This is another one of those things that I kinda remember but probably don’t. I do remember that my great grandma almost always had tea cakes and when we would go down there, we always got one. She lived just a little ways . . walking distance but it was a long walk, from my grandparents. I probably wouldn’t know her tea cakes now from someone else’s so trying to duplicate her recipe is an exercise in futility I’m sure.
Not too long ago, I talked to my great aunt to see if she had Ma’s recipe but she didn’t and as far as I know, she’s the only one who might have it. She did tell me that, like so many of you have mentioned, my great grandma made biscuits every single morning . . a big pan of them. My great aunt said that for her tea cakes, she used the same batter but added a little more sugar and made them a little thinner . . maybe more milk or maybe she just patted them out thinner.
It seems there are a whole bunch of us who have memories of recipes we cannot track down. Know what that tells me? We should all be saving in some form — writing, typing, internet — somehow saving the recipes our families love so they can have them.
My friend, Sarah . . who has been my friend since first grade . . her mom died in about 1992 (I remember the year because I was headed to order flowers when I ran into a pole with my new 1992 van!) and there are several recipes Sarah still talks about that her mom made that she hasn’t been able to duplicate.
It would be pretty easy just to use Word or something simple and make a little cookbook that could be printed for our kids and grandkids. Chad already has most of the recipes I make that he likes and the truth is . . he’s a much better cook than I am but sometimes it’s those old ones that are the best.
patti says
i’ve tried off and on to find the recipe that was on the back of a cake mix back in the early 70s, but with no luck. it was for baked alaska, surprisingly easy to make and used chocolate cake mix with peppermint ice cream. i can practically taste it! i cut it out and had it with my other recipes for years, but at some point along the way it just disappeared. ahhhh, the memories…
Winona Thompson says
My grandma made great tea cakes too. We called them short cake. She always used these for strawberry shortcake. She just used her regular biscuit recipe and added more sugar as you said. Many times I have wished I could duplicate some of grandma’s recipes. She made wonderful brown gravy by scorching sugar first. She also made wonderful raspberry dumplings. Wish I knew how she did it. She raised 7 kids during the depression years, so had to make do with what she could find to cook.
Shirley says
I’ve made and constantly add to a recipe book I’ve made. I type tried-n-true recipes using Word and usually include step-by-step photos or at least of the finished dish. I slip each sheet into a plastic page protector and keep them in a 3-ring binder. I love that I can pull out one recipe, take it into the kitchen and wipe away any spills that may happen. I’m making requested copies for my son, family and close friends.
Swooze says
Luckily I asked my mom about all her recipes. I just need to write them down now.
Question. Is the border chart missing for you carpenter star or is it my iPad/iPhone acting up?
Kathleen says
I put all my recipes in Google Documents. If I’m in the store I can pull it up on my phone and look at ingredients. Also can access it anywhere that has internet. No matter where I am if I’m wondering about what to have for supper I can use my phone and scroll through my recipes for an idea. I used that One Note for awhile. It was pretty good too.
terri says
ONE NOTE is awesome, I use it at work, never thought of my personal life. Hmmm. . .
Kathleen says
Why do you like it? I don’t remember why I chose to consolidate in Google Docs instead.
pdudgeon says
i’m fortunate that my mother and both my grandmother’s saved some of their favorite receipes over the years; some were typed,and some were written out in longhand. it’s a real treat to look back at the oldest ones and see the measurements of ‘butter the size of a hen’s egg’, etc.
terri says
About 20 years ago my sister had everyone in the family, especially the older ones write, copy or whatever their favorite recipes. She then took and made up a notebook for all of us. kids, grandkids you name it and gave it to everyone for Christmas.
As a result I have copies of all these recipes scribbled, copies off of old recipe cards or just plain torn out of magazines and I regularly add more to it when I find a new favorite and every few years she request any new favs from everyone and prints up the new additions to hand out.
PS I have added your Mexican Drunk Pinto Beans they are FANTASTIC.
AngieG9 says
We had a huge family reunion in June of 2000, and my daughter emailed a member of each family on my mom’s side and asked them to get in touch with the rest of their families and send her recipes. My mom is one of 13 kids, so there are a lot of people involved in that effort. She got recipes from every family, several from most of them, and had a cookbook printed with recipes, memories, and old photographs that were passed out at the reunion. During all of this she and her family moved from Richmond, VA to Frankfort, KY, and she still got some of the best recipes from the entire family. Unfortunately only about 300 members were able to come to the reunion, but we had a wonderful time, and came away with cookbooks full of memories. There are only 3 “elders” still living now, my mom, one aunt and one uncle, and I have no idea how many cousins are out there, but at one time there were 72 first cousins, and someone said that the 300 who showed up for the reunion were about half of the family. I learned to cook by watching my mom and grandmothers on both sides cook, because they really didn’t have recipes as we know them, just a handful of this, a pinch of that, and to this day I find myself cooking the same way. I can and do follow recipes, but invariably will add my own pinches of this and that to them just because it is an ingredient I like.
Mary Jo says
Several years ago my sister also had everyone in the family send her their favorite recipes and made a note book for every family member. We have since added a number of new family members. I also like have the original hand written copies that my grandmothers and great grandmothers had. So my plans are to do a new cook book including both the typed copy of a recipe and the original handwritten one. I too will also add a few new recipes for each family member as some of us have found new favorites to go along with the tried and true!
Valorie Spanogle says
Judy this is a fantastic family history preservation idea. Love your blog! You are awesome, thanks for taking the time to keep us informed and entertained.