Growing up, my brother and I lived as often with Grandmother and Grandfather as we did with Mom. Being with Grams and Gramps was just as much “home” as when we lived with Mom. There was never a lot of money but we never went hungry. Mom, Grandmother and Grandfather saw to that.
Grandmother always fixed a “proper” meal and when with her, we had to behave and sit at the table until dinner was over. Even if there were cartoons on TV, we had to sit until everyone was finished. At times, being the youngest, I was spared the long dinners and ate in the kitchen, where, while fingers were admonished, I could still shovel in the food in order to get back to watching Mickey Mouse and other favorites while the adults were busy sitting in the dinning room.
There must be something about grandmothers that their food is always “better”. Grams dinners were always fantastic, even everyday dinners were special. Times and finances dictated what would be served but regardless of the selection, it always tasted wonderful. I don't remember balking at eating what was served very often, the exception was canned asparagus but thankfully that wasn't served often. I think turkey was the most common item on the table. They would buy a whole bunch of frozen turkeys when on sale and keep them in the freezer.
Grandmother and Grandfather always had loads of company. Me, Mom, my brother, various Uncles and Aunts and other relatives would drop in or be staying with them for visits. It was always a full house and those saved up turkeys came in handy. A turkey could feed the whole shootin' match with something for everyone. Grandmother would fix all the trimmings, even in July. There would be stuffing and mashed potatoes and gravy made from roasting pan drippings and real diced up giblets too.
The cranberry relish was my favorite and still is. She had this hand crank grinder from the beginning of time (or just about) and she would put in fresh cranberries in the hopper. If I was especially good, she would let me turn the crank. Then she would select a nice orange and cut that into quarters and place that in the hopper, peel and all would be added to the crushed berries. Lastly some sugar was added and it was placed in the fridge until dinner time. Tart, sweet, crunchy – it was the BEST.
There was always a bit of rivalry about Grandmother's Turkey Dinners. At various times, other members of the family would host Turkey Dinners with pot-luck side dishes contributed by those attending. Comparisons would inevitably arise and hurt feelings were sure to follow. No one could match Grandmother and that was just that. No matter how perfect the gravy or tender the turkey, no one would dare to praise it above Grandmother's dinners.
Now, to be honest, some of those dinners were excellent but there was always a missing ingredient. A Grandmother's Love cannot be duplicated and that was the magic ingredient in every meal she prepared.
 |
| Grandmother and Grandfather Abbott Lucinda G. Abbott Aug 7 1902 - Jul 9 2001 Herod E. Abbott Oct 3 1900 - May 20 2001 |
2 comments:
Heartwarming and charming story ... makes me feel as if I was alongside you. Good writing and story telling... I can practically taste the food m'self... yum yum !
Kim,
Beautiful memories of our Grandparents. Thank you for sharing. As for the turkey feeding a group in the middle of summer I can vouch for that. In the mid 1980's Norman and I were in New Orleans in July for business. We drove I10 to see them in Orange, Texas. Upon our arrival I smelled the intoxicating aroma of a freshly roasted turkey. Low and behold in the kitchen there was a golden bird resting gently for our supper.
Post a Comment