My mom was a fantastic cook - she started cooking at 12 for her family because her mother didn't like being a housewife and went to work. My grandmother and great grandmother both believed women were put on this earth to do more than have babies and take are of men. They ate to live but did not live to eat. My mom liked food and she was great at cooking. She made pies that were the envy of the neighborhood. She could read a recipe and know what it was going to taste like. She planned meals because she didn't drive and she and my dad went to the grocery store on Thursday evenings. Most big family dinners were at our house because she would end up cooking no matter where we went. She altered most recipes because they were either too bland or she didn't think the seasoning truly worked together.
We were taught to eat what was put in front of us or go without - we didn't have to clean our plate but not to take more than we could eat. We could have more. And my dad believed there had to be bread with dinner - so her biscuits were always spot on and he always wanted dessert. It only had to be a scoop of ice cream or jello but he wanted something. We ate dinner as a family and it was not in front of the TV.
My mother did not like people in the kitchen while she cooked, so she did not teach us to cook. (We did wash the dishes. My mom was once asked if she had a dishwasher and she said she had 3 of them.) We were allowed to make cookies and we had pizza parties where we made homemade pizzas with our friends - that was about it. When my two sisters were off at college she started teaching me how to cook a bit. She did not like canning - she said that was why God gave us grocery stores so she didn't to do that anymore. Which was kind of funny, both of my sisters and I do some canning. (I quit when it was no longer cost effective.) But I have 2 apple trees so I freeze apples in the amounts I need for pies and can applesauce. My family doesn't eat much jam so I make strawberry jam about every 3 to 4 years.
But the best compliment I ever received for my cooking was my best friend I grew up with said my chicken and noodles was as good as my mother's.
Last edited by quiltingcandy; 05-15-2020 at 07:05 PM.