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Life Life - Food

Melba Lovelace, Food and Dining Columnist

Read more columns by Melba Lovelace.

Contact Melba --Email: mlovelace@opubco.com. Phone: (405) 752-0194.

Sweet memories of eatery inspire recipes' recall
Sweet memories of eatery inspire recipes' recall

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By Melba Lovelace

Published: August 20, 2008

DEAR MELBA • I'm the daughter of Cooper Lyon, owner of Anna Maude's Cafeteria. I have a copy of the March 11, 1990 article you wrote about him with the apple pie and breast of chicken salad recipes in it. A reader requested these recently.

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Thanks for keeping sweet memories of the Anna Maude and my dad alive.

Madeline Lewelling, City

Thanks Madeline. I well remember the day Cooper Lyon came to the house to test my efforts with his recipes. I baked the pie, and he described it as perfect. He told me the baker at the cafeteria baked 100 to 150 apple pies each day. I made only one, and that took a pretty good bite out of the morning.

He recommended using Winesap or Jonathan apples, or on rare occasions, Rome apples for the filling. Otherwise, don't make this pie. Because of the quantity of pie crusts made at Anna Maude's, we decided the pie crust recipe from "Joy of Cooking” would work fine, and it did.

Joy of Cooking Pie Crust

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup chilled shortening

2 tablespoons chilled butter

4 tablespoons water

•Combine flour and salt in large mixing bowl. Combine shortening and butter. Cut half this mixture into the flour with a pastry blender or work it in lightly with the tips of your fingers until it has the grain of cornmeal. Cut the remaining shortening-butter mixture coarsely into the dough until it is pea size. Sprinkle with 4 tablespoons water. Blend the water lightly into the dough. You may lift the ingredients with a fork, allowing the moisture to spread. If needed to hold the ingredients together, add a little more water.

•When you can gather dough into a tidy ball, stop handling it. Divide into two parts and roll one into a large circle. Fit into pie pan. Roll the other half flat for the top crust.

Syrup for Anna Maude's Apple Pie

Peelings from 6 to 7 apples

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/3 cup cold water

1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoons lemon juice

•In medium saucepan, cover apple peels with water and cook until peels are tender. Strain and discard peels. Return juice to pot; you'll need about 2 cups juice. Bring to boil. Mix cornstarch, spices and cold water. Add to hot juice, stirring constantly and cook until clear. Add sugar and boil 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add lemon juice. Set aside.

Apple Pie

1 quart (6 or 7) peeled, sliced apples

2/3 cup sugar

2 tablespoons butter

•Place sliced apples in prepared crust, pyramiding from center. Sprinkle sugar over apples. Dot with butter. Cut slits in top crust, making a circular opening in the center. Cover pie with crust and crimp edges.

•Bake in preheated 400-degree oven for 40 minutes or until apples are done. Remove from oven and pour the hot syrup into center of pie. Return to oven for 5 minutes. (Cooking the pie this length of time will leave the apples slightly crunchy, the way they were in Anna Maude's pies.)

Anna Maude's Breast of Chicken Salad

1 quart cooked white chicken, chopped

1 1/4 cups chopped celery

1 cup mayonnaise

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon lemon juice

3 eggs, hard cooked and chopped

•Toss all ingredients together lightly. Be sure to use all white meat for this salad.

For variety, Norma Slavick, Midwest City, adds chopped sweet pickles, onions and celery seed to this salad.

Martha Puryear of Edmond shared and said she has fond memories of Anna Maude's Chicken Pot Pie, too, if anyone has that recipe.

And Gloria Holliday, Cushing, would like direction for making the ham patties with lima (butter) beans they served.

Others sharing included Raymond Hicks, Jeane Dedrick, Edmond; and Joyce Hladik, Johnnie Pace, Anita Worden, Laura Hechtner, and Sue Malcom, Oklahoma City.

Thanks, Madeline. You mentioned another recipe. Yes, we would love to have it.

Melba

DEAR MELBA • I have some old Workbasket magazines I would like to give away. Please ask anyone interested to call you.

Margie F., City

Call me at 475-3228 and leave your name, phone number and reason for calling. I'll forward them to Margie.

Melba

DEAR MELBA • One of the first Tex-Mex restaurants to serve fajitas was Oklahoma City's Texanna Red's. I'm wondering if there are any former employees who might remember the marinade for the fajitas. They had a flavor that I've never found.

Mary Lee Gill, Choctaw

DEAR MELBA • I make tissue box holders out of plastic canvas and would like to know where to find inspirational patterns.

Frankye Flemins, City

DEAR MELBA • My mother used to make a German roll, I think she called Twa Buck. Please ask if anyone can help.

Gladys Taylor, Midwest City

WRITE MELBA: If you have a problem other readers might help solve or an idea you'd like to share, write to Melba's Swap Shop, Box 25125, Oklahoma City, OK 73125. Please include your name and address. Melba can also be reached by e-mail at mlovelace@oklahoman.com.