I had forgotten about our new Off the Shelf topic after my first post in September, but thankfully Carole's wonderful post about her pie cookbook last Monday reminded me. So today I'm sharing a "sort of" cookbook that has an important place on my shelf.
I have a small desk in my kitchen that is handy for paying bills and it also has a little shelf at the bottom that works well for cookbooks. I don't use them more than a few times a month, but they're the ones that matter to me and have survived multiple weedings.
I actually added a couple of new ones last week, but I digress.
My mother wasn't particularly fond of making dinner day in and day out, and she eventually settled into a familiar rotation of meatloaf, spaghetti, pork chops, sloppy joes, and assorted casseroles. She may not have been much of a cook, but she was definitely the Christmas Cookie Queen. She started baking in November, making dozens of different kinds of cookies and storing them in multiple Charles Chips cans. My sister and I thought the man who delivered the chips was named Charlie, so we called them Charlie Chip cans. Mom baked so many cookies that we almost always had some left on Valentine's Day.
Along with cut-out cookies, Mexican wedding cookies, chocolate chip, gingerbread, snickerdoodles, candy cane cookies, gumdrop cookies, and stained-glass cookies, she also made my absolute favorites: Magic Carpet cookies. The recipe comes from a Betty Crocker pamphlet published in 1957, and I still have my mother's copy tucked into a file folder on my cookbook shelf.
They have a buttery shortbread base with confectioner's sugar icing. I tried making them once after my mother died, but they were so fiddly to put together and didn't taste anything like I remembered. I haven't attempted them again in several decades. Maybe this will be the year I finally give them another try and manage to get them right.
But even if I never make another batch, this little pamphlet will always have a special place on my shelf. It brings back memories of a very special cookie that my mother made year after year simply because she knew how much I loved them. Thanks for the love in cookie form, Mom.
When my dad decided to give up independent living, I lived out of state and could not get back for the estate sale. The items I most regret losing are my mother's seasoned cast iron skillets and her huge collection of baking pamphlets that she had collected over the years. There were a couple of cookie and bar recipes that I have looked for many times and never found anywhere that we made every Christmas. I have found over the years that it is always the items that are associated with family rituals that I miss the most.
ReplyDeleteYour post made me think of my maternal grandmother, who also wasn't a great cook but had a few things she was really good at. And my paternal grandmother had signature cookies that I always remember eating at her house. If you attempt the Magic Carpet Cookies, I hope you'll take photos and share!
ReplyDeleteThis brings back a flood of memories. I have so many of my Mom's cookbooks with worn and stained pages (also with pressed Fall leaves and little flowers - usually violets). Nothing wrong with a shortbread cookie (LOVE). I hope you do try to make them again and let us know how they turned out!
ReplyDeleteI love how cooking fosters family memories... no wonder we equate food with love. I have some recipes from my nana... her spritz cookie recipe remains undefeated! There are few that were actually written down though, she did not have any formal education past 5th grade because she became mom to 5 younger siblings when their mom died. What she lost in education she more than made up for in the kitchen... she was a magnificent cook!
ReplyDeleteI have that can! I use it in the sewing room for all my scrap bits. When I was a kid I thought my grandfather was Charles. That was his name and he always seemed to be bringing us these cans from the shop he worked in.
ReplyDeleteI wish I had saved at least one of those cans when we cleaned out the house. There were five or six of them but by that point I was so tired of getting rid of all the stuff that I didn't even consider it. It's great for fabric scraps!
DeleteI love that you have such great memories of your mom's Christmas cookies. I have never heard of Magic Carpet Cookies but I do think you should give them another shot!
ReplyDeleteWe had Charlie Chips delivered too. It's been ages since I saw that container! Thanks for the memory. Makes me miss my Mom, in a good way
ReplyDeleteI'm glad for your memory of your mom, especially since it involves Charlie Chips!
DeleteWhat a sweet story. I have never heard of Charlie Chips or Magic Carpet Cookies. I wonder if anyone has updated the recipe to make them a little less fiddly. Cookbooks and recipes carry many memories. I have kept more than I really use but they carry memories of the kids giving them to me as gifts and also a few that were popular in our area when I got married.
ReplyDelete