Agnes Zaiontz doesn’t need an excuse to cook up a veritable storm, but Easter does add extra incentive.
“I love holidays, and I think Easter is probably my favorite,” says the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway Development Authority business manager. Not only is this Holy Week — a special time for her — but family will be arriving in a few days and gather for a feast after Sunday church. The menu is all planned, the table ready for company. “I just love to cook,” says Agnes as she opens the oven door, releasing the tempting aroma of a golden-crust chicken and broccoli “braid” casserole filled with chicken, vegetables and cheese. She transfers the hot dish to a nearby table in her kitchen made cheerful with pops of vibrant color and accents like a red milk cow creamer and a glass rooster in the window showing off flamboyant plumage. Already on the table are a meringue-topped chocolate pudding pie, tea cakes and a tray of homemade cheese straws. Agnes has been busy.
Picking just one or two choice recipes is no easy task for this home cook; she has compiled more than 100 favorites, and she has made every one of them at least once.
“I keep all my recipes in a file on my computer called ‘Neena’s Recipes.’ says Agnes — “Neena” to her grandchildren. “I’ve collected them from so many friends and family. Good memories.” Her plan, should she ever retire, is to have her collection printed and bound.
Many of her compiled recipes have sentimental value, such as one for her mother’s tea cakes.
“My mother cooked all the time — she had eight children,” says Agnes, who grew up in Carrollton, Alabama. She and her husband, Frank, make their home in the New Hope community. (Frank is a fantastic cook, praises his wife.)
Just about everyone in her circle of friends and coworkers has benefited from Agnes’s culinary enthusiasm. Not only does she share goodies at the office, she cooks for the annual Christmas party, for church functions and family reunions. She gets a little help in the kitchen from an array of gadgets.
“If there was one I wouldn’t want to make do without, it would have to be the KitchenAid mixer,” she says, and then thinks a bit more. “But I use my crockpot a lot and my bread oven, too … I use all my gadgets and attachments.”
With Easter only four days away, Agnes looks forward to serving a menu to include roast, potatoes and carrots, homemade biscuits and lemon punch cake.
For some, making all the individual dishes of a full meal come out at the same time is a challenge. Acquaintances have told Agnes so more than once. She credits a former teacher for getting her off on the right foot long ago.
“They should have had Dr. Thrath Curry for Home Ec at Carrollton High School,” she laughs. “You would know how to plan a timetable!”
When it comes to holidays, preparing a tablescape is almost as enjoyable as preparing the meal. The Zaiontz home’s Easter table already boasts a spring palette, topped by tulips and bunnies. An unusual note, though, is a small dish of coins. Turns out, it’s a family tradition. After folks around the table contribute their pocket change to the dish at dinner, 3-year-old granddaughter Maddie always has the honor of putting the quarters, nickels and dimes in a gallon jug in the sunroom, a growing stash to fund, perhaps, a shared family outing or a donation to a good cause. It just goes to illustrate once more that the family table can be a place to share so much more than simply food.
CHICKEN & BROCCOLI BRAID
Serves 10
1 cup chopped broccoli florets
2 cups chopped cooked chicken breasts (see Cook’s Tip)
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoon all-purpose dill mix
1 garlic clove, pressed
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 packages (8 ounces each) refrigerated crescent dough
1 egg white, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons slivered almonds
(Source: Agnes Zaiontz, adapted from Pampered Chef)
ZZZZ CHEEZZZE STRAWS
Makes about 150
4 cups (16 ounces) sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 sticks butter, softened
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
(Source: Agnes Zaiontz recipe collection, courtesy of Dahra Bobitt)
CHOCOLATE PUDDING PIE
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/3 cup cocoa (or 3-4 heaping tablespoons)
1/3 cup flour (or 3-4 heaping tablespoons)
3 eggs (save whites for meringue)
3 cups milk
3/4 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
For the meringue:
3 egg whites
3 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
(Source: Frances Goodman, sister-in-law of Agnes Zaiontz)
MAMA’S TEA CAKES
Makes 48
1 cup sugar
1 cup butter
2 eggs
1 tablespoon milk
3 cups flour
3 teaspoons vanilla
3 teaspoons baking powder
(Source: Elsie Gafford, mother of Agnes Zaiontz)
Jan Swoope is the Lifestyles Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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