Lytle Family Recipes

My mother-in-law, Dorothy and sister-in-law, Deanna are excellent cooks. Down through the years, they have both shared their recipes with me and given me cookbooks that I still have and treasure very much. Here are a few of their recipes that I have in my recipe box.

Great Grandma Paulsen was in her 70's when I first met her. I know that she was an outstanding cook for many years. She lived with her family on a working farm in North Dakota and she cooked many meals for her family and hired hands. She got up very early everyday to bake fresh bread and everything from scratch, including lighting the fire in the oven. Any time we think we have it hard in the cooking department, we should remember what our grandmothers and great grandmothers went through to get a meal on the table. Great Grandma Paulsen lived to be 99 years old. This is the only recipe I have from her in my recipe box.



I only met Aunt Emma Larson a couple of times. She was Great Grandma Paulsen's younger sister. One thing everyone said about her is that she was such a good cook.
I'm glad that I have this recipe from her.



My mother-in-law, Dorothy is one of my favorite people. I couldn't love her more! We have enjoyed so many wonderful meals around her dining room table. If you asked any of her grandkids about their favorite meal at Gramma's house, they would all say they wanted it to include her amazing hot rolls with butter and strawberry freezer jam. Here are her recipes that I have in my box.











My sister-in-law, Deanna is also one of the nicest people that I know. She is always so happy and kind and my kids have always called her "Auntie Dee." She always brought the best dishes to family gatherings. She probably got tired of me asking for her recipes. I'm glad I have these recipes to share from her.

The Old Recipe Box

I'm guessing that not many of the new cooks have an old recipe box. It goes way back to the olden days when recipes weren't as available as they are now. Computers are great. We can quickly google and find a recipe we need in a flash. But, sometimes it's just fun to drag out the old recipe box and pull out a recipe written on an old fashioned recipe card. Every time I do, it is a trip down memory lane. Most of my card are stained with drips and specks, after years of use. Now more than ever, I appreciate the time each person took to write out the card specifically for me. It always brings back a good memory about a family member or a special friend and maybe a meal we shared or a baby shower we were at together.

In my recipe box, the majority of my cards have -  Recipe From: Mom.  I learned from my mom, how to cook as I was growing up, so when I got married and started my own family, I basically cooked what and how my mom had cooked for all 9 of us. The first time I made a pot roast with gravy for my new husband back in 1972, he looked in the dutch oven and said "What are we going to do with all that gravy"? It actually took me a while before I was able to cook for only 2 people. I'm posting these recipes in honor of my mom for all the food she cooked for us during the 50's, 60's and 70's. These are also for her kids, grandkids and great-grand kids to enjoy.