January 28 2010
Christiansen's Comments
Remember back several years ago, when I made ambrosia? I added unflavored gelatin to the juices? What a fiasco that turned in to!….I believe received more comments on that column then any other I ever wrote. It felt like I heard from very grandmothers’ child and grandchild south of the Mason Dixon line.
Seems ambrosia is made in a particular way, the southern way, of course. Oranges, maraschino cherries, fresh coconut… a few minor variations are allowed, such as the addition of pineapple and a sprinkle of sugar…But the addition of gelatin was just to much of a violation of a time honored recipe ….The ladies, out of respect for their grandmothers, mothers and old aunties, just could not hold it in, they had to call and let me know where I went wrong. I learned from that incident “Don’t mess with a traditional Southern recipe.” There will be consequences.
To me southern chicken and dumplings tasted just like my mother’s chicken and noodles. Her noodles were eggs, flour, salt and water. Mother’s Dumplings, on the other hand, were fat and fluffy, about the size of tennis balls. Well, Angela immediately up on arrival to the south took to the southern taste. She ate my chicken and noodles, you understand, until she had a taste of southern chicken and dumplings. I tried to make authentic southern dumplings a time or two…then just gave up.
Until very recently, when I made another attempt. Grandson Garrett was always talking about the Chicken and dumpling he had at his grandma Rigby’s. Well, Garrett was coming for the week end, his grandma Rigby passed a couple of years ago….I wanted to surprise him with authentic Chicken and dumplings. I know you can buy frozen dumplings and they are perfectly good, I guess…I don‘t really know. But in for a penny….in for a pound…It was going to be scratch dumplings for this southern culinary adventure..
I was telling my friend Suzanne Harpole of my plan. She said, “my daddy’s mother made the BEST chicken and dumplings,”, she got up from the couch and went to the kitchen and came back with a 3 ring binder that held photocopies of her Grandmother Smith’s hand written recipes.
I said to myself, “ this has got to be an authentic, unadulterated recipe!“ The instructions were very detailed. Suz shared, and that’s the recipe I went by, to concoct Garrett’s surprise meal..
When Garrett arrived, I told him I was making Chicken and dumplings for him…he was skeptical that I could get it right….he went to telling me, again, about the ones he had eaten at his Grandma Rigby’s….he didn’t know how they were made, but he knew what they looked like on his plate….they were kind of thick…and creamy….he didn’t know if there was cream in the broth, but it looked like there could have been.
On after while, I set the bowl of chicken and dumplings down in front of him…he cautiously, like he might be biting in to a live grasshopper, took a tiny bite…then he took a whole bite…and announced, “These are Good!”.
Grandma Rigby, I always suspected was Garrett favorite grandma and I had a feeling her chicken and dumplings were a big part of the reason. A little afraid of the answer…I asked, “As good as grandma Rigby’s?” .
“Better. Grandma Rigby didn’t make good chicken and dumplings
Shocked I said, “You and your mom were always bragging on the chicken and dumplings you had at the Rigby’s!”
“Mamma Rigby didn’t make them…. aunt Lilith did” Seems Ms Rigby used the flour tortillas for her dumplings. I called Angela to confirm all what Garrett had told me, “Yeah, and Ms Rigby’s Chicken and dumplings were great, right up until she told us about the tortillas.”
So anyway, my attempt at southern chicken and dumplings received a passing grade, from Grandson Garrett. Puffed up, proud as a peacock, and full of such confidence, I decided to go public….. I carried, my “Mrs. Smith, Suzanne’ Grandmother’s Chicken and dumplings” to fellowship club last week…I passed there too!!. …Rave reviews! Really! And I know they were not just being polite, because I found out, in a hurry, from that ambrosia fiasco that southern ladies ….will not hesitate to set you straight when you go to making changes to our revered southern cuisine.
One of these first days, I will undertake the frying of some green tomatoes…we will see how that goes.
Love to all, call if you need me
I hope to have the Lucille Room project finished and be moved back in this week.
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