One of my favorite parts of the holidays is cooking, baking and entertaining. I love to spend time scouring my recipe files, cookbooks and the newspaper in search of new recipes to tempt and treat my family and friends. I'm always willing to try something new, but frequently fall back on old favorites. It's a custom I've learned from my mother, who is no slouch in the kitchen.
When I was first married, I worked in a very small office, there were only three of us. When we were discussing having a Christmas dinner, I volunteered to have my co-workers and their spouses over and prepare a dinner. My mother had a special pasta sauce recipe from the Silver Palate cookbook (one she added to my treasured collection for Christmas the next year) I wanted to use, so I called her to get the ingredients. Note, I called her. She lived five hours away, and there wasn't time for her to mail it to me. She recited the recipe over the phone, and I transcribed it on my end on a piece of scratch paper, using a shorthand system known only to me.
I eagerly shopped, chopped and prepared the meal, meticulously following the directions I'd copied down. While the pasta sauce was simmering and filling our apartment with yummy smells, I prepared the side dishes and set the table. My first dinner party as Sadie, Sadie, Married Lady. I was so excited.
Here's the problem with taking a recipe over the phone. There's a distinct chance you won't copy it correctly. Or, you might not be able to read your own writing. When I should have used 1/8 of a teaspoon of red pepper, I read one scant tablespoon of red pepper. Talk about heat. I'm pretty sure that Emeril stole his "kick it up a notch" tag line from me that night. There were six red faces around my table that night. Mine was the only one that color due to embarrassment.
The very next year, I made reservations for our Christmas dinner.
When I was first married, I worked in a very small office, there were only three of us. When we were discussing having a Christmas dinner, I volunteered to have my co-workers and their spouses over and prepare a dinner. My mother had a special pasta sauce recipe from the Silver Palate cookbook (one she added to my treasured collection for Christmas the next year) I wanted to use, so I called her to get the ingredients. Note, I called her. She lived five hours away, and there wasn't time for her to mail it to me. She recited the recipe over the phone, and I transcribed it on my end on a piece of scratch paper, using a shorthand system known only to me.
I eagerly shopped, chopped and prepared the meal, meticulously following the directions I'd copied down. While the pasta sauce was simmering and filling our apartment with yummy smells, I prepared the side dishes and set the table. My first dinner party as Sadie, Sadie, Married Lady. I was so excited.
Here's the problem with taking a recipe over the phone. There's a distinct chance you won't copy it correctly. Or, you might not be able to read your own writing. When I should have used 1/8 of a teaspoon of red pepper, I read one scant tablespoon of red pepper. Talk about heat. I'm pretty sure that Emeril stole his "kick it up a notch" tag line from me that night. There were six red faces around my table that night. Mine was the only one that color due to embarrassment.
The very next year, I made reservations for our Christmas dinner.
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