"Peter Aitken" wrote in message r.com...
"Laura" wrote in message
...
actually..I thought to myself upon reading it..'she buys it somewhere'!
just a thought..

--

Laura


Perhaps I am being too harsh, but I have always thought that refusing to
give someone a recipe, particularly a friend or family member, is
astoundingly petty and selfish. The only exception I can think of is if the
person who gave you the recipe asked you to promise not to give it out.
Otherwise it is really cheesy. It is hard for me to imagine having a life so
shallow and empty that having a "secret recipe" is so important.

Totally agreed. I mean, how passive-agressive can one get?
Sheesh. Get a freaking life.

-L.

.. I made a pecan pie, the recipe
of which I kick myself for losing, that had maple syrup in it.


The only pecan pie recipe I know of that uses real maple syrup is in
Mollie Katzen's Moosewood Cookbook. I don't make pecan pie often
enough, but when I do, that's the recipe I use.

When I was in college, some club or group had a pecan pie contest along
with other activities pertaining to homecoming day. The day for the
outdoor event turned out to be dismal and drizzly. It wasn't well
attended at all. There were about 10 entries in the contest. Mine lost
points for not being beautiful. I'd used a homemeade crust that came
out all lumpy, not beautifully fluted like the others. (That wasn't the
only flaw.) But everyone commented that mine tasted great. I came in
third and was very pleased. After the contest, I shared my pie with the
English department secretary, a wonderful woman who helped me out over
and over. We drank tea and had pie in her office while it drizzled
outside. Good memories.

--Lia

Julia Altshuler wrote:

. I made a pecan pie, the recipe
of which I kick myself for losing, had maple syrup in it.

The only pecan pie recipe I know of that uses real maple syrup is in
Mollie Katzen's Moosewood Cookbook. I don't make pecan pie often
enough, but when I do, that's the recipe I use.

Hey, that might be it! I didn't own a cookbook back then, and would have
used a recipe from a book in a kitchen of a big old Victorian house
where bunches of college students lived.
blacksalt
Who dissected her (dead) pet cat on the kitchen table of that house.

kalanamak wrote:

Hey, that might be it! I didn't own a cookbook back then, and would have
used a recipe from a book in a kitchen of a big old Victorian house
where bunches of college students lived.


When I wrote before, I did so without getting up to check the cookbook
in my kitchen. I've just done so now. The recipe on page 199 of
_Moosewood Cookbook_ by Mollie Katzen is for Maple-WALNUT pie, not
pecan. Since I learned to cook mostly in New Orleans, the substitution
must have been an obvious one. I also see where there's a handwritten
note to add the zest of an orange so apparently I thought it needed that
flavor the last time I made it.

--Lia

The Goods wrote:
A little background he

My mother-in-law has made a lovely white fruitcake for years. In fact, it
was a country fair prize winner. For several years I have repeatedly asked
her for the recipe, especially because my oldest son (HER grandson) likes it
and I would like to have it to pass on to him (you know - "here's your
grandmother's beloved fruitcake recipe", etc.). Well, for reasons known
only to her, she just smiles (smirks?) and says nothing (ok, maybe there are
some issues here). Imagine my surprise when her other daughter-in-law (the
"favorite") announced to me recently that MIL gave her the recipe ages ago
(and no, I will not ask SIL for the recipe - more issues). Okay, I give up.

You can't get someone else to quietly ask the MIL or SIL for the
recipe you want, then give it to you?

In article , kalanamak wrote:
Peter Aitken wrote:

Perhaps I am being too harsh, but I have always thought that refusing to
give someone a recipe, particularly a friend or family member, is
astoundingly petty and selfish.

No, you are not being harsh. It has never happened to me, but I'll
geared, now, to very politely and privately say "well, I find that
astoundingly petty and selfish" if I am every refused.

It could be a third-party problem.

A good friend of my family's has an OUTSTANDING fudge recipe
that she will NOT share. Fortunately, she makes it every
Christmas and passes tons of it out to us. (Well, not tons,
but it seems like it.)

