Happy Birthday Feast on the Cheap!

Mary Anne here. Exactly one year ago today, Mariel approached me with an idea for a blog. She suggested I compile a collection of recipes that addressed our distressing economic recession by converting my extravagant catering recipes into thriftier renditions, without compromising either flavor or presentation.

Initially, I balked at the idea of writing an online “cookbook.” I was neither internet savvy nor interested in becoming so. But my brain began to hum and buzz as I envisioned the possibilities of transforming veal into turkey and tenderloin into chuck. As my daughter’s proposal grew in appeal and I felt the hook sink in, I decided that there was no harm in trying – OK, let’s do it. Literally, the very next day, Feast on the Cheap was born!

At first, I panicked. Since I’m not part of the generation that leaped into the world with a computer mouse in hand, I had no idea how to wrangle this woolly, burly wordpress beast. “No worries,” cooed Mariel. “I’ll handle the web stuff and be your silent partner.” The hook had found my soft underbelly.

The past year has been our shared culinary journey as Mariel came out from behind the wizard’s curtain, learning to cook and then writing and creating her own timely, incredibly well-executed (lower cal!) dishes. I remember the day she posted her very first recipe – I literally cried as the pride I felt for my girl gushed forth like a molten lava cake. And surprise! She even had the recipe format down. Mariel had been paying attention to her old mother all these years! What a gift in this revelation.

But really, the best gift of all is knowing she will come behind me, even now in this post; she’ll edit my words and simplify my somewhat verbose language, making me look pretty darn good. I am blessed with this gorgeous, talented daughter and I not only cherish her as a mom does a child, but revel in sharing with her the enduring passion of my life: designing wondrous fare.

Happy Birthday to our little blog, and a huge thank you from the bottom of our mixing bowls, to you, our devoted readers!

Mariel here. OK, now I’m crying. My mom summed it up perfectly – this has been a remarkable year for both of us. I never imagined I’d be cooking and blogging with such gusto – alongside my mother, no less – but here I am, loving every minute of it. Hopefully someday we’ll turn this into a moneymaker, but for now, we’re both feeling pretty richly rewarded.

In honor of our special day, we’ve decided to share a decades-old family tradition: an absurdly decadent Ice Cream Cake with Heath Bars, Chocolate Sauce and Maraschino Cherries. It is neither cheap nor healthy, but what the hell, you only turn one once.