My parents always went on a month long summer vacation every year. We would pack up the family station wagon and off we'd go, most of the time to visit relatives in the Midwest, Texas, Oklahoma or California. We would always get up very early in the morning because my dad wanted to get through Seattle traffic. Kristin and I were still in our pj's so before the breakfast stop we had to go to a gas station and change. Our family had grand adventures and my parents thought it was great fun to stop and see all the road side monuments, parks, etc. My mom, Dorothy also thought it important to pack a large cooler for stops at parks to enjoy the outdoors and eat breakfast or lunch. She felt it essential to have fresh air and exercise when travelling.
There was never a summer we didn't first make a stop in Reno, Nevada (Biggest Little City in the World) as my parents enjoyed playing the slots in a few casinos. At that time, you could take your kids to Harrah's and they had a big movie theater just for kids with all the candy, popcorn and soft drinks y0u wanted. All you had to do was sign your kids in, let them know when you would be back and your kids were in good hands, you could not leave. Our travels took us to Yellowstone, The Grand Canyon, The Alamo, Plantations, historic places where presidents grew up or had lived, Mt. Rushmore, Disneyland, Knots Berry Farm, Jackson Hole and the list goes on and on. Kristin and I were very blessed to have seen all of the fantastic sights this great country has to behold. By the time Kristin and I were in our teens we had been to almost every state.
One of my favorite places was Grandma Bowman's (my mom's mother) in Gothenburg, NE. My grandfather has passed when I was about 3 or 4 so I didn't really know him. My grandma was as night was day from my mom. She was a spitfire and fun, fun, fun. Not that my mom's not fun, she's just more conservative. Gram was about medium height and lushly figured, in an old fashioned soft kind of way. Grandma lived in a 3-story house with all sorts of places to get lost in. The house was full of antique furnishings, it had a closed in front porch with a piano, old squeaky 4-poster beds and a wonderful garden outside. One of my favorite memories was her old screen door that slammed when you went running outside. I loved that screen door and still to this day when I see an old screen door I get lost in summer memories. I told Jerry this year for my birthday I want an old squeaky screen door to put on our back patio door. He said that's not a very exciting gift, how about jewelry or clothing? No, just an old screen door.
"Grandmas are moms with lots of frosting." - Author Unknown
My grandma loved to dance and she was crazy over Elvis. She was an excellent cook and also wrote romantic poetry about my grandfather. I weep when I read some of her writings. Her kitchen was large and she has an antique round table that could seat at least 15. I remember her calling us in for a "light lunch" and you could barely keep your plate on the table it was so overflowing with fresh salads from her garden, crispy fried chicken, potato salad, fresh green beans with bacon and onions, sliced tomatoes from her garden, hot rolls or biscuits, jams, fruit salads, homemade pickles, plus all the desserts; chocolate cake, pies, angel food cake and homemade ice cream. It really was always a sight to behold when you sat down at grandma's table for a meal.
"When a child is born, so are grandmothers." - Louisa May Alcott
Villa Mae was her name and she drove her car like a race car driver. She had one of those little compasses on her dashboard and if anyone saw her coming, out of the way they would jump! I loved riding with her to the grocery store or downtown to get a soda at the local drug store. My grandparents had 7 children who all in turn had kids so we had lots of cousins and sometimes more than one family would be visiting grams which made it all the more fun. I also had cousins that lived in the same town as grandma and they were always over so kids were running in and out of that back screen door and banging it all the time. In the evening, we would be outside and the fireflies would appear. Fireflies and banging screen doors, you just can't beat it for a great summer night. My mom and grandma were watermelon crazy and every night we would all sit outside around the picnic table and eat big slices of fresh cold watermelon. The juice would drip down your arm and get sticky. Mom and I always liked ours with salt on it. At grandma's house Kristin and I shared a big soft 4 poster bed that faced the front of the house. There was a large tree outside of the window and every night a large hoot owl would perch on a branch and we would fall asleep to its soft hooting noises. I don't usually live in the past, but I could go for a summer night at grandma's again.Here are some wonderful recipes of hers and I hope you enjoy them and remember your own fond summer memories.
Grandma's Buttermilk Fried Chicken (grandma always used a big cast iron skillet to fry hers in)
3 lb. fryer chicken, cut into pieces
4 cups buttermilk
2 Tbl. paprika, divided
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups all purpose flour
2 Tbl. garlic power, divided
1 1/2 to 2 cups vegetable oil (grandma used Crisco)
In a large bowl whisk together buttermilk, 1 Tbl. garlic powder, 1 Tbl. paprika, salt and pepper. Rinse the chicken pieces in cold water and pat dry then place in marinade for at least 4 hours up to 24 hours. In ziplock or paper bag (grandma use a paper bag) add flour, 1 Tbl. paprika, 1 Tbl. garlic powder, salt and pepper. Remove chicken from marinade, shaking off excess and place a few pieces in ziplock or paper bag and shake well, remove and shake off excess flour. In a large cast iron skillet, heat oil over high heat. Add chicken pieces, but do not crowd and reduce heat to medium. Cook for about 10 minutes on one side, then turn over and cook other side for about 10 minutes or until cooked through. Remove chicken to drain on paper towels and sprinkle with a little bit more salt while it's hot. If you need to cook in batches, make sure the heat is back up to high before placing chicken in and then lower to medium.
