Now I am going to say right here and now, between my Grandmas and my Mom, I did learn to be a good cook and a wise cook.
What is a wise cook? Well, according to my Grandma Helen, you cook beans and cornbread! Not only because they are good, but they stretch your dollar! I think Grandma Essie cooked a pot of beans every morning. They stood on their own or went on the side with whatever else she cooked that day. And Grandma Helen usually had beans and cornbread as part of her weekly menu.
How lucky I am to have had these beautiful ladies as my teachers. They not only taught me how to cook, but the “why” to cook. And one good reason my Grandma Helen said you cook is to save money. My Grandmas raised their family in a time where restaurants weren’t as prevalent as they are today. But more important, eating out was a burden on the household budget. Both Grandmas handed down wisdom that was sound and frugal.
One conversation I had many times with my Grandma Helen started with a phone call and the question, “Jennie, what are you cooking for dinner?” This is my Grandma that always said if Grandpa earned a quarter, she saved a dime. So she was fishing a little! Checking on me to see if I was spending my dollars wisely. We might talk about my menu, but usually the conversation turned to Grandma’s wisdom on how to save money at the grocery store. And according to Grandma Helen, every week’s menu should include Beans and Cornbread as a money saving must!
My Grandma would know the prices of almost every product she purchased at her local Grider’s Supermarket. She would quote the price of beans with a couple of slices of bacon and the price of cornmeal for my cornbread. “Now you can also add some fried potatoes for not much more.” Then talk about how far 5 pounds of potatoes would stretch and the cost as she divided those into at least two or three meals. She would give advice about being able to feed my family of five and have leftovers for another meal. “Jennie, add your leftover beans to ground beef and make chili for tomorrow’s dinner.”
I took it all in because it made so much sense. And I had much respect for my Grandma and the experience she was speaking from. She always said she could feed her family of six on a 7oz can of Pink Salmon. Add a little of this and that and stretch that little can of salmon. Well, luckily my local Crest Foods always had the 15z can for .99! It was cheaper than the small can. I was saved! To make 5 or 6 salmon patties out of that little can of salmon was beyond my view. But her wisdom was always in my view and is always tucked right beside me.
