I am so sorry for your loss. I can empathize. :(

Your aunt sounds like she was a treasure. I think the food made by another tastes better because of the sharing and love and also because I didn't taste it during preparation.

L, I'm sorry to hear about your aunt. I have a couple of family members that are gone and I still think to myself "I should have paid more attention when they made xxxxx". Those recipes and techniques are gone with them, and makes the loss even more difficult.

I think many of their generation seemed to just pull a meal out of nothing, that's something Dad always said about my Grandmother. I'm a good enough cook, but I don't have that particular knack either, sadly.

Hugs to you, and a couple extra for your Dad, even if he's cranky sometimes.

Annie

Sounds like she would've been a chef in another life...

My sincere condolences

The best cooks are the ones we learn from. Sorry for your loss, but pleased that you had so many years of enjoying her cooking.

My condolences on your loss. You posted an absolutely wonderful tribute to your aunt and the love could be felt.

So sorry to hear of your loss. I think it’s especially hard losing loved ones near the holiday season. I can see the love you had for your aunt shining out of your eulogy. Take care of yourself and wrap yourself in the good memories. Those we love never truly die as long as we remember them.

I'm so sorry for your loss. I understand what you're saying. My aunt of almost 92 yrs was a fabulous cook. Sadly age and severe arthritis have relegated her cooking to lots of cottage cheese and fruit .

So sorry that you have lost such a loved person in your life. Cook as a celebration to her!

So sorry she's gone....but what wonderful memories she left for you!

What a lovely and heartfelt post honoring your aunt. My condolences go out to you and your family. Thank you for sharing some of your memories with us.

I'm sorry for your loss. I agree that what you wrote was lovely. Thank you for sharing. May her memory be a blessing.

As an aside... if you ever do figure out the recipe for fish cooked in milk that turns into a cream sauce, please share. Wow, that sounds terrific!

I'm so sorry for the loss of your aunt. Your written tribute tells how very special she was to you. I, too, had an aunt that left me with so many wonderful memories. I think we are fortunate; not everyone is lucky enough to have a special person in their life, however, it doesn't make us miss them any less.

My aunt did not share her recipes. She was one of those types. For example, her borscht was legendary and one time I called her up asking her for any tips because I was making some for a party, and she told me that she had just read an interesting article/recipe in the New York times about borscht and thought that was a great recipe. Apparently lemonade was involved. Very cagey. I'm sure that Times recipe was fine, but it wasn't her recipe and I got zero tips . . . If you tried to help her in the kitchen, even at her advanced age, she would just yell at you whatever you had done (like slicing the carrots the "wrong" way), and say, "Don't do that!"

I do know she had a recipe box, and maybe my uncle will let me peruse it now that she's gone, but even with her recipes, I will never be able to cook like her. It was just her pride and joy to do it and her natural talent. No one showed her how to cook and she didn't want anyone else to upstage her. Fine with us, for the most part. When I visited I would always bring something I made to lessen the cooking load, and she was fine and complimentary about that, but her own cooking she liked to keep mysterious. That was part of her quirky charm. Her sister, my other aunt, once gave away her applesauce secret (I'm not divulging it here!) and she got furious. Her protectiveness of her kitchen skills wasn't really annoying, since eating at her house was such a pleasure, it was just part of her distinct personality that we loved so much. I guess she thought it was best for us to develop our own kitchen goddess style, not copy hers . . .

She also loved to allow men to help in the kitchen. I guess she found them less of a threat. My SO was one of the few folks she invited in to help. They were a similar type of cook - not prone to sticking with recipes, specializing in great execution of the standards, and intuitively good cooks who seems to always find a way to put their own great spin on their dishes.

Just seeing this now , so sorry for your loss but clearly she was a good force in your life.

Hope you get at that recipe box , that would be such a legacy.

My Mom was like that , great cook, no recipes. She could make wonderful from next to nothing and was not interested in kitchen help.

Wish I had paid more attention . Her Butter Tarts were amazing but I have no idea how she made them. The closest I have come is Jasdip's recipe. Very close.....actually maybe the same but because it's not Moms my head can't go there.

Treasure those memories and get that recipe box. If you do please let us know

Not sure having her recipes will be that important, since I think she used them more as guides, but at least it would give me an idea of some of her specialties.

As for the fish, well cooking fish in milk is a pretty common technique, particularly for "fishy" tasting fish. But who knows what golden combination my aunt used on that day - what kind of fish, which spices, onions perhaps? Did she thicken with flour or cornstarch or add cream? I'm not sure I even want to know. I have made fisherman's pie or some creamy dreamy fish dish, but I really can't afford to eat good fish that often, or indulge in the cream sauces, so that one may remain a mystery. But this link is fairly close to how she did it, I think - http://greatgrub.com/recipes/poached_fish_in_milk

Last night I tried to make blintzes in her honor. Goes to show how futile my attempts are. They were terrible, not even frozen pre-made store-bought level good. I had several issues, number one is I can't find dry cottage cheese/farmer's cheese here and even though I drained the cottage cheese and ricotta, it was still too runny. Plus I shouldn't have used low fat stuff. But the main problem was my frickin' crap electric flat-top stove and its pulsing burners!! And my pan was crap, it needs to go in the trash, it is slightly convex, so things burn on one end and don't cook enough on the other. And even the blueberry jam I served had a problem. Making jam is one specialty that I do that my aunt didn't. But the sugar in the jam had crystalized from it being in the fridge so long - it had hard bits in it. Besides, if she has any power as a spirit, my aunt would never let me upstage her! But I think her legend is safe, I pose no threat.