At home in the Colonies

A Saturday in New England at the summer house, my husband is mowing the lawn; and I am thinking about life across the pond. The passing of the beloved Queen Elizabeth II at 96 brings to mind a delightful 93-year-old lady whom I had the pleasure to interview at the beginning of my career, working as a food correspondent for a daily newspaper. Born in Lancashire, England, Nancy spoke with an inimitable British accent and was the oldest resident in the city's high rise apartment building, where she had lived for 16 years. At home in her cozy living room, she reminisced about her childhood in England, the many years she spent working in a cotton mill as a weaver, and of her work as a housekeeper. "I haven't had an easy life," she said. "I went to work at 11 and worked until I was 85. But I've had a happy life." Like many young English girls of her time, Nancy was besotted with the bachelor playboy Prince Charles. "I wouldn't have minded his slippers being underneath my bed," said the nonagenarian widow with a twinkle in her eye. Her childhood memories were filled with delicious foods she enjoyed in England. "I can still remember the smell of dabs frying," she said. Dabs are parboiled potatoes that are dipped in batter and fried in deep fat until crisp and golden brown. "You could buy them on almost every street corner," she said wistfully. Nancy attributed her love for cooking to her mum. "My mother was a marvelous cook," she said. "She always made the traditional meat puddings, potato pies and rice puddings. I still make them, I still live the English way." Nancy said she had a friend who always called the day before she planned to visit. "She wanted to make sure that I had plenty of time to make her favorite potato pie," Nancy said mischievously. Every evening Nancy had a cup of English Breakfast tea with either toast, some of her homemade cookies or crumpets. Her recipe for oatmeal cookies came from one of her mum's old recipe books, "The Modern Priscilla Cook Book." Its cover reads: "One thousand recipes tested and proved at the Priscilla Proving Plant for Great Britain and the Colonies. DABS 2 or 3 medium potatoes, flour, water, 1 teaspoon vinegar, deep fat for frying: Boil potatoes for 5 minutes. Peel and slice. To make batter: combine flour and enough water to make a thin paste. Add vinegar. Dip potatoes in batter. Fry in deep fat until golden brown. OATMEAL COOKIES 1 cup brown sugar, 1 cup shortening, 2 eggs, 1/2 cup sweet milk, 3/4 teaspoon baking soda, 2 cups flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 2 cups of rolled oats, 1 teaspoon vanilla: Cream sugar and shortening together. Add alternately beaten eggs and milk, and dry ingredients sifted together. Add vanilla. Drop by teaspoonfuls on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes.