My Mom's Chicken

I absolutely love this picture. This is my mom, my BABY brother Andrew and my Gram. Andrew looks so proud standing in the middle of these "little women"!

Ok so this isn't a "Gram" recipe, but it's from my mom. And this is something I find so amazing. My Gram passed her recipes down, my mom cooked a lot of those. But she also came up with a few signature recipes herself. My Gram loved this recipe too. This chicken also made it's appearance at Pa day. Whenever there was a large group of family coming over this chicken fits the bill...quite literally too because chicken legs are cheap and when they are on sale they are "wicked" cheap. So you can feed a lot of people. So this chicken with a side of Gram's potato salad and maybe some baked beans...SO GOOD! I make this chicken A LOT, at least once every two weeks. And tonight I am bringing it over to two different families because I made so much.


Every time I make this chicken I think of my mom. WOW I miss her. We always talk about what a dream it would be to live closer to each other. And although it would be awesome, I can't think about it too much. It makes me too sad. I am so thankful for an amazing mom with whom I am so close to, even 3000 miles away.

Recipe
Ingredients


Chicken Drumsticks REMOVE THE SKIN...do not skip this step. It's time consuming but it's worth it. My mom and I both use scissors.

Seasoned Bread Crumbs


Soul Seasoning (if you can't find it use Lawry's Season salt but the soul seasoning is best)


Cooking spray



Directions:


After you have taken all the skin off rinse with water.

Roll each drumstick in breadcrumbs, until they are coated completely and line a baking pan.

Sprinkle with Soul Seasoning

Liberally spray the chicken with the cooking spray (come on don't be shy

Bake low heat I usually do 250 degrees for 30 min then crank up the heat to 425,spray the chicken again with the cooking spray and bake for another 15-20 to get the outside super crispy

Let stand for a few min before serving on the tray (I use a stone, so it keeps the chicken nice and warm)

Your meat will just fall off the bone...way better than KFC in my opinion. OH PS if by any chance you have left overs it's so good the next day just cold out of the fridge.

Not to toot my own horn but this batch came out as close to mom's as I have ever gotten!!

Kind of a gross job but it's has to be done...no skin!

The Soul Seasoning!
Breaded, seasoned and sprayed...oven please!

The finished product...so good!

Corn "Chowdah"

I hounded my Aunt Prissy for this recipe. So it's only fair that I tell you a little about my Aunt. She is my mothers sister. She is married to my"Uncle Joe". They have 3 children Joey,Rachel and Matt. She is kind, giving, and really a pillar of strength. I have so many memories going over to her house, which was always decorated so cute. My Gram lived in the apartment above Aunt Prissy and Uncle Joe. I remember putting on plays with my cousins in the back yard. Playing in the beauty shop. Oh the beauty shop...we would play in there for hours. Doing our hair, organizing the nail polish, looking at magazines. Aunt Prissy was so amazing to let the 4 cousins (me, Elisha, Heather, and Melissa) alone in that shop. We LOVED it. I love you Aunt Prissy!

So like I said I got this recipe from her and it was one of Gram's best. (this and the fish' chowdah' that I'll do later) Nothing beat going to Grams for a bowl of hot corn chowdah on a cold Maine winter day, or now in my case on a cold North West rainy day. It's simple, and it's GOOD!

As given to me by my Aunt

Corn Chowder:In a 3 qt pan saute in margarine enough diced onions to cover bottom of pan. Once onions are soft add four or five cubed potatoes and add just enough water to cover over by about an inch. Stir in 1 tbs instant chicken bouillon (Herbox in the little jar is what Gram used) and 1 tsp of celery salt. Once potatoes are fork tender add two cans of Creamed Corn and one can of evaporated milk. Stir, warm and serve.Seasoning can be adjusted to taste. More or less potatoes can be added. We always made this using our own judgement on how much potatoes we wanted. You can use low sodium instant bouillon if you like.

I added some fresh ground pepper on top. It came out great.

