I received a fun news release this week detailing the new events and activities at the Minnesota State Fair. There is always something new at the Great Minnesota Get- Together and it was fun to read what was in store for this end-of-summer celebration.
However, one “new” opportunity made me chuckle. No, it wasn’t the latest food-on-a-stick offering, although I’m sure there will be announcements of something novel and stomach turning soon. No, this was an event to be held in the Fair’s Creative Activities Building.
The news release detailed this year’s exciting “Recipe Card Roundup.” Apparently at this year’s fair the Recipe Card Roundup will give away six top ribbon-winning recipes from 2015: Zesty Salsa, Strawberry Jam, Banana Bread, Gluten- Free Pumpkin Bars, Apple Pie (filling and crust) and Chocolate Brownies. It went on to say that a limited quantity of these collectible cards would be given away each day.
Since I don’t have time to cook much anymore, this doesn’t really interest me. My dear husband Chuck has become a great cook and he does more than his share of preparing meals and baking goodies. If we get to the fair, I’ll have to make sure he stops by. There might be something he wants to try.
But the fair news release mention of recipe cards reminded me of a recent question from my 8-year-old granddaughter, AnnaBelle.
Our family was gathered for some occasion—a birthday or anniversary or something—and as usual, everyone was crowded into the kitchen. The old adage “No matter where I serve my guests; they seem to like the kitchen best” is certainly true at our house.
The conversation turned to favorite foods and someone asked for a recipe for something. I’m not even sure what the desired item was, whether it was a dessert or a casserole of some sort. But I went to a kitchen shelf and pulled out my recipe box. It’s a throwback to the ‘70s. It matches the brown appliances of that era and has a floral pattern that matches the Corningware casserole dishes that were popular then.
It was fun flipping through the index cards, remembering the things I used to fix when my boys were small. They have selective memory and will tell you that I don’t know how to cook. I will admit that as life got busier with work and raising those boys, dinners out of a box or frozen pizzas became more and more frequent. And in all the hustle and bustle, my cooking skills declined. One of their favorite jokes is that we know when dinner is ready when the smoke alarm goes off.
But I actually had quite the repertoire of recipes—the proof is in that little-used recipe box. There are recipes for treats such as caramel rolls, cream puffs, Okie cake, obst kuchen and “Great Cookies,” a chocolate chip cookie to die for. There are dinner recipes such as spaghetti pie, stuffed green peppers, porcupine meatballs, Korean short ribs, and a plethora of hot dish recipes. And there are lots of miscellaneous recipes for pancakes, quiches, Russian tea and more.
As I put the recipe box away, I reminded my sons that long ago, I did the majority of cooking in the house.
That is when AnnaBelle piped up. She had been listening to the discussion and watching me excitedly pull out the cards, calling out the names of old favorites. With a puzzled expression she asked, “What is that?”
“It’s my recipe box from when I used to cook,” I told her.
Still perplexed, she asked, “But what are those little cards?”
Her question stopped the conversation cold and we all had to laugh. We had to explain to AnnaBelle that the little cards were what we used before we could go online to look up recipes.
The conversation turned to our favorite internet recipe site and I forgot that my cute little box with its treasured recipes has become a relic.
Until the Minnesota State Fair brought up the subject again. Maybe it’s a case of “everything old is new again.” If the State Fair is giving out recipe cards, maybe the old school way of saving recipes is coming back into vogue. Maybe my recipe box isn’t an antique after all. It’s retro!
I read recipes the same way I read science fiction. I get to the end and say to myself, “Well, that’s not going to happen.” Rita Rudner
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