Quick Meals

Long pots that cooked all day made most of our dinners. But some days—when Momma and Pop were out fishin’, were tired from a big night, or were worn out from springtime chores, the long pot never got started. We didn’t have a freezer full of TV dinners, so we had to make do.

Often, we dressed up leftovers from a day or two before. Add a box of elbow macaroni, a can of something from the shelf, or a scoop of rice and we’d be well on our way to fillin’ our bellies. Momma had a few standby recipes for such times. But most quick meals were challenges—sometimes adventures—for my sisters and me, who were cooking because our parents weren’t home. We would often make up the ingredients as we cooked.