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Scroll through to see some of Grammy's handwritten recipe cards
Pie Crust
"I loved the way Jean honored her mother, Grammie Deena, in a similar way when she was alive. She organized a pie-baking seminar for Deena to instruct us all in her pie-baking expertise. This was a birthday celebration, and Jean wrote the invitation, as always, in poetry, transcribed the directions and gave them to everyone as a memento of the day. Another lovely gesture was having Grammie Deena teach her both strudel and fledel recipes, both exceedingly complicated techniques. After mastering these, Jean made them often. It is and was such a way for Jean to honor her mother, and a meaningful way to continue the tradition. It is in the same vein that you chose to honor your Grammie Jean with this project, and help these memories extend into future generations."
- Susan Serota, March 30th, 2020
"While I have only made this recipe two or three times, I love having it in my recipe box and knowing the significance of it as it further solidified our strong family bond! I love that it’s printed on pink paper and I think that’s because Great Grammie loved that color."
- Pam King, March 31st, 2020
Cheesecake Tarts
"I have fond memories of my mom making these sometime before the holiday started, or perhaps on erev Rosh Hashanah, and then having a big open house the afternoon of the first day of the holiday where our family members, particularly my dad's family, and our neighbors would come over. It was a very joyful time. I remember feeling that this holiday was somehow hosted by our family, or that we were somehow responsible for it. Such as, "And you shall make a beam of four cubits from hewn cedar wood, upon which should be placed a platter of cherry cheesecake tarts."
She would usually make the cheesecake tarts in a muffin tin, and each would be baked in a fluted paper muffin cup. I can picture the yellow tart in a light blue paper muffin cup, with a red cherry on top and the brown, crumbly graham cracker crust around the edges. They would be arrayed on a glass platter of some kind, with a fancy doily, often in a very elegant pattern with small squares of brownies with powdered sugar and other delicacies that she had baked. I can picture them sitting on the wooden cabinet in the dining room, next to the copper and black plastic coffee mugs and trays, which I still have in my office as a memory of those days...
I am often overcome by the way people are able to affect (or limit!) the quality of the day. My hero Henry Thoreau said "to affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts." I think my mom's cheesecake tarts were just that- a beautiful expression of how to affect the quality of the day for our friends, neighbors, and family. Somehow she did all of that with all of the other things she was doing and she made it look effortless and artistic. And of course, they were wonderful.
Those days seem like yesterday but also like a lifetime ago. The tarts, the paper muffin cups, the platters and the plastic coffee cups, the whole perishable enterprise created such an unforgettable moment that will last forever and thus became unperishable."
- Irwin Goldman, March 31st, 2020
Apple Sauce
I remember Grammy making this applesauce for me and my cousins when we were little. Colored with cinnamon candies, the sauce turns a vibrant red color during the cooking process. It becomes so sugary that it also turns into the perfect dessert. It's warm and sweet and just a little spicy, and you won't be able to get enough. A Grammy classic!
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