Food = Love

In my family, skill in the culinary arts skipped a generation. I could cook from a very early age, and my grandmother always cooked at family gatherings. My mom has never been a great cook, but she tries hard. We all still tease her about the Fish Veronique she tried to make in the 80's, known in my family as the "fish-and-grapes incident".

I remember my Grandma S cooking for a week leading up to the major holidays. Cookies, pies, cakes, vegetable sides, meats and bread, all lovingly cooked for the family to gather around. Grandma has slowed down now that she is 80-something years old, and, if she never cooked another thing, then she has earned a well-deserved break. My cooking icon now seems to prefer convenience over old-world preparation and has developed a taste for frozen pizzas. Coming from an old Italian lady, this is quite a shock!

Gone are the days of endless cooking and huge family spreads. The one item that has stayed, the food she seems to be able to muster enough energy to make, is her famous Cheesecake. It never fails when we visit, she will make a Cheesecake for my wife, and no one gets a piece until she has had a chance to dig in. This past week we visited, and Grandma make the cheesecake again. I took the opportunity to grab the recipe from her 50 year old index card -- enjoy the love!

Grandma S's Cheesecake:

Beat together:
1 pound ricotta cheese
1 pound cream cheese
1 pint sour cream
3 eggs
3 T flour
3 T corn starch
1 cup sugar
Dash salt
1 T vanilla or lemon (or both)

For Crust:
½ stick butter
1 package chocolate graham crackers
¼ cup sugar
½ cup walnuts or pecans

Melt butter and add to other ingredients, press into bottom of Springform pan.
Pour in cake mixture and bang on counter to remove air bubbles.

Bake at 350F for 75 minutes
** put in cold oven-do not preheat oven **

Fruit on top is straight from a can -- old school!