The Mock Recipe Spectrum (M1–M3)
Not all “mock” recipes are the same.
Some quietly swap ingredients to save money or time. Others boldly imitate a classic dish using completely different components. To make sense of these differences—and to help readers understand why a recipe works—I use a simple classification system:
Mock Level 1 (M1), Mock Level 2 (M2), and Mock Level 3 (M3).
This page explains what each level means and how to recognize it.
🟢 Mock Level 1 (M1): Shortcut & Structure Swaps
What it is:
Mock Level 1 recipes replace process or structure, not identity. The dish is still clearly what it claims to be—but it takes a faster, cheaper, or more accessible route.
Common signs:
- Cake mixes instead of scratch batters
- Pudding mixes instead of custards
- Bisquick or biscuit mix instead of handmade dough
- Cool Whip instead of whipped cream
- Cream-of-soup shortcuts
What rule is being bent:
“You must build this from scratch.”
Examples:
- Cake-mix cookies
- Easy eclair squares (graham crackers + pudding)
- Bisquick quiche crusts
- Pudding cookies
These recipes were often created for busy households, church kitchens, and community cookbooks where reliability mattered more than tradition.
🟡 Mock Level 2 (M2): Ingredient Substitution (Same Identity)
What it is:
Mock Level 2 recipes keep the name and intent of the dish—but substitute a major ingredient for economy, availability, or convenience.
The dish still wants to be recognized as the original.
Common signs:
- Ground beef instead of steak or roasts
- Canned or frozen components replacing fresh
- Simplified sauces using pantry staples
What rule is being bent:
“This dish must use the traditional ingredient.”
Examples:
- Hamburger stroganoff
- Easy chicken divan
- Shortcut cashew chicken casseroles
- Economy versions of classic roasts
These recipes became so common that many are now considered “normal”—even though they started as intentional stand-ins.
🔴 Mock Level 3 (M3): Identity Imitation
What it is:
Mock Level 3 recipes intentionally pretend to be something they are not.
They mimic a well-known dish using ingredients that do not belong to the original—sometimes boldly, sometimes humorously.
Common signs:
- The word mock, emergency, imitation, or easy in the title
- Unexpected ingredient substitutions
- Dishes that raise eyebrows—then work anyway
What rule is being broken:
“This is not that dish.”
Examples:
- Mock lobster
- Mock hollandaise sauce
- Pig Cake
- Emergency steak
- Baby food cake
- Chocolate eclair desserts without pastry
These recipes are playful, rebellious, and often ingenious—born from scarcity, creativity, or sheer curiosity.
Why This Matters
Understanding mock levels helps you:
- Know what you’re cooking (and why it works)
- Choose your comfort level—from quick shortcuts to bold imitations
- Appreciate the ingenuity behind community and vintage recipes
- Navigate this site more easily by seeing how each recipe fits the spectrum
Mock recipes aren’t mistakes. They’re solutions.
How Recipes Are Labeled on This Site
Each mock recipe includes a small label—M1, M2, or M3—near the top of the post.
- M1 = Shortcut & structure swaps
- M2 = Ingredient substitutions (same identity)
- M3 = Identity imitation
You can click the label to return to this page at any time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are all vintage recipes mock recipes?
No—but many include shortcuts or substitutions that place them on the spectrum.
Is one level better than another?
No. Each level solves a different problem: time, budget, availability, or curiosity.
Can a recipe fit more than one level?
Sometimes. In those cases, I label the dominant behavior.
Why not just call them “shortcuts”?
Because many of these recipes do more than shortcut—they reimagine.
Historically, “mock” recipes were not copycat recipes. In early and mid-20th-century cookbooks, the word “mock” openly meant a substitution—a practical stand-in used when the real ingredient was unavailable, unaffordable, or rationed. Cooks labeled these dishes as “mock” or “sham” intentionally, acknowledging that the recipe imitated function or familiarity, not an exact original. Mock cooking was about making do, not fooling anyone.
The Big Idea
Mock cooking bends rules on purpose.
It’s practical. It’s playful. It’s a quiet rebellion against the idea that food has to be precious to be good.
If you’ve ever looked at a recipe and thought:
“That shouldn’t work… but it does.”
You’re in the right place.