Recipe Stories

Village Oatmeal Cookies

My kids, Scott, Pam, and son-in-law, Justin, love oatmeal cookies.  I enjoy making cookies of any kind, but I especially like to make the ones that are most requested, the cookie that is "the best" for a particular person.  While my mother was alive, she became the cookie maker for the family.  Anytime the kids wanted a batch of cookies, they would call her and she would get to baking.  Mother always remembered the little things like....who likes raisins and who doesn't.  She never forgot.  While Mother was with us, I was content to let her bake the cookies and remember those pesky little details (the details that meant the most to the recipient).  Now that Mother is gone, it's up to me to make the cookies....and to remember who likes raisins.  Every year I have to call the kids and ask, "do you like raisins?"  Every year they patiently answer my question and never ask me why I can't remember something this basic. 

This year I had to ask, yet again.  Yet again, my kids have answered.  My dear friend, Annie, suggested that I post this story so that the next time I bake Oatmeal Cookies I would have the story to refer to instead of admitting, yet again, that I can't seem to remember this important, yet pesky, detail.  That, and perhaps someday in the future when I pass the cookie baking responsibility on to Pam or Kayla, they won't have to wonder....should I put raisins in these cookies?  For the record:  Scott-no raisins, Justin-raisins, Pam-either way.  Now the only thing left is to see if I can remember that I wrote this story and refer to it when I start baking cookies.  Enjoy!

Canning Tomatoes

I grew up in the city, a real city girl.  I loved city life.  My parents made sure I spent time in the country every summer.  What those summers taught me was a real appreciation for country life, especially when it came to fresh foods.  Friends and family members taught me to can...green beans, tomatoes, applesauce, and more.  My grandmother would tell me stories about when she used to "put away" (can or preserve) everything from her garden.  An interest started to grow within me....and interest to carry forward the art of canning.  When I was a young woman I decided to give canning tomatoes a try.  I found a recipe and read up on canning techniques.  I bought a canner and some jars, then took the big step....I went to the farm stand and bought a bushel of tomatoes.  Following the recipe and instructions to the letter, I processed that bushel of tomatoes and a new passion was born. 

Every time I opened one of those first tomatoes and cooked with it, I marveled at how much better they tasted than store-bought canned tomatoes.  I never wanted to buy tomatoes from the grocery store again.  For many years I canned tomatoes every September.  It became a real tradition for me, and I enjoyed the process...it was very fulfilling for me.  And then, life got busy.  I skipped a year, didn't can my tomatoes.  Just this year, I told myself.  Well, that year stretched into many years.  Life was just too busy, and store bought canned tomatoes were convenient, easy, a crutch. 

A few years ago, I decided that it was time to reconnect with past activities that used to give me fulfillment.  Canning was one of those things.  Like before, I started with tomatoes.  I found that the passion for canning was still there, inside of me waiting for me to realize how happy I am when I'm canning.  By this time, I was living alone, my family raised.  What would I do with all of those jars of tomatoes?  Besides using them for my own kitchen, I gave them as gifts to dear friends and family members. The joy of those who received the gifts was nothing compared to the joy I felt sharing the fruit of my labor. 

Throughout the years my daughter, Pam, never wanted to have anything to do with canning foods, except the eating part, that is.  She really wasn't interested in learning how.  This year it's different.  Pam asked me to teach her how to can her own tomatoes.  That request fulfilled a long-standing dream for me.  The one where my daughter and I would work in the kitchen, side-by-side, and share the experience. 

We went to Eastern Market, in Detroit, for market day to buy the tomatoes.  We took the kids, Matthew and Kayla, for their first trip to the market (another long-standing family tradition) and bought the tomatoes.  Then we spent the afternoon together in the kitchen, while the kids played at grandma's house.  My home and heart were full of family on a tradition-filled September Saturday.  Pam learned that canning really isn't that difficult, nor is it as intimidating as she thought it was.  She also has a nice stock of fresh canned tomatoes to enjoy throughout the long winter months.  With every jar she opens not only will she have the "best tomatoes ever", she will have memories of this wonderful day.  I'm quite sure my grandmother would be very proud of us today for "putting away" tomatoes just like she did 90 years ago. 

If you are a novice to canning, I urge you to start with tomatoes.  They are easy and pretty fast as far as canning goes.  If you used to can and got away from it because life got busy and convenience became a crutch, I urge you to make some time and try canning again.  Share your canned goodness with your dear friends and family, share the love you put into every jar.  You will be rewarded ten-fold with every jar you open and use in your favorite recipe.  Start a tradition for your family, or carry one forward.  Enjoy!

