Mom loves to tell the story of when I actually started to help her cook the meals!!! I came home form school as she was about to make "potato cakes" for supper. This is where we used left over mashed potato and fry them as you would a pancake. Mmmm - they are good!!! She allowed me to mix the flour and a little bit of milk in with the potatoes. She always made the "batter" thick enough where we would pat out a round "cake" and then fry it!! As the years have gone by, I have discovered that there are many versions of the "potato 'pan'cake" which seems to be an Appalachian dish. This was my first dish to fix all by myself under the supervision of Mom.
During junior high school, the girls were required to take Home Economics which was one semester of cooking and the other for sewing. The boys were to take woodworking and a mechanical drawing classes. That was back in the day when certain classes were just for the girls and others were for the boys. Personally I feel both the girls and boys need the Home EC. classes - especially cooking. It was in Home EC that my interest in cooking peaked. It was something I could do with Mom! From that point on I was in the kitchen to help fix the "simple" dishes!! With Mom's supervision I was learning "more" in our kitchen at home than the one at school. Of course when the boys found out who had fixed the potato cakes, cornbread, mashed potatoes, or gravy - they would act as if they had been poisoned!! I love my brothers!!!!!
The one thing about cooking with Mom, unless it was a cake or pie recipe, we did not measure ingredients for the dish we were fixing. Dishes that we fixed that we more or less fixed without the use of measuring cups and spoons included cornbread and spaghetti sauce. I've actually had to take the time to measure the ingredients as I made them so I could share with friends and family had to use the measuring utensils. I tries to be as accurate as possible, but I'm sure the spaghetti sauce got a little extra basil, oregano, or garlic from one batch to another.
Today, I tend to follow a dab of this and a pinch of this for many dishes I prepare with the exception being certain cakes and pies. New dishes will have me using the measuring utensils until I get comfortable with the taste of the dish. Sometimes I will add more or less of the spices to the recipe until I get the taste we like!! I watched not only Mom cook this way, but my grandmother and aunts as well. They were all great cooks.
Some of my fondest memories is of Mom and me in the kitchen during the holidays. We didn't have a lot of money to spare for gifts. One of the ways Mom and dad decided to give gifts would be by making them! These gifts went to the people Dad worked with and special friends of the family. We would make fudge, peanut butter balls, peanut brittle, orange marmalade danish rolls, and orange cakes. I had certain jobs I was in charge of when the cooking began. Dad did too. He was always the official taster - much to Mom chagrin!!!! He loved sneaking into the kitchen and slipping a bite of the candy and cakes we would make!!! It always aggravated Mom - much to Dad's delight!!! :):) The hardest part was the cleaning up - yuck, that fell under my job description. :(:(
When staying with Mom throughout the week, I am now trying to make these good memories come back for her. Due to her eyesight, she can't see to do what she use to be able to when cooking. She still cooks some, but we try to supervise her now!! When I say supervise, that simply means turning the oven on and off, or reading and measuring the ingredients for a new recipe she wants to try. She loves being in the kitchen and helping cook whatever we have decided to make for the day. This week we fixed dishes for her to warm up - and if the kids come by there will be enough for all to eat - as well as making and freezing some dishes!!! Mom is all smiles when in her kitchen! She may not be able to see as she did, but the feeling of being needed in the kitchen is still there, and it brings a smile to her face! All this cooking may wear me out, but her smile and and her knowing she is needed is worth it all!!!
Yes we are "Cooking Up a Storm" and loving it!!!! Following are some of the pictures taken during this week's "Cooking With Mammaw!"
Gathering of some of the ingredients!
Veggies and Chicken ready to prepare for Chicken Pot Pies!
Cream of Chicken, Cream of Mushroom, and milk ready to be whisked together.
The oven is set at 450 - notice the blue circles on the controls - this is to help Mom see what to punch when turning the oven on and off!
Mixing of the veggies and sauteed chicken in with the soup mixture!
These were bakes and then once cooled, they were frozen!
This one was made for Bill to eat while I was with Mom!
I love the color of these veggies for the Chicken Alfred - we have onions, broccoli, red pepper, yellow pepper, orange pepper, and green pepper.
Another bowl of diced chicken ready to be sauteed!
Sauteing the veggies!
A big pan once the veggies and chicken are mixed with the Alfredo Sauce.
Boiling the tri-color bowtie pasta for the Chicken Alfredo.
. . . this added more color to the dish!
. . . and we ended up with a dish that lasted only two days once the grand kids stopped by to see Mammaw!
We also fixed something "sweet" for those that can eat sweets . . .
. . . so we made some Rice Krispie Treats!
. . . and this mixture will become . . .
. . . oops, the boxes in the background gives you a hint - Brownies . . .
. . . using the pan I ordered!!!!!
. . . hmmmmm - looks like a couple of pieces have disappeared before they were cooled!! Culprits were Billy and Mammaw!!!! :):)
Wednesday was chilly, soooo "chili" is in the makings . . . 
. . . we like "chili beans" and "kidney beans" . . . 
. . . along with using diced or crushed tomatoes (or whatever I may have in the cabinet) - this can happens to be organic . . .
. . . diced onions to add to the beef . . . 
. . . plus a little extra Chili Powder and even some Mexican seasoning . . . 
. . . and the finished pot for a "chili" day!!!
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