The Shopper Kitchen: A poignant find at an antique mall
By ANGELA McRAE, Special to The Coweta Shopper
I’m always on the lookout for vintage cookbooks. A recent Saturday found me prowling the aisles of the River City Antique Mall in Rome, Georgia, and like a fly to honey, I was drawn to a booth marked “50 Percent Off.”
After spotting some vintage cookbooks, I quickly started flipping through them. If old cookbooks have too many recipes for prune dishes or gelatin molds, I’m out of there, but these looked promising.
A friendly woman from the store popped by and asked if I’d seen the handwritten note on display.
“Hmm?” I looked up from my recipe browsing.
She gave me a wistful smile. “The woman with this booth unfortunately passed away, and her son left a note to her customers.”
Suddenly, the cookbooks weren’t the most interesting things in the booth anymore. The seller’s thoughtful son had penned, “Dear Valued Customers, This booth was my mother’s, who has recently passed away. She was always so proud of this booth, and I enjoyed hearing all of her stories and even getting the pleasure to help her pick out some items from time to time. I hope you enjoy the items here as much as she enjoyed providing them. Thank you for your much-appreciated business.
The quote at the bottom epitomized her spirit.” The note was signed, “The beloved son of Cindy Bishop, Dax Bishop.” The bottom of the notepaper read, “She imagines it, and then she makes it happen.”
That’s got to be one of the loveliest things I’ve ever seen in an antique mall. I wish I’d met Cindy Bishop, especially after a fellow vendor called her “a spitfire.”
One of the books I purchased from her booth was titled Cook as the Romans Do, compiled by the Rome Elkettes in 1966. It has many recipes I’d like to try, and the first casserole I settled on was quite possibly the yummiest broccoli casserole I’ve ever made.
Much as I love the delicious recipe (shared by Mrs. Sandra Scoville), I’m even more charmed by the lovely woman who “picked” just the right items for her customers—and was remembered for it.
Curried Chicken Broccoli Casserole
2 whole chicken breasts
2 (10-ounce) packages chopped frozen broccoli
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
2/3 cup mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon curry powder, or to taste (I used 1 teaspoon)
1/3 cup evaporated milk
1 (10.5-ounce) can mushroom soup
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons butter, divided use
1/2 cup bread crumbs
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook chicken until tender and chop into bite-sized pieces. Cook broccoli according to package directions.
For sauce, combine Parmesan cheese, mayonnaise, curry powder, evaporated milk, mushroom soup, and lemon juice. Melt one tablespoon of butter and spread in bottom of a 9 x 13-inch dish.
Layer the broccoli then the chicken and pour sauce over these layers. Using a small frying pan, brown bread crumbs in remaining tablespoon of butter and sprinkle over top of casserole. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Yields 6-8 servings.