Virginia's Potato Salad

From the time I was a little girl I remember Mother making potato salad.  She made it for the family, it was often her "bring a dish" item, she made it for work at Lefkofsky's Deli  for both the regular and catering menus.  It was one of her signature dishes and a big favorite of the entire family.  Her grandchildren always looked forward to grandma's salad and often requested it without me even knowing.  My daughter, Pam, craved it during both of her pregnancies and Grandma was happy to make it for her every time she asked.

Five years ago we lost Mother and her Potato Salad.  You see, this was another one of those recipes that Mother never wrote down.  It was in her head and she made it from memory...by heart.  Growing up as Mother's Sous Chef, I learned to make this salad...and did for many years, but over time I just let Mother make it.  After all, it was her signature dish.  Well, like so many recipes, Mother made some changes to the recipe over the years.  She told me what she was doing that was different, but I never wrote down those changes.  This was a challenge for me.  Try to remember what Mother changed, make the salad and get the family's opinion.  I'll admit that I was a little intimidated.  Since starting this blog, I felt the pressure to get this recipe figured out, it was time. 

My granddaughter, Kayla, is turning 5 years old this week.  For her birthday party I decided to make the Potato Salad.  It was time.  We lost Mother 5 years ago, shortly before Kayla was born.  What better way to celebrate the birthday and to include Mother's memory in the festivities?  This was a labor of love for me, to bring the past and the future together with a bowl of Potato Salad.  It was time.

Last night when I went to bed I still hadn't remembered everything she told me about the changes.  This morning when I awoke I thought I had the answers.  So, I went to work.  Putting the ingredients together like I knew what I was doing.  It just felt right.  When I finished making the salad, I took a bite.  It was good...I thought it was pretty close to Mother's, and I took it to the party.  Pam tried it first and said it was just like Grandma's.  Then Pam's girlfriend, Emily, took a bite.  Emily said to Pam, "this is just like we used to eat at your grandma's house when we were teenagers.  When we would go to her place and eat potato salad when she wasn't home."  Evidently the girls would go to Mother's house whenever they were hungry for potato salad.  Then my son, Scott, declared it just as good as Grandma's.  That's when I knew I had done it....I had figured out Mother's recipe and would now be able to carry this recipe forward to the next generation.  After all, this is the reason this blog exists; to carry on the family traditions, to preserve the value of family meal time, to remember those responsible for our traditions. 

Do you have a family recipe that you don't want to lose with the death of a loved one?  If so, get together with that loved one soon.  Get that recipe written down while you can.  Carry that recipe into your family's future.  Honor the past by sharing the story of that recipe with the next generation.  Sit at the family dinner table and enjoy the nourishment for the body as well as the soul! 


My Cup of Tea
I was raised to drink tea.  It all started when I was about 9 years old.  My mother had a lady friend, Katherine.  She was a fascinating lady whom I loved dearly.  Katherine worked with my mother and lived in the same apartment building we lived in.  Her work schedule ended earlier than Mother's.  Since I was alone between getting home from school and my parents getting home, I would often visit Katherine. 

During those visits Katherine would make us each a cup of tea and we would talk about anything and everything.  She was always interested in what I was doing in school and was a kind sounding board when I was struggling with something and needed to talk it out.  Katherine would treat me like an adult.  I never felt like a little girl when I was with her.

Katherine would make my tea very weak then add sugar and milk.  It was really hot, sweet milk with just a taste of tea.  But to me, I was having tea time with a village elder, a dear woman who had a special place in our family.

Katherine would tell me stories of her life in pre-WWII Germany, about the horrible years during the war.  She made history come to life for  me with her stories.  I thank her to this day for her influence in my love for history.  Katherine was a young mother during the war and sentenced to the concentration camps for some perceived crime.  She told me stories of stealing food to feed her babies.  Survival and feeding her babies was her only goals during those dark years.  That and getting to America.  Through all of those tea times, Katherine taught me so much and made me want to know more.  She taught me that there were real people behind the stories of the events, to have empathy for people affected by wars and immigration.  She was the kind of village elder I hope to be, my role model.

Another main contributor to my love of tea was my mother.  Mother loved to serve tea.  She took great pleasure in the brewing and serving of tea.  Mother would get out her porcelain tea pot and her china cups and saucers (she had a beautiful collection of  tea cups).  When I was a young bride, Mother started my cup and saucer collection.  She wanted the tradition to continue with me. 

