Sandy's Recipe Book - The Debut & First Recipe (Sour Cream Coffee Cake)

This time of year has become increasingly difficult for me. The couple of weeks leading up to Mother's Day and then the actual day on Sunday--it's a lot. Advertisements for gift ideas in my email, on tv, in the stores, on social media. The card aisle lined with glittery pink and purple designs filled with words I wish I could say to my mom. The posts on social media from friends and companies. I dread it and just want the day to be over. You'd think it would get easier as time goes on, but grief is a funny thing. Hilarious, in fact.

The past two years on the Saturday before Mother's Day I've participated in a Zoom call for motherless daughters, hosted by Hope Edelman who authored a book many years ago by that name. I was so moved last year to be in the company of hundreds of women who get what it is to lose their mom, whether it was 60 years ago or just a few weeks ago.

In the call this year, Hope suggested that we think about a characteristic of our mom that we'd like to emulate and then, on Mother's Day weekend, pursue that trait for ourselves as a tribute to our mommies. She used the example of how her own mother was essentially a professional volunteer; she had many passions that she spent donating her time to during her life. 

When I think of my own mom and her personality, naturally, a lot of things come to mind. There are two characteristics that stand out, though. She was so skilled at friendships and relationships. (I do not necessarily take after her in this way, unfortunately. My brother has this gene, though.) She loved entertaining her family and friends, and talking on the phone to maintain connection. The other thing she loved was whipping up a good meal or a tasty treat and bestowing it on others. She was world-renowned for her baking. My dad made copies of her recipe book after she died and shared it with those closest to us. It's a recipe book compiled by her with all the fan favorites and family go-tos.

Here's the clip art cover of the beloved cookbook.

So I asked myself, how do I emulate my mom in an effort to honor her memory? I decided I would spend a few hours on actual Mother's Day with my dad this year because I know she'd want me to do better at maintaining that relationship and connection.

But I was thinking more about what I could do with her love of cooking and baking. I do make my fair share of treats for myself and others, so to some extent I have this in common with my mom. (I'm not nearly as gifted as she was at it, though.) 

Then an idea dawned on me. What if I made every recipe in her recipe book? One recipe per week. And then what if I shared the recipe and wrote about any memories I have with that particular item?

I liked the idea for several reasons. I've used the recipe book quite a bit over the years but I usually stick to the same few items, so making everything will give me the opportunity to try and learn new things. It'll give me something to write about and I always love a structured writing assignment. It might be a bit of a creative outlet for me. And, most importantly of all, I'll perhaps feel more connected to her.

So this is what I'll endeavor to do! I counted how many recipes are in the book and it's over 100, so this would take over two years to complete. I love the idea and want to fully do it, but I'm not going to put pressure on myself about it. It's just something that will hopefully be fun. 

So without further ado, welcome to the first post for Sandy's Recipe Book: A Nostalgic Journey Through My Mom's Curated Cookbook.

Yes, I made a theme banner. 😁

Originally I wanted to do a methodical trek through the cookbook, starting at the beginning with the very first recipe. I love the organization of that, but also I didn't want to start with apple dip. 😂 Coffee cake has been sounding good to me for a while and I haven't made one in years, so we're going to begin here with...

Sour Cream Coffee Cake

Recipe from: Pam Floyd (a family friend for decades)

Directions:

• Grease and flour 13 x 9 pan
• Mix by hand:
• 1 cup softened butter
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• Mix above and add 2 eggs, then stir in:
• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• Mix together filling:
• 8 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• Put half of batter in pan and top with half of filling; repeat
• Bake at 350° for 40 minutes

Growing up, this was a weekend treat that mom would make for us once in a while. This could definitely be a dish to bring to a breakfast potluck at work. It's not the most beautiful thing ever, but those who try it would thoroughly enjoy it!

I had never made this before and it was easy! When I say something is simple, please know that it really is because I don't have any skill and can screw things up in an astonishingly quick fashion. I actually used my hands to mix the butter and sugar at the beginning and that was probably the right thing to do, though super messy. I'll use a stand mixer next time for the batter. It's so tasty! It obviously doesn't have a sour cream taste; it's just there to make the cake moist. The cinnamon sugar crisps up nicely to give it a bit of texture. Delightful to heat up in the micro. 😊

Thanks for joining me in this first post. I promise the rest of them won't be this long!