R is for Recipes

Guess what I found at my dad’s house the other day? My mother’s old recipe box. What a treasure! See, my mom died eight and a half years ago and it was a very, very difficult time for me. I wasn’t able to help my dad sort through a lot of her things because it was just too painful. Now, of course, I’m sorry that I didn’t make more of an effort to help out because my dad threw away things I would have wanted to keep. So, when I found this recipe box it was like a gift from my mom.

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The recipes are old and yellowed. Many of them are stained from being used so frequently. Of course, that’s how I know they’re good! And it’s not so much about the recipes themselves as I have most of them anyway. It’s having the recipes in my mother’s handwriting that really makes it special.

Like her grapenut pudding recipe.
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Not a lot to go on there for directions, eh? And didn’t my mom have beautiful handwriting?

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And this recipe is signed “Mother S” and that was my grandmother on my dad’s side. So neat to see her handwriting again and remember all the delicious Swedish foods she prepared.

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The recipe for “soured” cream coffee cake comes from my mother’s best friend, Miriam. And this is one recipe I didn’t have and let me just tell you, it’s the best coffee cake I’ve ever had. I’m really excited to be able to make this myself now! Miriam’s recipe for Kugel is also in the box and we used to have that every year on Christmas.

I still miss my mom very much. But finding her recipe box brought back some wonderful memories of times spent together cooking, laughing and eating. You can bet that I’m going to treasure this recipe box for the true family heirloom that it is.

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  1. An unexpected treasure! My mother gave me my grandmother’s recipe box after she died and there are some things that no one made as well as my grandmother, especially her Passover brownies. Glad that there’s a kugel recipe in there! Enjoy it — it will bring you joy in each creation.

  3. Carole, what a wonderful find! Think about scanning them to preserve them. Print them out and you can make a little recipe book for your Hannah, too, to pass them down and keep mom’s memory alive. (And include a few photos, too.)
    I can see baking in your future!

  5. Sometimes people we love and miss pop up when we need them. I treasure my grandmother’s recipe box and feel like she’s watching over me every time I look through it.

  6. Goodness! Those recipes are a treasure indeed! I love having mementos in folk’s handwriting. I think it makes the memories more tangible somehow. Kind of like scents. For me, handwriting makes me think of the writer’s hands and their attitude of writing. I have a pickel recipe from my grandmother much like the Grapefruit pudding recipe. It’s like 3 lines long with a dash of something and a “let it sit out for awhile” for good measure. Thanks so much for sharing.

  7. That’s a treasure indeed. I was given my mother’s mother’s recipe box after she died and created a scrapbook of recipes. Like your find it included recipes written by many other family members as well including my great-grandma, my mom and aunts when they were little. It was also interesting just how many different things she found to record the recipes on. So glad you found these and that they bring you such wonderful memories!

  8. One of the nicest things my parents ever did for me was type up all my favorite family recipes for me. It’s so nice to have that record. But how wonderful to have the handwritten, “genuine” articles instead.

  9. I think the scanning idea is a good one. Isn’t it amazing how you can see handwriting you haven’t seen in years and instantly recognize it?
    My great grandmother passed away about ten years ago and last year I got all her knitting pattern books. They had been in a closet in my grandparents’ house. As soon as I picked up a scrap of paper with a mitten pattern on it, I recognized her handwriting, and remembered a thousand postcards and letters received in my childhood.
    I’m glad you have that.

  10. Yum – Grapenut pudding! The original, handwritten recipes – what a treat. I’d laminate them just so I could keep the original little pieces of paper and scraps of whatever they were written on exactly as they were. Please post reviews of the recipes as you go through them!!

  11. What a wonderful treasure. I love when recipies are short on directions . . . it means they were used so much it just came naturally. Mmmm, sour cream coffe cake. My grandmother made the best sour cream pound cake . . . I’ll have to make one soon now that you’ve reminded me. Thank goodness for Splenda – I can actually have a slice too!!

  12. My mother handwrote her favorite receipes and gave a card to each one of us grrls. Her recipes were not that good…really she wasn’t a great cook. But, I do treasure them for her handwriting. She could bake, however and her cinnimon rolls just can’t be beat;-)

    What a fabulous find for you. It must have been an amazing moment to find them and see her handwriting…a minute to remember.

  13. What a great “R” post. I took a few recipes from my mother last time I was in Boston but they’re cryptic at best. And then we have this damn altitude “problem.” I may have to move back to Massachusetts just so I can use them. Oh, and I just sent that cake recipe for you.

  14. I’m so happy for you Carole! My mother promised to write out the family chocolate birthday cake recipe complete with mocha buttercream frosting as well as the pain d’epice ( honey spice bread) before she died, but couldn’t remember it in the last few years. When she left my father and came back to the US she left it behind…or so she thought. See she couldn’t bring herself to unpack all of her belongings as it was too painful for her- the memories of Greece etc…When my mother died this summer my sister and I went through all of those boxes that sat in a 3rd floor attic for 25 years and lo and behold found her “recipe”book ( an accounting ledger). The chocolate cake recipe was in there, but not many instructions to go with it. It’ll be fun to play around with it and adjust the ingredients to get it right. Enjoy your adventures with her recipes!

  15. Indeed a treasure:) I don’t have many memories of myself and my mother in the kitchen (she hates to cook), but I love it and I’m teaching my girls how to measure and things. I haven’t done Christmas cookies in years because they’ve been too young, but this may be the year. Maybe I should start writing down my favorite recipes for them.

