Pages of the Past

Danish Cooking: A Culinary Look Through Post-WWII Denmark

In the post-war era of WWII, the nation of Denmark underwent an cultural transformation with growing economic prosperity and an increasing importance of middle-class Danish housewives. Sussane Palsbo’s cookbook, Danish Cooking (1950), connects cuisine with class structure and the nuclear family and political ideologies. In particular, the cookbook represents the rise of social democracy, the role of the housewife as creating class structure and giving stability to a nation that had suffered under Nazi occupation and WWII.

Housewives and Family Dynamic: Global Perspective

The position of the middle-class housewife in Denmark has parallels with West German and American development during the 1950s. Dr. Maren Wichmann sees post-WWII West Germany and Denmark as the ‘golden year of the family’ with the housewife becoming the centerpiece of Danish families. At the same time, the United States experienced an unmatched growth in economic prosperity for the middle class. This posed a structural shift in family dynamics, the rise of housewives in America, but also a societal aspiration, where food served as a mark of status, sophistication. Denmark's embrace of a Western middle-class, nuclear family can be traced to regional/geographical history between Denmark and Germany, influenced by Nazi occupation and the Danish loss of autonomy followed by post-war recovery.

Palsbo’s Message to housewives in America and Denmark 

The common narrative that appears in Sussan Palsbo’s cookbook is her use of the word “housewif”’ is ubiquitous throughout the book, with an emphasis on how the skills and work of a housewife can create tranquility within the home. For example, she speaks on how to please a Danish husband by cooking sweets, since in Danish society, a husband is known for their sweet tooth. This took on greater symbolism as sugar had been rationed during the war, further signifying a return to a stable society. During the war, gendered roles had become blurred and the 1950s saw a longing for return to the traditional roles for men and family both in the family and the larger world. Sussan's intention to show culinary traditions including what to eat for breakfast, Danish open sandwiches, and sophisticated dinners offered American women to showcase both a cosmopolitan-ness of adopting European foods and a nurturing act.

Economic Development in Both Countries 

During the 1950’s, both Denmark and America experienced similar economic growth leading to a rise of middle-class families. With Denmark bordering north of Germany, Wirtschftswunder, pr the rise of West Germany’s economic recovery 1948-1973, Denmark also benefitted. In the post-war decades, Danish society experienced a rapid economic prosperity connected with developments in bordering Germany. During this movement, Danish society gained an optimistic attitude towards modernization as well. With Sussane’s cookbook as an example, encouraging Danish housewives to use their resources like bakeries, grocery stores, and fish markets to choose the best foods to serve to their families and to company. Similarly, America experienced an economic boom in the 1950s with the rise of middle-class families, the growth of suburbia, and a new post-war consumer.

Sources

B., Poulsen. The 1950s Syndrome and Danish Energy Consumption and Production, www.researchgate.net/publication/339908707_The_1950s_syndrome_and_Danish_energy_consumption_and_production. Accessed 12 Nov. 2023.

Fox, Corinne. The 1950’s and the 1960’s and the American Woman: The Transition From ..., dumas.ccsd.cnrs.fr/dumas-00680821/document. Accessed 12 Nov. 2023.

Hilson, Mary. The Nordic Model: Scandinavia since 1945. Reaktions Books, 2018.

Jacobsen R;Von Euler M;Osler M;Lynge E;Keiding N;, Jacobsen Rjvon. “Women’s Death in Scandinavia--What Makes Denmark Different?” European Journal of Epidemiology, U.S. National Library of Medicine, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15074566/. Accessed 11 Nov. 2023.

Wichmann, Maren. “Tax Politics and Women’s Equality in West Germany and Denmark - with a Focus on the 1950s.” Comparativ, www.comparativ.net/v2/article/view/1095. Accessed 11 Nov. 2023.