Memories of Yesteryear
My Mum gave me a wonderful cookbook. It’s pictured here along with a couple of her favourite recipes. It is my most treasured posession.
My beautiful Mum died in 1990 at the age of 53, which means I remember her as being young and wonderful forever.
She didn’t have the privilege of getting old – which was so sad.
When I went to Europe for several years (many years ago now) I left my Mum’s cookbook with one of my special friends to look after for me and, I can tell you, it was very hard for Julie to return it to me.
It became like a Bible to her as it is to me now.
It’s written in a fabulous “journal” style which I’ve tried to find in the open market but it’s hugely expensive to purchase such a thing in this day and age.
Anyway – I digress – Mum wrote it in her own hand writing and I guess this is what makes it so special. My Gran also has some recipes in there too – in her own hand writing – special for me.
Amusing memories
She has notated who gave her the recipe and whether she liked it or not. Some entries are; “Yukky”, “Horrible”…..or an amusing one, “Lovely – Men Like This One” and “Scrummy, I do double recipe and always add half loaf of bread chopped”.
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Family Heirloom
The reason why I’m telling you this is that if you have the inclination to write a cookbook of all your favourite recipes for yourself it’ll become an heirloom and handed down to your kids. If you have more than one child you’ll have to make sure you write one for each of them.
If you do, you’ll be creating such a precious memory.
Incense Houses
By the way, the little pots above the cookbooks in the photo at the top of this post, are raku fired incense “houses” by Rie Yamauchi from the lovely Lyndendale Gallery not far away from us in the Ferguson Valley.
Do pop over and have a look at the other wonderful arts and crafts for sale when you visit the valley, won’t you? Anyway, I love them and have 5 in my collection now. Mind you I don’t burn incense in them. – I just love their quirkiness.
Have you collated all your favourite recipes into some kind of cook book to hand down to your children or to save for posterity? Would you? Could you? What ideas do you have?
March 18, 2015 @ 2:27 pm
I love this account of your Mum’s cook book, Kim. I have a lot of my Nanna’s recipes – written in her inimitable and almost indecipherable hand! I should look through them more closely and see if there are any little personal comments.
Thanks for the mention of Lyndendale Gallery. I will let Rie know you have photographed her little pots.
And back to cook books – Jill Harrison is going to run a photography workshop on photographing food. Would this suit your Mum’s recipes? (Or some of your own beauties!!)
March 20, 2015 @ 7:27 am
Morning:) Maybe we could check your Mum’s book out together – over a glass of bubbles?
BTW – I will come to Jill’s class if dates work for me.
See you soon. K xxx
March 18, 2015 @ 5:00 pm
Hi Kim, I think having your Mum’s recipe book, especially with her little notations, is incredibly valuable. I have a few handwritten recipes like this that Mum sent me from time to time in the days when we all wrote letters! Some years ago an acquaintance said that her mother had died when she was very young and the only writing she had of hers was on the back of an old photograph. How incredibly special this handwriting was to this lady. Treasure your recipe book, as it is indeed a treasure.
I have to redo my recipe book, it is in a mess! Perhaps I should handwrite it and include photos. Hmm… a huge project for when I retire! ha ha!
and ps, please look out for my food photography workshop at Lyndendale!
March 20, 2015 @ 7:18 am
It is. I actually find it comforting. I bet there is lots of people who have a drawer of recipes, a book with lots of torn out bits of paper in it …..good intentions. Also many that have stacks of cook books and magazines which aren’t used now we refer to the Internet so much for recipes. Mind you….it doesn’t matter how your recipes are – it’s good to have them.
I do intend to come to your class on cooking photography at Lyndendale:)
March 20, 2015 @ 7:25 am
TGIF:).
When I’m in my kitchen and thinking about photographing my work I use my iPad as its so easy!!
I probably do need a little digital jobby too! I probably do need a class by you or you to come to Peppermint Lane Lodge – with a group of avid photo people from Denise’s workshop – and I cook up a few recipes which we photograph along the way.
My slight hassle is getting the pics off the iPad onto my computer then storing them correctly (ie in the right library) and then including them in a blog in right size! I’m getting there:
July 25, 2015 @ 6:01 pm
How special Kim, I wish I had something handwritten with special memories from my Nan. She made the best Cornish Pasties and her scones had hordes of us grandchildren coming over each Sunday… such great times 🙂
July 26, 2015 @ 7:40 am
Maybe you make those things today….no doubt many others too……have you notated them at all to pass down the line? Mind you in today’s age it’s all on the computer now so hand written is fast becoming part of the past.