Drusilla “Dru” Gladden was maybe not the most prominent Eastern Shore woman I’ve researched, but hers is the type of story and recipe I like to uplift in my work – everyday people – and in this case, a prized local ingredient. Dru Gladden liked gospel music and lighthouses, according to her 2023 obituary. At…
I was shocked to realize that Mrs. Florence McKenney’s Chicken Tetrazzini Casserole is the first recipe I’ve made for Old Line Plate from the 1980 “Magician in the Kitchen” cookbook. Produced by the Federated Garden Clubs of Maryland, the book was one of the early community cookbooks in my now-sizable collection. It has charming illustrations…
On a winter’s day in early 2015, I embarked on a project. On the meager two feet of counter space in my small kitchen, I laid out a bunch of celery, a bag of flour, a brick of fancy butter, milk, soup stock, and salt and pepper. I took a photo before proceeding to follow…
Suzy Arbogast contributed a peculiarly-named recipe to the “Cooking the Severn Way… Supplement” cookbook. Entitled “Dick Arbogast’s Male Liberated Pie,” it called for condensed milk, Cool Whip, and a can of pie filling, layered in in a pre-baked pie shell. At the end of the recipe, Suzy wrote “Preparation time: 8 min. Total Calories: 10,000.”…
The memory of the Louisiana Ring Cakes, delivered directly to customers from Rice’s Bakery trucks, never faded.