I’ve been thinking about cooking all week. That’s because my husband and I both wound up sick with wicked colds when we got home from ACFW. He actually had it bad when we left but he still insisted on driving me there. He rested in our room between outings to museums (where the air-conditioning was nice). But when we got home, he still felt horrible and then I started with an annoying dry cough that turned into a monster living in my upper respiratory area.
So while I didn’t have an appetite, I did think of food. Comfort food. You know–Chicken soup and spicy chili, biscuits and cornbread. Pie. I wanted some pie. I wanted my mama’s fried chicken and field peas and turnips and fried okra. I needed a blankie!
There is nothing more miserable than a late summer cold. You don’t dare venture out in the heat and humidity and yet, you are chilled from the air-conditioning. I’m a big whiner when I get sick but I tried to be stoic since my husband seemed worse than me. But then I got on Facebook and those super-fast video recipes kept whizzing through my feed, making me wish someone would just come and cook for me. I finally made some black bean chicken soup concoction out of desperation, hoping it would cure both of us. It was good. Full of vegetables and thick broth and chunks of tender chicken. I found some frozen hush puppies and cooked those and we actually enjoyed the meal.
But that got me thinking about the good old days when you held a worn, handwritten recipe in your hand and thought about your mother and your grandmother making this same recipe. I have such recipes on a special shelf in our laundry room because my husband convinced me we didn’t have room for a full bookshelf in our kitchen.
I have pages and pages of recipes from Southern Living magazine but now I can find those online, of course. I parted with a lot of recipes when we moved but I held tight to others such as his mother’s handwritten recipe for a secret Brunswick Stew. If you know Georgia, you know good Brunswick Stew. I have a great recipe for Shrimp Creole and my own secret way of making gumbo because if you know Louisiana, you know to make good gumbo.
Last night, we were both recovering but still hadn’t regained our appetites so I made a mock Chinese noodle soup. It just so happened I had most of the ingredients on hand–Thank you, God! It was pretty good and I was proud that I’d gotten up out of my comfy chair to put it together.
When we got married my mother gave me a cookbook. I learned to cook from that cookbook and I still have it. This is that cookbook: (It’s spotted with cooking splatters and love of course.) I’ve had it for forty years.
One Christmas my husband decided I needed an updated version:
He thought I’d get rid of the first one. I did not. How do you give away that many memories. Of recipes gone terribly wrong, of birthday cakes that wobbled but tasted great, of burned dinners and your first attempt at Thanksgiving for the entire extended family? How do you forget dozens of sugar cookies cut in Christmas shapes and given away to friends and family? I kept the original which I still use and I refer to the new, updated model when I want to try something different. Recipes tell stories, after all. Just like the many books I have in my home that I want to read someday, I have saved countless recipes that I want to try. I’m sure I won’t get to try all of them. But oh, the joy of knowing they are there. Comfort food is the stuff of life. Even when you’re forced to throw together soup from scratch with ingredients that God provided. That’s what cooking is all about. Love. It’s about love. Even if you don’t always get things perfect.
What are some of your best cookbook memories? Do you have a favorite family recipe?
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I have the same splattered cookbook that I still use, but not the updated one. I have many handwritten recipes that I treasure.
That’s good, Lucy. The old standards will always be with us!! Thanks for posting.
That Betty Crocker Cookbook made me smile, Lenora. I grew up on the same one, and my mom gave me my own copy when I got married. Love that book!
I also treasure a recipe for zucchini bread that is written in my dad’s handwriting. My dad passed away when I was 16, but every time I get out that recipe he feels close to me again. He had actually written it out for my grandma, and after he died, she gave it to me. I’ll treasure that forever.
Karen, that is a treasure. Food certainly creates memories and emotions in us. I love zucchini Brad, too. Thanks for sharing!
Snort. Brad!! Bread. I love bread!!!
Ha! I’m sure Zucchini Brad is dreamy. I can just picture him now in his sexy apron, hosting his own Food Network show – Squash Your Doubts – with co-host Butternut Abby. 🙂
I love that! I think we have an idea for a book with Zucchini Brad!!! My sinus medicine is still kicking in 😉
My husband gave me that same cookbook for our first Christmas forty-one years ago. I love recipes and In cleaning out a drawer the other day, I ran across a recipe for Cranberry Nut Bread that my mother had hand written. She is unable to write now due to dementia.What a treasure!
Oh, that is so sweet, Melanie. Those are the kind we never want to part with. What a great find!! Thanks for stopping by!
Oh, I have my mother’s cookbook that looks very much like yours! I won’t get rid of it, even though the cover is barely hanging on…I was just searching for a recipe in my big zippy bag last night and had a trip down memory lane seeing recipes from my grandma (in her writing), my mother-in-law, relatives, and friends. Nope, won’t get rid of those either. Recipes are need are dear to our hearts, er, stomachs! Get well soon!
Angie, I agree. Just reading recipes brings up memories. My husband made me a cake once when I was on deadline. Except he used wheat flour instead of cake flour. I ate that cake and enjoyed it anyway because it was made from an act of love. I have a picture of it somewhere!
NEAR and dear (thanks, auto correct)
Ha! Gotta love auto-correct. 🙂
My Grandmother never really cooked, but she collected recipes of foods she enjoyed. She would always ask for the recipe of foods she enjoyed, then ask her (twin) sister to make it for her. I have all her cookbooks and recipes! I was thinking of making her Pumpkin Nut Bread for this weekend! My daughter will be getting these recipes, and she is already cooking some of the things now.
