Eastern Iowa Farmer Spring 2017

HOMESTYLE DESSERTS
Kaitlin Luett (third from left) has
fond memories of baking with her
grandma Esther Taylor (second from
left). Also shown are grandpa Gerald
Taylor and sister Jenna Luett.
EASTERN IOWA FARMER PHOTO /
CONTRIBUTED
including
three very excellent bakers I
happen to know. I’m also gathering my
own favorite recipes from other bakers,
cookbooks, magazines and the internet
for my very own recipe collection to keep
and add to and pass on when the time
comes.
Cooking and baking seem to be as
much about love and caring as the actual
science of combining ingredients. People
have very vivid memories from their
past that coincide with food, or making
food with a loved one, or using a loved
one’s recipe. I think this is what I have
been missing when attempting to bake for
myself.
Kim Carr, a friend and co-worker of
mine from Maquoketa, connects happy
memories with food.
“When I think of those good times, I
also remember what food was brought
and how it was prepared. When I prepare
something, I do it to give the people I
share it with good feelings as well,” she
said.
Kim challenged me to read through
editions of “Cook’s Country,” a cooking
and baking magazine devoted to breaking
down complex recipes step-by-step and
giving important tips for a more successful
finished product.
I generally just throw the ingredients
into the bowl and mix when I bake. I
do not take the time to think about how
the ingredients mix together and exactly
what the end result will be. And the end
result of baking for me, until recently,
was to eat the food I had prepared, not
necessarily to enjoy what I had made or to
106 EASTERN IOWA FARMER | SPRING 2017