Dinner with Friends and Memories of Nana

A very dear friend of mine whom I met in university, just got engaged. The man she is marrying is a wonderfully funny person and just the right yin to her yang. Unfortunately, I don't get to see either of them very often as they live in Saskatoon. Luckily, they were coming into town for a week this summer so we had booked a Friday evening dinner and catch-up. My hubby and I planned a colourful healthy "vegetarian" dinner. My girl friend doesn't eat meat, but does eat fish, and her future-hubs is deathly allergic to shellfish but can eat fish as well, as long as it's washed first in case it came in contact with any of those nasty shellfish. We decided to do grilled salmon steaks for the protein. Veggies were sauteed zucchini and yellow squash with some balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. We also served boiled beets with olive oil, salt and pepper, and a fresh spring salad with sliced almonds, cranberries, and light goat cheese. Without even planning it, the meal became a culinary rainbow of abundant fresh flavours. Gorgeous. It is said that you eat with your eyes first, so I think we nailed the dinner. Everyone enjoyed the food, even the beet apprehensives of the audience.

Rainbow dinner

Dessert was kept light after the richness of the salmon steaks. Some cooked coconut pudding was layered with graham crumbs, light cool whip, and some sweetened shredded coconut that was lightly toasted in the oven. Simple, light, and tasty.

The only thing better than a meal that delights the taste buds is sharing it over engaging conversation with great friends. Bellies full, the guys went to the porch to let off some steam from a long week with a beer and cigar and myself and my friend took the dog for a walk to catch-up on the current news in our lives. The chatting went late into the night and it's always bittersweet to have to hug them goodbye at the end of the evening, but I always look forward to the next time we get to see them.

Light, fluffy, tropical dessert

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The following morning was Saturday. You know what that means...pancakes! Hubs was super tired and I got up first. Motivated and with an idea to use up a couple leftover apples that were getting too soft for me to have any desire to eat, I started shredding up the fruit.

Shredded apples

The pancake batter was basic. Eggs, flour, milk, baking powder...I used cinnamon as my spice to give some extra punch to the apples.

Batter with cinnamon

Next, the shredded apples got mixed into the batter. No real recipe, I just figured that adding a couple shredded apples with do nothing more than add flavour and moistness to the pancakes. If it feels right, do it. Trust your instincts in the kitchen. Hey, if it doesn't work, no harm done, adjust for next time, live and learn.

Shredded apples added to the batter

The consistency looked right and the batter was thick enough to hold shape on the hot pan. I use either a ladle or a 1/4 cup measuring cup to judge the amount of batter I add to each pancake, to keep the sizing consistent. As a note, 1/4 of batter is what I use to make the perfect crepes.

Apple pancakes cooking

Flip the pancakes and don't press down on them. Let them puff up and rise to little golden beauties. Let them cook for a couple of minutes, then remove from the heat and serve immediately. Luckily, I woke up hubs right before I started cooking breakfast, so he was just in time to enjoy them hot from the pan.

Apple pancakes, almost ready to eat

The pancakes were done and hubs had his with syrup. Saturday mornings are always the best when our house is still quiet and we haven't started work for the day. We both take some time to eat a heartier breakfast together and it's a ritual that I very much enjoy. Do you have a meal ritual at home? If you have kids, nothing is better than doing a wholesome family breakfast on a Saturday or Sunday morning with the TV, computer, video games, cell phones, etc turned off and put away, sharing stories, memories and catching up on what's new in every one's life. Eat at the table as a family. Cherish those moments of simple pleasures and family bonding. I am a grown-up now (or so I'm told) and I still have fond memories of our uninterrupted family meals. Now, with a husband of my own and his family now my family, I have that many more people in my life to show love to through food. Come to my house for a brunch one day. I promise, you'll be inspired.

Apple Love pancakes

After savouring our warm hearty breakfast, I decided to prep some more food for dinner. We still have a lot of ground deer in the freezer, so I had thawed a package the night before, with the idea to make meatballs or meatloaf. Meatballs won out this time. Ground deer, an egg, panko crumbs, chopped onion, salt, pepper, fresh basil, and a dash of cinnamon and I started smushing the mixture together with my hands. I have to comment that on the top of my grossness factor list is touching and cutting up raw chicken (which I basically don't do anymore and leave the poultry to C). A close second however, is mixing up ground meat with my hands. The rings comes off (could there be anything more disgusting than getting ground meet stuck in the setting of a ring, under a diamond?), I take a deep breath, and just tell myself that it will all be over soon. It's for the greater good. Fresh homemade meatballs, no preservative, I repeat to myself. Shudder. Shape shape shape...little uniform spherical soldiers on the parchment covered pan. Ready to be baked into golden moist nuggets.

