Around Mother’s Day, I often tend to get sentimental and misty-eyed.  I’ve shared with you here in the past that my mom passed away suddenly in 2003. She is so greatly missed, still, and always will be.  Some of you know how that is, too, having lost someone so close to you.  Instead of feeling terribly sad, though, I thought I’d write about her and share with you some of her recipes! Maybe you’ll choose one or two to try this weekend for Mother’s Day.  I’ll share some favorite quotes about mothers, too. Hope you enjoy it, and enjoy and honor and even cook for your mother if she’s still around.  If she’s not, honor her memory! 

“Making the decision to have a child is momentous.  It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.”  ~Elizabeth Stone

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First, let me share again my mom’s simple, delicious green beans recipe. It’s my sister’s favorite thing mom used to make, and when she and I get together we usually make it!  It’s kind of like having mom there with us.   Mama’s Green Beans and New Potatoes

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“When you are a mother, you are never really alone in your thoughts. A mother always has to think twice, once for herself and once for her child.” ~ Sophia Loren

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Mom loved cheesy potatoes; we used to make them from a boxed mix, so she’d likely think these were way more fabulous! Check out this recipe:  Creamy Au Gratin Potatoes.

My mom’s fried chicken was the best, but this is  a similar recipe for Super-Crisp and Juicy Southern Fried Chicken and here is another that I love that I bet she would have, too: Herb & Parmesan Crusted Chicken Breast with Lemon-y White Wine Sauce

“Mother love is the fuel that enables a normal human being to do the impossible.”  ~Marion C. Garretty

This recipe is for those who have breakfast or brunch in mind.  She loved this recipe I shared with her for cinnamon rolls, and made them for dad and herself pretty regularly:  Cinnamon Rolls from scratch

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“A mother is a person who, seeing there are only four pieces of pie for five people, promptly announces she never did care for pie.”  ~Tenneva Jordan

Sometimes on Sunday afternoons when my sister and I were growing up, our family would go out to lunch after church. We LOVED the strawberry pie from Morrison’s Cafeteria, and later from Shoney’s.  Here’s a similar recipe that I totally love, and know mama would have, too:   Shoney’s-Style Fresh Strawberry Pie

We also often ate strawberry shortcake for dessert during summer using mom’s awesome sour cream pound cake recipe:  Ruthie’s Sour Cream Pound Cake. People used to request these from her for bake sales and church dinners; they were so good!

 I would love to make this variation on a cake & berries dessert for her:  Lemon-Sour Cream Cake with Strawberry Sauce

“I have learned that nothing can equal the universal appeal of the food of one’s childhood and early youth.”
~ Craig Claiborne

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“If you have a mom, there is nowhere you are likely to go where a prayer has not already been.”  ~Robert Brault

Here’s a creative writing post I wrote about my mom a while back; hope you like it. Brought tears to my eyes, just writing it:  Pink   

My mom was a unique woman; sometimes strong, sometimes weak, sometimes sad, sometimes giggly.  Always human.  One thing that my sister and I knew was that she was our greatest fan; she was the one who would cry in the church pews every time either of us sang in church, full of pride and joy.  She was the one who bragged about us and any little thing we did to her friends.  She was the one who would cry happy tears when she’d receive a nice picture of us, or later, of my sons. She loved her family intensely, and we miss her and love her intensely, still.

Cherish your mother if she’s still here, even the kind who’s hard to get along with. Surprise her this weekend with words of kindness and and acts of love, and no backtalk! 🙂  It’ll be one of her most cherished Mother’s Days yet, I promise.  And if YOU are a mom, make sure your family knows how much you cherish them, too.   Life is short; love deeply while you are here.

Happy Mother’s Day and much love to you all.  

(Please join me on my Facebook page, In the Kitchen with Mama Steph on KLTV7.  I’d love to visit with you there!)