Around our house in those days, if you didn’t clean up your room you went to bed without dessert. Not just a mess in your own room, either. If you left a mess anywhere and refused to be responsible for it—reasons ranging from recalcitrance to outright sloth—no matter! There was NO EXCUSE FOR IT! You hit the sack with a hole in your belly. Tough patooties. That was the law of the land.
In the great Southeast, no meal was complete without something sweet to finish it off. Round it out, take the edge off. Such punishment then was tantamount to twenty lashes. While you might be able to stand fast, stay whatever course had to be stayed concerning your Mess and its necessity, it was you, the Messer, who teetered bedward in sugar shock, the withdrawal kind, not the law upholders of the land.
It was 1960, when our mother’s chums entered her in the Mrs. Nashville contest as a practical joke. Not because she wasn’t up to muster in all things home ec, it just wasn’t something anybody from our side of town had ever “done.” Nonetheless, she went right on ahead with it, jumped through the field trials, and sashayed home with the banner. Mrs. Nashville, 1960. Nice picture in the paper, everybody got a big kick out of it.
Mother's Day
Mothers Day
Birth, Death & Mother’s Day
Mother’s Day was always a meaningful day in my life, but not because of my own mother. Because of my father’s mother. She was born on a day in May that fell on or near Mother’s Day. Each year her family celebrated her birthday on Mother’s Day, no matter what the date of her actual birthday. Her large clan would all come to her little house, deep in the Valley, to honor her. Most of them lived nearby, but not us.
We would hop in the back of my dad’s convertible car and head over Coldwater Canyon. He drove with only one hand on the wheel. My dad was handicapped and needed his other hand for the controls that were attached to the steering wheel, both the gas and brake in one. It was very unsteady. Add to that the sharp curves going over the mountain, his cigar smoke filling my lungs, and his spit flying back into our faces that we tried dodging -- well, it was quite the E ticket ride. (For those born after they were discontinued in 1982, E tickets were for Disneyland’s most thrilling attractions.)
Finally, the road would straighten out at the bottom of the mountain for a long straight stretch till we hit Ventura Boulevard. By then, I was fully recovered, though still dodging spit and seeking a good air pocket to escape the smoke. No seat belts in those days either, and I weighed nothing, so I flew around a lot in the back of dad’s car.
A Garnish of Gremolata
A spring brunch just wouldn’t be complete without asparagus. Along with our grilled strawberry-brie sandwiches and brown sugar and pepper glazed bacon, we enjoyed a side of blanched asparagus spears with a garnish of gremolata at our Bass Lake Brunch.
Served at room temperature, the blanched asparagus was cooked just enough to retain some crunch. Plunging the cooked asparagus into a bowl of ice water gives it a shock that stops the cooking and helps retain the bright green color.
Traditionally, gremolata is a mixture of chopped parsley, lemon zest and garlic, sometimes held together with a bit of olive oil. In Mediterranean cooking, it is often served with veal or lamb. My Bass Lake cooking friend mixed it up with some chopped olives. It would also be wonderful as a garnish for asparagus with chopped, toasted hazelnuts or toasted pine nuts added to the base of lemon, parsley and garlic. Leftover gremolata can be tossed into pasta, spooned over a bowl of soup, whisked into an omelet or stirred into rice.
Our hostess, who always has the perfect serving plate for any kind of food, had an asparagus plate and even asparagus tongs for serving.
Apricot, Ginger, and White Chocolate Scones
Perhaps it's their association with English tea and ladies' garden luncheons that make scones so deliciously feminine. Since they're one of the easiest baked goods to make and are always well received, they're an ideal addition to your Mother's Day breakfast.
These Apricot, Ginger, and White Chocolate Scones are a new creation of mine -- the spicy ginger compliments the sweet apricots and white chocolate, while the slivered almonds provide just the needed crunch. They pair especially well with spiced coffee and, of course, hot tea.
For a pretty, unfussy presentation, serve scones in a linen or cloth-lined basket for your Mother's Day breakfast.
Portraits of My Family in the Kitchen
I have been thinking about all the recipes of everyone I know and it is so funny and interesting the way their personalities play into everything so well and say so much.
Like my Dad is so unassuming - until you know him and then - surprise! Under the surface - glittering and colorful and baroque - just like his vegetable soup. Such an unassuming classic - but in the hands of my Dad - an event people wait for! I call it, "Dad's Baroque Vegetable soup."
My Mother, definitely "Lamb with mint sauce." So-o-o-o rarified and neat and ultimately delicious. No messes in the kitchen when she cooks.
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