As it turns out, she'd wheedled the recipe from a restauranteur
who was closing up shop, after giving him the solemn promise
that it would go no further. Not sure why, but that was the
deal -- and he died shortly afterwards. So I can understand
her refusal.

I just hope there's a copy in her safe-deposit box....

--
Mark Shaw contact info at homepage -- http://www.panix.com/~mshaw
================================================== ======================
"How can any culture that has more lawyers
than butchers call itself a civilization?" - Alton Brown

The Goods wrote:

Thanks for your help but, as you can see, I really don't think it would be
worth all the uproar. Instead I'll just serve my "banana bread with
cherries instead of nuts" again this year (sigh).

Jan


I use this recipe, but I also add chopped dried Turkish apricots, and
raisins, and chopped brazil nuts. Last time I made it I added some diced
prunes. Notice that there is no butter or shortening in this cake.
Sweetened dried pineapple works just as well as glasé pineapple, and
it's cheaper. Baste the cake with your favorite booze (brandy, armanac,
rum, applejack, whiskey, etc.) and wrap it in heavy duty aluminum foil.

I think you could just substitute raisins and apricots for the nuts if you
don't like nuts.

G'night John-Boy, ;-)
Bob


JUNE BENEFIELD'S CHERRY NUT CAKE
(I think my Mom copied this recipe from The Houston Chronicle)

1 pound candied cherries, cut in half (half red and half green is nice)
1 pound chopped pecans
1 pound dates,chopped
1/2 pound candied pineapple
Batter:
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
4 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder

Mix chopped fruits and nuts with 1/2 cup flour. Beat eggs. Add sugar,
remaining flour salt and baking powder. Beat slightly. Combine fruit-nut
mixture with batter. Mix with hands. (There's no other way to handle the
mass says June) Bake in a tube pan lined with two thickness of wax paper or
heavy brown paper that's been liberally greased. Bake 90 minutes at 325
degrees.

On Fri, 19 Dec 2003 16:40:33 GMT, "The Goods"
wrote:

Yes, I agree, but cooking was my MIL's main claim to fame (blue ribbons,
etc.) when she was living in her own home, so I suppose sharing the prize
winning fruit cake recipe is a big deal (as if my cooking skills would ever
tempt me to enter it in a competition. HA!) I am usually so thrilled when
anyone asks me for the recipe of something I have served them that I herd
them right out to the kitchen and make them sit there while I write it out
for them, giving tons of extra instructions in the margins.


You can always *guilt* it out of her by telling her that the family
won't be able to remember her as well without having the fruitcake
recipe

Taffy Stoker wrote:

On Fri, 19 Dec 2003 16:40:33 GMT, "The Goods"
wrote:

Yes, I agree, but cooking was my MIL's main claim to fame (blue ribbons,
etc.) when she was living in her own home, so I suppose sharing the prize
winning fruit cake recipe is a big deal (as if my cooking skills would ever
tempt me to enter it in a competition. HA!) I am usually so thrilled when
anyone asks me for the recipe of something I have served them that I herd
them right out to the kitchen and make them sit there while I write it out
for them, giving tons of extra instructions in the margins.

You can always *guilt* it out of her by telling her that the family
won't be able to remember her as well without having the fruitcake
recipe

I was just thinking , your mil just may not remember the recipe and her secrets
there of. My mil fooled us for years , until she was so bad we had to see she
had big problems. She had Alzheimer's disease. And we were upset at her more
than once about things we thought she was being unreasonable about. Looking
back we know she was not. Just didn't want us to know she was so forgetful.
Hugs ..... kate

"The Goods" wrote in message
...
I love this advice - it sounds like something I might be tempted to do.
However my MIL now lives in an assisted living building, where all her
meals
are prepared for her, so she does no cooking at all. And my SIL has no
children to baby-sit - one daughter all grown up. But I like the way you
think!!! Actually, this has become a family joke at our house - the
"sacred
fruit cake recipe" - its become kind of like the search for the Holy Grail
now. You really have to know my MIL to understand that this is so typical
of her - everything has always been a big secret. I just wanted a similar
recipe to serve her so I could tease her a bit. (And no, my husband is
executor of her will and there is no recipe revealed within.)

Thanks for the fun advice Lia.

