Book honors Grandma Jean's good cooking
  As an added bonus, all proceeds from the sale of the books will go to food banks

Four years ago, Kristina Yoshida McMorris asked her maternal grandmother, Irma Jean McPherren, to collect some of her favorite recipes so McMorris could put together a family cookbook. But what began as a project for friends and family blossomed into a Christmas gift for the entire community.

McMorris, the daughter of Linda and Junki Yoshida of the Yoshida Group, decided to try to sell the cookbook at local bookstores, with all the proceeds going to food banks, McPherren's favorite cause.

On Nov. 20, McMorris presented her grandmother with the bound, professionally printed cookbook: "Grandma Jean's Rainy Day Recipes."

"She told me she had an early Christmas gift for me," McPherren said. "And I was just shocked when I saw it. I'm still in shock."

When a member of the Yoshida family goes public, the marketing machine kicks into full gear. McPherren and McMorris have appeared on several local TV shows, and Grandma Jean had a book signing at the Borders bookstore in Gresham, where approximately 60 cookbooks were sold. There's even a Web site devoted to McPherren: www.grandmajean.net.

All the publicity hasn't fazed the down-to-earth McPherren.

"I wouldn't have gone along with this if it hadn't been for the proceeds going to the food bank," she said. "I always told Kristina that life is about helping others."

McPherren is a resident of Hoodsport, Wash., where she is well-known for her volunteer work at the Hood Canal Food Bank.

A collection of 430 recipes, "Grandma Jean's Rainy Day Recipes" is broken down into 19 chapters including main dishes, sides, sauces, desserts and candies.

A biography section titled "About Grandma Jean" also provides a little slice of American history. In homespun style, McMorris describes how Jean McPherren milked five cows a day on her family's farm before walking a mile to a one-room schoolhouse, as well as her adventures during the Depression and World War II.

The biography also includes the first letter McPherren's husband wrote her while he served on a U.S. Navy ship in the Atlantic during the war.

And, as it turns out, the McPherrens played an integral role in the eventual success of the Yoshida Group, the family food products conglomerate founded by their daughter and son-in law.

"We cashed in one of our retirement bonds to help them start up," McPherren said.

Two weeks after being presented with the cookbook, McPherren said she still hadn't had a chance to look it over in detail. "I told Kristina: 'Any mistakes, you're responsible for them!'"

Most of the dishes in the cookbook are American made-from-scratch classics: pot roast, chicken

and green bean casseroles, creamed corn, pecan rolls. But there are dozens of more unusual recipes, including Burnt Sugar Raisin Cream Pie, Strawberry Pretzel Salad and Spareribs Kauai, made with the famous Yoshida brand Sweet & Sour Sauce.
A grandmother par excellence, McPherren said she loves sending her family home with casseroles when they come to visit for the holidays. When pressed, she said two of her favorites are Pineapple Cream Cheese Pie and Island Sweet & Sour Meatballs, a variation prepared with cranberry sauce.

Ultimately, what McPherren is most proud of is taking care of other people.

"One of the things I like to do is make crescent rolls for my neighbor," she said. "After her husband died, she just didn't have any will to live, and she said the rolls were the only thing that kept her going. Food provides a lot of kinds of nourishment."

The cookbooks are available in bookstores and online at www.grandmajean.net. The price is $14.99, and all proceeds benefit local food banks.


The Oregonian - December 26, 2000; by Linda Baker