Passing on traditions and recipes

There are a few things that make people think of family and traditions. The smell of a cake or familiar dish cooking during the holidays is certainly one of them. The tradition of passing recipes on through the generations is at the heart of the annual “Spreading Smucker’s Traditions Recipe and Essay Contest.”

Judy Turk of Bellmore is one of five finalists who will travel to Ohio to share her recipe and the story of what it means to her family. Turk submitted her “jelly crumb cake” recipe, a fixture at family holidays since she was a child. Her mother, Rachel, created the recipe as something that was easy to make but delicious and elegant enough to present during the holidays.

Turk first heard of the contest from her son. Last year a distant family friend in Chicago won the contest and was awarded a trip to Disney World for her entire family. As soon as she heard about that contest, Turk, who has four grown children and four grandchildren, knew that the possibility of winning a family trip would be a great way to bring everyone together. Her son said, “Mom, your jelly cake would just fit the bill for this.”

Aside from having a recipe that includes Smucker’s jellies or jams, the story behind the family recipe is key to winning. Turk said that baking has always been an important aspect of her family traditions, starting with her mother. “My mother was a wonderful baker, very creative; she baked all sorts of things,” Turk said. It was in her mother’s kitchen that the jelly crumb cake recipe was created. Of her four children, Turk’s youngest daughter, Shara, picked up baking and cooking naturally. The rest of her family enjoys eating the finished product, Turk joked. Shara will travel to Ohio with Turk for the final judging.

In addition to being passed down from generations, the recipe must tell a story. Turk said the jelly crumb cake holds a special place on the holiday table, be it Thanksgiving or Passover. She also noted that the recipe has been changed slightly by each generation’s hands. The recipe calls for walnuts in the crust. Turk’s mother chopped the walnuts by hand, while Turk did so by food processor. Shara buys pre-chopped walnuts.

The contest differs slightly from when Turk’s family friend won. The judging will be live. Turk must bake on site and read her family’s story that she submitted. Were Turk to win, she would be awarded $20,000 to put toward a family reunion and/or vacation. Turk said she hopes that the judges enjoy the cake as well as what it means to her family. “It’s a very simple cake, it’s very tasty, and it looks pretty,” she said. “It would really be nice to pull everybody together.”

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