BEAVERDALE, Iowa — Diane Roupe grew up with a mother and grandmother who were both amazing cooks.
However, Diane didn't learn how to cook until she became an adult and got married. It didn't take her long to learn how to cook well though, taking influence from her relatives.
After years of perfecting her craft, Diane decided to move to New York to open her own restaurant, which had been her lifelong dream.
Unfortunately, she ran out of funds for her restaurant “Diane’s” to even open.
Instead, she was the Vice President for Public Affairs for Blue Cross Blue Shield in greater New York. She ate out on the town a lot when she lived there, and drew inspiration for two cookbooks she would soon write, from the restaurants of NYC.
It took Diane 10 years to make her first cookbook, which she had published in 1998. Her favorite recipe is the meatloaf, she said, which actually was made by her mother growing up.
After spending years in New York, Diane eventually move back to Iowa. She currently resides at the Edencrest at Beaverdale senior living facility, living with Dementia.
Edencrest began a program for the holidays, partnering with local businesses, to help make their residents' dreams come true.
In partnership with Edencrest's "Dare to Dream" program, Curbin' Cuisine helped make Diane's dream of having her cookbooks come to life on Wednesday.
"It's the holidays and I think this will make her happy, and it's going to be a special day for her and her family," said Curbin' Cuisine co-owner Jarrod Fontanini.
Jarrod and his wife, Misty, opened Curbin' Cuisine back in 2013, but never expected they'd do something so "giving" around the holidays. They had never met Diane prior to Wednesday's meal.
"I just know that it was a no-brainer that we had to do this," Misty said. "We had to help her, um, relive those memories, and then eat her food that she wrote the recipes for."
Diane and five other friends and family members joined her at the "Thanksgiving dinner table" to share some of Diane's meals she's spent decades writing, making and sharing with others.
The meals Curbin' Cuisine prepared for Diane on Wednesday included:
- Wisconsin Beer Cheese Soup
- "Field of Dreams" salad
- Rosemary chicken with raspberry sauce
- Harvest Moon Cake
All of the recipes came from Diane's cookbook.