From a young age, I loved being in the kitchen, reading mysteries, gardening, writing, or telling stories. This all happened at the pink, cheerful stucco house that was located on the north end of Underwood that was my parents’ home. Looking back, there was something magical about living in that pink home with white window boxes and decorative trim. Perhaps one of the coolest things about this house was that my dad liked stucco and the color pink. There was a series of three houses in this collection. The other two homes were canary yellow and light frosty green — both of them were also stucco. They were built by a gentleman who at one time had been employed at Disney as a carpenter. He returned to North Dakota during the construction of the Garrison Dam and built these structures.
The yellow home had a California flare as it was a patio home. It had white awnings and my parents converted in it the Underwood Laundromat. As a child, one of my earliest memories is seeing color; looking around in my world, these houses were unique in color and texture. It was the perfect pastel triangle to jumpstart a childlike sense of imagination. These three structures resided closely together. Pastel pink, yellow and soft green–these colors were also on display in Radke’s Fairway up town in the freezer section as sherbet.
Wanting to take these tones in the kitchen beyond sherbet included my mom introducing me to the sunshine of lemons. She liked lemons and took the time each summer to bake lemon meringue pies for the commercial club lunch stand at the McLean County Fair. It could be 100 degrees outside but that did not detour her from making pie that radiated sunshine and white fluffy clouds. Being 6 or 7 at the time, her solution to my interest caused her to slice thin sunbeams of lemons and scatter them as a pool of sunshine into a large clear pitcher that was hosting some freshly made lemonade from previously squeezed lemons.
Not one to miss an artistic flare, she stepped to our GE refrigerator that featured a round door, opened it and removed a jar of maraschino cherries and carefully poured a little of the red juice into the lemonade. In an instant, a flourish of pink swam up to meet lemon slices. This was a blooming moment for a young boy who lived in a pastel, creative and entertaining world.
The sight of lemonade often brings back memories of my mom’s choice of dress. I have seen these dresses in photographs; however, my memory does recall them with clear details. She enjoyed wearing gingham – -especially in a lavender and white — and the garment featured classic shirtwaist tailoring such as princess seams, softly padded shoulders and shell buttons. I stood by her in the kitchen while she wore dresses and even had a closer view when she would set me on her lap often after dinner. What dress do you recall your mom would wear in summer?
Lemons are one of the first food items that Jan and I connected with. She likes to make a homemade white cake with lemon filling and white pearl frosting. She made it before our marriage and that continues. She was blessed to receive several recipes that featured lemons from her piano teacher Mrs. Berniece O’Connell, from Ray. Piano recitals were held in her home and the light receptions leaned toward the light and cheerfulness of lemons.
Lemons in our home have continued with the next generation, Lydia! She has been active in Gasmann Helping Hands 4-H Club for quite a few years. One of her first baking entries was lemon bars. I can still recall her saying “I like working with lemons; they make my hands smell nice.” This year she made another lemon recipe, Lemon Crisp Cookies. They are delicious and easy to make because you drop them with a spoon!
Lemonade can be traced back as far as the 13th and 14th century in Egypt, where they made a lemon drink with dates and honey. In was in 1676, that cookbooks made note of a company in Paris known as Compagnie de Limonadiers who sold lemonade in Paris. Vendors carried tanks of lemonade on their backs and dispensed cups of the soft drink to Parisians. It is still up in the air if they wore the complimentary color of purple to yellow while quenching the thirst of folks visiting under the Eiffel Tower.
This summer take time to enjoy some lemonade and some lemon crisp cookies while sporting your fashion flare. Who knows — you may just inspire a young artistic creative mind right in your own home.
1 (12-ounce) container frozen lemonade concentrate
Juice of one or two lemons
Place all ingredients into a large blender. Make in batches if using a small blender. Cover and blend until smooth. Pour into glasses, garnish with lemon wedge, sit back and enjoy. For an additional twist you can use water that has been flavored with cucumbers or oranges instead of tap water. To do this you would want to create this flavored water the day before.
1 cup butter, cold, cut into cubes
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar for 4 minutes until light and fluffy. Add eggs, vanilla, lemon juice, and lemon zest and stir to combine. Stir in flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix just until combined. Drop dough onto light colored baking sheet. Bake for 9 – 11 minutes. Sprinkle with sugar, if desired.
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