So who are the Murray Girls? And why am I dedicating this site to them? The Murray Girls were sisters who loved to cook. One of them happened to be my Mom, Antoinette Bernice Murray Burt. The other was my Auntie, Barbara Murray Brady. I recall Aunt Barbara’s husband, Louis, always sang a nonsensical song when the two sisters were together. It was all about the exploits of the Murray Girls. I don’t 
remember all the particulars, but the chorus was “Oh the Murray Girls, the Murray Girls…how I love the Murray Girls” This usually occurred around the cocktail hour and there was a great deal of laughing. The cocktail hour was a thing during the 50’s and 60’s and personally I think it should be brought back. Dinner was a sit down affair. There was often appetizers, followed by a full dinner and desert. So the Murray Girls really knew how to cook.
My mom enjoyed cooking and could often be seen clipping recipes from magazines or creating cakes for one of us kids (there were 7 of us). She made cakes shaped like circus trains or clowns or that peppermint drum in the original Betty Crocker cookbook. (Remember that one?) She loved to bake and one of her beliefs was that children should return home from school to the smell of cookies baking. She baked every day.
My Aunt cooked for a large family too. I wasn’t around much until later in her life and at that time she loved to entertain and create delicious dishes for us and whoever else happened by. She was a baker, too. One of the things that gave her joy was to bake birthday cakes for the crew at her local Publix. Never mind that they have a world class bakery right in the store- those kids looked forward to Auntie’s cakes!
It’s only fitting that I dedicate this recipe collection to them. Not everything in this collection was made by them. But their love for cooking lives on through me. I know if my Mom were here, she’d be saying “Bon Appetit” I hope you enjoy my site!