Push and Lick Cookies aka Chocolate Chip Cookies

One of my fondest memories of Gram was that she always had something baked on her kitchen counter. Even when she was over 90 she still made treats. We would go to visit and she would have chocolate chip cookies, or banana bread on the counter for us to help ourselves. My boys knew it well. "Meme do you have treats?" And she always did.

I asked the boys to tell me a memory about their Meme. And this is what they said "She always let me color at her kitchen table and she let me have candy from her candy bowl" -Elijah. This is so sweet because my Elijah loves to color, and draw, he always has. And when we visited Gram she pulled out crayons and paper for him and set him up at the kitchen table...to Elijah that was just perfect. "I remember she gave me a flashlight for Christmas, mine was red and I still have it" -Isaiah. And he does. That's another thing about Gram, she always got my kids something for Christmas, even if it was something small. The flashlights were such a big hit, just the right size and they loved them. I am so sad that my Hannah didn't get a chance to meet Gram. But she will know of her. The other when I was rolling out the dough for the tarts she was sitting playing and I was telling her about Gram. She may not understand but one day she will. I guess that's how we keep our loved ones who have passed in our lives. We talk about them, and share their lives with those around us.

So why are they called "push and lick" do you really want to know?Well I had never heard that but when I asked for recipes my sister Christine said "push and lick cookies" I asked her "what are those" "well her chocolate chip cookies" So I dared to ask why she called them push and lick. So when Gram let them help (Christine and Mary) she would let them lick their fingers after they pushed the cookie dough from the spoon...hence push and lick. I did not use the push and lick method this time around since I am sharing these with a friend. But maybe next time =)

Chocolate chip cookies

3/4 cup combination of shortening and margarine/butter (more margarine/butter = crispier cookies; more shortening = softer cookies) I use butter flavored shortening and Gram liked mine

1 1/4 cups firmly packed light brown sugar

2 tbsps milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 large egg

1 3/4 cups flour

1 tsp salt

3/4 tsp baking soda

1 pkg of chocolate chips 6oz or more to taste

1 cup chopped nuts if desired; Gram did not use nuts

Directions:

Beat shortening and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add milk vanilla and egg. Stir in flour, salt and baking soda. Add chips and nuts. Drop by rounded tablespoon 2" apart on Ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375degrees 8 to 10 minutes. Makes about 2 1/2 dozen cookies.Gram always tried 3 cookies as a test batch to see if she needed more flour. This makes exactly 2 1/2 dozen!

As soon as these came out of the oven I knew they came out just like Grams. Golden, soft and perfect. Of course I had to try one and I know this sounds just silly but my eyes filled with tears and then a smile. Tears because I miss her so much and a smile because the cookie was so good just like I remembered.
A perfect plate of the perfect cookies....what could be better??......

A glass of milk and two awesome kids! "These are the best"

Tarts

This is a picture of my grandparents and all ten children. My mom is the hot little blond in the front! From Left to right back row: Pa, Uncle Pazu, Uncle Twee,Aunt Rose, Aunt Jack,Uncle Russel,Aunt Marlene From left to right front row Gram, Aunt Prissy, Mom (Paula) Uncle Mark, Aunt Janie
The amazing story here is that the 6 in the back row were not "technically" my Gram's. My Grandfather was married and his first wife passed away. When he met my Gram he had 6 kids! And she married him anyway. It makes me smile though because my Grandfather was an amazing man. He was so kind, and gentle, and he was funny. He was handsome, hardworking, and compassionate. My Gram must have fell head over heels for him. And knowing my Gram and her huge heart, he must have been smitten with her. I know she loved those kids as her own. I know this because I didn't know until I was an adult that they were not. My Grammie then had 4 of her own children. My mom being one of them.

