My memories of food and cooking came from my Mom. Growing up in the Middle East, I remember spending my afternoons watching her read cover to cover her Gourmet magazines. When she found a recipe she liked, she would cut it out, and tape it into her homemade recipe book. I watched as she made the most amazing jelly rolls, and the fluffiest doughnuts. On the weekends, I would spend time cooking with my grandmother, who made the most amazing hummus, and grape leaves. Both women made food to be shared with family.

 

After the Middle East, we moved to Europe, and my mother taught me how to appreciate food. She loved exploring different restaurants. She taught me that chefs are artists, and that cooking is a passion.

 

Once we moved to the United States, my mother loved finding the Woman's League and church cookbooks. To her, those recipes were like hidden treasures. When we opened our Antique Mall, she continued collecting cookbooks. At first, I thought this collection was useless. As I found that I actually liked to cook, I started buying my own cookbooks and adding to the collection. I wanted my collection to be more modern than my mom’s. With time, we merged our collections, and I have to say, it's nice having two points of view.

 

I now appreciate her collection and her amazing abilities as a cook. Mixies Vintage is an homage to the women in my life who gave me a passion for food, and the ability to create beautiful recipes from any decade. The twist is my modernization of those recipes along with some that I create from the memories of my travels abroad. My cookbook room is a treasure of possibilities, and now I am sharing those gems with you.