We have officially moved over to our new house now, with almost all of the essentials moving with us, (the coffeepot, kitties, and bed), but we don’t have internet yet. It’s startling to realize how attached I am to constantly checking Facebook, Pinterest, Gmail, etc. On Sunday I really wanted to lounge around and watch a movie, even without Netflix I knew our DVD collection had been moved, but without a TV, DVD player or computer, I had no way to play the DVDs. So instead I wandered into the kitchen to organize the disaster I’ve created  by throwing the boxes haphazardly into cabinets (there are at least 3 cabinets with cups in them because I’m not sure yet where their permanent home should be). What I found was all the recipe books I’d been given; some when I first moved out of my parents home and others when I got married. I’ve browsed through them several times when I’ve wanted a specific recipe my family uses, but never for any other purpose. If I needed a general recipe, one my family doesn’t make, I simply Googled one. But without internet to occupy my time I found myself flipping through the cook books.

At first I found myself wondering, who even has cookbooks anymore? I certainly never use these. And then I thought, these are pretty interesting, in an antique way, something you might collect that are no longer used. A cute assortment to show off in your kitchen to add a touch of country living, like people have old butter churns and milk bottles. After awhile though I found some recipes that looked pretty good, and was something that I’d never made before. I grabbed a pen and paper to write down the page number (and of course a glass of wine, too). Soon, my paper was full, and I was actually reading each page of the cookbook.

“This dish is fun to eat right out of the skillet (although a nicer platter may be used for company).” Someone actually wrote this in the cookbook! Like they were explaining to their daughter how to cook this recipe, and that she should use her nice Corning Ware when someone is visiting. I just found it so hilarious. There were several entries like this, obviously little old women explaining how they made their favorite family dish, step by step, to someone who couldn’t cook. I can imagine them being asked to contribute a recipe to their local cook book and realizing that the best recipes they know aren’t written down, and they’re probably thinking that the people that buy this cookbook, don’t really know how to cook, so their recipe should be simply laid out step by step for the poor city folks that don’t know how to make apple strudel or homemade noodles.

I carefully marked all my favorite pages and stacked them nicely in a cabinet on their designated shelf. I had no idea I’d find such joy in old recipes, but I’ll definitely be saving these in a safe place.