapolis and is crazy-huge. About 80-90% of the booths there are filled with the type of antiques I have no interest in, but in a place that size there’s about something for every taste.
I was on the lookout for toys, kids’ books, trading cards, and anything TMNT or Muppet related. I did better than I thought I would, and one of the cool things I found was this Muppet Picnic Cookbook published by Hallmark in 1981. Lately I’ve been on the lookout for lots of 80s/90s Muppet related books, and I had just read about this one on the Muppet Wiki, so I was pretty excited when I saw it hanging out with vintage sewing patterns and Good Housekeeping issues.
It’s more of a pamphlet than a book, but it’s still a cool piece of Muppet history. Everyone loves picnics (right?) and who wouldn’t want to go on a picnic with The Muppets? I’m sure if I had been alive and old enough to read pamphlets in 1981 I would have bought this and forced my family to have a picnic, Muppet-style.
Does Kermit have other nephews besides Robin? Are these just random frogs? Where can I buy the recipe book Kermit is reading from? I NEED ANSWERS.
Seriously though, I love the fake labels they made for the products shown throughout the book. Animal’s Crude Oil is a nice touch.
I love how the book makes it clear that Piggy did not supply her own recipe, just one from a caterer. And they even put a tag on the fruit try that says The Muppets Pinic. Attention: Miss Piggy.
Just like Fozzie’s jokes, his recipes are all corny. Quick Corn Relish, Fozzie’s Barbecued Corn on the Cob, Corn Pudding, and Onion Corn on the Cob.
“I can’t understand it. They baked Alaska. Why didn’t this work?” Gonzo’s recipe fails but we still get a Muppet Labs Vanilla Ice Cream recipe. Score!
Ah, the Swedish Chef, I knew he’d be in here somewhere. Even better, they phonetically spelled out the directions for his recipes.
I expected Sam the Eagle to get a recipe in this book before Animal, something like American Apple Pie or Moral Mashed Potatoes, but Animal’s Zesty Baked Beans will do just fine. Besides, where else are we going to get a cool picture of Animal stirring a huge pot of beans?
Also, I would pay a stupid amount of money for that Sweetum’s Honey jar.
“Yar is der enden ov der cooken.” This booklet is super cute and I’m totally going to make some of these recipes with my future kids some day. Unless they aren’t Muppet fans, in which case they’ll be promptly put up for adoption.
They even brought along Beauregard to clean up.
Well, that’s the Muppet Picnic Cookbook. Bon appetit!
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Amber
