Special Dinner

One evening in the fall of 1975 Sam first came to dinner at my house. He seemed to enjoy that first dinner of steak, salad, baked potato and apple pie and, in fact, I repeated it for him every year since then during the last week of September. It was a little anniversary celebration for us each year. I was going to live without it this year, but I couldn't. 

Last weekend when I spent time with Sam's brother and his wife "down at the farm" that Sam loved so much, I had the perfect opportunity to share this favorite meal of Sam's. The good food was the perfect compliment to the gorgeous weather and the pretty view.

Sam's favorite salad dressing was Thousand Island which I often made for him. Steve and Jessie both like Blue Cheese Dressing so I made both. I like to make salad dressings. They taste so much better, more flavorful and fresh than the ones in the bottle. I urge you to take time to try some salad dressings. These are a little heavier and more rich than I make on a regular basis, but they are really good for a special dinner. I have to say we had salads delish, along with ribeyes seasoned with Montreal steak seasoning. Yum! Thanks for grilling the steaks, Steve.

Thousand Island Dressing

3 eggs, hard cooked, peeled, and chopped
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon white sugar
1/4 cup white vinegar
1 pinch ground cloves
1 quart mayonnaise
3/4 cup sweet pickle relish
1/2 cup chopped black olives
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper


In a medium bowl, whisk together the chopped eggs, Worcestershire sauce, sugar, vinegar, cloves, mayonnaise, relish, olives and red pepper until evenly blended. Chill and serve spooned over fresh greens. Store in the refrigerator.

Creamy Blue Cheese Dressing

2 1/2 ounces blue cheese, crumbled (about 1/2 cup)
3 tablespoons buttermilk
3 tablespoons sour cream
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
salt and pepper

Mash blue cheese and buttermilk in a small bowl with a fork until mixture resembles cottage cheese with small curds. Stir in remaining ingredients. Taste and add salt and pepper to taste. 

The perfect finish . . .

I think I have loved to bake pie ever since I baked that first one for Sam. Apple pies are always good, but fall is just the BEST time to bake an apple pie. I like to use a combination of Granny Smith apples, which are tart, and Gala apples which are crisp, but sweet. I love cinnamon and over the years I have learned to up the amount to at least 2 teaspoons, which is more than most recipes. I also use a little nutmeg in my apple pie.

The best part of the pie, besides the filling, is the crust. Years ago I settled on using half cold butter and half cold shortening for the best crust. It is crisp and flaky, but rich and buttery, too. Oh, my, I am getting hungry now!

And a little Saturday morning surprise . . .

Look closely, can you see the three deer at the top of the hill?

  

As Jessie and I were walking back "up from the lake" we noticed these three deer at the top of the hill. We stopped and watched for a while. They munched the grass and paid us no mind. Soon two of them ran off and a bit later the third bounded away. They were beautiful to watch. Sam would have loved it.