Gourmet Gals

In the fall of 1975 a small group of us got together at a monthly Welcome Wagon meeting to start a new Gourmet Club. The purpose of the Welcome Wagon monthly meetings was to get to know other new to Watertown women. There were card groups, craft groups, couples groups for pinochle and cooking. The previous Welcome Wagon gourmet group had 12 members and felt that was the right size for entertaining in members' homes. If others were interested in gourmet cooking and eating, a new group had to be started. I was one of the charter members. New to the community women could join the group through the Welcome Wagon meetings. Women would come and go for various reasons. In the late 70's WW was no longer a funded community program, so Carol (the other charter member) and I would ask neighbors, colleagues, or friends to join the group as other women left. Our group never had more than 12 members, and usually it was less. Women continued to come and go as they left the community or circumstances changed in their lives. Most of us were young mothers, with a career and husband, meeting once a month to eat an out-of-the-ordinary meal and drink wine. We treasured those once a month gatherings. (Carol's husband called us the gallon of the month club.) As our families grew, so did our bond.

Some years we had themes for our meals. Often we cooked new recipes for the group that were never cooked again. At one time I created a cookbook of some of our recipes over the years. One member in our group, Kathe, can recall dishes cooked by other members from YEARS back. Some of us have found favorite recipes that we continue to make many years later (Marilyn's Cranberry Jello). Sometimes the entree was a complete flop, like the Irish meal Lorraine and I attempted.

In the early years it was cooking to impress. Many hours went into planning and preparing the meal, the table setting, the appetizer and the dessert. The meal often was five courses. There were creatively folded cloth napkins and napkin rings, lighted candles and center pieces. To distinguish our gourmet group from the original WW gourmet group, we named our club Cuisine Limited. We always had more than 8 members so I rarely could use my eight-place-setting of wedding china. I bought dishes to feed 12+ (my first set of Corelleware) and crystal goblets for wine and water, for 12.

As the years passed we got to the stage of hamburger and chicken. We have gone to pot luck in the later years and drank less wine. Now as we have aged, there are dietary restrictions for some. We no longer prepare a five-course meal. We eat out, supporting the economy of our community, trying out new eating establishments.

We are now a group of 8 who have been together for 20 years or longer. One of our long-time members passed away last year at the age of 61. Although we should have more time now that our families are grown or we ourselves have retired, we no longer meet each month. We do lunch and happy hour now and then and maybe two or three times throughout the year, we gather at someone's home for dinner and and a glass of wine.

Tonight (Thursday) was that night. The food was nothing spectacular. I needed to clean out my freezer so I furnished the entree from Sam's Club, lasagne. Chips and dip were available with the first glass of wine. Salad was served before the main dish. Ice cream with fruit topping and coffee completed the evening's dining. It was all good and tasty, and no one spent hours preparing anything.

The evening was made special by the stories and laughter shared amongst 8 women who have been together through good times and bad; through births and weddings of our children and baby showers for our grandchildren; through job changes and address changes; through funerals of our spouses, our parents and our friends. (I am the only one who is living in the same house all these years. None of us are divorced. There is about a 25 year age difference between the youngest and the oldest.)

Think about it ladies, we ARE a unique and amazing group of eight women. Thank you for many great memories and an evening of laughter and joy. Let's do this again, soon!

Cuisine Ltd.

January 2015