“If you do not know where you come from, then you don’t know where you are, and if you don’t know where you are, then you don’t know where you’re going. And if you don’t know where you’re going, you’re probably going wrong.” Therry Pratchett

This section is dedicated to the women that shaped my existence since the day I was born: my Mom and my Grandmothers. Thank you!

The history

Many of my childhood memories are food related. Setting up the table was a ritual that was performed on a daily basis and it needed to be great, and made with care. Every year, preparing food was a complex process, like an incantation that outsiders were not allowed to interrupt, especially during the days before Christmas or Easter. My Mom would create celebration menus and then proceed in preparing the feast, down to the last detail, so that on the day of the event itself everything was perfect and ready, no last minute changes or fix-ups. It was always a matter of endurance, strength and a lot of work on my Mother’s part, but in the end it was one of the best memories over the Holidays.

I remember one time I decided to help out with the desert and I decorated the cake at the last minute, but people were coming to kitchen and were “witnessing” the decorating process, and that was not allowed, so Mom would chase everyone away saying “If you see everything, how on Earth will you be surprised? Get out and let us finish”. The surprise would always be both visual and palatable, and receiving appreciation for the work was usually the best reward.

Growing up, I noticed there was this huge notebook, with carton sleeves that hung around the kitchen a lot,  next to the cook books my Mom used to get inspiration from. The funny part was that I never really saw her write stuff down in that notebook, but now I consider it a family treasure.

The present

Much later I found out that the notebook had over 400 recipes that had been collected by my Grandma and then my Mom over time. Each recipe written there had been tried on and perfected, from ingredients to method and presentation, and to me, it is a small piece of cooking history. This notebook is actually the groundwork for my past, current and future food projects, in short, for my baking addiction.

The first recipe in the book was written by my Grandma. It is dated November 30, 1954 and it’s a cake for my Dad’s birthday, on his first birthday.  I’ll share it with you guys later, in a separate post.

Baker’s Journal will be a collection of recipes from my Gran, Mom and myself. I’ll have a blast making each of them, and I hope you like it.  Also, I’d love to hear all about your family legacy in a comment below!

Don’t forget: Give. Take. Recreate!

P.S: Yes, the baby girl in the photo is me 🙂 I was not really excited to pose at that age and it is still a habit.