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The Curatorial Volunteer Committee at Rancho Los Alamitos (RLA) in Long Beach, California established the Rancho Los Alamitos Faux Food Group in 2008. The goal of our group of volunteers is to create faux (fake) food for display throughout the ranch house, including displays for the family's formal dining room, the ranch hands' dining room and the cook's kitchen. These faux food items are durable and long lasting, so future Rancho guests may enjoy them for years to come. We endeavour to help bring the Rancho to life and to take visitors back in time, and make them feel like they are in early 20th century California in the home of the Bixby family.

If you would like to join the RLA "Faux Foodies," please contact us at the Rancho.

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Left: "Ladies Home Journal " 1926; Center: Our Faux Food Cakes; Right: Swan's Down Flour Ad 1921

While the Rancho has existed since the early 1800s, the furnishings in the Rancho are from the 1920s and 1930s. As a result, the food created by the Faux Food Group must be specific to that time. We do not recreate any foods or food products unavailable before 1939 or foods that would not have been available in the region. We research food history, relying heavily on primary source materials. Over time, we created a variety of very well-received faux food items. Some of our food has looked so realistic and delicious that people have tried to eat it. (This is probably the highest mark of praise we could receive.) Our projects have included Thanksgiving dinner, a Spring Tea, and a Christmas meal, as well as items sold in the Rancho’s gift shop.

This section of the Rancho's web site provides a portfolio of the work we have created since 2008. In addition, there is plenty of helpful information about faux food. There is a list of materials and tips, some faux food recipes and useful links to help you create your own faux food.

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