    I’m so glad you have something from your mom to give you good memories.

  19. That is such a wonderful treasure. I inherited my grandmothers recipe books (including a box of handwritten recipe cards) as well as her knitting stuff. Her notes are scattered throughout it all and they make me feel connected to the past.

  23. That is fantastic. A lot of stuff got thrown away when my grandmother died too, that we probably would have kept if we’d thought about it a bit more. We still have lots of great memories, though.

  24. Oh, I have tears in my eyes just thinking about you discovering the box!
    My mom has my grandmother’s recipe notebook, but it is falling apart. For the holidays I am thinking about scanning all the pages in the computer and making copies for me and my siblings. It’s not the same as the original–but still, to have her recipes in her handwriting is just priceless. Katy

  25. What an absolute treasure! I can only imagine how thrilled you are to have found the recipe box.

    I handwrite all my recipes on cards — time consuming and old fashioned but that is how my Great Aunt Grace did it and I inherited hers and know how much more meaningful it makes them. Now go make some coffee cake!

  28. That’s a treasure, all right! I’m so glad you were reunited with it. 🙂 And your mom (and grandmother) had amazing penmanship–I want to call it ‘teacher-quality’, even. It’s kind of a shame that we don’t put much emphasis on penmanship anymore (especially in the age of the computer.)

    Enjoy the coffee cake! I’m squinting at that picture, trying to decipher the secret recipe. 😉

  29. oh my. you made me cry this morning… (in a nice way.) In this day of instant messaging and emails, very few people take the time to hand write letters. I think that handwriting is one of the most personal things about us… I have saved every note my parents wrote me from the past ten years or so for this very reason.
    I am completely delighted for you that your Mom reached out and gave you this little ‘hug’ from above. Her timing seems so perfect.

  32. What a wonderful thing to have. I still treasure recipes written in both my Mom’s and my MIL’s hand; they bring back so many memories. Enjoy and get baking! 🙂

  34. I’m sorry about your Mom….I dread the day my parents leave us, but what a wonderful gift she left behind. With the passage of time, it has made it a bit easier and you will always have that little piece of her.

    ((Hugs))

  35. Oh, Carole, I am speechless. I knew, the minute I saw the R and that first picture — I knew exactly what you had. Oh, and what treasure it is. I am crying. Truly, truly — oh, you are so lucky — and Hannah!! I know you’ll keep them for her. Thank goodness your dad kept these and that you have them now. I can just feel the softness — the butter-stained spots, the blurred ink, the ones that feel like you just can’t get all the flour brushed off. Absolutely perfect. Thank you so much for sharing. Mwah.

  36. You know that I know what a wonderful find that is! What a great surprise, and to have the ability to have a part of your mother with you always…….

    And, the coffee cake? It just sounds yummy……

  37. What a wonderful find!! One of my most precious recipe books came from my Grnadmother. She wrote all of her favorite recipes for me. I love making them and seeing her handwriting is like having in the kitchen to guide me. Family recipes are the best!

  38. What a wonderful memory and it’s so special that you found the recipes. Maybe you’ll share the coffee cake one with us??

  39. What a cool thing to have found, Carole. I’m glad it’s bringing you a bit of comfort.

    I’ve got an ancient cookbook of my grandmother’s with a big spiral burner mark on the back, and it’s quite the treaure, as are her handwritten recipes.

  40. Now that IS a treasure! I’m so happy for you! I’m lucky enough to have my Grandmother’s signature cake recipe, but so wish I had asked her for her pound cake recipe when I had the chance….

  41. Gosh Carole – I’m almost speechless over how precious this must be to you. Even my own recipes are precious to me. They’re getting old. Yellowed. Ones written by my younger sister that were mailed to me after I married and left home. Ones written by my grandmother for me. Oh. They’re right up there with treasured Christmas ornaments. Thanks so much for sharing this treasure with us. 🙂

  42. You are getting lots of helpful suggestions, but my friend had her mother’s favourite cookie recipe – written in her own hand, framed and put up on the kitchen wall – so she had a constant reminder and it looked great. Lovely way to keep the memories alive.

  43. What a beautiful gift that your mom gave you! My mom was an amazing cook and baker but unfortunately her recipes were not organized. I was only 23 when she passed away so it wasn’t until after she was gone that I began trying to collect her recipes so that I could make our traditional meals. It meant going through her many recipe books and loose papers to find out just how she had made those yummy dishes. But I remember how special it was to come across her own handwriting and feel connected to her again. It’s amazing how such a little piece of paper can be so precious. Thanks for sharing, Carole.

  45. Your mother’s handwriting looks just like my mom’s! The handwritten makes all the difference. My family recipes are all email print outs, which amuses me but not the same. 🙂

  46. Carole, what a treasure! I’m so happy that you were able claim this little bit of your family history before it was lost. And now that you have the recipes, you can continue traditions for your own family.
    Ahhh, I love a post like this!

  48. Wow, those are fantastic! I love old handwritten recipes, especially the family ones. I have an old one that was my great-grandmother’s, for oatmeal cookies. They are the best I’ve ever had, (but I have to measure when I make those, dang it.)

    Those are definitely a special find Carole.

  50. Oh what a treasure! I do think you should follow up Dave’s idea, and press and preserve the recipes for their handwriting, but use the copies. I never thought of that before myself, and will need to do it with the ones I have from my dad and grannies, but it is a real link to your personal history and the good times with your mama to have the actual originals…

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