I mentioned yesterday that it had been three years exactly since my grandma passed away, and that she, along with my mom, are two of the main reasons that I learned to cook and love food. I decided some time ago that today, the Friday evening after the anniversary of her passing, that I would recreate some of her dishes as sort of an edible memorial.
I can never remember a time, growing up or otherwise, when I went to my grandma’s house and there wasn’t some sort of food waiting for me in some form. I’m told that as a toddler, I would walk around with little crustless peanut butter sandwiches. Later, I remember there always being a plate of something out: hummus with crackers, slices of banana-chocolate cake, little Stella Doro alphabet cookies… or at lunch time, there was always tuna, or egg salad, and always a small green salad with cucumbers, radishes (even though I never ate them), feta cheese, and grandma’s fantastic Greek dressing. The questions when I walked in the door: “How are you?”, “How is school?”, “How are your friends?”, and “Can I get you something to nibble on?”
Grandma was one of the first people I remember that regularly had diet soda in her house (and yes, we call it soda.) Among the varieties always present were original Diet Rite, a flavor of Diet Rite like tangerine, black cherry, key lime, or white grape (which always bugged me, as I HATE grape). She also usually had some of the elusive Diet Canfields sodas,
which we drank in iridescent 6 oz. juice glasses full of ice and a splash of milk. If dinner was the meal w’d come for, there were usually a few things on the menu, but the quintessential “Bertha” dinner (yes, my grandma’s name’s Bertha) was a roasted chicken with reduced pan sauce, asparagus steamed in my favorite uni-tasking pot, maybe some garlic roasted potatoes, and an amazing dish called “fillets” (pronounced “fill-its”). There was always a family debate as to whether or not “fillets” was singular or plural… after making it though, I”m thinking its most definitely singular!
Since it’s mid-winter here, asparagus are hard to come by for under a small fortune, so our menu tonight was a whole roasted chicken and fillits. I’d intended on a decadent chocolate dessert as well, since she was the most intense chocoholic I’ve ever known, but time got away from me, and we were out of butter.
(Whole chicken photos coming up, just a warning for my meat-sensitive readers)
Back to dinner. I roasted the chicken simply. I rinsed it thoroughly after removing the bag-o-guts, and, with my mom on the phone instructing me, I sprinkled the inside of the bird with herbes de Provence, a bit of garlic powder, and a little seasoned salt. Then, I stuffed the cavity with small chunks of onion and lemon wedges. The outside of the chicken was seasoned with the same stuff as the inside, and then I drizzled it with a little olive oil. I roasted it at 350* for about two hours and then took it out to let it rest.
What a lovely post and remembrance. I’d be honored to try your fillets some day
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great!!!
love you,too.
just need to cook it longer… otherwise, it looks just right!
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I love special recipes like this. Some of my favorite recipes are ones that have been passed down. Thanks for sharing!
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Wow, Mara beautiful post! you made me tear up! What a terrific way to honor your Grandma’s memory – I love it! Thank you for sharing that w/ us! Your chicken looks awesome, good job! I’m always so impressed by cooking a whole chicken, it’s an intimidating thing!
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This post made me teary! I totally relate – my grandmother always had food and it still reminds me of her. Its one of the reasons I started my blog!
Jessica @ How Sweet It Is´s last blog ..Whole Wheat Peanut Butter and Jelly Muffins.
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What a beautiful post Mara!
MarathonVal´s last blog ..Butternut Squash & Pea Risotto, plus the new Thrive book review
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I have always wanted to make a roast chicken, but have been afraid….not sure about the guts and making sure it gets cooked all the way through…but it sounded very for you!
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I love when recipes are not only tasty but meaningful as well. Thanks for sharing with us!
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What a beautiful post!! The chicken looks really good!
Melissa (MelissaLikesToEat)´s last blog ..136.4
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What a wonderful way to remember your grandmother! Of course, that chicken looks pretty darn good too!
Madeline – Greens and Jeans´s last blog ..why I love cookbooks
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Beautiful post, I’m very curious about fillets! The chicken looks amazing!
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This was so touching, Mara. Unfortunately, I can’t replicate my grandma’s meals but I still find a way to think of her each day and know how proud and loved I am. As are you, sweet girl.
Mama Pea´s last blog ..Woman, Fetch Me a Beer!
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What a fantastic way to honor your gma’s memory.
Beth (Mackattack)´s last blog ..Working hard for the weekend!
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What a great way to remember your Grandmother, thank you for sharing with your readers. The meal looks tasty, might have salivated a little bit as I read.
XO
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Very heartfelt remembrance Mara. You grandmother would surely have smiled with this loving tribute. The meal looks superb!
redkathy´s last blog ..Chocolaty Cheesecake Squares
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What a sweet way to pay tribute to your grandmother. Isn’t food amazing in its ability to bond us and bring back memories? I just love it. She would be proud of that chicken
Love the new blog look. Very fresh!
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My grandmother was not a good cook, so I don’t think I’d want to throwback any of her meals. Seriously, her mother moved in with her and my grandfather and did most of the cooking. When my grandfather retired, he did the cooking, so she never really learned and she must have been afraid of bacteria because she way overcooked everything. My other grandmother made some awesome quickbreads – that mostly went to my brother.. Oh well. My dad was an awesome cook.
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