Recipe and Pictures

Pictures:  Lemon Souffle Pie, Thanksgiving 1969, and Peaches about 1940.

This recipe is too good not to share.  It comes from cousin Linnie and is: 

 Sweet Potato Casserole with Praline Topping.  

1. Casserole:  5 lbs sweet potatoes  1 stick butter, softened, 1 cup sugar 2 eggs, beaten 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/3 cup whole milk Bake and mash sweet potatoes, puree in food processor.  Mix in butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla and milk.  Pour into casserole.
2. Praline Topping: 1/2 cup Heavy Cream 1 Cup light brown sugar 1/3 cup melted butter 1 cup chopped pecans. Bring cream to simmer in sauce pan.  Add brown sugar and stir until it dissolves.  Cook over medium heat and stir until it reaches soft boil on candy thermometer.  Remove from heat and beat in butter and pecans. Pour over sweet potatoes and bake at 350 until hot, about 35 to 40 minutes.  Serves 8.   
   

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is full of many wonderful memories.  Yesterday we had our very traditional meal.  With us five of us, we have to be careful not to get carried away with the cooking.  We started our celebration with breakfast at my house: Judy's breakfast casserole, and Judy's curried fruit, and, champagne.  Dinner is always planned around the Cowboys' game, and  Dotsy HAS to make her dressing, and I have to make my sweet potato souffle. 

When we were little, Mom always used her silver,  crystal, and the  china that her Mother gave her, for our holiday meals.   I  learned early that the silver had to be counted before it was put up.  This way we were able to find any pieces that had gone astray.  Maybe into the garbage or in with the every day pieces. Grandmother's china was a set of Haviland she bought in New Orleans from an estate sale.  This was probably in the 30's??? 20's?  or possibly even earlier.

 In college, Mike started bringing some of his UGA football buddies to Thanksgiving dinner.   Mom and Dad would cook at least one turkey, a ham, and tons of food.  Pop made his famous punch, that had a motor.  One of the treats we always had for Thanksgiving, was oysters on toast points. Served with champagne.  If the football players were coming, we made sure to eat those early.  To this day, there are never enough oysters on toast points to go around when the Oakes' get together.  

This year, I did make a different sweet potato souffle: cousin Linnie's scrumptious recipe with the praline topping.  I'll never go back to mine.  The recipe I used came from Lunnie Broughton in Monroe.  It served us well for 30 years.   Catherine and Susie liked having Lunnie for a babysitter, and I certainly did.  She would iron, cook, and clean.  When the family would go off for a vacation or just to Hard Labor Creek,  Mom would have Lunnie make dozens and dozens of fried pies.  I think the apricot were the favorite.  Whenever I make sweet potato casserole, I think of  Lunnie.

I'm grateful for many things in my life.  Some are: that Catherine had friends in Maui to have dinner with, and, Susie had friends in Florence to have an American feast with, even if it was on a Saturday.

Family History

Growing up in the South, we always knew that family was very important, not just brothers and sisters, but family, way back to the beginning.  At least to the War of Northern Aggression.  We still believed that no matter what your bank account said, your family was the  important thing.  My Aunt Dotty has provided the research for her mother's side of the family.  It seems the first person we can find in our family goes back to the 10th generation, and is a man by the name of the Hon. Paul Grimball, born in England, prior to 1682, and died on Edisto Island  in South Carolina, 1696.  His wife Mary was born in England and died before 1720.  Paul Grimball was a Proprietor's Deputy, 1683; Secretary of the Province of S.C. 1686;  Member of the Grand Council, 1685-1686;  Receiver General & Escheator, 1687-88(Escheat goes back to English common law: a doctrine that operates to ensure that property is not left in limbo and owner less), Surveyor General, 1696.  His son, Thomas, born in England prior to 1682, died between 1722 and 1724, married Elizabeth Adams in South Carolina, before 1707.  Elizabeth was born before 1690, and died before 1722.  Their son,  Paul Grimball born about 1700, died about 1750. Paul and his second wife, Mary, were married on Edisto Island about 1740.  Mary died  sometime after 1780. 

    Paul and Mary's daughter, Anne Grimball, now our 7th generation back, was born about 1749 and died before 1825.  She married Peter Robert, born 1738 and died before 1825.  Peter and Anne were married  Beaufort District, SC about 1765.

    On August 30, 1774 their daughter Providence Robert was born. She died January 14, 1856.  Her husband Robert Tanner was born February 14, 1769, and died September 28, 1839. They, also, were married in Beaufort District, SC on February 14, 1793.