I have carried Mother's traditions forward with my daughter.  We have wonderful conversations over a cup of tea, sharing important moments just as my family has always done.  Serving tea in my home warms my heart.  The art of brewing tea in a porcelain teapot feels like second nature to me, it centers me, it is a part of my soul.

I drink tea all the time.  Most of the time I use a mug, but when I need a special tea time, I get out my porcelain tea pot and special tea cups.  For a brief moment in time, I check out of the real world, to a place and time where the sky is blue and life is good.  Whether you are a novice to drinking tea, or an avid tea lover, I encourage you to take a tea break and let the world go by for a while.  It will still be there when you finish your tea, but you will be stronger, calmer, and ready to face the world head-on. 

Grandma's Raspberry Bars
Today I made my Grandma's Raspberry Bars with my granddaugther, Kayla.  Kayla is just four years old and she's a natural in the kitchen.  She is the fifth generation of great cooks in my family, and she's going to carry the tradition on, I can tell.  There was something so very special about making on of my grandma's recipes with my granddaughter...I know my grandma and mother would be very proud of us today. 

Kayla wants to be involved in every single step of the recipe.  She wants to do it all...she's so capable and understands measuring and mixing.  She even likes the clean up stage!  Teaching her is a joy for me.  Our time in the kitchen fills my heart with a love so pure and strong that it is humbling.  I realize one of my purposes in life is to carry on the traditions that my grandma, mother, and my aunts taught me...the family recipes and the love of cooking for loved ones, to teach the younger generations those traditions.  It's a responsibility I welcome when the reward is spending time with my grandchildren.

Two years ago during holiday baking time, Pam and Kayla came to my house to help with the Christmas Cookies.  She wanted to help even then.  She watched me put the raw cookies in the oven.  Then just a few minutes later when I took them out of the oven, her little eyes filled with wonder!  She was amazed that those raw things turned into goodness right there in that oven.  I knew at that moment, I had a little prodigy to take under my wing and teach her the secrets my elders taught me so long ago.  Was that how they felt when they were teaching me?  I think so!

After making the Raspberry Bars we made French Toast Casserole for tomorrow's breakfast.  When we wake in the morning we will bake the casserole and continue our time in the kitchen together.  For lunch we will make Hot Dogs on a Stick, another family favorite.  I poured over recipes for hours, picking just the right ones for her skill level and would be fun at the same time. 

This is a picture taken of Kayla pressing the crust in the bottom of the pan...I love the flour on her arm!  She's cooking and adding that extra ingredient that every great recipe must have....love!  Someday, I believe, she will understand just how important that is.  For now, she's where she wants to be..in the kitchen creating and having fun! 

100 Recipes

Today, May 30, 2011, marks the 100th posting on Kay's Village Recipes.  Three month's ago when I started this blog, I had no idea how fast it would grow or who would be interested in reading it.  Thanks to my wonderful villagers who helped spread the word and gave me so much inspiration, this project and The Village has grown.  We now have readers in 25 countries!  New friends have been made, and old friends have reconnected.

Today's recipe is Virginia's Peach Cobbler, a special honor for a special recipe.  Mother was well-known for her Peach Cobbler, a best-seller at work, and a most-requested recipe with friends and family.  As with so many of her dishes, she made this one without referencing a recipe.  That was her cooking style.  She passed that trait on to me.  She also passed her recipe collection on to me...an honor for which I will always be grateful!  So many scraps of paper with limited directions.  So many delicious dishes to figure out and share with my village.  So much fun!

With some recipes I saw her make them enough times that it is easy for me to write them out.  With others, I have to make them first.  Some come out great the first time, others take more effort.  The key is to keep trying.  My dad taught me that I can do anything I set my mind to, especially in the kitchen.  He taught me to never be afraid of trying something new...that the fear is in never trying at all.  I encourage you to have that same attitude in the kitchen (and life).  What's the worst that could happen?  Something doesn't turn out?  Learn from your mistakes and then try it again.  I will bet the second time will be the charm, and you will be so proud of your accomplishment.

Sharing my family recipes is my way of keeping the traditions going and ensuring that future generations know those who came before them.  In the process, I have been blessed to know that readers like you are interested and wait anxiously for the next recipe.  Thank you for your inspiration and support!  Stay tuned...I have a LOT more recipes to share!


