Dear Family,

Kids, this is for you. Family, this is for you too.

When Kaitlin asked for the Cranberry Fluff recipe that we have at every holiday meal, I searched my recipe box for it. While searching through the recipe cards, each one handwritten by someone who thought the recipe needed to be recorded, I thought of what a treasure that recipe box is for our family.

Many of the recipes were given to me by family and friends. You never knew your grandma Doris, but in my recipe box her handwriting is preserved along with the recipes she gave me, ones she knew your dad would like for me to have. 

Great-Grandma Winnes was a great hostess. She would always have baked goods ready for company. We spent an afternoon together, pouring over her recipes spread across the dining room table, recording our favorites for my recipe box. Each time I see a recipe written in her handwriting, I think of that afternoon. The checkerboard birthday cakes you remember were a tradition of hers.

Meals are memories. The food itself may bring to mind a memory, but also the times around the table. Saying the favorite part of the day. Telling the birthday person something you appreciate about them. Returning thanks. 

Today it's so easy to search the internet for recipes, and I often search the internet instead of my recipe box. But when I go into this box I find recipes for things I searched for and wonder why don't go to my recipe box more often. Here, through the convenience of the internet, I thought I would share with you the recipes I collected in my recipe box. It's a collection of our favorites, tried and saved to make again. 

With love,

Mimi