Potato Salad, Picky Eaters and Becoming My Mother

My mom was a great cook. She didn't cook fancy or anything, but everything she fixed from scratch was good. There were a couple of misfires over the years involving packaged meal starters that we laughed about over the years, but everything she made herself was awesome. You would think that I would have learned at her knee and been cooking up a storm at a young age. You would be wrong. Trying to learn how to cook from her was frustrating, and being the impatient soul that I was then, I lost interest. Why?? Because my mom never measured a thing in her life. I honestly don't know why she even had measuring utensils because she certainly didn't use them for measuring. Imagine being a 10 year old and trying to learn how to make chicken and dumplings while your mom says things like "a few shakes of this and a handful of that with a cup or so of this other stuff..." That is how she cooked. And it was perfect, even if she never thought so. 

She had to cook for some picky eaters. My brother didn't like anything with seeds in it; no onions or peppers of any kind for me and dad; and my mom was the only one who liked veggies. We gave her fits. I'm being paid back for my finicky childhood appetite with my two youngest boys, but Sully is the worst! He has a very short list of what he will eat and it is very frustrating cooking for him. I now know how my mom felt, even though I wasn't as bad as my son. I remember telling my mom that when I did learn how to cook it would be only stuff that I liked. What a bizarre comment: why would you cook something for yourself that you don't really like anyway? Oh yeahhh...you might marry someone who likes stuff you don't. And you might want to make him happy by fixing his favorite something which you hate...Nah!  What a silly thought, ha ha ha...

I never really cooked much on my own when I was younger unless I had to or when I wanted to do something special, but I always - ALWAYS - followed a recipe. Over the years, though a subtle change was taking place: I was becoming my mother. It hit me just last week when I had a craving for my mom's potato salad. I couldn't find the one of hers that I had written down, so I had to wing it. I knew the ingredients, and as I looked at them laid out on the counter, I heard her voice in my head telling me "use about a cup or so of mayonnaise and a couple of squirts of mustard...several good shakes of salt and pepper and a little celery seed..." I've been doing it all along for years, really but hadn't been paying attention. I would try a recipe and then I would improvise, then the next time I made it I didn't use the recipe but what I remembered in my head. And then it dawned on me that every time I got a recipe from a lady at church it was my mom all over again. All of those wonderful cooks at church are just like my mom - they have all of that knowledge in their heads and it's up to the younger generation to decipher their code and make it our own. Some of you, of course were paying attention all along and are fabulous cooks - I salute you!

So, here is my mom's potato salad for picky eaters who don't like onions or celery (my family) - pretty much the way she told it to me. (I'm going on the assumption that you already know how to boil eggs and potatoes):

* 5 lbs of potatoes (probably 10 or 12 medium - I buy the smaller 5lb bag and use them all) cut up and boiled.

* 3 or 4 hard boiled eggs, chopped up bite-size

* A cup or so of mayo, depending on how creamy you like it.

* About a TBSP or so of mustard - not too much, just enough for flavor and color

* A TBSP of dill pickle relish

* A splash or three of Apple Cider Vinegar or pickle juice if you don't have the vinegar

* A few shakes of Paprika

* Celery seed - pour out about a dime-size amount in your hand and that should be about right (we didn't mind the flavor of celery, it was the texture of it that we didn't like,so mom used celery seed)

* Salt and Pepper to taste

** if you want to garnish your salad, you can boil one or two extra eggs to slice up and lay on top

Boil your potatoes to tender but not as long as you would for mashing. Hard boil your eggs and let them sit in ice water for easy peeling. When everything is cooled down enough to work with, carefully mix all of your ingredients together. Cover and refrigerate. 

I have found that if the consistency is just right when you first mix it up, it will be slightly dry later after it has time to rest, so I add a bit more mayo to make it creamier and then a couple of hours later it is just right. And of course if there's not a single thing you like about celery, then leave out the celery seed altogether. 

In the event that you also don't like dill pickles or relish,  or mustard, then try omitting one or both and adding in bacon crumbles. Or just add them in anyway.

* 1/2 - 1 lb bacon cut up then fried (it's easier) and drained and mix into your potatoes, eggs and mayo, etc. 

See? Something for everyone! Potato salads even the pickiest of eaters can enjoy. Unless of course you don't like potatoes, then I guess never mind. Carry on  :)

Early Morning Warnings

I woke up at three-something yesterday morning hearing a tornado siren going off and wondering groggily if I needed to do something about it. So after a minute, I called Hubby (who was working) to find out what was going on. He answered and I said "I sure hope that siren is some kind of malfunction." He said it was and then laughed because he couldn't believe I had heard it. Well, believe it buddy! My ears are fine-tuned for picking up storm sirens - even over the a/c and locusts. I may not hear those little words muttered in another room while I am running water at the kitchen sink with the garbage disposal going, but a storm siren going off will always catch my attention. If you have never heard one, the sound is the same as those air raid sirens in old war movies and even some cartoons. Not something you would be likely to forget once experienced first hand. The worst thing about them (other than the fear that instantly grips you) is that even after they stop, you can still hear them! 

Mr. Praying Mantis eyeballing my intrusion.

