We are so pleased to announce that Suzy in New Jersey is the winner of the fabulous white KitchenAid Stand Mixer, compliments of Sam’s Club. Suzy wrote and submitted an amazing story about holiday cooking with friends and family. Her story is an example of the significant role cooking with others plays in our lives as adults.
Here was Suzy’s reaction when she heard she won: “I have dreamed of this mixer for years. I am thrilled that Sam’s Club is excited about our Cooking With Friends lifestyle. I can’t wait to bake my next batch of cookies!”
Alison & Shannon
Read Suzy’s winning entry below:
As a typical teenager, my relationship with my mom was fraught with
arguments over typically teenage issues…. clothes, boys, and curfews
to name a few. You name it we bickered about it. But there was one
place where my mom and I could always get along…the kitchen. Lucky
for me, I inherited my mom’s love of cooking and baking. Growing up,
I happily spent hours and hours as her “sous-chef” helping out however
I could.
Every Hanukah, I am reminded of our family tradition of making latkes,
or potato pancakes, by the dozen. Mom and I have been making latkes
together since I was a little girl. Every year I was allowed to do a
little more, from mixing and sprinkling salt and flour, to cracking
eggs, and grating the potatoes (I fondly remember 1980, we got a
Cuisinart to make quick work of the grating and saved our
knuckles)! Every year we’d try something new with the recipe, to
hone our latkes to perfection. Small holes vs. large on the box
grater? Definitely large to get those crispy edges we love. Canola
oil vs. olive oil? Definitely olive…imparts an earthy flavor to the
latkes. Russet potatoes vs. Yukon gold? No contest there. It’s got
to be the Yukons.
Now that Mom and I live 250 miles apart, a very close friend stands in
with me as latke-maker extraordinaire. Every year, we set aside time
to get together and turn out dozens of golden, crispy latkes to share
with family and friends. A couple of hours of grating, frying and
laughing yield literally hundreds of these Hanukah delicacies. And as
for debates with Mom, nowadays it’s regarding applesauce vs. sour cream!