Serve Dinner and Be Immortalized
By Janet Peterson
A few years ago our local newspaper changed its approach to publishing obituaries. Families of the deceased now write the obituary whereas, previously, obituaries pretty much followed a standard format. What the surviving family members choose to say about their loved one reveals a lot about family relationships and about what the family deems to be important. Obituaries can only give a very brief summary of a person’s life, and thus what the family selects to write also reveals what were the most significant things to them about that person.
Several women’s obituaries point out that cooking dinner for their families was such a gift of love and connection that these efforts have been publicly proclaimed. The family of Lois Madsen Beecroft wrote: “Being a woman was a great blessing to her. She loved her life. Her home and family were always her focus. Her creativity allowed her to excel in decorating, sewing, cooking, shopping, and gardening. She truly loved homemaking. We shall all enjoy the fruits of her talents in our lives and homes for many years to come. Her Sunday dinners were special times for the entire family.”
Kay Carling was remembered with this tribute: “In the art of cooking, no one did it better. She loved everything about cooking, including baking from ‘scratch,’ preparing large family dinners, using the latest kitchen gadgetry, experimental cuisine, and of course collecting recipes. Eating at Grandma Kay’s house was definitely an opportunity not to be missed.”
June A. Eddington’s seven children remembered that “Each holiday was a fun family occasion that featured her wonderful cooking and famous potato salad.”
For all the twenty-five years I knew Valorie Liddell, she talked about Sunday dinners at her mother’s home. Each Sunday after everyone’s church meetings were concluded, all the married children who lived nearby and their families gathered at Grandma’s house. Dinner was potluck so that no one person had to do it all. Paper goods were used so time wasn’t spent washing a lot of dishes. Games, singing, putting on little plays on Grandma’s stage in the basement, talking, laughing, and joking were all part of the Hair Family tradition. When Maurine Hair died in November 2001, her family included this weekly event in her obituary: “Her greatest joy in life was her family. She had 36 of us to Sunday dinner every week. And she is famous for making the world’s best chocolates.”
Valorie, as the oldest daughter, determined to continue the tradition. She loved to cook and entertain as well in her own home, having designed a new kitchen with gathering as its key function. Tragically, Valorie was killed in an automobile accident in May 2002, along with her 17-year-old daughter, Allison. At their joint funeral, family members talked about Valorie’s kitchen always being open to teenage friends and that they were still welcome to come and eat.
I know that I will never read an obituary that states the deceased could drive through a fast food stop quicker than anyone or that she knew every fast food restaurant in town. Family togetherness and intimacy do not occur as meals are eaten between stoplights on the way to or from this practice or that meeting. Family connection and privacy do not take place amidst a crowd of people over a quick meal served on plastic trays.
Lovingly prepare nutritious meals for your family and be forever cherished for this gift of time and energy. Serve dinner at home and be immortalized.
The following recipes from Remedies for the “I Don’t Cook” Syndrome by Janet Peterson just might immortalize you in your family’s remembrances of delicious meals served by Mom/Grandma.
ITALIAN-SEASONED CHICKEN WITH NOODLES
Kaylene Redd
“Our family eats this at least once a week-we like it that much.”
3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
salt and pepper to taste
1 (0.7-ounce) envelope Good Seasons Italian salad dressing mix
1 (10 -ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, cubed or 1 (3-ounce) package
cream cheese for less rich sauce
1 tablespoon dry onion flakes
1 (8-ounce) package wide egg noodles, cooked according to package directions
Melt butter in a slow cooker. Coat chicken breasts with butter on both sides and place in slow cooker. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then dry salad mix. (Don’t add water.) Cover and cook on low for 5 to 6 hours.
About 45 minutes before serving, mix soup, cream cheese, and onion in a small bowl. Pour over chicken. Cover and cook minutes on medium heat, stirring occasionally, until cream cheese is melted and sauce heated through thoroughly. Place chicken on a platter. Serve sauce over cooked wide egg noodles.
Serves 6.
MY BEST LASAGNE
Sharon Martin
This lasagne does take extra time-but it is worth the effort. It is the best lasagne.
