My husband and I agree that she was the best cook ever. But with all modesty I have a way with vegetables and he compares mine favorably to hers. Of course she was cooking for a group of people and I cook with his tastes in mind. :-)
Oh yes, a baby's bottom! I read that somewhere and it's been a good guide. Also you look for tiny wrinkles on the surface. Hard to see until you know what you're looking for but once you notice them they're pretty clear. Also it depends on what kind of bread. A heavy dough takes a lot of kneading, not just patting it, you have to get in there with the strength of your shoulders sometimes! I was taught to knead, then fold and turn it one quarter around a circle. Pressing with one hand, folding and turning with the other.
I think as you start cooking her recipes you'll remember more and more. Getting the spices right will be important. I could never get my lima beans to taste like my grandmothers until she told me to use a pinch of savory. That was what it was missing! If you have family members who remember her cooking they can help you with taste-testing too!
Ooo I love vegetable dishes stir fried very simply with garlic. How do you cook yours? I would love to read your post on that :)
Ah tiny wrinkles, I think I have seen that on baking shows and I have seen how people knead, and fold in and turning in circles. Such a therapeutic motion in action. Time to get my hands bready! :)
Ah that is a great idea. I can get my family members to try but I will need to thicken my skin first to face the critiques :D. My aunty used to cook like her and was the only one who knew her recipes by heart but she passed away suddenly 2 years ago due to cancer :( Life is so unexpected sometimes.
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Do what the baking show people do, it sounds just right! And yes, very therapeutic!
One of the things my husband and I agree on is lots of garlic and spicy hot chilies! Which is not a Norwegian-type thing. I have one of his mother's recipes for a noodle dish that calls for a whole clove of garlic - pierced with a toothpick - and removed before baking! My version uses 3 cloves, minced and sauteed with the onions.
She mostly boiled her vegetables. Nothing wrong with that, but I like to steam mine (artichokes, with garlic powder and a few fennel seeds in the steam water) or roast them in the oven (with, yes, garlic, and a squeeze of lemon before serving). She would boil cabbage until it nearly gave up the ghost. I stir-fry mine lightly with salt and pepper and a pinch of whole celery seeds. I never liked beets all that much, the canned and pickled kind, but roasting them whole in the oven changed all that. I like my vegetables to shine on their own, not just be an extra thing on the plate.
Critical relatives? Perhaps you could take the pressure off by explaining that you're doing an ongoing experiment? Not looking for a thumb's up or down, you just need their feedback on the flavors? Hopefully choosing the testers/tasters who are also cooks? Even if you don't exactly match her flavors you will come close and create new family favorites!