In Her Own Hand

Recently I was thinking about recipes. I was thinking how easy it is to go on line to find a recipe you are searching for - just google "Best Pumpkin Bars" or "Easy Basil Pesto", and there we have it - seemingly unlimited choices. I love being able to do that, when I am in a hurry.

But, then, I was thinking about hand written recipes. The ones handed down from one generation to another. Earlier this year I read a book called Eat My Words, by Janet Theophano. It is a non fiction book, chronicling women's personal histories documented in recipes and cookbooks. What a thought. That we are leaving behind a personal history of some kind in our recipe cards and margin notes in our cookbooks.

As I told you before, I still have the two cookbooks I was given as wedding gifts in 1981. But, I have other treasures on that cookbook shelf as well. I have my grandmother's remedy book. I have plenty of handwritten recipe cards from my mother, and my sister. My sister and I have also collaborated on a Feast Journal for our family. It is a small bound volume of recipes we associate with the women in our lives.

The recipe at the top of this post was written by my mom. When I see the recipes she wrote for me, I see her.

This is me and my mom. She used to write these recipes on cards - don't you just love recipe cards? - and send them to me when I was a young woman, newly married, far away in Tucson.

I can imagine her in her lovely home in Michigan, thinking of me, and copying the recipe for me. Just knowing she thought of me meant so much.

Here are some cute sample recipe cards. If I find anything like these in a second hand store, I am buying these up!

Another very familiar hand is my sister's. She wrote this one out for me. It is on one of those folded recipe cards, that allow you to write out a longer recipe. Or write larger!

Here is a photo of my sister, with our mom and our grandma. I like this photo. This is around the time my sister was a young mom, and our mom was retired at her home, sending those sweet recipe cards to us both.

When I was looking for recipes to share, I found some in my own hand. This one is from those early years, around 1980, when I was living in Tucson, far away from my mother and sister.

I also found this treasure. Girl Scout Troop 358 was my troop, in Kalamazoo Michigan. This international cookbook must have been part of a badge requirement. In any case, you must admire the excellent art work on the cover! That's right! Done by yours truly. In case you can't tell, it is a cute dog trying to get some cookies!

You have to love the 1968 mimeograph lettering!

Sometimes I buy old cookbooks, and my favorite ones have writing in them. This is an unidentified recipe card. They must have come in old cookbooks I bought.

Pretty simple, right? You really have to know what to do with this one.

This recipe is from an extended family member. It must have been in a collection of my mother's.

Along with our handwritten recipes, we often make comments in our books. Do you do that? I do. I still do. I write "good", or "bread did not rise", or "add more salt". This is what my mom wrote.

And this:

Here she put a lot of comments. Circled at the top are the notes for who loved these cookies the most. Yup - I am in that club! Thanks, Mom!

This is the beginning of that Feast Journal I told you about. My mom had an old spiral bound volume to record her own recipes in it. So, she did. As you can see, her name is there. At some point, she must have handed it down to my sister, because she added her name to it.

In the book, we find hand written recipes from my mom, my sister and even me!

Mom's

My sister's

Mine!

When we made our Feast Journal, we started with the handwritten recipes from the family. We included pages from the book above, and also photos of the women who wrote the recipes. We even added pictures of special dishes and linens. It was all spiral bound, and each daughter and daughter in law has a copy.

I think some of the most precious recipes, are from my grandparents, written in their own hand. My grandmother wrote this in her shaky hand. When I see it, I can almost feel her soft skin, and smell her powder that she used every day.

Here she is with my grandpa. Speaking of grandpa, the title of this post must be ignored for this one. Here is HIS recipe in HIS own hand, for what he called Christmas Meat!

So, when you have time, and are not in a big rush, look through your cookbooks, and cards, instead of doing a google search for a recipe. You will find you feel surrounded by loving women who have gone before you. You might even sense the love they felt for you.