Prior to that, it was a relatively quiet evening. We had deli-style sandwiches for dinner with homegrown tomato slices on them - yum! And I found a cute little visitor making himself at home in my lavender.

The lovely dead brush pile out my back door

The backyard is slowly coming together, but we have a lot to do to it still. A privacy fence would be awesome! Mainly, of course because our neighbor behind us (crazy catlady) needs to fix up her property. Although, she and some of her family did do all kinds of tree trimming and brush clean-up back in the first part of June. They even hauled some of it away. (Emphasis on some) Unfortunately the rest of it is still there. The city has recently started taking property appearance and maintenance seriously and begun issuing letters. We think she got a letter because it was a nasty mess back there. My husband and I have a bet going: he says that the brush pile will still be there in October. My position is that she will receive another letter before then, at least by the end of July, and will finish it. (but only because of the letter!) The loser of the bet has to buy the winner a regular priced drink of his or her choice at Sonic - no Happy Hour drinks or 1/2-price-after-8:00 shakes! So far it appears that Hubby is winning as she has made no additional clean-up efforts.

Yesterday we were under a Heat Advisory - heat index of 105 degrees and 49.7% humidity - WooHoo! That's the kind of heat I like: nice and thick like a wet wool blanket ;) That explains why all of the wildlife in the neighborhood was out early. The bunnies were out munching on grass (not my Hostas, thankfully) and I got chattered at by squirrels when I went to check on the tomatoes. The birds and locusts were all making a racket, and even the darn spiders were out in force - spider webs everywhere - Ack! I hate running into spider webs. Too bad those birds don't eat those spiders...

Planting Season and Periodic Slackers

Wow - has it really been that long?? It didn't seem like that long since I've updated anything here, but then school and life in general has been crazy-busy so time has flown for me. I recently had my neglect pointed out to me by two of my 4 readers (lol) and a potentially new reader a few weeks ago. So let's just pretend that no time has passed and that I'm not a slacker on occasion....

This Spring and Summer has been planting season at our house. We have planted a whole bunch of flowers, shrubs, and even a Kwanzan Cherry tree. Hubby planted tomatoes in huge tubs and I planted a makeshift herb garden of two types of lavender, Munstead and French,  Berggarten Sage, and Orange Mint. The lavenders and the mint in particular smell fantastic! The mint is especially lush and beautiful and has recently begun blooming. My French lavender has had some tall blooms that remind me of tiny Larkspur, but now the tips of the leaves are developing little purple horn-looking things so I'm anxious to see what happens. Can you tell I know nada about these things? I have no idea what I will do with them, but I love to smell them. My dogs seem to love them too because on their way past them they stick their noses in deep. I think I'm going to Google how to make lavender sachet. I'm pretty sure I can put that mint in tea and lemonade, but what I'd really like is to wear it in a little bag around my neck so I can smell it all day, lol. It has a citrusy scent to it that is soothing and energizing at the same time.

Orange Mint - shortly after planting

We also planted Hostas (which snails and rabbits both seem to love), a whole bunch of knockout roses in various colors, several peonies,  Oak-leaf Hydrangeas, Spirea, Butterfly Bush, and a Lilac. My lovely neighbor-lady to the South was gone during this time, and when she came back she said she made a little trip around our yard to see what all we had done. She has a beautiful Lilac that blooms every year and I wanted one too.

Orange Mint blooms

The sage (in the back), and the lavenders.

I'm thinking I got suckered with those hydrangeas. I told the woman I would like to have hydrangeas, but I didn't really know much about them. She told me these red hydrangeas were hardy and had beautiful red blooms and liked the shade. Well once they started blooming they were white. Okay, no big deal maybe they change later. Then I was told that depending on soil PH, certain varieties can change their color. But when the little blooms continued to stay white, and the bloom head was not in the typical round ball shape, I started Googling. I discovered what type of hydrangea I actually have (the aforementioned Oak-leaf variety) and that the blooms turn a dusty pink when they are dying, and the leaves turn red in the fall and winter - not the blooms. So, no, they do not have big gorgeous red blooms! The bloom heads are conical in shape and I don't really think they are all that attractive. So was the lady trying to give me something that would survive me, meaning that the other varieties were too finicky? Or did she really not know what she was giving me? My husband says she knew exactly what she was giving me....

Everything is growing and thriving - including the barely tolerated hydrangeas - so it appears that my plant-killing curse has been lifted. Well, except for the Purple Sedum - they all died and we have no idea what happened there. They're also known as "live-forever" - go figure! 

We have had several lovely tomatoes so far. We wanted to plant some cucumbers, but we missed the window for those, so we will have to rely on the kindness of others for those. Next year I am planting cucumbers and some peppers and then get someone who knows how, help me can peppered pickles.

The lightning bugs were out early this year. Actually, they are on time, which seems early because the last several years they have been late. The locusts (cicadas) are emerging from the ground and leaving their shells behind and have been singing for a couple of weeks now. I'll post some photos later ;)

So...maybe I'm not actually behind on my posting and am instead on time or even early and it only looks like I've neglected my blog? ...Nah! but it was worth a try! ~