Mother’s Day Gift Guide: Sara Kate Gillingham-Ryan

With Mother’s Day around the corner, we asked some of our favorite chefs what they’ll be giving — and hoping for! — this year. We also asked them to share their most special Mother’s Day memories and traditions. Read on for their picks and to learn how they’ll be celebrating this very special holiday, with their kids, mothers and entire families. Happy Mother’s Day!

 

Sara Kate Gillingham-Ryan is the founder of the The Kitchn and the author of our book Good Food to Share. She has one daughter, Ursula.

 

How do you celebrate Mother’s Day? 

I call my mom and thank her for everything she’s done for me, and then I surrender myself to the people around me who want to celebrate me. This year I bet my daughter will draw me a picture and there will probably be hearts, a princess, a Christmas tree and my name. These things have been in her art lately.

 

What’s your favorite thing to cook with your mom? And with your daughter?

I like to grill with my mom. She lives in Los Angeles, so it doesn’t matter what time of year it is, there is grilling. I also like to make our Holiday Breakfast Wreath, and that goes for cooking with my daughter, too. To be honest, I enjoy cooking anything if she joins me in the kitchen.

 

What’s the most important thing you’ve learned from your mom in the kitchen?

If you cook, you don’t do the dishes.

 

What’s the most important lesson you’ve tried to teach your daughter in the kitchen?

Feeding people is a honor.

 

What was your favorite childhood meal?

Breakfast for dinner. Pancakes, eggs, sausages.

 

 

1. All-Clad 4-Qt. Slow Cooker with Ceramic Insert: “The All-Clad ceramic-insert slow cooker is one of the appliances I use most in my kitchen. For a family, it makes such sense because you can cook something overnight, or while you’re at work, and then have food for a week or more.”

 

2. Imperia Pasta Machine: “The pasta roller is one of those great inventions that caters to both elegant entertaining and cooking with the kids. So for me, this is the perfect gift.”

 

3. Williams-Sonoma Wine Club: “After a day of mothering and working in my office, I can always use a glass of wine. This one is a no-brainer.”

 

4. Washed-Linen Napkins: “I’ll cop to a table linen obsession. I can always use more linen napkins. Hint, hint.”

 

5. Vitamix Professional Series 750 Blender: “I am lucky to have a Vitamix and I can say it’s transformed my kitchen. What a special gift to give someone who loves to cook.”