My paternal grandmother, Jean “MawMaw” Andrews was a wonderfully sweet grandmother. She lived next door to me growing up in Siler City, NC. She cared for myself and younger brother for years. I have such sweet memories of her. After her passing, my aunt found only a handful of written recipes (grandmothers didn’t need recipes!). She gave me a copy and wished me the best as I had just started my freshman year of college. Unfortunately, we do not know the true origin of the recipe, but I like to think that she wrote it herself with her family in her mind and in her heart.
Also, it literally wasn’t until now that I realized that not all ingredients are used in the directions and vice versa. Can’t believe I overlooked that for over 19 years.
A Happy Home Recipe (From Angel Andrews Dwyer)
Ingrediants:
4 cups of love
2 cups of loyalty
3 cups of forgiveness
1 cup of friendship
5 spoons of hope
2 spoons of tenderness
4 quarts of faith
1 barrel of laughter
Instructions:
Take love and loyalty,
mix thoroughly with faith.
Blend it with tenderness,
kindness, and understanding.
Add friendship and hope.
Sprinkle abundantly with laughter.
Bake it with sunshine. Serve daily
with generous helpings.
Catherine Tutor
My great-grandmother Zelma Kiser Pope was the quintessential southern matriarch. She sewed beautiful clothes and quilts, grew beautiful flowers, and baked delicious desserts. She loved her children and grandchildren fiercely and taught us all the value of family. I remember as a young child eating her pound cake with a mound of fresh strawberries while visiting her in Florida. She was infamous for many desserts, depending on who you talk to, but my favorite will always be her pound cake. Even using her pan and following her recipe to a tee, I can’t get it quite as perfect as she could, but it brings to mind fond memories of a sweet lady and her lasting legacy.
Pound Cake (Zelma’s Recipe)
3 ¼ C. Flour
¾ tsp. Baking powder
½ tsp. Salt
3 C. Sugar
6 eggs
1 C. butter Crisco
1 stick butter
2 tsp. Vanilla
2 tsp almond flavoring
1 C. milk
Beat together Crisco, butter, sugar. Add eggs one at a time. Beat well each time. Beat in flour mixture. Bake at 325 for one hour and fifteen minutes.
Karyn Mulligan
My Aunt Jenny (right) spent most of her time baking. There were several cookies that even as kids we loved, and after she passed away in 2001 at the age of 94, we bake these yummy little biscuits every Christmas. They are not real sweet, and when they are baking the smell is incredible – from the wine, of course!
Aunt Jenny’s Wine Biscuits
1C oil
1C sugar
1C red wine
6 tsp. Baking powder
4-5 C. flour
Mix all ingredients and then add flour one cup at a time until you form a soft dough.
Knead and roll dough. Make a 2-inch roll and cross the ends. Dip in colored sugar and bake at 350 for 15 minutes.
Ashley Glueck Sigmon
My Great Great Aunt Loretta, known to us as Auntie Ret, brought to our family a little taste of our German heritage. The day after Christmas, the entire family would gather at her home for dinner. Without fail, this German Potato Salad recipe would be on the table for us all to enjoy! When she passed away at the age of 99, my grandmother took over the tradition. Like most women, she modified the original recipe just a tad. It is now my honor to share this wonderful recipe with my family throughout the holiday season, and yes, I too have made my own little adjustments to the family recipe.
German Potato Salad
4 strips Bacon
Add: 1 C. water
1 C. vinegar
¼ C. sugar
1/8 tsp. Pepper
1 tsp salt
3 tabs of parsley
Thicken above with 1 tsp. of cornstarch
One onion
10 potatoes (put in skillet)
Liisa Dutilly-Davis
I have a great recipe that has been in my family forever, but it’s a Quebecois thing! Very Canadian and brought to the States through my Grandmother! It’s usually served Christmas Eve, but it’s special to the Canadians during the holidays for sure!
Tourtière [a specialty meat pie from the Lac-Saint-Jean region] is undoubtedly the dish that is most emblematic of the Province of Quebec. Although it is less a part of the daily diet today than in previous decades, it is still served and enjoyed on special occasions-particularly during the holiday season.
Tourtiere
1 ½ lbs of beef, pork, veal
2 lg. Potatoes, chopped
1 lg. Onion, chopped
½ C. beef broth
1 clove of garlic or powder
1 bayleaf
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp ginger
½ tsp pepper
dash of cloves
In large skillet, cook meat. Drain. In a saucepan, combine potatoes, onions, beef broth, bayleaf, and garlic. Bring to a boil and simmer 10 minutes. Do not drain.
Remove bayleaf. Mash potatoes and onions and add meat. Add salt, ginger, pepper and cloves.
Set aside or refrigerate till next day.
Make Pie Crust:
2 C. flour
2 tsp. Baking powder
½ tsp. Thyme
¼ tsp salt
2/3 C. shortening
Mix all together until size of small peas
1 egg, beaten
¼ C. cold water
1 tsp lemon juice
Whisk egg, water, and lemon juice together till well blended.
Sprinkle egg mixture over flour mixture 1 tbsp at a time.
Toss gently with a fork.
Divide in half. Roll out on floured surface. Place one crust in bottom of deep pan, fill pan with meat/potato mixture, and place second crust on top. Pinch edges.
Bake at 400 for 30 minutes. Reduce heat to 350, cook another half hour until crust is golden. Brush egg wash or milk over top of pie crust before baking to glaze pie.
Barb’s Granddaughter
Barbara Koblich
Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1 egg
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
Chocolate “kiss” candies
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two cookie sheets with Reynolds(R) Parchment Paper.
Beat the shortening and peanut butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add the brown sugar, baking powder, and baking soda. Beat until combined, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally. Beat in the egg, milk, and vanilla until combined. Beat in as much of the flour and cocoa powder as you can with the mixer, using a wooden spoon at the end if necessary.
Place the granulated sugar in a small bowl. Shape the dough into 1-inch balls. Roll the balls in sugar to coat. Place the balls 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheets.
Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until edges are firm. Immediately press a chocolate candy into the center of each cookie. Slide the parchment with the cookies on it to a wire rack; cool completely.