Lucy's Luncheons

My grandmother showed her love in the things she made and her cooking.  She was not a demonstrative woman, but she loved deeply.  When you ate at her table it was always properly set with linens and her best dishes.  Even though she lived in a small town in West Virginia, my grandma believed in a full social life, and that included entertaining the ladies in her life.  That usually meant a luncheon.  The menu would have to include "fancy" dishes, prepared to perfection.  She followed a recipe to the exact measurement.  Presentation was carefully planned.  Putting her love in every thing she prepared. 

Entertaining on a coal miner's wage during the Depression couldn't cost a lot, but it did need to make her guests feel special...because they were...they were loved.  She would make dishes that didn't cost a lot but serve them in a manner that would be worthy of a fine restaurant.  This was a time when the ladies could escape from the difficulties of their time, have a little bit of luxury and a whole lot of love.  The love that Lucy put into the planning and preparation and then serving them, on a shoestring budget, was her gift.  Imagine the conversations those ladies had, the laughter and the tears.  Imagine the strength they gave to one another.  Imagine the love!

A typical luncheon menu would include dishes such as:

Wilted Leaf Lettuce
Watercress Sandwiches or Cucumber Sandwiches
Sour Cream Biscuits
Assorted Jams, Fruit Butter, and Preserves
Blueberry Buckle and/or Banana Nut Bread
Iced and/or Hot Tea


The Maurice Salad Story

One of the best things about growing up in Detroit was going to J.L. Hudson's department store.  As a child going to Hudson's was a magical experience, especially when Mother took us to lunch in one of the three restaurants.  We always had the Maurice Salad...in my opinion, the best salad ever!  I have wonderful memories of those lunches with my mother and sister, Margaret. 

Over the years, this salad became my "solution salad".  My mother was very difficult to buy a gift for.  She "had everything" and would never give you any ideas about what she wanted or needed.  Whenever I was shopping for a gift for her and couldn't figure out what to buy, I would go to the restaurant and have a salad.  In some way I would connect with her and by the end of the meal, I would know exactly what to buy for her.  Now that mother's gone from this world, I always take a moment to remember her and those special days when I have this salad.

The big department store is long gone, and the Hudson's name was bought out years ago....it's now owned by Macy's.  You can still get the salad in Macy's restaurants, but to me it will always be "Hudson's Maurice Salad"!  The secret to the salad is the dressing.  I have no idea which one of my friends found the recipe and shared it with me, but it tastes just like the real thing.  When you make this salad, I hope that you will make your own special memories.  Enjoy!

Chicken a la King Served the Virginia Way

When I was a child I always loved it when my mother would make Chicken a la King on a weekday.  She would make it a special occasion by serving it on her best dishes.  Let me tell you, her presentation was perfect.  It always looked like it took a lot of time and effort to prepare the meal.  Mother always used puffed pastry shells (available in the freezer section) and filled them to overflowing, making the perfect serving size.  Chicken a la King served with a salad and biscuits fresh from the oven...mouth watering goodness on the dinner table! 

As an adult, I now know just how quick and easy this dish is to make.  Get out the good dishes and silverware you are saving for "special" occasions.  What could be more special than you and your family sharing a meal together?  It doesn't take hours of work to make a meal special....it just takes a little presentation....serving it "the Virginia way".  Enjoy!


The Story Behind Virginia’s Chicken and Dumplings

If I had to name one recipe that most reminds me of my mother, it would be her Chicken and Dumplings. I grew up watching her make it, learning how to make it at her side, and eating it. My mother, Virginia, created this recipe. She never wrote it down, but it tasted the same every time…delicious! By the way, I never wrote this recipe down either, until now. Publishing this recipe is a gift to the family, to preserve the heritage and the tradition Virginia gave us through her cooking.

Most people think chicken and dumplings is hard to make. That couldn’t be farther from the truth. Some think that it takes too much time. I can see how they would think that. My mother taught me that it is not the time or the complexity; it is about the creation… the process. She would take basic, kitchen staples and make a simple dish turn into delicious, satisfying meal. No tricks, no fancy ingredients required, just the basics. And by the way, they are easy on the family budget.

When you sat down at the dinner table with Virginia’s Chicken and Dumplings, you knew you were in for a treat. The food was going to be great, the dinner conversation was going to be warm and light-hearted, and you would feel the love. The love of the cook for her family, given in the way she knew best…through her food. Her grandchildren were raised eating this simple dish; they remember her fondly to this day every time they eat it. Making this dish for my grandchildren gives me a connection with Mother that nothing else can provide.

It is my hope that you will try this recipe for your family. That you might form a special connection through food with your loved ones the way my mother did with us. I hope you…Enjoy!