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School Cook Book Submission by Carol Wells

One recipe asked to be shared to become a part of a class's small cook book. Parental dilemma about which one would make the child proud of their parent's cooking talents. Yet the child remains adamant about doing as the teacher instructed and submit a recipe from Carol's collection that is the child's favorite.

My third daughter's 1st grade class decided to compile a recipe book. This informal attempt at book publishing required each child to submit a favorite recipe, which translated into having Mom or Dad doing homework for a change of pace but with the child receiving the credit. A partially agreeable arrangement since the child would later add an artistic touch or two to the pages of the finished product.

When hit with this news I wondered which recipe to select for submission. It is amazing when asked to share a recipe for a simple collection how the Betty Crocker side of one's personality suddenly emerges from the nether regions - yet with a sense of competition as if being a contestant in the Pillsbury Cook-Off. The limit of one recipe per child meant whatever recipe selected had to be a good one to show off what little cooking skills I did possess.

"What recipe of mine would rival with the Martha Stewart wannabes of the school district," I wondered silently.

I could not share the Fake Steak recipe as I was not quite ready for the children to know it wasn't steak I placed on a slice of toast and let them use A-1 steak sauce on. Not fully a lie, since hamburger is ground from various cuts of beef. All my friends knew about "Fake Steak night" at my home, so it was not a deeply guarded secret but my oldest daughter did not catch on until she was 19 about how fake the steak actually was! Besides, the recipe was sinfully simple - grill a hamburger and place on a slice of a toast. Even Martha would frown at the lack of originality.

I nixed sharing the chocolate-oatmeal drop cookie since everyone knew that particular recipe. At least two other mothers would submit a copy of it so a potential third copy definitely unnecessary. I figured this degree of probability based on other local compiled cookbooks sharing multiple submissions of that same particular candy-cookie type treat.

My home made vegetable soup is a can of V-8 with some cans of mixed vegetables tossed in with a pinch of salt and pepper. The only thing home made about it was being the location where the ingredients came together. My somewhat-famous spaghetti sauce? Employees of Prego deserve getting all the credit.

I looked at my daughter wishing I had more accomplished cooking skills. "How about my Sloppy Joe recipe," I asked. It was one recipe that, gradually over the years, I had "made my own".

"That's not my favorite," she replied honestly.

"Well, it is my most original though," I said.

"But it's not my favorite and teacher said it had to my favorite."

"Ok, so what did you have in mind?"

"The noodle one."

"Tuna and noodles," I asked in disbelief. Did the child want me to share that recipe? It was cruelly simple and incapable of showing off my cooking skills to a point of mildly impressing someone else! "Cook a bag of noodles until done. Drain then add a couple shakes of pepper and salt, and tablespoon of butter. Open can of tuna, drain well, then mix in with noodles. Serve." I silently prayed she did not mean that recipe!

"No."

A sigh of relief as my chance to show off still existed - but I failed to think of what recipe my child was hinting about. "Which noodle recipe are you talking about?"

"The one you fixed me for lunch when in kindergarten," she smiled.

I sat there for a moment thinking back through time of what I had fixed her for lunches. "You don't mean beef-a-roni, do you," I asked cautiously.

"That's the one! I couldn't remember the name of it, but you always made it just right!"

"Well there's nothing to "make" to the point I could "fail". All I did was…"

"Don't tell me," she interrupted while handing me a piece of paper and a pencil. "Write it down!"

So I wrote, "Open a can of Chef Boyardee Beef-a-roni. Pour contents into a bowl. Place in microwave and heat on medium setting for 2 minutes. Serve."

I debated trying to convince my daughter to submit a better - and a bit more step-involved - recipe. Then I saw her face. For a moment I saw, for whatever reason, she was proud of me for sharing that 'recipe' with her. Those beef-a-roni lunches of the past, in all its simplicity, were somehow special to her. I handed over the piece of paper while hoping someone in her class talked their mother into submitting a recipe for hot dogs.

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