Well, here is a first for me.  Golden Chanterelles; This is the queen of the forest in mushrooms.  In Italy they are known as Girolle.  I have never prepared any mushroom except the Hen in the Woods but I trusted Judge Marks recommendation for this mushroom.  He gave my daughter Leslie a sample of it and she passed it onto me.  I cleaned it about the same way as I do the "Hen"  and cooked it with peppers, onions and garlic and tomato sauce.  I must say that although it was tasty my favorite is still the "Hen" and I cannot wait for them to come up.  For those of you who are hunters, start looking as I think they will come early because of all the rain we have had.

 

This past week we took a mini vacation to Ohio.  We were going up there to  celebrate the graduation of Dave's granddaughter, Sabrina, and her send off to West Virginia University where she will be attending this fall.  While we were on our way up there we decided to extend our vacation and visit with some of Dave's old friends, Vic and Doris Rauser.  They live in Rocky River but they have a home at Port Clinton.  If you are planning a mini vacation this summer, head north to Lake Erie. It is a beautiful place and with the help of AAA you will find a lot to do. While we were there we made a visit to Good Will and I was able to find a nice crock from a crock pot that I purchased and intend to use for mushrooms or green tomatoes. By the way, we have  a Good Will Store here locally and if you have not ever visited one, plan on doing so. You may  be surprised at the good bargains they have there. Getting back to Ohio, one morning while Vic and Dave were out taking a walk they came across mushrooms at the base of an oak tree.  They did look like our Hen but they were  not. It was some kind of mushroom but it was hard.  I guess they really do grow every where, just not here in our area. There are several recipes for preserving them in Arrivederci, Customs and Recipes Every Girls Takes From Home and the book is available at James & Law and Tomaro's Bakery for $12.00.

 

Jane Osbourne Maxwell Rogers passed away this past week.  She is known to all of us RW Grads as Mrs. Maxwell. She attended our last reunion and we all really liked her.  She epitomized what a teacher should be and look like.  She was always so stylishly dressed.  She taught English and French at RW High School.  She was also the instructor for the Yearbook. I was the editor and I worked very closely with her.  She certainly inspired me to write and I owe her for my published book. I only wish that every student attending school could  have a Mrs. Maxwell.  Our sympathies to her son Bob and daughter Linn.  Know that she was certainly an inspiration.

 

My sister, Cathy and my daughter in law, Linda Queen are celebrating getting a year older. Happy Birthday to them and to anyone else celebrating a birthday in August.

 

I know that many of you have served the classic spinach dip at one of your parties.  If you have Swiss chard growing in your garden, it can be substituted for the spinach used in the recipe.  Swiss chard is at its peak now, so work hard to get it put up for this winter.

 

Speaking of parties Dave and I attended a party at our neighbors house across the street this past week. It was a Hawaiian themed party and  Carolyn, went our of  her way to decorate and prepare food. It gave us the opportunity to meet some of our neighbors and to socialize with them.  We all should do this more frequently.

 

The Italian Festival is coming sooner than you think. They will behaving some of the standard events but they will also be working on a few new ones. One of the first events is the Pasta Cook Off on the Saturday prior to Festival week.  It will be at Jackson Square and if you are not  competing then plan on attending to sample all the different pasta dishes. For a schedule and more information or to purchase tickets to the events call Lindsay at 304 622 7314.

 

Take care and one of the several calls I got this weekend about the cancellation of the Grapevine in the local paper was from Margaret Spadafore. The Shinnston News and Harrison County Journal is distributed at the UHC and The VA Hospital and the Grapevine appears it it every week.  If you are visiting you may be able to pick one up. Remember it also appears on Connect-Bridgeport and Connect-Clarksburg and in the Taylor County Value Guide.

 

Make plans to enjoy these last weeks of summer. Remember using a cell phone while driving is a no  no.  Watch out for the kids going back to school and until next week "Now You Have Heard It Through The Grapevine."