Smells and flavors bring back as many memories as old pictures....or music.
💞
When I pondered what home really means to me, I immediately thought of food. I was raised on a farm by good southern folks who wielded the mystical powers of the cast iron skillet and bacon grease. Between their masterful culinary skills and fresh garden bounty, we never went without a delicious meal.
I can recall the fine stitching of my grandmother's apron and still taste the Juicy Fruit gum she shared as we cooked together. I remember how everyone gathered in the kitchen, laughing over steaming pots of heaven boiling on the stove; mason jars of sweet tea in every hand. Fresh cut okra, squash and onions frying together in a hot-buttered skillet. Home made ice cream being cranked by hand on the back porch. And let's not forget the perfectly browned biscuits and corn bread sitting on the counter with grandma's cheese cloth rags over the top to keep off the flies. Oh God, I miss it! And I miss all those beautiful human beings who raised me in that kitchen.Thankfully, I did learn how to cook those savory specialties, keeping some of our family traditions alive. Chicken 'n dumplings, chicken fried steak, fried chicken and mashed potatoes, to name a few. Who knew soaking fresh snapped green beans in broth before cooking was the secret to winning over the next generation of vegetable haters. Half 'n half in the banana pudding, instead of milk, naughty, yes, but yum. A dollop of mayonnaise is the miracle in my mashed potatoes, but don't tell my kids. Meat loaf to die for and my grandmother's delicious crispy cornbread and special recipe lemon vanilla home made ice cream, makes my mouth water just thinking about it.
I'm proud to be the matriarch of the family now, not because I make the rules or offer some godfather like counsel, but because I can still roll a mean biscuit and make lump free sausage gravy. I consider it a true blessing that I was raised before technology took over the world. Before microwave ovens zapped the life out of food and cell phones numbed the minds of the future. I'm glad I lived in a time before families forgot how to look one another in the eye and truly communicate.
What foods do you remember from your childhood? Special traditions? If not food, what? Our family played guitars and dominoes. Let's reminiscence together? We need to remember the simpler things. And we need to pass those precious traditions on to the next generation before they are lost forever!!!
Thanks for listening, Rhonda
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I remember the smell of homemade Christmas and sunshine pickles and warm bread. The chicken and dumplings were fat and perfectly cooked. The homemade pies which were filled with just picked blackberries and raspberries or the elderberry jelly which was awesome on straight out of oven hot. The doughgutties that have been raising over the vent of the furnace covered in butter. So many memories that I love and remember with great fondness. Thank you for bringing me back to a time that I love.
ReplyDeleteCharlene, I love your traditions. They sound delicious. What’s a doughguttie? Anything with dough in it is always good. Oh and elderberry jelly??? Yum! Thanks for sharing.
DeleteA Doughguttie is basically dough flattened out and fried like at the fair. Fried dough.
DeleteI remember all those things from visiting my grandmother. I have her recipe for chicken and dumplings but have to admit my husband's turn out better than mine. I don't use bacon grease but otherwise keep those traditional southern and southwestern foods coming. I like to visit at the table--no phones or TV. Great post!
ReplyDeleteHi Caroline. I’m sure your chicken and dumplings are delicious! I find the older I get, the more I miss all these wonderful things. I love the NO Phone or TV policy. It’s so important. Thanks for sharing. 🤗
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