The Pearls



Story told by Joy Marostica in "Till We Meet Again.

Calvin and Helen, my grandparent's youngest children, were our most frequent baby sitters, and I enjoyed being part of their many teen age activities.  To watch Calvin shoot baskets and Helen lead the cheers was so exciting!

One Christmas Calvin gave his sister a very special present - a necklace of imitation pearls.  On the night of the biggest basketball game of the season Helen put them on over her cheerleading sweater, so Calvin could see how pleased she was with his gift.

Calvin wanted the whole family to see him play in this important event.  I remember climbing to the balcony of the Lovell gymnasium with Grandma and Grandpa so we could have the best view.

The game turned out to be extremely exciting, but I couldn't keep my eyes off Aunt Helen, who was doing a spectacular job in her cheer leading.

Suddenly to my horror, little white balls were rolling from Helen's neck all over the basketball floor.  I'm sure no one else knew where they were coming from ... except Calvin.  The referee blew his whistle, and then to my relief fans, players, and referees were helping Calvin as they scrambled around picking up the elusive pearls.  My chagrin turned into amusement, and my cousins and I have never laughed so hard.

As I reflect upon the situation, now, I have great respect for Calvin, as he took charge.  Accepting the retrieved pearls, he walked unashamedly over to the red faced Helen.  With the eyes of the entire crowd upon them, he again gave her his "gift."  I'm sure rather than feeling embarrassed Grandma was very proud of his composure.

Lumpy Dick

Lumpy Dick

Grandmother's youngest son, Calvin, will never forget "lumpy dick".  When he was in the fourth grade the teacher asked the children what they had for breakfast.  Most everyone reported bacon and eggs, or cereal and orange juice.  But when it came Calvin's turn he proudly said, "lumpy dick"... there was shocked silence ... then snickers.  Calvin felt he needed to explain, so he said, "Yeh, lumpy dick, right Frank? right Dwight, right Pee Wee?  You know how we always have lumpy dick at our house!"

Delila's Lumpy Dick Recipe

Lumpy Dick -  "Dick" is boiled pudding

3 qt. rich milk

6 cups flour

1 tsp. salt

3 cups cream

Heat milk to boiling - stir continuously

Mix flour, salt, and cream to pie dough consistency

add by handfuls to hot milk until it thickens.

Stir constantly.

Dish up in bowls, sprinkle with sugar,

serve with milk. Delicious!

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Source:  Till We Meet Again, by Joy Marostica

More Lumpy Dick Recipes:

Heat milk scalding hot--in a large pan. In a bowl beat an egg with a fork a few moments then add some sugar, pinch of salt & grated nutmeg, flour enough to use up the egg--rub between your hands till about like rice, then stir into the hot milk cook a few moments and serve with milk or cream.


I found this conversation about "Lumpy Dick" on the internet:   My grandfather was a child of the youngest of several polygamist wives. My grandmother always felt that his family had been on the short end of the stick and lamented that "Poor Grandpa was raised on nothing but burnt toast and lumpy dick." I never learned just what lumpy dick was. When I met my husband and he began to tell me things 'pioneerish', I asked him if he knew what lumpy dick was. "Oh, you mean flour mush [as it was called in his family]. Sure, I'll make you some." We enjoy it a great deal and have it often to celebrate our heritage and appreciate the sacrifices. Once we served it to friends after having told that when there wasn't much to eat, but the cow was still giving milk and the chickens were laying an egg or two a day and there was still a little flour in the bottom of the barrel, mother would fix lumpy dick to fill her poor babies' tummies. Our friend spooned some lumpy dick onto his plate and exclaimed, "Oh, gribble-grabbles!" That is what his family of Oregon pioneers had called it and he ate with relish. This is the recipe my mother-in-law taught to me:

1 qt. milk (raw is best)
1 tsp salt
1 pat butter
Heat milk, with salt and butter in a heavy pan. When the butter melts, add:
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup flour
Mix the flour into the egg and work with fork or fingers until crumbly. Grab a handful and dribble it into the hot milk through your fingers, rubbing out any big lumps. Add all of the egg/flour mixture and any flour from the bottom of the bowl. Stirring constantly, bring the mixture to a boil and boil for 3 minutes. Serve on a dinner plate, dotted with butter, sprinkled with brown sugar and cinnamon. Pour more milk around the edge of the plate.
This recipe comes from Mink Creek, Franklin County, Idaho. (Franklin County is where the Marshall and Boice/Boyce families settled, and Grandmother Asay's birth place.)
 

President Ezra Taft Benson



President Benson's Signature

 From 'Feasting' with the Prophets:
Recalling the thrifty days of his childhood, President Benson said, "We would come into the kitchen and get the aroma of baking bread, then we would persuade mother to let us take the top off the loaf, put butter on it and consume it in our hands."

Although President Benson's mother baked a dozen loaves at a time, she sometimes ran out of bread and would buy a loaf. The store-bought bread, said President Benson's father, tasted "like cotton." If she didn't buy a loaf to stretch the family's bread supply, she would make what the family called Lumpy Dick by stirring whole wheat flour into hot milk and it would make into a consistency of pudding. She would sometimes put cinnamon and maybe a little sugar on top of it and pour cold milk over it. "This would be our supper, and it was delicious," recalled President Benson.
Source:  'Feasting' with the Prophets by Ann Whiting Allen, Deseret News Food Editor published: Saturday, Oct 1, 1988

The Garden



But if ye are prepared
ye shall not fear. D&C 38:30

The prophets' counsel to acquire a year's supply of food was followed to the letter by my grandparents.  Delila spent many hours filling canning jars with pickles, green beans, beets, tomatoes, and all the wonderful produce harvested from her large garden.

We grandchildren delighted in hiding among the peas, gorging on their delectable sweetness, and there was nothing better than Grandma's corn on the cob - cooked 5 minutes after it was picked.
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Source:  Till We Meet Again by Joy Marostica