Cake and Biscuits...

I think my selective memory may be worse than Jeff's. I don't remember details very well but many of the memories I do have of my childhood involve either making or eating food.  As everyone else has shared, I remember Jeopardy! and the "zings" from Dad about the food - maybe because it needed more barbecue sauce. And I'm glad that you can buy Sonny's now because nearly every other sauce is better than Bull's-eye (which I remember having frequently) in my mind.

I remember having superhero cakes as well, but I thought the batman cake was mine.  I think my favorite cake of all was a teenage mutant ninja turtle cake. I don't know why I was so fascinated with TMNT but I was and Mom was willing to make the cake to make my day a special one. As a parent now myself, I am amazed at the amount of time that Mom spent making our cakes.  When Annika decided that she was going to have a Cat in the Hat party for her 3rd birthday, we outsourced the cake making because we didn't think we'd have the time to make it and do everything else to get ready for the party. Yet every year, Mom had our cakes ready to go - whether the cake was a soccer ball, a TMNT, or another superhero. Annika's already let us know that her 5th birthday party will have a Paris theme - anyone want to make an Eiffel Tower cake for us? Mom?

The dish that I remember having most frequently was Chili Chicken Success. I just googled it and found that it is a common name.  I think I grew up thinking that Mom called it Chili Chicken Success because she could throw some chili and chicken in the crockpot and it was a success with both the kids and more importantly, Dad. I don't even know if it was made in a crockpot, but I remember a lot of crockpot chicken meals.

I liked Sunday dinners the best because I could help make dinner. I loved to make the biscuits. When dating Erica I think I could still make them without a recipe. I told her that I could never marry someone that can't make biscuits so I taught her how to make them. Unfortunately, we don't have them often and I'm now craving biscuits. When I met Erica's family, her Mom asked me if there was something that I would like to eat with dinner. Without hesitation, I asked for biscuits. Erica's family gave me some incredulous looks when I asked if they had any syrup. They took a liking to waffles with ice cream the next morning though.

So, I would like to thank you Mom for not only providing and accommodating our wants, but making it fun and allowing us to participate in the experience. You've done a great job teaching our kids in the same way you taught us - all three of my girls expect me to be able to teach them to draw because of the time that you spent teaching them. Annika asks to make Nani's cookies because of the times she spent making them with you. So, partly thanks to you, my kids are learning the skill that I mastered quickly - sprinting into the kitchen to eat desserts fresh out of the oven, a critical skill in any Holland household. In all seriousness, I really do appreciate the time that you spent with me - teaching me to cook and bake - and wish I could be making you a meal with biscuits tonight.  The first recipe I post on the blog will be the soup that you've asked about often.

I love you and Happy Birthday!

Brad

John's Food Memories

What foods come to mind when I think of my childhood? Biscuits and honey, mashed potatoes, salsa and chips on Sunday afternoons, and lots and lots of cookies.  I remember my teeth getting dyed black from the frosting on a soccer ball cake. I remember using the broth from black-eyed peas as gravy for potatoes even though I refused to touch the peas themselves. I even remember that the jalepeno kind made the best gravy.

Mom, you made us thousands of great meals over the years and fulfilled countless orders. Looking back, the atmosphere that you created with those meals was more important than the dishes themselves. There was a family dinner every night, no matter how busy you or the kids were. Those dinners left a deep impression on us all- you need not look farther for evidence than our bizarre family habit of hooking our elbows around the backrest of the chair when we're done eating. 

There was a lunch packed for me every day up through my senior year of high school. I can't tell you how jealous all of my friends were that my mom still packed lunches for me. A sandwich, an apple, fruit snacks, and a drink were waiting for me every morning. My favorite cereal was always in the pantry, seemingly in an infinite supply. The milk was always in the fridge, just as infinite as the cereal. Only now do I really understand that those things run out, and fast. 

Mom, your work keeping us all feed as what made our house a home. We always congregated around the food, most of the time devouring it in minutes. Remember when Tammy came to meet the family and brought a decorative box full of gummy snacks? She was shocked that we polished them all off in a matter of minutes. I remember how I used to eat the frosting off of cakes, Wendy would eat the crust, and Brad would eat the middle. I'm grateful for all of the work you did for us, I wish we had thanked you more at the time. Hopefully, this blog will help you see some of the influence you had on us.

Happy birthday!

Love, 

John

Sweet Memories

Happy birthday, Mom!  When Andrea made Reid’s and Grant’s fire truck birthday cake this year, it brought back fond memories of the birthday cakes you made for us.  Other than the superheroes from cake molds and perhaps a few sports balls here and there, the specific cake designs have faded from memory.  What has stayed with me is the care that went into them, the effort to create something special for me, and successful results (not to mention the lifelong love of desserts).  I realize now as I didn’t then that it was never about the cake, it was about the relationship it represented.  So thank you, Mom.  I wish we there to make you a cake for your birthday.

The back reads, "Frequent helper in the kitchen."

 And it’s because of you that I am able to make a cake.  I seem to recall a stretch in middle school when I was making a white cake with some sort of add-in on a weekly basis, usually coinciding with Seinfeld on Thursday nights (which I’m not sure you ever watched).   In addition to cake, there are the cookies, brownies, cinnamon rolls (pattern, anyone?), bread, biscuits, chicken—just about anything, really.  Put a recipe in front of me, I can make it.  Without a recipe, I’m happy to experiment.  I remember adventurous left-over experiments on Sunday afternoons when the Saturday pizza was gone, and always accompanied by salsa and chips.  I’m grateful for the time we spent in the kitchen together—for the skills it imparted, but also for the quality time itself.  I find myself doing the same thing with my children.  Just this morning, Reid helped me make pancake batter before everyone else woke up.  Yesterday, both Reid and Grant helped make blueberry muffins.  Last week, it was snickerdoodles.  The cycle continues.  I hope they find the same pleasure in it that I did as they sneak bites of dough, lick the batter off spoons, and watch a little work produce delicious results.

Reid and Grant "helping" in August 2011.

Because of you, making and eating food is a family experience for us.  We’ve tried to replicate our practice of family meals.  Those were often the best of times, and only occasionally the worst of times.  Once again, my memories are less about the food served than the family time—the laughing, teasing, joking…criticizing—and Jeopardy!  But I do remember the food.  I recall chicken.  Lots of chicken.  Cajun chicken (with barbecue sauce, of course), barbecue chicken, chicken casserole, cashew chicken, chicken chili surprise, and more.  I’m still a fan.  And then there were the ever-present mashed potatoes, black-eyed peas, green beans, which will forever have a place in my heart.  As for our lives in general, you provided a good, solid, comforting foundation to build on.  Or, if you will, a nice springboard for pursuing our own interests.

So thank you, Mom, for teaching me and inspiring me.  Thank your for the memories and for the memories my family will have as a result.  Happy birthday!