Hi friend,

When each of my children left for college, I made them a recipe file.

Not a store-bought cookbook. Not a printed list from the internet. A collection of the meals they grew up with, the ones they'd always ask for, the ones that meant home.

I wrote down Grandpa's pancakes, even though they aren't really pancakes at all. They're crepes. But we never called them that, and the name is half the recipe. I included Yellow Dinner (chicken, Rice-a-Roni, corn, and crescent rolls) everything golden and comforting, named simply for the color of it. Aunt Si cookies. Christmas eggs. Buffalo chicken dip for every get together that ever mattered.

The names are ours. No one else would know what they mean. That's exactly the point.

Putting those little books together was bittersweet in the way that most beautiful things are, you're holding something precious because it's also passing. They were leaving. And I wanted to send a little piece of home with them.

They still call, you know. Not to say they made something, though sometimes that too, but to ask. "How long do you cook it? How much butter? Is it supposed to look like that?" And every time the phone rings or I get a text with one of those questions, I smile. That's the whole point, isn't it? The recipes made it. And so did we.

A small idea worth trying

If you have recipes that live in someone's memory, a grandmother's handwriting on a scrap of paper, a dish that only has a family nickname, a technique passed down without measurements, write them down this month. Not perfectly. Just down.

The name matters as much as the method. Write Grandpa's pancakes at the top, not crêpes. Write down the story of where it came from, even in one sentence. That's the part that disappears first.

A few questions to get you started:

• What did your family call it that no one else would understand?
• Who taught you to make it, and what do you remember about watching them?
• What occasion did it belong to?

If you want a little help capturing those stories, I made something for exactly this. The Kitchen Memory Interview Kit is a free guide with prompts to help you capture the recipes, and the stories behind them, before they disappear.

Grab it free here: https://fantastic-creator-3284.kit.com/021ec07c3a​

In the shop

The shop has grown. I now have twelve hand-illustrated botanical recipe card designs and I've just added several new ones including blueberry, artisan bread, vintage tea cup, herb garden stakes, and kitchen spoons in three colorways. Each set is printed on quality cardstock, made to be written on and used, not saved in a drawer.

They make a meaningful gift for the home cook who has everything or a quiet gift to yourself for the recipes that deserve to be kept.

Browse the collection at francessimonedesign.etsy.com​

Something beautiful is coming

In June I'm launching a new weekly series on Instagram called Simple Wonders one illustrated botanical paired with one quiet nature fact. The kind of thing worth pausing for.

If you're not following along yet, I'd love to see you there. → Find me at @francessimonedesign​

Stay curious, keep cooking, and write down one recipe this month, even if it's just the name.

With love from my kitchen to yours,

Fran

​
​Frances Simone Design · Hand-illustrated paper goods for the people and moments that matter francessimonedesign.etsy.com

You're receiving this because you signed up for Just a Note. To unsubscribe, click below.

​
​

​
​