Introduction

I first started the family cookbook more than 15 years ago to organize my collection of recipes hand-written on scraps of paper, cookbooks in which I used only one or two recipes, and recipes I'd ripped out of newspapers and magazines. I didn't envision it being a heritage project; it was Bill who saw the big picture. The grandmothers in the family were all getting older, and he suggested that I collect and record their best recipes to keep them from being lost forever. I'm glad I did it. The grandmothers are all gone now, but they left us a legacy of their love expressed as food for the soul and the body.

A few words are in order about the contributors.

bullet Clara Porter (1910-1998) was my mother. She wasn't fond of cooking, but her one recipe is a gem: applet candy. I modified the recipe one time to make cotlets using canned apricots.
 
bullet Holly Ojendyk is my daughter-in-law. She's married to Bill's oldest son, Dave, and lives in Benecia, California.
 
bullet Penny Ostrander is my brother Len's wife and my sister-in-law. Penny and Len live in Midlothian, Illinois, a suburb south of Chicago.
 
bullet Delphine Ojendyk (1911-1998) was Bill's mother. Delphine's area of expertise was food from the Heartland. I have never been able to duplicate her fried chicken or her pie crust, even though she tried to teach me many times.
 
bullet Sharon Plesha is Bill's sister and my sister-in-law. Sharon and her husband, John, live in Coquitlam, British Columbia, a suburb of Vancouver.
 
bullet Paul Berry is Sharon's son-in-law. He is married to Cindy, Sharon's older daughter. Paul and Cindy live in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia.
 
bullet Frances Franciscovich (d. 1997) was Sharon's mother-in-law. Frances was born in Croatia, and her specialty was home-made apple strudel.
 
bullet Judy Jean Sender is Frances' step-daughter. Her husband, Roy, also contributed a recipe to the cause. Judy and Roy will soon by living in Tucson.
 
bullet Zlata was Roy's mother and Judy's mother-in-law. I only met her once, and I never knew her last name. She died a couple of years before Delphine and Frances Franciscovich died.
 
bullet Frances Ojendyk (1921-1975) was Bill's aunt.
 
bullet Judy Nice is Frances Ojendyk's daughter. Judy lives in Kirkland, Washington.
 
bullet Lana Ojendyk is the wife of Bill's cousin, Gary. She lives in Mercer Island, Washington.
 
bullet Blanca Goņi was our exchange student from Spain. She introduced us to Spanish food and taught me how to flip a tortilla espaņola without breaking it. Blanca lives in Madrid with her husband, Miguel Angel.

I've updated and added to the family cookbook so many times I've lost count-I've even published many of the recipes on the Internet. These recipes are all tried and true family favorites made in real kitchens by real women-and a couple of real men.

Seize the moment. Remember all those women on the Titanic who waved off the dessert cart.

Erma Bombeck