Tried and True

While I never truly knew my Dad's mother, I feel like I do through all of the stories shared with me.  Dozens of times, my parents have remarked on the delicious meals she created in her kitchen and her warm graciousness as a host.  I share some of her physical traits, but hope that those qualities her loved ones recall so fondly have been passed onto me, even in some small way.

For our one year wedding anniversary, my mom gifted us {really me} with a recipe box, in line with the traditional paper gift for the first anniversary.  To some, this may seem like an antiquated gift in the digital age, but it held such significance to me.  Many years previous, my mom had commented how her mother-in-law dutifully noted on each of her tried-and-true recipes, "Freddie's favorite birthday cake, double the recipe, extra nuts."  With my mom's gift, I decided to try my hand at this, keeping track of all of our favorites, with hand-written notes just like my grandmother.  Two years later, our recipe box contains insight to our dining table - tested and tasted recipes from cookbooks that adorn our shelves, from a wealth of websites, and of course handed down from family members.  
Recently, my dear friend Rebecca and I ventured to a New York City foodie mecca, ABC Kitchen {visit her blog for all of the delicious tidbits from our dining experience}.  Simply divine, but not highfalutin.  While I have sampled meals at a reasonable portion of critics' picks' restaurants, I find that those on top of my list are where I savored bites that I crave long after the meal has ended.  ABC Kitchen served us three {honestly, at least three} dishes that I simply could not wait to eat again.  Our meal inspired our next supper club, where we were celebrating two years of Savoring Suppers with great friends.  Our group of gals gathered to experiment with these recipes - success!  They were remarkable re-creations of the meal I loved oh-so-much, not to mention that they also formed another memorable evening. 

Roasted Carrot + Avocado Salad 
{which we learned is perfectly tasty sans avocadoes}

{This is a photo of the ABC Kitchen version, but I assure you that the at-home rendition is equally crave-able}

Roasted Squash + Ricotta Toast

Salted Caramel Ice Cream Sundaes   

The recipe is for the ice cream itself.  Add chocolate sauce, popcorn, peanuts and a healthy sprinkle of sea salt for the {almost} ABC version.

Long story short, I have added these recipes to our box with notes like "triple this because you will want more," and "perfect for a vegetarian meal that is completely satisfying for carnivores."