  Paul Jabez Tanner was born to Providence and Robert  on April 22, 1810.  He died December 26, 1863.  Paul married Esther Providence Bettison, who was born September 30, 1815, and died April 7, 1871.  Paul and Esther were married in Cheneyville, Louisiana on June 6, 1833.  Because of the date of Paul's death, I wonder if he died in the War between the States.

  Linn Tanner was the son of Paul and Esther Tanner.  He was born December 31, 1838 and died July 21, 1910.  On August 11, 1859, in Fayetteville, Arkansas, he married Fannie P. Pollard.  Fannie was born January 30, 1840, and died July 14, 1916.

  Their daughter, Lura Tanner, was born June 4, 1866 and died October 30, 1935.  She married Joseph Morrison Rutledge in Cheneyville, LA on February 8, 1887.  More than likely at her father's plantation.  Joseph was born on January 4, 1862 and died October 27, 1940.

   Mother's mother, Linnie Rutledge, was born at her father Joseph's plantation, on June 6, 1893, and died of cancer in 1958, Oakdale, LA.  She married Dr. Blanchard Iles in Cheneyville, LA on February 8, 1916.  Dr. B. was born on December 20, 1891 and died in 1969, also in Oakdale.

  Mother's mother,Linnie, was one of ten children.   If we were still counting generations, the Hon. Grimball would be the 11th generation, or is it 12 or 13, now.

Another Beautiful Day

It's another beautiful day in East Texas. I have the doors open to the screen porch and can smell the tea olive (osmanthus frangrans), which Dad grew in Georgia, along with hundreds of camellias, which always makes me smile.  My maternal grandmother, Linnie Rutledge,(1893-1958) grew up in Chaneyville where her mother's family, the Tanners, owned most of the land.  I remember Mom talking about her grandfather Rutledge's plantation and how each of the children had someone to take care of them while they were growing up; how at the end of the year, accounts would be settled, and his wife called into question the cases of bananas, which was a code he was using for something else!  My grandfather, Dr. B., (Blanchard Iles 1891-1969) was a dentist in Oakdale.  He grew up in the Sugartown-Dry Creek area.  His father raised goats, and my grandfather knew he didn't want to do that, so he borrowed a $100.00 and went to Atlanta and worked his way through dental school, handling cadavers.  Peaches said that all the bachelors in Oakdale would always meet the trains that came to check out ladies that might be arriving.  My grandmother got off the train and my grandfather picked her.  Nanny was a teacher before they married.  She taught Sunday School at the Baptist Church for many years, even though she belonged to the Christian Church.

Here is a delicious recipe from my Cousin Linnie

CRABMEAT AND CORN SOUP:

1 POUND LUMP CRABMEAT
¼ CUP BUTTER
2 CUPS CHICKEN STOCK
SALT AND PEPPER
1 CUP FRESH YELLOW CORN
¼ CUP ALL PURPOSE FLOUR
2 CUPS HALF AND HALF
GARLIC POWDER OR CHOPPED FRESH GARLIC
THYME TO TASTE (1/2 TSP?)
1 TBL.GREEN ONIONS CHOPPED
1 CUBE FISH BOUILLON
PINCH OF RED PEPPER
½ CUP WHITE WINE

CUT FRESH CORN FROM COB AND SAVE SCRAPINGS AND MILK. SET ASIDE. MELT BUTTER IN SAUCEPAN. ADD GREEN ONIONS, THYME AND GARLIC AND SAUTE ABOUT 1 MINUTE. ADD FLOUR AND BLEND WELL. ADD CHICKEN STOCK AND FISH BOUILLON STIRRING CONSTANTLY. COOK UNTIL THICK AND SMOOTH. STIR IN CREAM, CORN, RED PEPPER, SALT AND PEPPER.
COOK OVER LOW FIRE UNTIL CORN IS TENDER. ADD CRABMEAT AND WINE AND HEAT JUST UNTIL HOT. DO NOT BOIL!

YOU CAN GET AWAY WITH LESS CRAB IF YOU WANT TO INCREASE THE SOUP FOR MORE SERVINGS.

Sunday Evening

Peaches came over for a glass of wine and we talked about Huey Long. She remembered hearing about the Kingfish having dinner with a family in Oakdale and drinking his soup from his bowl instead of using his spoon.
Mom was the middle of three daughters, and, apparently always hiding under the crawl space of her home as she was quite the little trouble maker! Mom was born November 20, 1919. Her little sister was called Sunny because she was always happy, and happy to let Mom get her in trouble. One time Mom and Sunny cut off Aunt Dottie's doll's curly, beautiful hair  Dottie lives in Alexandria, near her daughter Linnie.  My other cousin Janie, lives in New Orleans.