"There's no place like home except Grandma's." - Author Unknown
Villa Mae's Potato Salad 3 lbs. new potatoes (grandma took them right from the garden)
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp. sugar
2 tsp. white vinegar
1/4 cup bread and butter pickles, chopped fine
3 Tbl. pimentos, drained and chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped fine
6 scallions, chopped fine including green part
2 tsp. celery seeds
1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped (grandma used curly parsley)
6 hard boiled eggs, sliced (use a couple of them to place on top of salad)
2 tsp. yellow mustard (more if desired)
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Place potatoes in large pot of salted, boiling water and cook until tender about 30 minutes. Drain and cool a bit. Cut potatoes into chunks and place in large bowl and pour vinegar over and gently mix, season with a little salt and pepper. In another bowl, add the rest of the ingredient's and mix well. Pour over potatoes, if you need more mayonnaise you can add at this time. Taste and season with more salt and pepper if needed. Cover and refrigerate for a couple of hours until chilled. Transfer salad to serving bowl and add extra chopped parsley on top, a sprinkle of paprika and sliced hard boiled eggs. Note; sometimes she put in fresh chopped radishes from her garden which I love.
Fresh Green Beans with Bacon and Onions
2 lbs. fresh green beans, remove ends (grandma's were straight from the garden)
1/2 package of bacon, chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 bunch scallions, chopped including green part (once again, directly fro her garden)
In a large pot of boiling salted water, add beans and cook a few minutes until crisp/tender. In the meantime, add chopped bacon to cast iron skillet and cook until crisp. Add scallions and cook for a minute, remove bacon and scallions to bowl, add drained beans and season with salt and pepper. Grandma would add a little of the bacon grease and mix in, this of course is optional. I've also added fresh chopped tomatoes too and it tastes great.
"If God had intended us to follow recipes, He wouldn't have
given us grandmothers." - Linda Henley
Villa's Rhubarb Cobbler
Filling
4 cups fresh rhubarb, diced
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 Tbl. all purpose flour
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. orange zest, grated
Topping
2 cups all purpose flour
8 Tbl. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup Crisco
2 eggs, beaten
6 Tbl. milk
Arrange rhubarb in the bottom of baking dish. Mix sugar, flour, cinnamon and zest together and sprinkle on top of rhubarb.
Topping
Sift together the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder; cut in shortening until mixture looks like coarse meal. Whisk together beaten eggs and milk; stir into flour mixture until dry ingredients are moistened. Drop by tablespoons over rhubarb mixture; spread dough around to fill in gaps. Bake in 350 degree oven for 35 minutes or until topping is lightly browned and filling is bubbly. Serve with vanilla ice cream (grandma's was homemade) There was always fresh hot coffee brewing or she also had a big pitcher of ice tea in the frig.
"Grandma always made you feel she had been waiting to see just
you all day and now the day was complete."
Grandma's Chocolate Cake 2/3 cup butter, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
Chocolate Frosting - see below
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour (2) 9-inch round baking pans. In a bowl of electric mixer, beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition and then add vanilla, scraping down bowl. In another bowl, combine dry ingredients and whisk together. Add to butter mixture alternating with buttermilk, beating to incorporate. Pour batter into prepared pans and bake for approximately 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted comes out clean. Cool on wire racks. Make frosting.
Melt butter in small saucepan over low heat; add cocoa stirring constantly until smooth and slightly thickened. Remove from heat and pour into bowl, use spatula to get all of it. Cool for about 40 minutes or until thick. Beat in powdered sugar alternating with milk and vanilla. Frost cooled cake.
"Grandmas never run out of hugs or cookies." - Author Unknown
Villa Mae's Easy Dinner Rolls
1 cup water (110 degrees)
2 packages yeast (not quick rise)
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp. salt
4 1/2 cups all purpose flour
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl combine water and yeast and let stand for 5 minutes. With a wooden spoon, stir in butter, sugar, eggs and salt. Add flour 1 cup at a time and beat in as much as you can. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours. Grease a 13x9 baking pan. Turn dough out onto floured surface and divide into 24 pieces. Roll each piece into a smooth ball and place on prepared pan. Cover and let rise until doubled, approximately 1 hour. Place in preheated oven and bake until golden brown, about 15 to 17 minutes.
Grandma's Easy Pickles (good for beginners)
6 large fresh cucumbers, washed and sliced (pick nice ones, not too fat, but not to thin)
4 onions, sliced julienne, semi thick slices
1/4 cup salt
2 cups white vinegar
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. celery seed
1 tsp. mustard seed
Very Important Note: Get you canning jars ready, wash in hot soapy water, rinse in hot water and air dry. I even use disposable gloves when handling mine, just so no germs get in any contact with jars or food. Make sure your hands are very clean too. I can't stress this enough! If you are hesitant, find a book on canning or check out the local county extension office or go to www.foodsafety.wsu.edu which is Washington State University information web site. Google canning safety and you will find additional sites.
Wash your cucumbers well in cold water and slice. Slice onions and place both into glass bowl with salt and let stand for 1 hour. Next, drain and rinse with 2 cups of cold water. In a non-reactive saucepan, combine vinegar, sugar, celery seed and mustard seeds, bring to a boil and cook 3 minutes.
Pack cucumbers and onions into clean sterilized jars, be sure to wipe up any splashes on jars (keep them clean) and using a funnel, add hot vinegar mixture, leaving 1/4-inch head space. Once again, wipe off any spills with a hot clean cloth. Make sure your lids are clean and then seal jars and process in boiling hot water bath for 10 minutes. Cool on counter and store in cool place. Once opened, store in refrigerator. I can't stress enough about cleanliness, because if you aren't you have the potential for botulism and you don't want that. I am a fanatic about clean jars, cleaning any spills. The applies to jam or anything you are canning.
Bon Appetit
"And this is the promise that He Himself made to us; eternal life."
1 John 2:25
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