Hello,

In case you want to know more about me, the creator of this site – head on over to my online world at the COOL Bus Studio. Like this – that is a work in progress, but please dig in and sign up for my mailing list because while I don’t send much email, it’s nice to keep in touch.

& Welcome!

Below the Dedications section, I have some rambling thoughts on this project. I promise to edit it down someday, but if someday never comes, forgive my rambling ways and remember that I always wanted everyone to be well-fed and happily content.

Dedicated to my folks:
Dr. Bob and Sara Sellig

I’m dedicating this cooking resource to my mom who used to have piles of Bon Appetite in the kitchen. I remember her studying the recipes. She tells me she always follows recipes, but I’ve seen her in action. And I know, actually, she always improvises and adjusts based on what happens to suit her at the moment. I’ve also made this with my experience in my first apartment in mind because I remember it clearly – such a shock to discover a meal with various dishes doesn’t end up being all hot and ready at the same time. Who knew? I guess I wasn’t paying very close attention when I was watching mom in action. She was, by the way, a master at getting it all ready at the same time. She was also very enthusiastic about the original cookbook I made and helped so much that I can say confidently, I wouldn’t have made it without her. She encouraged me to keep going on it through the hard parts and she made sure everyone sent me recipes.

Thanks Mom!

And with my dad in mind, I named this site, “Good Eats.” because of a story he used to tell about Mr. Fitzgerald. Now I’m a little foggy on some of the details of this story because of the vast time differential between now and the last time I heard this story. Heck, I called Dad and he too was foggy so just keep in mind, a good story has a life of its own. Anyway here is a basic version of it: Mr. Fitzgerald was once in an extremely fancy restaurant. Fancy even for him and he was a lawyer as well as a family friend. I remember a train ride and an attempt to impress people, but somehow much too much alcohol had been consumed. It was a long story with a wonderful build-up to the moment when everyone was leaving the restaurant. On his way out of this very posh establishment, Mr. Fitzgerald pulled the snobby maître d’ aside with his arm around the disturbed fellow’s shoulder and said in a classic sloppy drunk swagger, yes, you guessed it – “Hey man, Good Eats!”

And quite honestly the story was so fabulously told, I’d say it was epic. It had all the right stuff with good timing with the perfect pause before the punchline, every time… Thanks, Dad! That was always a good laugh and worth hearing a few times.

Thanks also for so much more and especially that time I worked my butt off on a Thanksgiving meal for a crowd of 17 including intermingling in-laws and boy was I stressed, but you loosened me up with a well-done version of, “Hey babe, Good Eats” followed by a great summary of all the things I did right. And knowing you know good food because your mom was one of the best cooks ever, I was grateful and still am.

And to you both, thanks for the practice of always eating together and saying a prayer before each meal. I love this all-purpose dinner prayer you gave us. This is really something anyone anywhere can say if put on the spot because we can’t all be like Floyd who made us hold hands as he thanked the Lord and Jesus and talked about reasons we are blessed along with some more thanks and eventually some of us wondered if the meal would still be hot when all the thanking was over. Don’t get me wrong those were amazing prayers and I’d love to be able to pray publicly on the fly like that. But with this prayer, nobody will ever end up wondering “when we will get to eat already?”

God is great.
God is good.
Let us thank him for this food.
Amen.

also Dedicated my other parents:
Liz and Alan Jaffe

I am also dedicating this project to Liz because of the fact that she walked me through Matzo Ball Soup and Hanukkah latkes (the sumptuous jewels of the oil) more than a few times while we talked on the phone and she enthusiastically listened to me rattle on about doing the Hannukkah presentations at the kids’ schools or preparations for our Passover Seder. Liz’s love for the original cookbook was very heartwarming and I’m so happy to honor her here.

And of course, I have to mention that the family gatherings Liz draws together are always full of good conversations at mealtimes with lots of talking and debating around the big beautiful table. Liz’s dedication to the cheese, crackers, and drinks time before the meal is an inspiration and something the kids always talk about in anticipation of another vacation together. Boursin!!

Finally, I’d like to say thanks to Alan who is probably the only person to ever compliment me on getting fried eggs perfect and then promptly decline my offer to make him one too. A solid force of nature when it comes to doing the dishes and making sure everyone is happy, Alan is Liz’s trusted sidekick and the family wine specialist who also grills the steaks just right every time. A special thanks to Alan comes from the MT Jaffe brothers who love that endless supply of Ben & Jerry’s Americone Dream that Alan ensures is on hand whenever we get together. We all appreciate family gatherings and meals because of the care and attention you put into them.

