Martha Storey - 500 Treasured Country Recipes from Martha Storey and Friends. Mouthwatering, Time-Honored, Tried-And-True, Handed-Down, Soul-Satisfying Dishes

This book is lovingly dedicated to my mother,
Elizabeth Mullendore, known as Mimi to her 11 grandchildren and
17 great-grandchildren. She taught me not only how to cook but how
to be a strong partner in a marriage, how to build a warm and
comfortable home, and how to raise a loving and happy family.
She was an example of boundless creative energy.
Best of all, she was my friend.

My mother in her kitchen

N othing brings family and friends together more easily and genuinely than the sharing of a meal. My family has always made taking the time to slow down and break bread together a high priority. But as the pace of modern life has quickened, many find that fast food is replacing slow food, and home-cooked meals become exceptional rather than routine.

While pulling my favorite recipes together for this book, I found that they evoked special feelings as I rediscovered them. Wonderful moments from the past came flooding back when I talked with my relatives. Each recipe sparked a vivid memorythe smell of a garlic-laced roast lamb took me back to many Easter Sundays; the wafting aroma of fresh bread baking reminded me of the Texas home of my childhood; and the toasty scent of corn bread browning transported me to summer at the farm.

One great joy of preparing this book was that I found myself sharing memories more frequently with Mother. As I gathered recipes, I began consulting with her several times a week and, as we neared the end of the project, several times a day. We laughed out loud when we remembered the time that my brother Joe was in such a hurry to get home for dinner that he walked directly into the lamppost in front of our house and knocked himself out cold! We fondly recalled Daddy shaving every last morsel off the Thanksgiving turkey carcass for delicious sandwiches and then making soup that lasted for days. In these conversations, we revived family lore that otherwise I would not have passed along to my children, Jennifer, Jessica, and Matthew.

With John at the farm.

My project and our reminiscing got Mother talking more about her own mother, Nora Carter Minchey, who taught her to cook in the early part of the 20th century. Now it is my pleasure to pass on third-generation recipes to my grandchildren at the beginning of the 21st century.

Over the years, Ive also learned about my husband Johns favorite foods from his mother, Helen Frances Huntsberger, who was a great cook. Her handwritten recipe cards remain treasures in my country kitchen in our home in Williamstown, Massachusetts.

The family recipe collection, which includes favorites titled after my childrens names for their grandparentson my side, Mimi and Grandpa, and on Johns side, MomMom and PopPophas expanded as each generation has grown up and started its own homes and food traditions. My sister, Margie, and brothers, Charles and Joe; Johns sisters, Helen and Judy; and our childrens spouses have all given me recipes that have found their way onto my familys table and into this compendium.

Some may find this cookbook a bit old-fashioned. Its meant to be. I strongly believe that passing along the arts, crafts, and skills of country cooking is an obligation, lest our heritage be lost as memories fade. Do-it-yourself techniques making cheese, churning homemade ice cream, and tapping trees for making maple syrupare certainly not necessary today. In most places, one can run out to a store; buy cheese, ice cream, or maple syrup; and be home in a matter of minutes. But slowing down, using nearly forgotten implements, and sharing the processes with family and friends bring us remarkable satisfaction, whether we are creating special foods and preserves for ourselves or as gifts. And each season brings a different opportunity: the first asparagus stalks pushing up in the spring; the unforgettable aroma of campfire cooking in the summer; a cider pressing in the fall with apples picked from our own trees; ice fish pulled from Lake Champlain, near our farm in New Yorks Champlain valley, in the winter.

In this book, we offer you dozens of family recipes. But this project couldnt have happened without an even larger circle: coworkers, neighbors, and personal friends whose culinary creations have made their way into my collection over the years.

Ive also chosen for inclusion in this book many of my favorite recipes, tips, and techniques from the talented authors and experts whom we have been fortunate to find over the years to share their knowledge with readers of Storey books. John and I founded our company, known today as Storey Publishing, in 1983 to bring to others our passion for country living. It has been a labor of love made easier by the quality of the authors and employees who have been a part of Storey. You may read about many of the authors whose work is included in Contributors, .