Secret Family Recipes Help Create Longlasting Family Traditions

For Christmas, my Aunt gave me scanned copies of handwritten family recipes. For me this was one of the greatest gifts I could have ever been given. I have coveted these recipes for years and now, I can share them with my daughter.

As I spent two days of family holidays surrounded by the food of my childhood and new additions to our holiday table as the grandchildren (myself included) have grown into adults, raising our own families and creating our own traditions in the kitchen.This got me to thinking about my own daughter.

I remember one day after grocery shopping, I had promised to make a late breakfast of biscuits and gravy. As I began putting things away, my daughter put the items I needed to make the promised meal in front of me and said "I'll put the groceries away; you just cook." Of course, as a mom, this was a wonderful feeling but it's also very normal in my family.

My family cooks and we often cook together. During the holidays, we do it even bigger than the rest of the year as the family comes together, each person brings their own specialty dish. My Uncle usually makes the dishes that were once my grandparent's specialties and he adds his own secret recipe macaroni and cheese. My mother makes her famous fried chicken and this year there were new additions to the mix. I made cream puffs as had our great-grandmother many years ago, my sister made her pumpkin spice cupcakes and a new cousin made a chocolate éclair cake that I am determined to steal the recipe from her to make in my own kitchen.

As we all sat around and enjoyed the tastes of our childhood mixed with some new traditions at the table, we talked about those that had passed and now their dishes many years later are still required for every family get together . I watched my young nephews face fall in disappointment to realize that there was an empty pan when he went back for thirds or was it fourths? He had discovered grandma and grandpa's chicken paprikash and wanted more. He was assured that his grandma or Aunt would make it for him soon. The tradition carries on.

I wonder if parents know what they are truly creating as they bring their children into the kitchen to teach them how to make "secret" family recipes and share the stories of the Grandma and Grandpa's who first taught them how to make the dish?

There is a history, tradition and family in these dishes. The joy of being given those famous recipes in handwritten form is often the greatest gift of all for an adult child who takes pleasure in sharing those same memories with their own children as the years pass.

Take the time to share your stories, your recipes and your memories with your children because the day will come that they will consider those will be the gifts they remember the most and will pass onto their own children when the time is right.