A Family Tradition

Does your family have a recipe that has become a family tradition? Maybe your family food traditions have been around for generations like the sandwich my friend Janet's family makes every 4th of July. Or maybe there's someone in your family who makes something so delicious that it becomes a family favorite that you just have to have like my friend, Judy's mom's "famous" macaroni & potato salad. For me, I have many fond memories of Grandma Zobrist's green salad, "Uncle" Morgan's apple pie, Great Grandma Ras's homemade fresh peach ice cream, Grandma Jo's rolls, Judy's lemon cream pie - my mouth is watering as I think about these familiar tastes & smells. Then there are newer food traditions beginning to take root like Brad's blueberry pancakes on Christmas morning, Mike & Karla's bruschetta, Kimmy's orange carrot cookies at Pine Valley, Poppy's poppy cakes for breakfast at the cabin, and Jill's buttermilk donuts on pioneer day, and . . . oh, I truly could go on & on. Of course, I am a food lover, so maybe it's just me, but isn't it interesting how food is so much a part of what we do and our memories can be triggered by something we eat.

(me thinking out loud - maybe this is because our senses help us remember something - so we equate a memory with something that triggered our senses - whether it be the smell of something that made you sick when you were pregnant or the sound of the river as you walk into the cabin, or the taste of something delicious. I have this memory that will forever be with me, partly because of what I had to eat - I went to help Lesli decorate an arch for her wedding reception at her mom's home. We took a break from decorating to eat a little lunch that her mom had made. It was a sandwich - an open-faced roll with mustard, ham & cheese, put under the broiler to make the ham hot & the cheese melt. Simple, huh? But, I loved that sandwich & whenever I have the ingredients & think of it, I make it & remember that time I spent with Lesli before her wedding. What's interesting is that Lesli may or may not have that same memory. I'm sure she remembers decorating the arch, but it is possible that the little lunch we had was completely insignificant to her. I am always amazed when my children tell me they remember something I was wearing at a memorable time to them, and I haven't the faintest notion of what I had on for the occasion. Obviously, our senses are triggered in different ways at different times.)

So - with all that thinking out of the way - I have to share a Wallace family food tradition, but be warned, you just may turn green with envy when I tell you about it, and you just may try to find a way to become and honorary member of the Wallace family so that you can partake! This tradition is Grandma Judy's Swedish pancakes. When you go to visit Grandma Judy, you know that you are guaranteed to wake up one morning to the sound of the blender as she mixes up the batter, along with the delightful sights of homemade raspberry jam & whipped cream all ready for you to enjoy.

Just recently we were visiting Brad's parents, and sure enough, we awoke on the day we were leaving to the sound of the blender & the pretty raspberry jam with the perfect whipped cream. Being the blog-minded that I am, I had to get a few pictures so I could share this part of our family history. I asked Judy when she first had Swedish pancakes, and she told me the story. She & Ken were dating and were staying at grandma Grace's home(Ken's mom) for the weekend. Ken was away for marine corps reserve duty and Judy was nestled in her bed when grandma Grace woke Judy up 7:00 am to serve her breakfast. No sleeping in for this young lady! Though Judy was not exactly pleased with the early morning wake up call, she was definitely pleased with the Swedish pancakes & decided they were worth rising early on a day when she could have slept in a little. Her children & grandchildren are so glad she got up to that breakfast that morning over 40 years ago. Grandma Grace's Swedish pancakes were a little different as they were served with fruit and canned milk. So - Judy has definitely "Judyfied" them & turned them into a delicious, indulgent treat. I asked Brad what he remembered about having Swedish pancakes as a kid. He remembers that they usually had them when family or friends came to visit or for a holiday or special occasion. I am always impressed with how many Swedish pancakes Brad can eat. Brad is not typically a big eater, but he can put these babies away!

Grandma J pours the batter to create the thin & tasty Swedish pancakes. Judy reminds me, they are mostly eggs - yes, hardly any calories at all! But wait - look what we add to that mostly egg pancake -

Here, Madi adds the homemade raspberry jam & whipped cream. Judy put out some fresh strawberries this time & I put those with the jam & the whipped cream & it was OH SO GOOD!

Madi is a lucky girl - she's the first to indulge in this "low calorie" breakfast - notice how Madi garnished her pancake with those pretty little dollops of whipped cream. She knows what she's doing - she's been eating these all her life!

Now that half the family resides in Woodland, some family members were feeling a little left out of the Swedish pancake tradition because they were no longer visitors at grandma's house. Well, Judy took care of that problem right away by establishing a new tradition of cooking up Swedish pancakes for the Woodlandites once a month on a Sunday afternoon. How lucky is that? Let us know the date for the next Swedish pancake Sunday & we'll be there!