A Valentine's Day Recipe

Happy Valentine’s Day!

The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return.- Moulin Rouge

He was a dollop of Azorean. She was a pinch of salt with a sprinkling of Spice from all over.
Most days, they drove each other nuts. But some days they were just nuts about each other. That’s was their Recipe.
His name was Louie; hers was Patricia.
They met in High School. He was finishing his sophomore year when she came by with her sister to tour the high school that Patricia would be attending in the fall as a freshman.
The Portuguese Dairyman’s son meets Pretty Young Thing.
Something ignited that day.
Together they would mix a batch of life that included marriage and eight children. They would face the challenge of a World War that trekked Louis to the beaches of Normandy.
And they would live to see enough grandchildren to form two football teams.
Life came in large portions for them.

When I first met him I was every father’s nightmare. He had a daughter I was dating and he had every reason to run me out of town; but he didn’t. His daughter and I married and over time I came to enjoy a rich menu of life and foods that he and Pat produced. Louis’ Portuguese Azorean heritage flavored their kitchen, while Pat’s hands made meals that were a precursor to California cuisine. Together they formed a kind of a Cal Azorean Kitchen.

Two staples of our large family get togethers were Pat’s Macaroni Salad and Louis’ Beans; particularly good when eaten together. This macaroni salad is bomb! I have trouble enjoying other macaroni salads now because Pat’s has set a standard of flavor for me. What can I say? Louis came to call Pat’s macaroni salad “Johnson’s Floor Wax” Salad. Louis had arranged a family picnic. Maybe 50 people or so. He and Pat made big preparations with the food. She worked hard to have things just right and had made a large batch of her famous macaroni salad. On the morning of the picnic she pulled the salad out of the refrigerator when it slipped out of her hands and onto the floor. All over. She was sick to her stomach. You can imagine. Louis heard the commotion and came in to see his distraught wife and quickly formed a solution.
They would simply scoop it all back into the bowl and tell no one.

That day at the picnic we all laughed, talked and played. We had a rousing game of tackle football. Louis was well over 60 years old and tearing up the field like a youngster. That is until one of his sons took him out with a linebacker tackle. I think that was our last family football game.
And oh yeah, did I tell you we ate? Great food; including Louis Beans and Pat’s Macaroni Salad. Who would have known?

So here are the two recipes. I omitted the floor wax on the one. You can add it if you’d like.
I find that those who have passed on, those whom we have loved hold a place in our lives that carry across generations. They live on in our memories, in our traditions and in the way that we look at our world.
Sometimes they live on through the recipes of our lives.
Happy Valentine’s Day, Pat and Louis.
Happy Valentine’s Day, all.




Louis Beans
Ingredients
1 lb thick slice bacon
2 medium yellow onions
¾ cup brown sugar
1 (32 oz.) can Van Camps Pork and Beans
1 (16 oz.) can Van Camps Pork and Beans
Cumin
Allspice

Directions
Cut bacon into slices (cut across the slice) not too big/not too small
Fry in pan and drain fat
Put into 6 quart Roaster
Cut up both onions and mix into bacon
Cook slowly
Add brown sugar & sauté together
Pour both cans of beans into the sauté
Sprinkle in cumin and allspice

Pat’s “Johnson Floor Wax” Macaroni Salad (Minus the Floor Wax)
Ingredients
1 lb Macaroni Salad
3 oz. Olive Oil
1 oz. Red Wine Vinegar
1 clove of Garlic
3 oz chopped black Olives
1 small jar chopped Pimentos
Best Foods Mayonnaise

Directions
Prepare macaroni according to package directions
Drain
Prepare a marinade by mixing the olive oil and red wine vinegar and pressed garlic clove.
Salt and pepper to taste
Pour marinade into macaroni and stir in chopped black olives and pimentos
Cover and refrigerate overnight
Next day add mayonnaise to suit taste.
Garnish with sliced boiled eggs