Family Recipe Book Volume 2

In 2001, when my cousin's son Jason was about to become the first member of the Baba family's fourth generation to be married, my sister and I put together a family recipe book for his wife-to-be, Joy, as well as for all my aunties and cousins. We wanted to preserve the recipes of foods we grew up with, as prepared by my grandmother, my Babachan, my aunties, my mom and dad. My cousins and their wives also contributed their family recipes, and these were all compiled into one volume, along with photos of all the members of the family.

As my sister Jan so eloquently wrote in volume 1: "When we think of our childhood, our memories are filled with sights and sonds, tastes and smells...of food! The popping noise and warm, nutty smell of goma roasting in its special metal pan, the sweet, vinegary scent of sushi rice and the delicious mouth-watering aroma of tempura frying...these are the things that evoke memories of our days growing up. With each holiday gathering and addition to our family, our traditional fare was enriched! In addition to what we look forward to at potlucks, each family has its own treasured everyday dishes. With this collection of favorite family recipes contributed to by all of you, we wish to share our memories with our future generations. Enjoy!"

Volume 1 included recipes for my Baba-chan's Dango-Jiru and my Ji-Chan's Stuffed Hasu Tempura, as well as other recipes we grew up with and still prepare for our families.

Eight years later, now that there will soon be another bride joining the family, we decided to put together volume 2, with even more family recipes. While there was a lot of work involved, it was definitely a "labor of love."