L’chaim!
Now, let’s eat.

 

Some more stuff from the MT Jaffe peanut gallery on the Quotes and Pics page

Intro page and ramblings from before 2020.

I presented the Hannukah/Chanukkah lesson at the kids’ schools from 2004 until about 2016. Some years I’ve presented to three or four classes because the teachers were either looking for an excuse to take a break on teaching one day or they were sincere in liking my stuff. I always started with a mention that Hanukkah is more popular here than in Israel because of the Pilgrims and the big deal we make about the freedom of religion here in our country. But once an Israeli woman who had moved to Missoula made sure I knew I was wrong about that.

Anyway, the Maccabees were fighting for their freedom and religion was a big part of that. So the Maccabees and Pilgrims kind of go together. Somehow after 10 years and lots of classes, it dawned on me that I didn’t actually know the meaning of the word Hanukkah. Guess what – it means dedication!

In truth, I made the original Family Cookbook because of those Hanukkah classes and the dedication it takes to raise a family.

***

While I make the New Year’s Meat Pies, a family tradition from my dad’s side of the family, I think back to Christmas 2000. I gave a homemade cookbook to as many of the diverse people I call my family as I could. I called it “Cooking with Family and Friends.” And it was full of flaws and lame clip art, but it made me happy. Others liked it too and in fact, it traveled on some family vacations to the Virgin Islands.

In the introduction to the second year addition, I told everyone I wished I had something like this when I moved into my first apartment. I’ve been wanting to give this as a gift to my relatives moving to college or into their first apartments, but my old clip art version was lost in a series of computer and laptop meltdowns sometime in 2009. So, to make this thing accessible to the next generation of “kids” who can call me a relative, I began making an online version.*

Plenty of benefits of being online include an easier way to collaborate with each other – because hey – some of these recipes need tweaking and feedback. For example – I have finally perfected that Cashew Chili recipe so that it can be made with cans of beans rather than soaked overnight beans which in addition to soaking overnight also need to cook forever – what a pain!
And the secret to Grandma Sellig’s Pumpkin Bread? You need to know – use lots of the actual Crisco nasty lard type stuff and coat the pan with it. Then sprinkle flour and shake it around to make sure it coats the Crisco. Then like magic, when those loaves of yummy pumpkin bread are cool enough to handle, they pop right out of the pan. Amazing! That comment was not in the first two additions of the cookbook. And these Meat Pies. They really needed another chance. Aunt Marion told me they were so yummy and she was really excited about finding that recipe in that first book. I said I hadn’t liked them as a kid and she loved them so much that I decided to give them another try with the theory that well, maybe I didn’t like coffee when I was a kid either. Sure enough. These Meat Pies are delicious.

So, here’s to my favorite cooking style – a balance of fast & easy with a touch of traditional-doing-it-right-even-the-long-way-sometimes!

Now go on – make some food and share it with people you love. And remember when you have something to edit or add to this site, click on the Suggestion Box link in the menu or use the button at the bottom of every page – it looks like/is an email icon – and I’ll take care of it. I can’t wait to hear from you!

With much love to you all,
~bethJ, New Year’s Day 2015

*update 6/7/18 – this is the second online version and that is another story too.

***

So. I’ve made this family cookbook. again. It’s a long story on the technical side of things and if I’m not in the right mood it’s a story full of excuses and self-flagellation. But, I’m in the right mood and I have to say I haven’t given up on this because it brings me joy.

Bottom line: It is our family tradition to eat together whether we want to or not and though I haven’t quite found the perfect article that gives the message the way I would – here are two good ones: From The Atlantic and GOODNET.

It’s true we don’t eat together every night and dinner isn’t always a fabulous experience, but we work hard to make it a priority and we love sharing this tradition with our friends and family. It’s easy to eat together on special occasions, but bringing everyone together on an ordinary night… now that can be magical.

We’ve found the kids want to invite their friends to family dinners because the expectation is that the food will be worth sharing and the conversation will be light and fun. And though usually they and their friends will be required to say something about being grateful for something from the day or week of the dinner, that part is ok too. While gratitude is the basis for one of the best meals of the year, it is a good practice to think of reasons to be thankful every day of the year.

***