Plenty of weird recipes have become trends recently, thanks in part to social media sites like TikTok. Think Ranch pickles, and baked feta pasta.
But one TikTok creator is tapping the way-back machine and sticking to tried-and-true — though, not necessarily good — recipes dating back as far as the American Civil War.
B. Dylan Hollis is silly and adorable as he walks us through downright disasters like “magic mayo” from 1951 (it includes sweetened condensed milk) and delicacies that only seem like disasters on the written page (hello, chocolate sauerkraut cake from 1948).
We reached out to Hollis via his Instagram account, but didn’t hear back from him at the time of this writing. If we had, we’d have asked him the pressing questions, like what got him interested in testing weird-sounding recipes in the first place (is he just a masochist?) and where he’s from (is it Bermuda? Wyoming? Somewhere else?). We have questions, B. Dylan Hollis! Answer us!
Alas, we’ll just have to remain in the dark for now and enjoy his kitchen mayhem without that knowledge.
Here are some of our favorite clips. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do.
Ham & Bananas Hollondaise, 1973
“It’s uncomfortably appetizing.”
Fake Apple Pie, 1936
“Whoa! It tastes like apples!”
Tuna Salad Jello, 1969
“That’s not food. This is a war crime.”
Civil War Cake, 1865
“Of course it uses lard. Why not?”
Magic Mayo, 1951
“It tastes like sunscreen.”
Fried Crackers, 1931
“Seriously, give this a try. You don’t have to use lard.”
Chocolate sauerkraut cake, 1948
“Either chocolate fixes everything or this is alchemy.”
