How many of us enjoy tossing a TV dinner into the microwave for a quick meal? I know it sure comes in handy when I don’t feel like cooking. Well, if you are like me, then you are in luck since September 10 is National TV Dinner Day and how else would we celebrate other than eating a TV dinner?
As a kid, the best part of grocery shopping with Mom was getting to choose which TV dinners were going to be mine. I cannot even imagine life without TV dinners now, but this wasn’t always the case.
The TV dinner was created in 1952 by the Swanson Brothers and introduced to the public in 1953 for the purchase price of $.98. The first TV dinner was modeled after the Thanksgiving meal and included turkey, cornbread stuffing, peas, and sweet potatoes in a three compartment foil tray. Only 5,000 meals were sold in the first year.
In 1960 Swanson added a forth compartment which included a dessert such as apple cobbler or brownies. In 1973 Swanson began offering bigger serving sizes called Hungry Man meals.
Up until 1986, these foil tray meals had to be baked in the oven for around 25 minutes. Can you imagine having to wait that long for your TV dinner to cook nowadays? Thankfully, the À rst microwave oven safe trays were marketed.
Ever since then, we can get almost anything to cook in the microwave from a variety of different companies. Even here at the COA, you can get meals. Not only do we have the Meals on Wheels program that delivers a fresh meal right to your door, but we also oɛ er a variety of frozen meals as well. If you are interested in receiving hot meals or purchasing some of our frozen ones, give us a call at (269) 445-8110 for more information.