1 pound Italian mild sausage
1 pound ground beef
pinch of nutmeg
48 ounces homemade or prepared spaghetti sauce
16 ounces lasagne noodles
2 to 4 tablespoons butter
2 to 4 tablespoons flour
1 cups milk
8 ounces sharp Cheddar cheese, grated
cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese
8 ounces mushrooms or zucchini (or other fresh vegetables), sliced or chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
olive oil
8 ounces mozzarella cheese, grated
Heat oven to 350 F.
In a large skillet, brown sausage and ground beef together. Add nutmeg. When cooked, drain grease and set meat aside. Warm spaghetti sauce in a large saucepan. Parboil lasagne noodles in salted water, for only a few minutes. Do not cook as long as package directions indicate. This allows for easier handling.
Prepare cheese sauce by melting butter in a medium saucepan, add flour and stir until thickened. Add milk, stir again; add cheddar and Parmesan cheeses. Cook until sauce thickens to pouring consistency. In a small skillet, saut mushrooms with garlic in a little olive oil for about 2 minutes.
Spread 2 cups of spaghetti sauce over the bottom of a 10×14-inch or 4-quart baking dish. Layer a row of noodles. Layer some meat over noodles. Add some red sauce. Cover with another layer of lasagne noodles. Add the rest of the meat and the red sauce. Place mushrooms or other vegetables over the sauce. Layer any remaining noodles. The final layer is the cheese sauce. Spread evenly over entire pan. Sprinkle with Mozzarella cheese. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until bubbly. Allow to cool a little before cutting.
Serves 10.
TWO-HOUR ROLLS
Jen Eyring
From start to finish, these rolls take just 2 hours, and actual preparation time just a few minutes.
4 to 5 cups flour
1 tablespoon instant yeast
cup sugar
3 tablespoons oil
1 egg
1 cups lukewarm water
1 teaspoon salt
cup butter or margarine, melted
In a large bowl or the bowl of a bread mixer, mix half the flour with yeast. Add sugar, oil, egg, salt, and water. Blend well with mixer or dough hook. Add enough flour to make a soft dough that leaves the sides of the bowl. Let rise 15 minutes. Punch down and let rise another 15 minutes. Knead 1 to 2 minutes on a lightly floured board. Roll out into a large circle. Cut into wedges (a pizza cutter works well) and roll into crescent shapes. Place on an ungreased cook sheet and cover with plastic wrap sprayed with cooking spray. Let rise 1 hour.
Heat oven to 350 F.
Bake 15 minutes, until lightly browned. Brush with melted butter while still hot.
Makes 3 to 4 dozen rolls.
GINGERSNAPS
Lisa Dalton
“My grandma always had these delicious cookies baked for us when we saw her. She was an amazing cook!”
1 cups butter or margarine, softened
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
cup light molasses
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon allspice
4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
a cup of sugar
Heat oven to 350 F.
Cream together butter and 2 cups sugar in a large bowl. Add eggs, molasses, cinnamon, ginger, and allspice and mix well. Mix in flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Form into balls. Put a cup sugar in a small bowl. Roll balls in sugar. Bake for about 12 minutes.
Makes 5 dozen cookies.
FRUIT AND YOGURT ICE CREAM
Pat Menlove
Homemade ice cream tastes best the day it is made. It does not keep well in the freezer. Make sure you have enough eaters to polish off a batch.
3 cups fresh pureed apricots or peaches or 1 quart bottled apricots or peaches (drained) or juice of 2 lemons
3 to 4 cups sugar
1 (8-ounce) carton yogurt, plain or fruit flavored
1 quart half-and-half milk
Other fruits as desired
1 banana, pureed in blender
canned pineapple
fresh or frozen raspberries, mashed
fresh or frozen strawberries, pureed
In the freezer container, stir together, apricots or peaches, lemon juice, sugar, and yogurt. Add half-and-half. Add other fruits, as desired. Add milk to fill line. Freeze as directed.
Makes about 3 to 4 quarts.
2004 Meridian Magazine. All Rights Reserved.