Jan


If she's not allowed to bake at her apartment, why not invite her to your
home and ask her to bake it there? You could help her and watch what she
puts in it.

I would just try a number of white fruitcake recipes without the nuts (she
probably just omitted the nuts from the original recipe she used) and find
one that you and your family like. It may not be the same as hers, but you
may find one that is even better than what she makes. It would be fun
experimenting with different recipes.

rona

--
***For e-mail, replace .com with .ca Sorry for the inconvenience!***

"Kate ......" wrote in message
...
I was just thinking , your mil just may not remember the recipe and her
secrets
there of. My mil fooled us for years , until she was so bad we had to see
she
had big problems. She had Alzheimer's disease. And we were upset at her
more
than once about things we thought she was being unreasonable about.
Looking
back we know she was not. Just didn't want us to know she was so
forgetful.
Hugs ..... kate

You know, Kate, I started to think the same thing a couple of months ago.
She may very well not be able to remember it (she just turned 80). Sigh. I
think I'll let the whole thing drop, rather than cause her any
embarrassment. As someone else suggested, I'll just try out some new
recipes until I hit on something similar. Lord knows I could use the
practice.


Merry Christmas or Celebration of your Faith,
Jan

The Goods wrote:

"Kate ......" wrote in message
...
I was just thinking , your mil just may not remember the recipe and her
secrets
there of. My mil fooled us for years , until she was so bad we had to see
she
had big problems. She had Alzheimer's disease. And we were upset at her
more
than once about things we thought she was being unreasonable about.
Looking
back we know she was not. Just didn't want us to know she was so
forgetful.
Hugs ..... kate

You know, Kate, I started to think the same thing a couple of months ago.
She may very well not be able to remember it (she just turned 80). Sigh. I
think I'll let the whole thing drop, rather than cause her any
embarrassment. As someone else suggested, I'll just try out some new
recipes until I hit on something similar. Lord knows I could use the
practice.

Merry Christmas or Celebration of your Faith,
Jan

There ya go ! I bet if you get after it you will succeed. May even up her
recipe . Good luck and Merry Christmas. hugs , kate

I am so glad to hear the fruitcake recipe has become a joke in your
house. Your first message made it sound like the issues with your
mother-in-law were much more serious. Now it sounds more light hearted.

--Lia



The Goods wrote:
I love this advice - it sounds like something I might be tempted to do.
However my MIL now lives in an assisted living building, where all her meals
are prepared for her, so she does no cooking at all. And my SIL has no
children to baby-sit - one daughter all grown up. But I like the way you
think!!! Actually, this has become a family joke at our house - the "sacred
fruit cake recipe" - its become kind of like the search for the Holy Grail
now. You really have to know my MIL to understand that this is so typical
of her - everything has always been a big secret. I just wanted a similar
recipe to serve her so I could tease her a bit. (And no, my husband is
executor of her will and there is no recipe revealed within.)

Thanks for the fun advice Lia.

Jan

In article , zxcvbob
wrote:

The Goods wrote:

Thanks for your help but, as you can see, I really don't think it would be
worth all the uproar. Instead I'll just serve my "banana bread with
cherries instead of nuts" again this year (sigh).


My husbands grandmother was the gal who made the "Christmas Pudding"
every year and the year she moved into independant living, I made her an
offer.... I would continue her tradition of making the Christmas Pudding
on Thanksgiving weekend if she shared the recipe and if she came to help!

Now this woman is 94 and we've been making Christmas pudding together
for three years. She get's to pick out her choice of dinner (she's a
cheap date though, this year was hotdogs! LOL) and we make the pudding
(I have premeasured everything before she get's there, so all we have to
do is read the recipe.

She get's a bit tired now, but she's happy knowing her family is still
sharing her family recipe.

Ginners
--
Chris & Ginny

Chris Sargent wrote:


My husbands grandmother was the gal who made the "Christmas Pudding"
every year and the year she moved into independant living, I made her an
offer.... I would continue her tradition of making the Christmas Pudding
on Thanksgiving weekend if she shared the recipe and if she came to help!



What a VERY nice thing to do for Grandma. Kudos to you!

gloria p