This post appears in the Face Time in the Kitchen challenge.

The kitchen is the heart of our home.

The kitchen has been the heart of every home I’ve ever lived in. People gathered around the island, cozied up to the countertop bar, or even crammed in the door and leaning through the little pass through in my tiny first apartment with my husband.

Preparing food for friends and family, feeding people, and creating memories with them over those dishes – it’s one of my love languages, and I’m passing that on to my two children.

It’s not unusual to come downstairs on a Saturday morning to find themselves immersed in scrambling eggs, dusted with flour and sugar and giggling together as they make pancakes and waffles, and an almighty mess of our kitchen. Their pride in themselves, shining eyes, and pure joy erase any frustration I might have for the mess they’ve made.

We work together to clean, teaching them that it’s best, and easiest, to clean as you go – and we talk. It’s in these moments, cooking together, cleaning together, eating together; that they share their joys, their fears, little moments from the previous day – hopes for that day. It’s in the heart of our home that they share their stories with me, and I hold those stories in my heart.

I came into the kitchen the other morning to find my daughter perched on our island with one of the albums containing my Granny’s recipe cards. When I asked what she was doing, she said:

“just looking through history, and seeing what we should make next.”

“history?” I responded.

“Yes ma’am – whenever we make one of these recipes, you tell us a memory you have of it – it’s like cooking our history”

I simply stared at her, speechless.

“Mom, we should make a new album of our favorite recipes and maybe put a picture, or write a memory to go along with it… that way it’s never forgotten”

So that’s what we’re going to do this summer. I’m going to buy a scrapbook, order some custom recipe cards, and we’re going to cook our way through history, and create new history with our own favorite recipes, all in the heart of our home.

Do you have a favorite way to share recipes? Have you and your family done something unique or creative in the kitchen to preserve and pass on your family’s recipe and legacy? I’d love to hear about it!

Want to know how to build a successful restaurant? Check out BonAppetit.com’s “Out of the Kitchen”, a glimpse into the inner workings of two successful restaurants. Meet the back of the house inner circle and see how face-to-face relationships keep customers coming back for more.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Bon Appetit. The opinions and text are all mine.

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