Lunch with the Sisters

Last week Lucie's sisters gathered for lunch at my parents' house. They brought along their stories and answers to many of my questions, and better yet, Aunt Ilene brought a stack of recipes! A couple were Lucie's originals, saved over the decades in my grandmother's original handwriting:

Lucie's Salad Dressing Cake was a family favorite. I also found out that Sunshine Cake, one recipe in the notebook, was always made on childhood birthdays.

An original recipe page with recipes for Molasses Cookies and Noodles. I love the food stains-- proof that they were used over and over again. And note the options for flavoring "based on what you had to use", according to my Aunts.

But the best find of the day was Lucie's chart for everyday baking. It's a simple 5-ingredient cheat sheet for biscuits, shortcake, meat piecrust, and dumplings:

Cool, eh? I need this in my life, and so do you. Here's a printable version.

So thank you Aunt Helen, Aunt Sally, Aunt Ilene, and Mom for your time this afternoon. And Aunt Alice and Aunt Edna, you were missed (but I enjoyed your creamed corn Edna!). Stay tuned for more stories about the women behind the recipes.