Family Recipes

My Grandmother was an amazing cook and baker - but in common with the experience of many other posters, used her own idea of measurements, nothing ever written down. She would tell you, when asked, what ingredients and rough amounts, but nothing ever worked for me! My hand and eye were obviously not comparable to hers!

Its mean to keep a recipe to oneself if asked for it. We expect little children to share nicely...

I have all my mums handwritten recipe books. She was a marvellous cook.

My Mum was a good cook, but she remembered everything.
I’m happy to pass on recipes, it’s cake not a state secret.

I am feeling soo hungry reading about these tantalizing foods!! Would you be willing to share your stuffing recipe inishowen?

An ancestor of mine was cook for the aristocracy. (Thinking Downton Abbey) I have her recipe for stuffing which is amazing.

Craftycat well done you. You made me laugh out loud.

@EllanVannin.... you now have me thinking about warm rock cakes with butter.... I may well be making some over the weekend ?

I do share recipes. Why not? If somebody enjoys your food that much it's a lovely thing that they then want to share them with their loved ones. I recently shared my sultana cake recipe. One of the easiest cakes to make imo.

I have my great grandmas cake tins from a wedding gift in 1925.

I have a christmas cake recipe in front of me now. It's got 14lbs of fruit in it and very little flour.
It was my Father's.
I have given it to some people - but the one in his handwriting is sellotaped into the front of my mother's cookbook from 1951.

Ok it is nice to see other people’s recipes but here is one I love.
Apple Amber
Cooked pastry flan case. Then fill with apples stewed in orange juice and zest and sugar or honey- cool- then whisk in two egg yolks.
Put in the cool mix then make meringue with the two egg whites. Put on top. Cook meringue.
As nice alternative to lemon meringue flan.

I’m so sad as my granny and aunts recipes have all gone never passed down...

I have a couple of recipes that my mother gave me (this post makes me wonder what happened to any recipe books she had - I hadn't thought of it before). But the most popular recipe I've come across came from DH's family, it's basically Mars bars melted in custard, with a dash of Camp coffee thrown in, and it's delicious.

My Irish mother learned from her Scottish mother in law how to make haggis, and how to make apple dumpling, all cooked on the top of the stove. Very labour saving.

I have just finished typing four generations of my family's recipes onto the computer and intend to try and find a publisher soon.

I love it if someone asks me for a recipe. I am very happy to share. I had a friend once who was really sniffy about her 'family' recipes- I could never understand it- surely it is a compliment.
Mind you many years ago we had an ex of my husband's & her new husband for dinner. I was late home from work so stopped off in M & S & bought soup in a pot. She raved about this soup & asked for the recipe. To my shame I did not own up ( well she was my DH's ex!!) but the next day I made a batch of soup which was very similar to the M&S one & sent the recipe to her. She was delighted & said it tasted just right. I never owned up but DH still teases me about it!

My mother’s pastry was to die for. It was all in her head - a handful of this, a bit of that, and not too much or too little water. She never left it ‘to rest’ but it was delicious. Mine is OK but will never be like Mum’s.

My maternal grandmother made lovely tea cakes and didn’t even tell her own daughters the recipe.

I've got my Mother's personal cookery book and also use the Bero book for many lovely baking recipes, as did both my Grandmas, mother, MIL, and many aunts.

Mum made Lancashire Parkin every winter, I still have her hand written recipe. You can buy it in supermarkets now but it's not a patch on the real thing.

I don’t have any passed down recipes. There’s always Mary Berry!!

I try to memorise my mum's Christmas cake recipe, which I've pretty well got stored in my memory but I wish I'd collected her cake tin from the house, as I've never yet found a decent loose-bottomed one.

Also her recipe for lemon meringue, not a packet in sight !

As someone else mentioned, bakewell pie/tart with just the right measure of almond essence in it----with or without icing on top, and a cherry.

Rock cakes that weren't like rocks, nicely done on the outside and fluffy in the middle.

My MIL died many years ago, so each Christmas I make a Christmas cake using her recipe. It is the best!! My husband loves it. My MIl made it every year until she died. It is now a Christmas tradition of mine.

I have got my Great Grandmothers recipes for Christmas Puddings, Christmas Cake, Green tomato chutney and pickling onions and veggies. My paternal Grandma taught me how to cook and bake and I am eternally grateful for this.

I have passed all on to my DIL's and D, my D will have my own recipe book.

Wow these all sound like such good recipes.

Do you keep them in the family or open to share them beyond that? The neighbourhood?