So this recipe I remember from Thanksgiving dinners at my Aunt Prissy's. She owned her own "beauty shop" off of her house. We transformed it for thanksgiving and that's where we ate our feast, right there in the shop. I loved it! One of the things I remember are these tarts. I don't remember the apple ones like my mom does I remember the chocolate cream filled ones (hmmmm I wonder why) My sister Mary also reminded me of Gram's little jello cups. They are just that,jello with whipped cream but for a kid and individual jello cup is like a crisp $100 bill. So I added a few to go with the tarts. =)

From my Mom "One of my faves! We had at Christmas & Thanksgiving."

Tarts

Ingredients

Crust (Gram made her own from scratch) but pie crust in a box is good. Do not use the ready made pie crust.

Crust Recipe:

1 1/4 cup flour

1/2 cup chilled shortening ( Gram used lard back in the day)

3 TBS ice water

Mix into ball, handle as little as possible, roll out on floured surface

Apple Jelly

Whipped topping

Maraschino cherries

Directions (as told by my Mom)

Roll out pie crust very thin. The secret to a flaky crust is too use ice water, I put ice and the water. Put pie crust mix in a bowl and very sparingly add the ice water and mix with a fork. You want the dough moist enough to roll out on a floured counter. Cut out circles with the top of a large glass. Press each piece into an un greased cupcake tin pulling the dough up the sides.. It is ok if the do not all look the same that is part of the charm. Bake until golden brown and cool completely. Add a good rounded teaspoon of apple jelly to the bottom of each tart, top with whipped topping and chill right before serving top with half a maraschino cherry. These are so simple and very delicious. At Christmas we would also use the green cherries and put the tarts on a fancy serving tray very festive. As I child I loved these more than all the holiday pies.

Here are the crust inside the muffin pan. I was unsure how they would bake, if they would be like I remembered.

Modern baking tools....ha this glass worked perfect.

Exactly how I remembered them...golden and flakey. The crust recipe is simple but perfect.

These are the tarts filled with the apple jelly. About a teapoon for each tart. I also did chocolate just using a basic pudding filling.

We all ate one and said "YUM" They brought me back in time.

I am really enjoying gathering these recipes and making them. I thought it might be therapeutic for me to remember Gram this way. But can I be totally honest. It makes me miss her so much more. And my whole family for that matter. I am remembering all the fun times we have had over the years, celebrating holidays, birthdays, graduations, babies...it's hard being so far. I miss them so much.

Salmon Pie

Here's an early picture of Gram. My Gram was very French Canadian. She spoke French and had a few French phrases that I am most certain she would never say in English around us kids. She was born in Van Buren to Maxime and Helene Madore Grivios. You want to know where Van Buren Maine is? Way up North! Google map it! It's way up there right on the border.

This is another one of my favorites and I can not remember the last time I had it. I remember having it a lot as a child. I love the cream peas. I think I could eat a whole pie by myself. I know that it doesn't sound like salmon and cream peas would go together but THEY DO! My cousin Elisha wrote to me and said "one of my favorite things she made was her salmon pie with cream pea sauce. She made it every time we came to visit" I loved when my Uncle Mark and cousins Elisha and Melissa would come to visit. So many wonderful memories. I love that Gram made this when they would come to visit.

I got this recipe from my mom. ( I LOVE you MOM)

Salmon Pie

1 can RED salmon

5 large potatoes boiled and drained

1/4 c finely minced onions.

Pie crust (from scratch is best but from the box works awesome...not the refrigerated kind though)

Directions:

Boil and drain potatoes

Place salmon in a bowl (do not drain) remove any bones and flakes.

Mash potatoes with a masher and add salmon with the liquid.

Mash together completely with the potato masher not an electric mixer.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Put in pie crust tin with bottom crust

Add top crust and crimp crust together using a fork.

cut 3 slits in middle of top crust and prick ares with a fork.

Use extra dough to shape pie crust hearts and add to top of pie.

