Back to Basics cooking for the Holidays

LOOKING AT THE HOLIDAYS OF THE SEASONS


There are many reasons people are cutting back on spending, especially for the Holiday Season. The economy has hit people hard this year, and unemployment has climbed. In spite of this, the price to cook a meal has been dramatically climbing and there is no end in sight.

I personally love the holidays and learned years ago to trim my plans for a lavish and huge meal. At one time our family baked twenty pies of various kinds, several turkeys, a whole ham of giant size and all of those side dishes, salads special for the holiday, and special gravies and breads.

It was a time when special linens were placed on the table, and the table had two extra additions which were added. The table was polished and then the linens added and the napkins and on and on it went.

We have always had special candle holders, a large plate which was just for the turkey, and another serving dish just for deviled eggs.

The list included things to make cookies, all those different salads, and sweet potato and green bean dishes.

We would be doing dishes for hours afterwards and learned to clean the pans we used as we made the dishes.

And then came days of leftovers.  I have cooked for as many as three hundred people, and as little as two. So I know about these holiday traditions from years of experience.

I also went to many parties and events where we would bring a covered dish, and all of these dishes would be put on long tables and we shared. It was such a delightful mixture of food, and we loved it.

Nonetheless, I have found it is a good idea not to get too carried away, and above all to keep it simple.

I have found people like to have a simple meal, not elaborate, just good home cooked food. And because of the economy, little by little, this mammoth shopping list for one meal, has been seriously cut.

A little time back, I begin to see that people were having problems with feeding their families because of tightening budgets. So I seriously began to write about how to cook, period.

Not everyone is born with a mother who expects her child to be able to bake biscuits before they start school. And so seriously, it seemed this type of book was needed. So I began to write these things down, share pictures from my own home, since I wanted people to understand, I am just sharing what I know as a cook who has been cooking all of my life and learned to scrimp and save from parents who learned what they knew about this during The Great Depression.

I am thankful today, that the books which have resulted by my desire to share knowledge about the kitchen, have been well received.

I want to thank those people who have shown an interest in my cookbooks.

I would love to hear from you and about your own experiences here. Thank you.

Happy Thanksgiving Everybody!

Two books in one 

http://www.amazon.com/Times-Cookbook-Basics-Depression-Cooking/dp/1478276363

http://www.amazon.com/Hard-Times-Crock-pot-Cooking/dp/148028274X

A beginner's guide to canning

http://www.amazon.com/Hard-Times-Canning-Book-Depression/dp/1491049626


THESE BOOKS ARE PART OF THE NEW AMAZON MATCHBOOK PROGRAM. SPECIAL DISCOUNTS ON KINDLE BOOKS BOUGHT WITH THE PAPERBACK VERSION. I THINK THIS IS HELPFUL IF YOU WANT TO SHARE THESE RECIPES WITH FAMILY AND FRIENDS!