COOKBOOKS

I have a great passion for collecting and reading cookbooks. Yes, I know they are not the "normal" reading fare, but my mother had a wonderful collection and was a superb cook, and my sister, Jane, understands my addiction and collects and reads them too. It's always good to know you are not alone in your goofiness. I can always say "It's in my blood! I love cookbooks!"

My love of cookbooks probably began as a child of perhaps 10 years of age, when Mother sent me to a "Cooking School" sponsored by the local electric company. Classes were given in the home economics classroom in the high school. I still have the home-crafted booklet bound with yellow construction paper. It contained good solid recipes like Nut Luscious Cake with Peanut Butter Broiled Frosting, Barbecued Hamburgers, Quickie Pizza, Toasted Tuna Buns, Graduation Butterscotch Cookies and, of course, how to boil veggies and make mashed potatoes.

At the end of the week of cooking lessons, we were invited to create poems about cooking. I chose to create a poem about the electric company's mascot, Reddy Kilowatt. I won first prize which was a Reddy Kilowatt pin. He has a special place in my jewelry box to this day.

I had more cooking lessons with 4-H. I became adept at making fried Spam with Pineapple and frequently made it for our family. Today, I don't like Spam--I've become less accustomed to eating salty foods.

A project during my year with 4-H was to clip recipes from magazines and paste them into a small well-organized 3-ring binder. I think I finally threw it out after 30 years of no use. I do, however, enjoy reading food magazines as well as cookbooks. I rarely find any that I want to try, though because there always seems to be some wierd ingredient that I don't have in my cupboards.

Today I read recipes online as well as cookbooks. Somehow, online just isn't the same. I like those cookbooks that tell a little tale about each recipe. The recipe becomes personalized to me then. Often, too, I read the same recipe from different sources and creatively combine them into one recipe that I call "my version." I'm collecting these recipes in a file on my computer. No more using scissors and glue. I cut and paste the "easy" way. (But I think the other way is more fun!)

My fondest hope is that one of my granddaughters will enjoy reading all of my cookbooks and making my recipes some day!