Refrigerator Potatoes

Growing up I was blessed to be surrounded by some pretty amazing cooks. Grandma Sapp. Grandma Dean. Aunt Linda. Aunt Karen. Aunt Naomi. My Daddy. And my Mom, just to name a few.

When any given holiday rolled around, we would have a bountiful supply of great, homemade food to thrill our taste buds. You know, a party in your mouth. Make ya close your eyes and say, "Mm-mmmm!"

One of my favorite foods was (and still is) refrigerator potatoes. The first time I remember them was at Grandma Dean's house with Easter ham. They are mashed potatoes with sour cream, cream cheese, onion salt and butter. Real mashed taters, too. Not those nasty instant things.

I well remember watching Grandma make mashed potatoes every Saturday night for supper. She'd beat the tar out of the things, too. She cooked, mashed, beat and blended everything 'real good'. With great vigor.

My mom would make refrigerator potatoes and serve them in a variety of bowls, depending on the occasion, of course. But one bowl imparticular sticks out in my mind. And I have the joy of owning it now.

In preparation for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow, I made five pounds of refrigerator potatoes. The best stinkin' batch I've ever made, if I do say so myself. And just because I could, I put them in the yellow-orange Pyrex bowl just like Mom. (See picture)

Just for a moment I closed my eyes and savored those delicious taters and let my mind wander back to some pretty special memories of sweet family times around the dinner table. Ahh....

Life and refrigerator potatoes...truly they are sweet. Gobble, gobble.