Bena Mae’s Kitchen: Reader’s Digest will soon bite the dust

 Once the most widely read magazine in the world, Reader’s Digest as it is known in the U.S., will soon be gone. Many American bathrooms will suffer this literary loss. Last August, the company took its U.S. operations into Chapter 11 to decrease its debt. It resurfaced temporarily, but its fate was sealed when sales fell off drastically.

It would have been unthinkable just a few years ago that a magazine as old and famous as Reader’s Digest would be shut down, though it still may live on outside the U.S. The publishing industry says that such widely distributed magazines like Reader’s Digest, House and Garden, and Newsweek have no future in their current form. Old images of Americana are slipping through our fingers like water through a sieve. Every day we see old favorites that we always took for granted disappearing. Poof. A way of life gone forever.

No more “Life in These United States,” no more “Humor in Uniform,”  no more “Only in America,” or heartwarming stories that inspired us and bore repeating over and over again. Remember the Reader’s Digest condensed books that made reading so affordable and less time-consuming? Every home library consisted of volumes of them. You could read “Gone With the Wind” in an hour. Well, not really, but almost. Many readers’ owe their love of literature to these condensed novels. Sadly, the books have become yard sale items, a reminder of another time, another era.

I will not swear to the origin of the following joke, but it is one of my favorites and I can only assume it came from Reader’s Digest.  At any rate, it deserves a laugh:

Joe and Dave are hunting when Dave keels over. Frantic, Joe dials 911 on his cell phone and blurts, “My friend just dropped dead! What should I do?” 

A soothing voice at the other end says, “Don’t worry, I can help. First, let’s make sure he’s really dead.” 

After a brief silence, the operator hears a shot. Then Joe comes back to the phone. “Okay,” he says nervously to the operator. “What do I do next?” 

I decry the ending of this once American icon. And I avoid the gossip magazines that bombard the customers in the check-out lanes of the stores. I do read the headlines on their covers, however. “Man in India Marries His Dog.” Hmm…wonder what that is all about.

The cabbage releases water as it sits; I recommend making the coleslaw the day before you plan to serve it. Great if you’re cooking for a gang.

Overnight Cole Slaw with Mustard Seed

Serves 22

1 head green cabbage, cored and sliced thin

2 carrots, peeled and grated

1 medium white onion, diced

For the Dressing:

1 cup white wine vinegar

3/4 cup canola oil

1/2 cup honey

1 tablespoon lemon juice

2 tablespoons mustard seeds

1 tablespoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

In a large, nonreactive mixing bowl, combine the cabbage, carrots and onion.

Dressing:

In a nonreactive saucepan over medium heat, mix the vinegar, oil, honey, lemon juice, mustard seeds, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil, stirring often. Take the dressing off the heat; immediately pour it over the vegetables. Toss well, cover, and refrigerate for at least 6 hours (overnight is best) before serving.