Prologue
My mother loved to tell stories about the sassy little 2 year-old that was her eldest daughter. Particularly the one about when I tried to leave the yard and Beulah, the basset/beagle mix that was our family dog, pulled me back into the yard. Mom says that every time she would tell me to do something, or not to do something, my standard response was, “well, alright!” She said that when she wanted to impress upon me her seriousness, or when she was angry, she would call me “Terri Ann.” So in my 2 year-old mind when I was mad at her I would call her “Mommy Ann.” As I grew up, “Mommy Ann” became my go-to affectionate nickname for her. I still miss her so much…RIP Mommy Ann
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Cooking has been my life long love affair. The best I can recall, it started with authentic Italian “suga” red sauce when I was about 15 years old. My “boyfriend” came from a spirited household in that his mother was Irish and his father, Italian. HooBoy! That made for some lively dinner table discussions.
But “Dad”, with painstaking love and care, taught me how to make his sauce. The third time we made the sauce together I was “on my own”. He was sure I had the recipe memorized, and he was confident I could make a beautiful “Suga”. That evening at dinner we didn’t tell the family that I had made the sauce until after they started eating. When the compliments started coming, “Dad” then disclosed that I had actually made the sauce on my own. I was moved by the satisfaction I felt from the simple act of feeding someone a meal. I couldn’t wait to make the sauce for my own family. That’s how my inner “Foodie” was born.
Like most of you, throughout my life, I have cooked for family holiday dinners, family meals, pot luck parties, etc. But my greatest pleasure was to cook for my mother. She hated to cook and she loved my cooking. Win-Win!
My mom (Mommy Ann) was diagnosed with a rare female cancer in 2016. By the time she was convinced to seek medical attention for a “skin tag” it had progressed to stage 3. The regimen consisting of a combination of Chemo once per week and radiation Monday through Friday for SIXTEEN WEEKS. I was struck by the fact that there was absolutely no dietary guidelines included in her treatment plan. So, of course, I took it upon myself to create one.
Mom came through the cancer with flying colors, and the doctor credited my strict no-sugar diet plan with increasing the effectiveness of the treatment. (I had discovered that cancer feeds on sugar). It was a simple, basic Keto diet plan, light on processed carbs and little to no sugar, heavy on organic protein and vegetables. We allowed ourselves one “cheat day” per week. She chose Friday so we could continue meeting up with other friends and family for Friday night dinners out on the town. I was hooked on the Keto!
In the ensuing years Mom survived multiple stress fractures from thinning bones due to chemo and aging. She also survived a difficult Covid-19 infection in 2020 before we had vaccines. She was a strong lady that willed herself to survive. I cooked for her daily until she passed away in April 2021, two weeks before her 81st birthday.
Since “Mommy Ann” went home to her reward, I have been been drifting, rudderless and struggling with how to emerge from this ‘fog of grief.’ I realize that I really miss the activity and ritual of cooking for her the most. So I have decided to cook for you all.
My mother was a single mother who worked at the factory every day while raising three children on her own. I truly believe that’s why she hated cooking. She was overwhelmed and over burdened with life.
Some of you may feel overwhelmed trying to dream up a meal plan every day for your families, too. I can help you with that.
Mom made a cookbook of “Old Family Recipes” as a Christmas project in 2007. She collected recipes from her aunts, uncles and cousins, as well as the recipes she had saved from her mother and grandmothers. I used the recipes at holiday dinners to “bring those ancestors to the dinner table”.
My initial plan is to cook a “Sunday Supper” each week and share these recipes with you. Rest assured, all of our recipes will be made with fresh wholesome ingredients that you can easily find at your local grocery store. Personally, I am an ALDI’s/Walmart grocery shopper, so you can be sure there are no surprise exotic ingredients to be found.
I will create the meal plan and give you the recipes, showing you what the finished dishes look like. Eventually, I will make videos of the the cooking process to show you the actual meal preparation. At present, I feel much too inferior in my video skills for publication, but I will work on improvement!
I treated myself to a Kalorik Maxx countertop air fryer/oven for Christmas, so I am anxious to try some of the recipes in the Air Fryer module. This model has several functions so I will be exploring ALL of them. Exciting!! But don’t worry if you don’t use an air fryer. All of our recipes were original to standard cooking. You can easily prepare the recipes with a standard range and oven. I hope to incorporate more and more “Keto” style dishes as we go along.
Lets get cooking!