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The food philosophy of Stephanie Stanhope's mum has influenced her for life.
"My parents came to Australia from England in the 1950s," Stanhope, the former NSW president of the Country Women's Association (CWA), tells SBS Food. "Mum wasn't a very adventurous cook, so we basically had simple and healthy English comfort food."
The simple, healthy English food her mum cooked not only fed all nine Stanhope children, but helped the brood see food as more than just sustenance: it was a chance to meet and connect.
STEPHANIE STANHOPE'S PEANUT BUTTER BISCUITS RECIPE
Peanut butter biscuits
Preserves, pies and puddings
"Mum used to make ginger biscuits because dad loved ginger," Stanhope says. But she adds that this is a "vague memory". Meanwhile, her older siblings remember mum making oat biscuits.
"To flatten them out, the kids used to throw them up on the ceiling of the kitchen. I don't know how hygienic that was though," she laughs.
Biscuits were a rarity though because her mum needed to spend a whole day baking to make enough for everyone.
What Stanhope does recall clearly were the rice puddings and fruit dishes her mum often served the family.
"We used to preserve fruits, so mum made a lot of fruit pies. Apple and rhubarb pies are still favourites of mine. With so many children, the easiest dishes to make were stewed fruits and custards."
Food is our meeting place.
Christmas also involved fruit-based desserts. "Mum always did the Christmas baking. We had minced pies and short bread. We also made our own fruit mince, which I know not a lot of people do now."
When she was in her teens, she loved helping her mum make fruitcakes. "But I was probably more of a hindrance than help," she says.
Christmas puddings had a particularly special place on the table.
"Everyone stood around the pudding during Christmas and made a wish. Mum would place silver coins into the pudding; hopefully no one ever swallowed one!"
Stanhope's baking prowess now extends to classics like chocolate cake. Source: Kitti Gould
A massive veggie garden
Vegetables were an important part of the family diet.
"Dad always had a vegetable garden going. Growing up, we had a massive potato and tomato patch. We would then preserve bottles of tomatoes so we could have them all year."
They also had broad beans, carrots and Brussels sprouts, which she "absolutely hated" then but loves now.
"We always had a lot of veggies and used whatever was growing at that time in our dishes. We also had chooks that laid eggs."
From her own kitchen
Her parents cooked mostly English food, but Stanhope introduced them to new cuisines that she learned from her travels.
"I was an exchange student in Mexico for a year and another sister went to England to do her midwifery. When we returned to Australia, we started expanding mum and dad's palate with other food. With someone else cooking, I think they were more than happy to eat anything," she says.
Just the other day, we used the blueberries we had and made a blueberry cake. It's a great way to bond.
Now living by herself, Stanhope admits that she's still getting used to cooking for one.
"I enjoy cooking, but after two days of eating the same thing, I'll get sick of it, so I'll always take a bowl of what I've cooked to someone and enjoy the food with them."
She loves baking with her grandchildren. "Just the other day, we used the blueberries we had and made a blueberry cake. It's a great way to bond with them."
Stanhope's grandson Tom, making scrambled eggs. Source: Supplied
"I still do very much enjoy getting together with family to cook and eat. Everyone chips in and helps. And after cooking, you sit, eat, enjoy and talk. For us, food is our meeting place."
STEPHANIE STANHOPE RECIPES
Stephanie Stanhope's chocolate cake
