Me: "I don't often cook but I'm going to quick look through my mom's recipe cards and see if I can find that specific recipe"
Me, 15 minutes later, sobbing: "Love is stored in handwritten recipe cards"
No but for real. Handwritten recipe notes like:
"Kenny's Favorite" "Bake for 45 minutes BAKE FOR 35 MINUTES" "This is from Suzy, back when we lived in St. Louis!" "VERY GOOD!!" (this card had oil stains and ancient bits of dough stuck to the back of it) "Great for dinner parties, can be made ahead of time" "Add some vanilla" with an additional note in different handwriting, "2 tsp vanilla" "I use butter, but Grandpa Rudy uses lard" "Love you! Gramma Emy"
Seeing the handwriting and messages from those no longer with us, or people who I haven't seen for a decade, or even people I never knew but who clearly shared in loving the same people I do - there is an inherent love in sharing food, and personal recipes are a way of saying, "Here. I can't always be with you, but I want you be able to eat well. I hope this food will keep you as happy as you were when I made it for you." And they remind us of all the people who have ever made or shared those meals with us. And love is stored in handwritten recipe cards.
