So what does a fantasy writer need with a bunch of old cookbooks? In my defense, of course, I have a cookbook project planned. I want to resurrect the old recipes from the basements, attics and secondhand stores of America.

No modern, fancy ones with glossy pictures by famous chefs for me, but the ones that came from church lady auxiliaries , bowling leagues and social service organizations, mimeographed and spiral bound on colored paper. Their pages full of the stuff memories are made of, especially if you had the same type of Thanksgiving  and Christmas dinners I did growing up. Meals where my mom proudly placed her tomato aspic salad right next to giblet dressing.  When casseroles reigned supreme and Jell-O salads were a thing of wonder

Since “mid-century modern” furniture is in vogue, why not the recipes from that time as well? Don’t recipes like Hazels’ Hamburger-Corn Casserole or Chicken Pillows make you yearn to smell those aromas in your kitchen? How about Fruit-Crumb Refrigerator Dessertor Comet-Quick Raspberry Cream Pie? Seriously? I just put on my apron and pulled out my measuring cups.

If you occasionally dream of a favorite recipe from your childhood, from the days before we worried about our waistlines and cholesterol levels, stay tuned. I may just have the recipe!