Recipes from the Women who taught me about Food, Family and Love

OK, this is as close as I can get to a recipe for Mama’s Slaw. I started watching Mama make this slaw when I was little and graduated to helping. She never measured. It was always a splash of this or a sprinkle of that. So, I hope this describes enough for you to follow. It just takes practice to get the taste right…

Mama's Slaw

1 Head Cabbage, grated

2 Carrots, grated
Mayonnaise
Lemon
Sugar
Salt & Pepper to taste

Grate the cabbage, then grate the carrots. I usually look at the color to know how many carrots to use. Sprinkle lightly with sugar. (Probably about a teaspoon or so) Sprinkle with lemon juice. I usually put two fingers over the mouth of the bottle and sprinkle about three or four shakes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add enough mayo to bind it together. It will get soupier as it sits. Taste and adjust your seasonings.








Corn Pudding
 
At birthday parties, it seems that Grandparents are concerned that the smaller kids will feel left out when the birthday person opens their presents. This was always the case with Grandmama Elliott. She used to buy the miniature ‘Reece Cups’ in the box to wrap and give as a gift to the others. Those Reece Cups became known as ‘Birthday Chocolates.’ Grandmama seemed to always keep some on hand. I always loved going up the ‘path’ to visit Grandmama for our 30 minutes in the afternoon. We would sit out on the porch swing and eat ‘birthday chocolates’ and talk about school or whatever was going on that day.

 Grandmama Elliott's favorite was an easy Corn Pudding...

2 cups Corn
2 t Sugar
1 ½ t Salt
1/8 t Pepper
3 Eggs, beaten
2 T Melted Butter
2 cups Milk

Combine corn, sugar, salt and pepper. Add eggs, butter and milk. Mix well. Pour into baking dish. Bake at 325 degrees for 45 to 60 minutes or until knife comes out clean.



Date & Nut Bread


When we used to go to Grandmama and Granddaddy Bradham’s for the day, I remember certain things I used to do with each one of them. We had our ‘together times.’ The house was on the Boulevard Road. Granddaddy was famous for having a green thumb. He had a beautiful flower garden, but the thing I remember most was the strawberry patch. On the side of the house was about a six by six recessed section of the house. This made a neat little area for the strawberries. Granddaddy and I would go to the patch and pick the strawberries. We would bring them in and wash them. Then we would put them in a bowl sprinkled with sugar to save until they were sweet and juicy.

Grandmama always had a great big jar of baby dill pickles in the refrigerator. We would sit in front of the TV with pickles wrapped in a paper towel. It seems like every time we sat in front of that TV, ‘Hee Haw’ was on... “I’m a pickin’ and I’m a grinin’!” She loved that show. I do, however, remember Granddaddy sitting in that recliner watching wrestling on tv. He would grip the arms of his chair until his knuckles turned blue.

One afternoon I was going to get the strawberries, Grandmama came in and said, “Oh, I know what you want! I’ll get ‘em.” She came in with a paper towel full of pickles. I thanked her. When she left the room, I went and got the strawberries out of the refrigerator. Granddaddy came in a little later to find me sitting in the living room with a pickle in one hand and a strawberry in the other. I remember he closed his eyes and shook, then he said, “Now that’s love!”

Grandmama Bradham's Date & Nut Bread

I'm eating a pickle and
Grandmama is holding another one!

1 ½ cups boiling Water

½ pound Dates, pitted and cut

3 T Butter

1 cup Sugar

½ cup Dark Brown Sugar

2 Eggs

1 T Vanilla

3 cups Flour

2 t Baking Soda
¼ t Salt
1 cup Pecans, chopped

Combine boiling water, dates and butter. Cool. In another bowl, mix flour, soda and salt… then and sugar, vanilla and eggs. Mix well. Add date mixture and stir in nuts. Bake in 2 greased 9x5 loaf pans for 1 hour at 350. This is delicious sliced and spread with cream cheese while it's still warm.
Pineapple & cream cheese too!