Susie’s Heirloom

I’m particularly excited about our guest contributor this month.  Karen Solomon’s whimsically titled books Can It, Bottle It, Smoke It and Jam it, Pickle It, Cure It explore the world of DIY cooking.  They’ll be my guides this summer if my garden yields the extra required for putting-up (a first, but it’s looking rosy).

But Solomon’s piece isn’t about that. It’s about the cookbook she prizes most, an heirloom from her mother.  I have one like that from my mom, too.  It’s The Joyce Chen Cookbook, broken straight down the spine and well-yellowed with age.  But I don’t remember her using it much, and she passed away before she could ever teach me to cook.  (My own children, at least, will have many dog-eared treasures to choose from.)  I value it for even that tenuous connection, and envy Solomon her keepsake. 

What cookbook is your most prized bequest?  And which ones will go to your children, with stains, yellowed pages, and all your love? 

Read Karen Soloman’s story