Sandra, what a great story. My deceased sister-in-law never liked to cook but when she died, I found a worn recipe book where she had marked her favorite recipes. I think she learned to love cooking as she grew older. I like how the sister asked her twin to cook. That’s so endearing. What a great memory. And Pumpkin Nut Bread sounds good right about now!
Mine is “The Joy of Cooking” from 1975 purchased with my first Christmas bonus from my first job. The dust jacket finally disintegrated beyond all hope just a couple of years ago. The book is white and I wanted to maintain its pristine quality. 🙂 It is full of hand written notes and lots of newspaper clipping recipes and instructions, which have yellowed the pages of the book over time.
Very recently, in a move to reduce clutter, I looked at my 4 recipe boxes and decided that was too many. Two of them were my grandmothers recipe boxes, from her friends, in her handwriting, full of notes. In the last 20 years, I doubt I ever really used any of the recipes. So, they went in the discard pile. But when I opened them, the smell of her house is still in the boxes. Maybe because they were in a dark corner of a cupboard, not used and packed full, the fragrance her kitchen is still there. It instantly transported me back to her house. Such peaceful loving memories. I’ve given them to my daughter, because she has often commented about remembering the wonderful smell of Great-Grandma Pauline’s house.
Sharon, that is such a beautiful story. Yes, the scent of all that wonderful cooking can evoke memories in such sweet ways. When I was growing up on the farm, I remember fall nights when I’d get home from my part-time afterschool job and the sun would be going down and I’d smell my mothers biscuits and ham. Some nights, we’d have that and grits and eggs for supper. I can still smell that exact combination in my mind. Now I need a biscuit!!! I’m glad you passed those recipes to your daughter. Oh, The Joy of Cooking. Never tackled that one but it’s considered a classic, too!!!
When I got married, the ladies of my church made me a cookbook full of their beat recipes and some of my favorites. This was my first cookbook. Two years later and my husband is the one using it in addition to his collection of cookbooks. I’m not a cook, and I appreciate the fact that he is.
Love that story, Stacey. My husband has taken up cooking since he retired. We have some interesting dishes.
Oh the truth of this post! Yes I have lots of recipes to try but I also have family recipes scribbled or carefully written by my mom, mother-in-law or other beloved friend. The memories from the past of food and the events connected to it often do bring comfort when I am sick.
Get well soon!
Thank you, Jen. We are both much better. All f that soup worked!! Lovely comments.
Sorry you have suffered with a summer cold. Not to forget your poor husband. The entire summer I’ve suffered with allergies and sneezing up a storm. Hope the colder weather brings me some relief. As for my cook book , years ago I ordered from Crisco a cookbook that I still use to this day. I use the recipe from it for making pie crust. I’ve never had luck with Apple pie till about 2 years ago when I decided to try out the recipe from this cook book. I substituted the cinnamon it called for with Amish Apple pie spice that I bought when I was in Sugar Creek Ohio in 2014. It’s a blend of spices and makes the pie smell so good while it’s baking and the taste is out of this world. I’ve used other cookbooks over the years but always go back to this Crisco cook book.
Shirley, that sounds so good. I’ll have to find some of that Amish Apple pie spice!! Can you send me a piece of pie now?!?
I got the Apple Pie Spice at a gift shop located in the Der Dutchman shopping plaza next to The Carlisle Inn in Sugar Creek Ohio.Can’t remember the name of the shop but it was the one closest to the restaurant. The Apple Pie Spice gives the pie a unique taste. When the bottle runs out we will need to go back to Sugar Creek again. If you lived near me I’d invite you over for a cup of coffee and a slice of fresh baked Apple pie. Get well soon and meanwhile eat lots of your homemade chicken noodle soup. Not sure about spicey chili making you feel better ?
My first cookbook was a Betty Crocker cookbook from the 1950’s. When I was taking home economics in 9th grade, the teacher passed out order forms. My mother bought two – one for me and one for her. That cookbook is still my go to cookbook, even though I have many more. The spine is broken, but it’s still on the shelf. While cleaning out my mother’s house several years ago, I discovered hers – in much better condition than mine. Imagine how excited I was! Every now and then, publishers will come out with a release of “original old favorite cookbooks”. But they are not the same.
I read an interesting news clip about recipes with spots and splatters. When a mother was in the hospital, a friend came to cook for her family. When she returned home, she asked the friend how she knew what her family’s favorite foods were. The friend replied that she merely followed the recipes with the most splatters. Recipes can talk! Glad you both are better.
Oh, I love that story!! So precious. That’s it exactly. Thanks, Betty!!
One of my faves that my mom [now with Jesus] made and taught to us kids was Chocolate Sauce Pudding. You made a sort of chocolate cake batter in a baking dish, then sprinkled cocoa and sugar [mixed] over it [quite a bit of this] then poured water over the whole thing [did not mix these last three ingredients together or with batter.] Put in oven to bake and when it was done you had this moist cakey chocolaty dessert surrounded by chocolate sauce. Delicious. My brother called it cow-pie pudding.
Mom had a red recipe book with all the recipes handwritten by her mother, then my mom, then me. It was a treasure, even though it was falling apart and had spots and spatters all through it. Recipes written by my grandmother said things like, “make a moderately hot fire to bake.”
Thanks for sharing and making me think of those comforting time. And I hope you are all better now.
We grew up with that cookbook, too! I don’t love to cook but I do enjoy baking cookies.
I also received the same cookbook 40 years ago. I cherish recipe’s of my Mother and Grandmother. My Mother’s Coconut Cake and my Grandmother’s 13-Layer Chocolate Cake.