Monday, November 5, 2007

Fun Monday


This Fun Monday's host is Deborah, The Humble Housewife. She wants to know what holiday tradition we celebrate every year. Here at our house Thanksgiving has always been our favorite holiday. We just can't wait for the turkey and dressing. Through the years we have celebrated this holiday at our parent's house, usually taking turns between my parents and my husband's. This sometimes included traveling to my dad's house in Texas. We haven't got a tradition that I can think of that has been consistent other than to be thankful. A few years when our children were young and home-schooled, we would put a kernel of dried corn on the each person's plate to represent the pilgrim's and Indian's first Thanksgiving. We would then take turns telling what we were thankful for. Ooh, ended that with a preposition, sorry. There is one recipe that I learned from my mother-in-law that is a tradition at our house every Thanksgiving. I had never had this before I married my hubby. His mom made it every year and so I began that tradition. It is Waldorf Salad. Here is the recipe:
Classis Waldorf Salad
2 cups diced apple
1 cup 1-inch julienne celery sticks
1/2 cup broken walnuts
1 cup minature marshmallows
1/4 cup mayonaisse
1 tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. lemon juice
dash salt
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 cup seedless grapes, cut in halves
Combine apple, celery, grapes, marshmallows, and nuts. Blend mayonaisse, sugar, lemon juice, and salt. Fold in whipped cream; fold into apple mixture; chill.
I'm going to have to admit that I make the mixture sweeter by adding more sugar than a tablespoon of sugar. If you make the mayonaisse mixture first in a jar and let it sit overnight in the refrigerator to blend, it seems to taste better. This is such a pretty salad and goes right along with the turkey and dressing at the table. It's not like a dessert but just like serving cranberry sauce with everything else.

P.S. I guess another tradition for me has been to make the pumpkin and pecan pies for Thanksgiving. I do that wherever we go.
P.P.S. I thought of something else. On New Year's Eve, my husband plays a Jimi Hendrix rendition of Auld Lang Syne with his guitar and his Marshall stack for all the town to hear. We live way out in the country so the town would be lucky to hear it on a cold, clear night. We also save big fireworks from the Fourth of July and set those off at midnight.

17 comments:

Alix said...

Your salad sounds good - not sure about adding marshmallows though!
Your husband playing Alud lang Syne for everyone is a great tradition

Junebug said...

Yes you could leave the marshmallows out, I added as an afterthought. It makes for more sweetness.

Anonymous said...

I think we (all) tend to overlook the "tradition" of a family meal. THAT in and of itself IS a tradition :).

Recipes handed down bring the past into the present; it makes me wonder what my own children will make when they're up and out (yikes! I can't think about THAT right now!!!)

I'm known for the apple pie; pecan pie is my preference, but everyone else always asks for the apple (can I have a bite of yours? :) ).

Unknown said...

Having Hendrix ring in the New Year is priceless! And, I don't think it's quite the holidays without Waldorf salad!

Tiggerlane said...

My husband would SO like to jam with yours - Jimi? On Marshall amps? Awesome. He must come visit our new music studio!

Junebug said...

Robin: Yes, you may. My brothers are pecan pie nuts!! I have to make them.
AFF and Tigger: The Hendrix rendition is pretty awesome, especially loud. So, Tigger, you will have a music studio? That is awesome. My husband loves to jam but usually no one to jam with. A couple of his friends, the bass player and drummer have passed away in the last couple years (only in their late fifties).

Sandy said...

I love the Hendrix Auld Lang Syne. When my hubby was DJ on board the USS Dwight D. Eisenhauer, he played the Hendrix version of the Star Spangled Banner. The powers that be (or were in this case) were NOT amused!

Anonymous said...

It's funny how you have mixed in an in-law tradition too. I wonder what my children will keep going as they age.

Junebug said...

Sandy: That is funny now, but probably not then?

Karmyn: I know, I really learned a lot of things from my husband's mother. They were so different than my family.

Anonymous said...

Your salad sounds great. I think the marshmallows are the best part!!!

Donna Boucher said...

This sounds yummy!
Thank you for the recipie!

Kaytabug said...

I make a wicked Waldorf salad... similar but not quite! It is so yummy! You could leave the marshmallows out but who would want to?!!!

I have combined some traditions from my hubs side with some of my family's traditions. That's the way to do it!!

Junebug said...

Blue Momma: Thank you, I love marshmallows, especially in hot chocolate.
Donna: You are welcome!
Katyabug: I need to see your recipe. I will come to your blog and look for it. Gosh, I wish there was more time to look at everyone's blog in depth. There are so many good things to read and people to know.

Kila said...

The recipe sounds wonderful, thank you!

theotherbear said...

Love the Auld Lang Syne playing tradition!

Anonymous said...

Marshmallows...yum! Waldorff salad...yum! Hendrix...YUM!

Jo Beaufoix said...

Your salad sounds yum though I've never had it with marshmallows before. And I love that your husband does his Hendrix at New Year.
Fab.