Cook until pie crust is golden, may brush with a little milk to help brown crust

Cream Peas:
2 cans of peas

1 1/2 cups of milk

1 tsp butter
3 tsp cornstarch

1/4 cup cold water

Drain 2 cans of peas, add 1 and 1/2 cups of milk and 1 teas butter, bring to a slow boil. add 3 teas. cornstarch to 1/4 c. cold water mix well then slowly add the cornstarch mixture to the peas stirring until thickened and remove pan from heat. add salt and pepper and serve over the salmon pie. So yummy! This is a true Canadian French recipe passed down from generations.

Simple ingredients make it so good

It was a bit more work than I thought getting all the bones out, they are small. But I think I got them all.

When I mashed the salmon,potatoes and onion together the smell transported me back in time. I really didn't think I would be this emotional cooking but these aren't just any recipes. These are Gram's. All my memories of Gram are GOOD ones. This recipe is very close to our family. When I asked what recipes I should make, everyone mentioned this one. I miss my Gram. Have I said that yet. I mean I really miss her. I want to pick up the phone and call her and say "hey Gram I made THE salmon pie today" and she would say "Oh Beth that's great. I bet it came out great"



So cute with the little hearts. I actually have a little heart shaped cutter, this is the first time I used it for cooking.

The peas. So let them simmer and the sauce will thicken!

Just begging to be eaten....

So I did for lunch. It was so good. Again not as good as Gram's but I would say a respectable second.

Gram's Celebration Cake

My two 'baby sisters'(left to right) Mary-Elizabeth and Christine

This recipe is so simple, yet so wonderful. I personally looked forward to seeing this treat on the table at family gatherings. Gram's cake was her own little creation. I don't know why she decided to put jelly in the middle or cool whip on the top, but it all works. My sister Christine has made this cake and although we all call it "Gram's cake" when I made this cake I not only thought of my Gram but also my sister Christine. When I put the cake in the fridge I let out a big sigh. I miss Gram. I miss my family. I wish they were all coming over tomorrow for some cake and coffee.

As told to me by my sister Christine:

We can't forget Gram's cake.. I made this for everyone to enjoy when they traveled for the wake and funeral. I used to help Gram make this for Pa's thing every year.(Pa's thing is very special to our family. Every year since the passing of my grandfather, the family gathers to remember him and to be with each other. It's in September and it's always a fun time. Every year those who can make it come and those who can't wish they could. We meet at my mom's house or in years past at Aunt Prissy's house. We bring lots and lots of food and just eat and tell stories. It seriously is a fun time. Family was so important to my grandparents. They really held us all together, aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters, cousins, second cousins, third cousins, even people who technically weren't family. Pa was worth remembering after he passed and so now as we have lost Gram this year she is every bit worth remembering. I hope that my generation that knew her well will continue with Pa day. It's such a part of who we are. So this cake was a yearly attendee of Pa day)

You'll need:

2 boxes of yellow boxed cake mix
A jar of Jam (Or in Gram's case.. whatever kind of Jam you have in the fridge.. she would usually do half of it seedless strawberry for uncle Joe and the other half regular strawberry)
wax paper
Cool Whip
Rainbow Jimmies
2 cookies sheets that are the same size
Prepare the cake batter as directed. Lay a sheet of wax paper on each cookie sheet. Pour the cake batter into each cookie sheet evenly Bake until they are golden brown on top let the cakes cool completely. Now this is the tricky part. I don't know how she did it without breaking the cakes!Flip one cake out of the cookie sheet on top of an upside down cookie sheet lined with tin foil. Spread the jam so that it even coats the cake. Flip the other cake out of the cookie sheet on top of the other layer so that the dark side is on the inside. Spread the whipped cream on top of the cake and sprinkle.

Two identical cakes

Ok so when Gram made it she sometimes did half seedless jam and half regular because she knew Uncle Joe didn't like seeds in his jam. That was typical Gram style, she made it special and if she knew you liked or disliked something she made it special. So my Isaiah doesn't like jelly, he never has. So the top part of my jelly side has no jelly so he can enjoy this cake too.

