Grandma was a great cook and we thought we would have a few things with dinner tonight that she loved to bake and we loved to eat. Homemade bread of course and her oatmeal (bacon grease) cookies. I put in the left over breakfast oatmeal into my bread and forgot to cut back on the water. I had to keep adding flour. I thought it might go over the mixer before I was done. But it turned out excellent.
As a newly wed I found out grandma put bacon fat in her cookies. Yes they were good but I was so grossed out that I did not eat them for years. Several kids later it seems nothing can gross me out. They are the best oatmeal cookies ever! I quadruple grandma's original recipe and substitute half the bacon fat with butter. Hopefully that is a little more heart healthy. But I add an extra egg so maybe not.
One more grandma memory I would like to put down before I forget...
One spring day 5 to 6 years ago the kids and I planned a day to visit two of the grandma's. My mom had recently planted a Passion vine in her yard but she had no butterflies yet so the kids and I had gone out that morning and gently harvested lots of Gulf Fritillary (agraulis vanillae) caterpillars off my Passion Vine to take to her. On our way to Mesa we stopped by Great Grandma Johnson's home to do yard work. We spent the morning raking leaves, digging grass out of flower beds, picking up pecans and various other little tasks.
As we were leaving Grandma said to me "That plant you gave me is growing really well. But there are these little worms that keep eating it." I was very excited and replied " Oh grandma, those are caterpillars. They become beautiful butterflies!" Her response was "Well, whatever they are they are eating my plant so I go out every morning and I squash them!" All of us could not contain our horror. There was a collective gasp/shriek. My kids were kind of shell shocked. Eyes wide mouths open. We composed ourselves and got in the car. We spent most of the drive to Mesa laughing at the irony of our caterpillar relocation plan to one grandma while the other was murdering our little friends.
Gulf Fritillary visiting my home on Mother's Day 2009
That is the sweetest dinner idea! Okay I am laughing so hard reading about the caterpillar relocation program. I just can't see that sweet woman squishing those bugs in her heels.
ReplyDeleteThis one just might get me off the hook with Aubrey about the “squirrel incident”.
I think dad and one of your uncles has a similar problem with their cat relocation programs they have both been running for years.