Dad's Salad and the Yellow Bowl

Dad used to make the most unhealthy salad every year for Thanksgiving. It had become his signature dish for nearly every gathering where one is required to bring a dish to pass. I guess this is what happened when Mom was no longer doing all of the cooking.

However the critics always raved about it at Thanksgiving and the big yellow bowl that he served it in was scraped until it was empty! [I must admit that I never understood the appeal.] The dressing was created with some concoction of French dressing, ranch dressing, mustard, horseradish sauce, a little Worcestershire sauce and bacon grease. There was no recipe -- he just threw this stuff in there and stirred. The items that were drenched . . . er, dressed, consisted of iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, onions, rotini pasta, eggs and bacon.

For some reason, I ended up with that yellow bowl after seeing it in Mom and Dad's estate sale. How could we possibly let that one go? And since I had the bowl, I was left with the task of recreating his salad. In retrospect, I was probably the last person that should have taken this on.

I thought perhaps I could upscale it a bit and use romaine lettuce. My niece agreed that I could probably do that. Whew. One hurdle crossed. But then I chose to chuck the entire dressing thing and make my own. I was afraid I couldn't pull off Dad's magic.

However, when I was making the bacon on Thanksgiving morning, everyone who passed through Karen's kitchen said something along the lines of, "You're not going to use the bacon grease???" I was crossing my fingers and hoping they wouldn't care.

I may try again next year or I may go a totally different route. We'll see.

Here's the smoky buttermilk ranch dressing I used (which I happened to LOVE but Karen said it had too much garlic.) The yellow bowl wasn't scraped entirely clean but it was nearly empty so I'll take that as a win.

1 clove garlic, peeled

1 cup buttermilk

1/3 cup mayonnaise

1/3 cup dairy sour cream

2 Tbsp. snipped fresh Italian parsley

2 Tbsp. snipped fresh chives

1 green onion, thinly sliced

1 tsp. white wine vinegar

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

romaine

cherry tomatoes

boiled eggs

bacon

rotini pasta

And away we go!

The holidays are nearly upon us (judging by the fact that WNIC has been playing Christmas music for about a week now . . . and I've been listening!!) and I'm both nervous and excited this year.

My default is to feel excited -- since that's how it has been for me for the previous 45 years of my existence. And having children only enhances the feeling for me. There's nothing I love more than that period between Thanksgiving and Christmas!! Who am I kidding? Halloween and New Years too! And when I'm in the right surroundings I still get a little giddy. I ran to the mall yesterday on my lunch hour to drop off some shoes that need repairing. I was immediately stimulated by all of the Christmas decorations everywhere! A drive down Main Street at dusk when the lights on the trees are sparkling makes me smile from ear to ear. Curt was in New York earlier this week when he emailed me a pic inside Macy's complete with its Christmas regalia and I was green with envy. Yup. Still love it.

The nervous part comes from the fact that Dad's not going to be with us this year. Hell, mom won't truly be with us either.

Sure, she'll be around for a bit on Thanksgiving . . . and maybe we'll catch a glimpse of her. And by glimpse, I mean something truly fleeting and immeasurable, like a certain sparkle in her eye or a familiar laugh -- you just know it when you see it. Maybe she'll even remember my name and melt my heart like she did when the girls and I visited her last week. That would be a wonderful gift. But she doesn't do well in crowds these days and our holidays are nothing if not crowded and noisy.

And so, things are going to be different. Dad won't be there to make his traditional Thanksgiving salad -- a huge hodgepodge of things that didn't resemble anything healthy. The after-dinner poker game will continue without him. Maybe we'll crack open his expensive whiskey we've been saving for the "right time" to drink. I'm sure he was waiting for the right time, too. I hate whiskey but you can bet I'll have a shot of it. I wouldn't miss that for the world.

This will be a holiday of new traditions. A time to pass the torch and create those lasting memories for my girls just like my parents did for me.

So, why am I crying while I'm typing this?

Ugh. I better hang on tight because this sure is going to be an interesting ride through the holidays. But that's what life is all about, right?

I miss you and love you, Mom and Dad. And I will do my best to honor your memory this year.

Just look at those smiling faces below. We've got so much to be thankful for.

I Miss My Blog

Dear Blog,

I've been thinking about you a lot. I miss you. So much time has gone by and I feel like we've completely lost touch. I hate that.

I need to come clean. The fact is . . . I've just been spending too much time on Facebook lately.

I know, I know. I'm so sorry. But I

want to reconnect and visit you again on a regular basis. Will you have me back? I promise to try harder.

It's just been a tough year with a lot of fits and starts. But I'm working through it and I want to come back. There are a lot of positive things going on in my life and I want to share it with you.

Whew. I feel better now. I'll be back soon!!

Love, Kathy