SO here's the cake...for the life of me I could lot figure out how to make the diamond shaped pieces...CHRISTINE??? Gram always cut them into diamond pieces, long ones, not fat ones like I did. But the cake tastes just like hers diamond shaped or not. And not to toot my own horn but mine did not crack. I waited until the cakes were completely cooled. Then I lined the cakes right up next to each other and with a quick motion flip it. I did have to scoot the cake a little to line it up but it didn't disrupt the cakes at all.

Simple is Better: Gram's Potato Salad

So of course since it is MY favorite I am starting with Gram's potato salad. Let me first say that I don't 'like' mayonnaise. Well at least not when it's hanging out by itself, let's say on a sandwich and why on earth would you put it on a hamburger. I get weary of over stating when when we go out to eat "NO mayonnaise". However mayonnaise when hidden nicely inside a salad for example is an entirely different story. In and egg salad...delicious, in chicken salad,scrumptious, in a tuna salad, delightful, and in the star of my pallet potato salad...perfection! Now I have turned my nose to a many potato salad...too much mayonnaise, too many unidentified ingredients. In my book the more simple the better. Gram's recipe is just that...simple. It may seem too simple to you, but I do implore you to try it and see if you don't agree. Potato salad should be just that potato salad. It shouldn't be potato and everything but the kitchen sink salad. When I think of my favorite food in all the world this is it "Gram's Potato Salad" So without further adieu...


THE RECIPE


5 Medium to large potato (of course MAINE are best but use what you have)


about 1/4 cup diced onion


2 eggs (boiled)


1 tablespoon salt


2-3 Tablespoons Mayonnaise (the idea is to lightly coat the potatoes)


Dash or 2 or 3 or 4 of Season Salt


Directions:


Cut potatoes into bite sized pieces and rinse


Add salt to a pot a water and boil potatoes until you can pierce with a fork.( Watch them carefully, undercooked is not good and overcooked will give you mashed potato salad) and then cool


Boil eggs and cool and dice


Dice onion


All ingredients should be cool before you assemble


Add mayonnaise to potatoes, egg, and onion


Mix well


Add season salt


Place in fridge for at least 2 hours.


Perfection!

*Disclosure* I have made this recipe so many times yet for some reason it never tastes exactly like Gram's. Very, very, very close...but there's something missing. I've come to conclusion that with this and every recipe I make will result in the same outcome. Because when Gram made something it had her love in it* I miss her so much I can barely catch my breath as I type this.

Showing Love with Food

Of all the memories I have of my amazing Grandmother, food seems to be a common thread. Not in a gluttonous sort of way but in the most loving of way. She was an amazing cook. She expressed love when she cooked. It could be something as simple as blueberry muffins she brought over to us kids before school or her amazing corn chowder, it was all done because she loved us. I think it brought her a lot of joy to see us enjoy what she made.

When I left home and would come back for a visit Gram would always call and say that she made me some of her amazing potato salad. I would go over for a visit and in the cutest little container would be just enough for me. Her potato salad is my favorite food of all time. She knew this of course and that's why she made it for me.

When we would visit Gram, unannounced of course, there would always be something baked on her kitchen counter. It could be banana bread, or maybe chocolate chip cookies. But never fail she had always baked something and we always knew just where to find it.

Gram didn't keep a recipe box. A lot of her recipes were in her head and she just remembered. I asked her a few times for her recipe for this or that and she said "well I'll have to make it to get the measurements" I have enlisted the help of some family to help me on this journey since many of them have the recipes in their head now too.

I am anticipating this journey to be an emotional one because the recipes I will be making will bring back so many wonderful memories. I miss her so much. I loved her so deeply and each memory that will be stirred up will make me long for more memories.

There are a few reasons for this undertaking. First I want to remember her. Even though it's sad, I don't want to forget her and the legacy she left behind. Second I want to have a record of all her recipes to keep and hold on too, to be able to pass on to my children. And lastly because quite simply her food was good.

Each entry will be sprinkled with memories of Gram, funny stories, and pictures.