The Cooks of My Family

I came from a long line of great cooks. My Mom, Grandmothers, Aunts and In-laws.  I thought it would be nice to show you these people that influenced me through the years. Most are gone now, but their memory lives on in my recipes that I share with you.

First my Paternal Grandmother...She had 12 children but only 8 survived. You can image the amount of food that was cooked in that house.

My Grandmother is standing in the back row on the far right.  All my Aunt's that you see here could cook up a storm. If you left their table hungry, it was your own fault.

My Mother and Father in law wanted 12 children also, but was only blessed with 3. Since that was all she had, they gathered others up from around their community and church and claimed them during holidays and birthdays. Lena was her name and she could cook up a storm. Very seldom did you see her using a recipe nor measure anything. I never had anything at her table that wasn't delicious.

She is located on the front row, second to your left.  These are her brother and sister's.  All of these women were excellent cooks.  They really put a spread on the table during Sunday's and holidays. No way could you eat it all.

My Mom. I was the only child but Mom was a great cook.  She taught me many, many things about cooking while I sat at her little kitchen table.  We'd talk and laugh and I'd watch her. Her kitchen was so small that two people couldn't cook at the same time. I'd sit at the table and cut or chop or slice what she needed. She might had had a small kitchen, but Mom had a huge heart.

This is a old picture of my Mom and she is the lady closest to the camera. That's me in the middle and my Aunt Nett, Dad's sister on the far end.  This was during Christmas so I know all our tummies were full! I have no clue why I'm holding a stuffed animal unless that was a present given to me.

And now getting to me.  I've been cooking for 35+ years and there isn't a day goes by that I don't learn something new or new technique. I have never had a day that I didn't see a recipe that I'd love to try out. Always something new and exciting in the world of food.

Hope you enjoyed meeting my family that influenced me. There is one that is not shown here and that's my Maternal Grandmother.  She also had a huge part in influencing me, but I had no pictures available to show you. She was a tiny woman with a huge sense of humor. She cooked on a wood burning cook stove and made some of the most tender meats and delicious desserts.  She was a farm cook.  During Christmas we would all stay with Grandmother.  How in the world she ever put up with 20 people in her house during the holidays is beyond me. But she did and she seemed to enjoy each and every day with us. This was before Prozac!  I miss each and every one of these family members. May they rest in peace.

Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed.

Deb