I usually post my Memory Lane Monday post on the third Monday of the month, but last Monday I worked in the vegetable garden all day.  The weather was gorgeous, and I needed to get my sugar snap peas planted.  By the time I was done, I was too pooped and achy to focus on writing my post.  A memory was on my mind that day that I wanted to write about, though, so I just saved it until this Monday.  I think it’s kind of a fun one, too!

Big Eagle and I had some friends for a taco night recently, and after I made the rice, I put it in the crock pot to keep it warm.  One of my friends looked at the crock pot and exclaimed that she had one “just like it”!  Maybe you do, too!

 

This is one of the original crock pots that was manufactured by Rival in the early seventies.  The funny thing is, this is not the one I used to cook in when I was raising my family.  I had one “just like it”, too, but my son took it to a party one time, and it never came back.  This one was my mom’s!

I also still have the little recipe booklet that came with it.

 

There are a few favorites in this booklet that I liked to make, but MY favorite (not my family’s) was the Old World Sauerkraut Supper.  I was the only one of the four of us that would eat sauerkraut.  So I made this recipe every time our church had a fellowship dinner.  There were lots of fellow sauerkraut eaters at church.  In fact, some of them would ask me if I brought it, so they could make sure not to miss it.

Back when I got married (1972) THE cookware was either avocado green or harvest gold.  I had a set of Club Aluminum in harvest gold.  These are the only pieces I have left now.

 

I mostly use my Calphalon cookware these days, but I do still use this Club Aluminum.  Especially the little one.  My oatmeal gets made in it regularly.  I think my daughter Cara has the skillet that goes with this set.  As far as I know she still uses it.

Then there’s my trusty waffle iron.  It’s not avocado green or harvest gold, but I’ve had it since the kids were little, and it’s still going strong!

 

I would make waffles for breakfast, but also I would make ice cream sandwiches with waffles.  If you’ve never tried them, give it a go.  You just smear vanilla ice cream between two waffles.  It’s really good!  I suppose you could use other flavors, but I always used vanilla.

 

The inside of the waffle iron looks a lot better than the outside.  The outside really shows its age.  See that blue and red and white junk on the left edge?  Back when the kids were still little and we were still living in our little house on Wren Way in Beaumont, I was making waffles one morning, and I had the waffle iron too close to a loaf of bread.  The plastic wrapper on the bread melted onto the outer surface of the waffle iron.  It’s there for good!

Ready for more harvest gold?  I still have the electric skillet that was given to us as a wedding gift, and it still works!  It hasn’t gotten any use in a really long time, but I just can’t seem to part with it.  I considered it when I had a garage sale a few years ago, but in the end, I held onto it.

And back to some more avocado green!  I’ve also held onto my pressure cooker.  Don’t use it much either, but I just can’t get rid of it.

 

My mom used her pressure cooker a lot when we were growing up.  The sound of that pressure regulator rocking back and forth was a familiar one.  As I recall, hers was silver-colored on the outside, not avocado green.

And speaking of Mom, this pot right here is one I remember her cooking in often when we were growing up in Illinois.  I’m talking back in the early 60’s now.

 

What I remember her using it the most for was boiling potatoes for mashing.  Lord only knows how many helpings of mashed potatoes my mom made over the years.  I can see her in my mind now, holding that long handle while draining the water from the pot over the sink with the steam billowing out.

As often happens, one memory leads to another.  I remember sitting across the table from my brother as he put a big forkful of mashed potato in his mouth.  He then proceeded to stare at me, open his mouth wide, and display for me the contents.  GROSS!  No sooner did I start to tattle than he snapped his mouth shut and sat there like Mr. Innocent.  AND GOT AWAY WITH IT!  Oh, yes…he knew how to aggravate me.  I won’t make any accusations or point any fingers as to which brother it was, but I will exonerate Frank, Herb, Steve, and Jack.  😜

So how about it?  Do you have cookware that causes you to reminisce about back in the day?  So many memories are made as we work together in the kitchen and gather around the table for mealtimes.  Perhaps you recall a favorite dish that your family made when you were growing up?  Or maybe one you yourself made?  I wonder how many others have some of these same pieces I’ve held onto all these years and still use them.  Feel free to leave a comment!  You can answer any of these questions or even share a memory that YOU were having today. 😃

 

This post linked to The GRAND Social