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Wow. Even just typing up this recipe is making me hungry. This is a hugely popular recipe in my family, and I haven’t had it in ages. This has a lot to do with the Venn Diagram that is Koshvader’s and my food preferences. (He doesn’t like squash. I love squash.) “Aunt Fanny’s Squash” was a dinner staple at my house growing up. Perhaps I can get my Mum to make some for me when I come up to visit. Oh, and I’ll bet that you are wondering who Aunt Fanny is. As near as I can tell there was a restaurant down south somewhere that served this. I’m unclear on the details.

This recipe was found in a book called Galley Finale: A Collection of Mariner Soups, Sloops, and Other Incredible Edibles. It was put out by The Presbyterian Church of Fair Oaks, Ca in 1978. This recipe is indeed written up by my grandmother, so there are no added notes. If you try it, please let me know what you think.

Aunt Fanny’s Baked Squash by Mildred Catlin

3 lb. yellow summer squash
1/2 c. chopped onion
2 eggs
1 cube butter
1 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. black pepper, or to taste
1 tsp. salt
1/2 c. cracker or bread crumbs

Wash and cut up squash and boil until partly cooked. Drain thoroughly and mash. Add all ingredients except 1/2 butter to squash. Mix bread or cracker crumbs with remaining butter and sprinkle over top of casserole. Bake at 375 until brown on top.

I’m trying to de-junk my place again. Yes. It’s an eternal battle of me vs. stuff. I’ve been asking myself, “would I be willing to pack and move this?” If the answer is no, then I add it to the pile of stuff to get rid of. I’ve been going through the shelves in my dining area today, trying to decide if I really needed all of these cookbooks. As you may recall, I don’t really cook much. I did get rid of a few cookbooks. Go me. And then I encountered my stash of those cookbooks that churches and women’s groups put together as a fundraiser. It struck me that in some cases, this could be the only place that a family recipe might lurk. So, I pulled out the one that has recipes from my grandmother Mildred. Mind you, there aren’t that many from her in it, and it’s a fairly sizable spiral-bound book. On the one hand, I need the space that the book takes up, and it’s unlikely that I will ever cook any of the recipes in it. On the other hand, it’s a tangible link to my family’s past. A physical object that my grandmother wrote notes in.

It makes me wonder – What physical things will we, the online, email-sending, internet generation leave for the future? Will there come a time when huge swaths of historical documents will be lost due to power fluctuations or hard-drive failure?

In the 1990 film The Spirit of ’76, a massive electrical storm of some sort has wiped out all digital media. The only way that they can restore their history is to travel into the past. They choose 1776 as their destination (with the help of the oldest man alive) but end up in 1976 by mistake. All in good and silly fun, to be sure, but it leaves one wondering about a future like that. So, I’ve decided that the only way to combat this bleak possibility is to spread the information around. I’m not sure if I’ll keep the book or send it back to my folks, but I’ll share some of it with you all in the meantime.

This recipe was found in a book called Galley Finale: A Collection of Mariner Soups, Sloops, and Other Incredible Edibles it was put out by The Presbyterian Church of Fair Oaks, Ca in 1978. This first recipe is not from my grandmother, but she obviously tried it out, as she made notes on it.

(Italics indicate written notes by my grandmother.)

Lemon Jello Cabbage Salad by A. Tipps

1 (3oz.) pkg. lemon jello
1/2 c. sour cream
1/2 c. mayonnaise
2 tsp. prepared mustard
1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. vinegar
1 tsp. sugar
2 c. shredded cabbage, cut fine and/or (celery)
1/2 tsp. minced onion

Dissolve jello in 1 cup hot water and 1/2 cup cold water. Let jello cool until syrupy, then add all ingredients except cabbage. Mix well and let firm a little. Then mix in cabbage and let set in refrigerator until firm. Delicious with ham.

Can put sour cream & mayonnaise in a bowl then add slowly the lemon jello liquid while continually mixing with a folding motion to make a smooth mixture then add cabbage and/or celery & pour into mold or glass dish to set