An Egg of Shortening.
I LOVE thinking about all the memories that can be made when we spend time in the kitchen with those we cherish.
I remember watching my Great Grandma Upton and asking her how much shortening she used in the cobbler dough she was rolling out.
Anything that came out of her tiny kitchen tasted so wonderful, you took seconds when offered, whether you could eat another bite or not. AND there was always dessert, usually served warm with a scoop of ice cream on top, followed by a competative card game of Kanasta.
“Oh about the size of an egg,” she told me as she worked in the shortning with her fraile but strong fingertips.
“Medium, Large, or Extra Large?” I asked, pencil in hand.
“Just an egg,” she chuckled, her eyes twinkling behind glasses so thick you worried that her eyeballs might smouldered if she stood in the direct sun. Much like a burning initials in a piece of wood with a magnifying glass.
After the shortening was worked in, she rolled out the fluffy dough, cut it into triangles, then pieced it together like one of her homemade quilts. A generous mound of berries from the vines she kept in her backyard would be added and the patch work would continue across the top. Once in the oven, deep purple juice bubbled up through the cracks. Pats of butter gave the dough a warm golden glow.
I learned much more than just making cobblers from watching her in the kitchen. I understood the value of spending with those you love and providing something much deeper than food. I learned the art of hospitality, and how her faith and simple Ozark wisdom carried her through difficult times beyond what I could imagine.
That is what I want to help others create with my cookie stamps.
I want to help inspire people to create memories beyond baking cookies. To slow down in their hectic life of running from Point A to Point B and focus on what is important rather than what is urgent.
So apron up, pull out a few of your favorite recipes.
Life is short.
Savor every moment, one small bite at a time.
And just in case you were wondering, I am pretty sure a large egg of shortening is the perfect amount for cobbler dough..unless it is a double yolker.
“Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.” Psalm 34;8
SIDE NOTE: What recipe reminds you of your mom or grandmother?
My grandma’s apple pies were to die for! Crusts so flaky and a-little-past-golden in color, which added another dimension of flavor. To this day, I prefer a-little-past-golden for pie crust, french fries, and toast, etc. I think of Grandma Cooper often, you see.
In response to my request, Grandma Cooper wrote out her magical recipe for pie crust. So simple! I still have that scrap of paper safely tucked away in my recipe box (or maybe a cookbook somewhere).
I remember that day in her kitchen, marveling at her patience as she slowly, ever so slowly, added just a few drops of cold water at a time to her flour, salt , and shortening mixture. I think the magic was all the tiny flakes her fork made with that process. She would remove the doughy flakes as she went. If there was any water left over – oh, well, she had all she needed, and the rest went down the drain!
I tried that as a young wife and did manage to put out a few apple and rhubarb pies that way. That was a long time ago, though.
Then there was another super pie baker who gave an apple pie baking lesson to my granddaughter and me many years later. I laugh all over again when I think of her technique – basically same ingredients but her process was so much different: More-or-less measured dry ingredients in a bowl, 1/2 cup icy water in a measuring cup, then drop enough blobs of shortening in until water level rose to one cup level. Cut in that shortening, add that water and mix with a fork. Handle that dough sparingly as you roll it out. Slap, bang, boom – piecrust ready for apple mix, no big deal! (Sorry, Grams, but I have to say that Marge Brady’s pies were pretty darned good too. And she made them in about 1/4 of the time!) I wrote Marge’s recipe and technique on a brown paper grocery bag but am sure I don’t still have it. 🙂