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THE LIBRARY’S DOWN-HOME COOKBOOK HITS THE SHELVES
When the Pasadena
Public Library staged a Fiftieth Anniversary “Sock Hop” celebration with
rock and roll, poodle skirts, hula hooping and dancing, a new cookbook
hit the shelves. The DOWN-HOME COOKBOOK became available, not for
checkout, but for sale to the public. The authors, not famous chefs,
but residents of senior citizen care facilities, senior apartments, and
in-home patrons served by the Library’s Community Outreach department.
“The recipes in this
cookbook are really special,” explained Judy Dean, Outreach coordinator,
“because they are the favorite recipes from the kitchens of experienced
cooks - with their own special stories and wisdom.”
The cookbook was
compiled by Outreach staff members, funded by The Friends of the
Pasadena Public Library, published by Martha Hayes and Eric Muecke of
the Library Publicity department, and assembled by volunteers.
Profits from the sales
will be used to fund Community Outreach senior citizen projects and
programs. The standard edition cookbook sells for $10,
Patriotic Edition, $25, and the
commemorative Golden Edition sells for $50.
“I think these
cookbooks will sell themselves, ”said Sheila Ross Henderson, director of
the Pasadena Library System. “And the seniors will not only profit from
the funding, but by having their work recognized. These people have
long made a contribution to our community and continue to share their
knowledge with us.”
The senior citizen
Outreach staff members present programs and provide large print books
and materials to in-home patrons, and residents of nursing homes,
assisted living centers, and senior apartments, and wanted to share with
the community the recipes and stories they hear. “This is the little
bonus of our particular cookbook,” said Jo Lynne Hailey, Outreach staff
member “the little peeks back through time at their stories-- and their
lives.”
Outreach staffers began
taking down recipes and stories last Thanksgiving, and the project
mushroomed from there. There are 133 recipes in the book. “At first,
people didn’t seem to think they had too much to share,” Dean said.
“One lady, Rosa Mae Johnson, at Vista Continuing Care Center, looked me
straight in the eye, and said, ‘Honey, I don’t know recipes, I just
cooked.’”
But then she ‘told’ how
to make her turkey hash. “From that we learned just to talk with the
residents about their cooking—their family favorites and such, and the
recipes began to roll in.”
Some recipes are old
favorites such as cornbreads and casseroles, but some are a little out
of the ordinary, such as ‘German Pork Cake,’ ‘Under the Hood Roast
Beef,’ ‘Leather Britches’ and ‘Fried Snake,’( which the author said
‘tastes like chicken, and the thin ones are best.’)
Some younger readers
may have a little difficulty coping with the old time cooking terms used
in the cookbook. “But,” Hailey explained, “we felt like the wording
reflected the flavor of that era, as well as the flavor of the dish, so
we left it the way it was told to us.”
The Library advises
that those who might not recognize recipe directions such as ‘a good
tablespoon’ of shortening, or just how much a ‘mess’ of green beans is,
or what ‘confectionary sugar’ is, should ask a senior citizen. “She,
or he, will be happy to explain it to you, and you just might get to
hear a special story or two, for yourself,” Dean said.
Library staff members
and senior facility activity directors added their favorite dishes to
the cookbook, and there is also a special section of ‘celebrity recipes’
from dignitaries such as Barbara Bush, and Liz Carpenter, (writer and
former press secretary to Lady Bird Johnson), as well as Mayor John
Manlove, and Councilmen Bill Welch, Jim Barker, and James Guthrie.
“We are so proud of
this project,” Henderson said. “It reminds us all that we should be
more involved in our personal heritage—talk to our older family members
and record and remember their special recipes—and special stories.”
The Library hopes the
public will buy the DOWN-HOME COOKBOOK for the recipes, but also read it
for the stories. How else will you find out why Monty Caplen’s momma
wallpapered the outhouse, or what kept pulling the pillow off Barbara
Allen’s bed, or why Evelyn Hamblin tied an old purse to the end of a
string, or what Lupe Arce’s father had his own special recipe for!
The DOWN-HOME COOKBOOK
is now on sale at the Central Library at 1201 Jeff Ginn Memorial Drive
(off Southmore, behind City Hall) or at the Fairmont Branch Library at
4330 Fairmont Parkway. Or call Central at 713.477.0276 for more
information. |
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