As you collect family stories, you may come across some special family recipes. I am fortunate, because my family has more than one recipe that has been passed down. Every time someone serves this food at a family gathering, we remember the woman who created the recipe. This is a great way to connect with living family members, as we all share stories about that person.
One of my grandmothers, my father’s mother, made a fantastic potato salad. This was a favorite dish at every family gathering. No matter what else was served, we could be certain that the bowl that held Gramma’s potato salad would be the first one to be completely emptied. If you arrived to the party late, you might miss out!
This recipe was handed down to my mother, and possibly to some of my aunts and cousins. Well, it kind of was. You see, my grandmother never actually wrote down this recipe herself. She wasn’t the kind of cook that used precise measurements. Instead, she had a basic idea of how much each ingredient was required. The total amount of each ingredient would be different, depending on how many people were coming to the party that the dish would be served at. I know it included boiled potatoes, hard boiled eggs, and celery. There might have been mayonnaise and mustard as well. I’m not entirely sure. But, every time I had a plate of my Gramma’s potato salad at a family gathering, it brought back memories of her. I can still “see” her making her potato salad in the kitchen.
On the other side of my family, my mother’s mother also had a recipe that reminded everyone of her. My grandmother made a pound cake that was absolutely delicious. It wasn’t just the ingredients that made her pound cake so special. She made it in a long pan that she may have gotten from her mother. It may have been an antique, even back then. She only made this pound cake for birthdays. Everyone has memories of her making the pound cake especially for them. All of can remember being told not to run through or play in the kitchen while the cake was baking, because it would cause the pound cake to fall in the middle. When she passed away, several family members argued over who would take possession of the long pound cake pan. The pan itself became a tangible reminder of a family member that everyone loved.
Does your family have recipes that bring back memories of loved ones? You might consider writing down the recipe, as well as the stories that surround it. It will make a nice addition to your genealogy research.
Image by Edward O’Connor of Flickr