When my mother-in-law cooks her ‘Betty burgers’, everyone comes running to eat them.
Generations of family and dozens of friends whisper in excitement when the trays of burgers come off the barbecue.
Oh, I dream of wielding that much power with a humble meat patty.
‘Betty burgers’ are steeped in tradition.
You have to serve them on fresh white bread and drench them in tomato sauce.
The thing is, Betty not only willingly shares her magical recipe but she even has the actual ingredients framed in her kitchen.
The framed recipe is probably what the family would save if there was a house fire.
You would never guess the cryptic mixture of ingredients in the patties as the list includes red onion, chicken noodle soup mix and milk.
Go figure.
But recipes of all types often bring out our pettiness when friends or family ask to copy them.
Oscar Wilde said: “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness.”
Well, Nagi, of RecipeTin Eats fame, did not think so when she accused Brooke Bellamy, of Brooki Bakehouse, of plagiarising her caramel slice and baklava recipes. Bellamy has denied the allegations.
The basic bogan in me was loving the battle of the cooking queens.
I love a bit of drama and grew up with my mum refusing to share her recipe for potato salad: its secret ingredient is pickle juice.
Colonel Sanders refused to reveal his 11 secret herbs and spices.
And if we knew the vaulted formula for Coca-Cola, we would be billionaires.
My friend Kellie laments that her grandmother died with her sloppy peas recipe because she refused to hand it out.
Chrissy’s dad says his pork ribs recipe will be in his will.
Soraya says her recipe for chocolate fudge can never leave the bloodline.
Michelle shares her shortbread recipe but leaves out a part of the method that makes it so great.
I get the Nagi/Brooki feud: big dollars are at stake.
But it seems many of us are just as passionate about defending family traditions.
I say, “C’mon people. Us fudge-loving, rib-craving souls remind you that sharing is caring. Be more like Betty.”
“Or not,” says my waistline.
Sami Muirhead is a radio announcer, blogger and commentator. For more from Sami, tune into Mix FM.
The opinions expressed are those of the author. These are not the views of Sunshine Coast News’ publishers.
