New Family Cookbook

Cookbook

I decided what I am giving for Christmas presents. Are you impressed? You should be! No, really, it's not that impressive. I know there are some people who do their shopping on December 26, but I could never do that. How do you know what people will like in a year? Or what size will fit? Or if they decide to buy it for themselves? No, I usually start my holiday shopping in November and finish by mid-December. I hate last minute shopping. 

So here's what I have decided. I'm going to make little cookbooks of all our favorite family recipes to give to our extended family. So I can send them to Randy's siblings and my aunt and uncle. I may even give them to neighbors too. And as I was going through my recipes, Sarah asked if I would give her one too. 

Food is such a powerful way to stay connected. It seems like every major event in life occurs around food, with the exception of giving birth. Birthday parties have cake, Halloween has candied apples and trick or treat candy, Thanksgiving is the huge turkey dinner, July 4th has the cookout in the backyard, and Christmas would be incomplete without cookies for Santa. And it's not just in my family - every culture and every holiday has a food associated with it. 

Even on everyday occasions, it seems like nothing brings back the memories like food.  I remember the thousand-and-one variations on hamburger and rice my mom used to make for dinner, the sound and smell of reaching into the cookie jar for peanut butter cookies  at my grandma's house, the disgusting ground turkey and spinach meatloaf I made when we were first married and counting every penny. Today I could eat any of those foods again and it would take me right back to that particular time.

So my hope is that these cookbooks will provide a connection, more for my children than anyone else, that will bring back some happy memories or at least, provide a way for us to be at the dinner table with our family even though we're miles, sometimes countries away.

Just to get in practice, here's another recipe that my family (well, most of them) just love. I planned to make this for a party once but got my words tangled up. Since then it's become known at Tacken Chico Fingers. But you can call it:

Taco Chicken Fingers

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1/2 c. mayonnaise or Miracle Whip

3 Tb. milk

1 Tb. taco seasoning

1 bag (9 oz.) tortilla chips

Preheat oven to 425. Lightly grease baking sheet. Cut each chicken breast into 1/2 inch strips. In a large shallow bowl combine mayonnaise, milk, and taco seasoning until blended and smooth. Place tortilla chips in a ziploc bag and use a rolling pin to crush them into crumbs. Dip chicken first into mayonnaise mix, then into the bag. Shake bag until the chicken is well coated. Then place on baking sheet. Chill for 20 minutes. Then bake until browned and cooked through, about 10-12 minutes. Can serve with salsa or guacamole.

This makes a great appetizer, but when I make it, everyone except Will gobbles it down. It says on the recipe that it serves 10, but we can only get 4 servings out of it. You can also vary the recipe by using cheese crackers or even cornflakes instead of the chips and Italian seasoning instead of the taco seasoning, but we like the Mexican flavor best.

I will keep you posted about the cookbooks; meanwhile, if you really want one, let me know, and I'll get you a copy when they're ready. Just from picking out recipes, I can tell you that they will be lots of desserts and just a little of everything else, probably because I tend to make things up as I go based on what's in the fridge. Oh well. Dessert is the best part anyway!