Local (sorta) Food - Thrifty 1930s Cuisine

Last week, when I decided that potato leek soup would be on the menu (and it's still there, but hasn't gotten made yet), I picked up a 5 pound bag of Yukon Gold potatoes. They aren't local, but I haven't seen local potatoes anywhere I shop, which makes me sad.

I picked up my CSA share tonight, and in addition to having lots of greens again, there were a few tomatoes, and another small "mess" of green beans. As I stood at the kitchen counter, marveling at how pretty they were this week, my eyes landed on the bag of potatoes and an instant memory of my vegetarian mom and her sisters came to mind. They were Depression Era gals, the entire family was vegetarian because their father believed it was the only way to be. Not a one of them had meat until they were married (and then some of them still didn't), but in the Depression, that was probably one reason this family successfully survived.

I remembered a simple combination of foods that was always a part of our summer dinners when as a child in the 50's and 60's, my family visited those sisters at the Lake Champlain, Vermont, 1950s-style "camp" one of them owned: corn on the cob, tomatoes, and this:

green beans and potatoes, cooked together. I seem to remember that the sisters all cooked it with either whole milk or cream.

I don't.
But the memory is still strong. Boy this tasted good. And I thoroughly enjoyed my trip down memory lane...