Homemade deer meatballs

Into the pre-heated oven and about 25 minutes later, out come gloriously crispy and tender meatballs. These went into the fridge after they had cooled for dinner later tonight.

Cooked meatballs

Dinner rolled around and what should I make? Oh, that's right. This prepared lady already had meatballs! I pulled out one of my favorite pasta shapes and popped them into a pot of rolling boiling water with some salt until al-dente. Different pasta shapes taste different. Yes, they do. Don't argue with me. I would really love to get some different pastas soon. I have not had wagon-wheels since I was a kid. I saw them at Goodies last time I was there so I might get those next time. I am a big fan of whole wheat pasta as well. Shells are yummy too.

A fantastic pasta shape

But what about those meatballs? you ask yourself. Well, those have been simmering in a pot of marinara sauce for a number of hours, getting extra moist and juicy. My mom and great grandma use to make meatballs this way. Simmering on the stove, soaking up the pasta sauce. My great grandma also used to do large chunks of stewing meat this way, slow cooked all day in marinara sauce for dinner with spaghetti. Nobody makes pasta or sauce the way she did. I miss her and I miss her cooking. It was hearty and make with so much love, you could taste it in every bite. She would always make the same thing. Amazing meatballs and stewed beef in her own pasta sauce, spaghetti in a huge bowl, salad with vinegar and olive oil, fresh baked cornmeal bread, fried chubby fingers of dough (I am at a loss now for the Italian name for these), a glass dish of black olives, pickles, and there would always be Sprite. My parents and brother and I would visit Nana almost every weekend and partake in this dinner. Dessert was almost always a marble Deep and Delicious cake, which looking back, just makes me smile with all her homemade food. She would always have a colourful dimpled metal cookie tin, filled with thin ginger almond cookies, Milan cookies, anise spice rings with sugar, and other Italian treats that her neighbour would bring over. Once in a while, Nana would make piniolatta (spelling?), or we would help her make it. It is a labour intensive dessert where a soft dough is made and shaped into long snakes, then cut into thumb sizes pieces, rolled into balls, and deep fried in batches. Once all of the little balls of dough were deep fried and drained, they would be mixed with a sweet honey mixture to hold them together. The balls would be placed on a pie sheet and formed into a cone. Like a beehive. The honey, holding the shape. Sliced almonds would be sprinkles on top. This was then eaten by placing the pan in the middle of the table, and everyone picking off pieces of sticky, crunchy fried dough. This was another example of the way Italian food was served. Eating was always a social event. Often, my brother and I would just snack on a slice of her dense homemade bread with sliced cheddar cheese on top, cooked in her little toaster over (which I believe I still have somewhere).

When my great grandma's dementia started getting too bad, she needed the constant care that she could only receive from a nursing home. Her house had to be sold to pay for the care, and I was silently heartbroken. The estate sale felt like a violation that I was allowing to happen, even as a kid. Possessions were divided up between the kids, and to this day, I wish that I had voiced the few items of hers that she wouldn't be taking with her that meant the world to me. Her colourful dimpled round cookie tin is gone. Inside that tin somewhere, holds the cooking secrets of the old country. The smooth Mother Mary sculpture that sat on her old TV shelf, with vivid blues and red of her cape, a golden orb in one hand and her foot crushing a snake, held deep spiritual meaning to me, despite my disconnect from organized religion. These 2 items, for me, most represented my great grandmother and I really wish that I could locate them. I have fading memories that I will try to hold onto, like writing this post has done.

Meatballs like Nana's

I would imagine that if Nana was alive today, that hubs and I would still be visiting on the weekends for the traditional dinner she would prepare. She would give me a fake grave look like someone had died as I informed her of something I was working on that she thought was silly, like going to the gym and lifting weight, and she would smack my husband hard but jokingly when he'd make a joke. I know that Nana and I would be cooking together and I would try and learn all of her secrets and recipes, and maybe she would even "steal" some of mine. I would bring over the Adam West Batman movie to put on in the background since those episodes would always be on when I was there. She would teach me how to have a garden the size of a jungle, and how to cast the evil eye on enemies. I would coax her into going out to the Italian market with me, and make her homemade ice cream if she wouldn't come out for some (although she used to enjoy Dairy Queen). I know C would have got a kick out of her fiestiness, for all of her 4'something frame. One of her favour things to say was "you can visit whenever you want!" and when we would ask her if we could have something or do something, she would famously say "whose going to stop you?"

The finished dinner: pasta and meatballs with salad

Nana, I promise that once the house is done and we have more space in our home, that I will host a big, loud, family dinner, with all the foods that you used to cook for us. I know that you'll take a front row seat and smile down, enjoying a meal in you honour.