Part of my pledge to disconnect from the computer during the day is to quit using Google as my recipe book. Yes, it’s easy and fast. But I’ve been dissatisfied. What about simple joyful cooking. With the rain, I’m home more during the day. With sports, I’m not home in the evenings. So  . . . cooking.  I’m trying to find the joy again. I’ve picked my Joy of Cooking back up, along with a lil heart joy.

It’s fun to look at the older recipes. I like reading through the how’s and why’s of cooking a piece of meat. Of forming a crust. Of roasting. Of being creative with food. 

I found this one at a yard sale long, long ago. It was picked up in 1972 by a woman who took detailed notes. She must have read every page. Notes, high lights, taped in news paper clippings.  I’m thankful for her care of this book.

Speaking of thankful. My grandma wrote down her recipes, too. I’ve been back to making a few of her favorites this winter. Biscuits are the main theme. I love her note in the recipe:

Biscuits and Love are the elements of living.

I haven’t made biscuits from scratch in over two years. I used to whip these out on almost a daily basis. I got so that I’d get the dough to form, stick together, then scoop it on a tray. This week I spent time with the making of the biscuit. I used lard. Yep. And I kneaded the dough, folding over, and over and over. Man did that make a difference. So light and fluffy.

Her old biscuit cutter in my hand. Still works well.

Outside of holiday baking? What are your late fall favorites?