Bena Mae’s Kitchen: Grandparents, talk to your grandchildren

Grandchildren are the dots that connect the lines from generation to generation. Louise Wyse.
Being a grandparent is one of the most wonderful experiences one can have, as most grandparents will tell you.
I don’t remember much about my own grandparents, they died before I got a chance to know them well. But word from my mother and aunts told me that my maternal grandmother was an angel.
 I only have one grandchild, a boy, who has been the joy of my life. We are very close. I try to instill within him a sense of family heritage, where he came from, his forbearers — warts and all I want him to know that the world didn’t start on the day he was born. It will be important to him in his older years in giving him a sense of continuity.
I want him to know that his great-grandfathers on both sides were honorable, hardworking men with a work ethic that followed them throughout their lives.
I want him to know that his paternal great-grandfather seined the Clinch River for mussel shells he sold to button factories in order to pay the electric bill (2.98) each month, never late, alway on time. That he farmed several acres of land and held down a full-time job in a knitting factory,
He was a kind gentle man, honest to the core, always willing to help a neighbor in distress. He never drank or abused his family, his only discretion being a swig of moonshine he drank first thing in the morning, he said to get him started. He called it his “starter” and that was the extent of his drinking. He was what you call a “good man.”
 I want my grandson to know that my own father was orphaned at an early age and raised by a sister. That he went to work at the age of ten, working on the tunnel between Cumberland Gap and Middlesboro. That he was mostly self-educated, taking correspondence courses by lamplight after a hard days work where he learned his trade of building roads and bridges across parts of Kentucky
His reputation for truth and honesty was widely known, and he died with a good name that he prized all his life.
I want to be sure to instill a measure of belonging in my grandson. I want him to feel the security of the past, that the world didn’t just start the day he was born.
So grandparents, start early with your most beloved grandchildren. Tell them their history. Teach them from whence they came. They will feel the rewards later in life.

Bring together two holiday favorites in one pie! A layer of apple slices is the hidden surprise in this smooth sweet potato pie. Not too sweet, it could easily be served with a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Sweet Potato Apple Pie

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 1/2 pound sweet potatoes (about 2 medium)
1 (9- to 9 1/2-inch) unbaked pie shell
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
3/4 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored and cut into thin slices

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Prick sweet potatoes with a fork and place on a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake about 1 hour or until very tender. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly.
Line pie shell with parchment paper or foil and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake on the lower rack of the oven about 15 minutes or until just starting to set. Remove the weights and continue to bake 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly golden. Cool on a wire rack 10 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F.
Meanwhile, peel sweet potatoes and transfer flesh to the bowl of a food processor. Discard skins. Process until potatoes are puréed. Transfer 1 1/2 cups purée to a large bowl (you may have a litte extra). Add milk, sugar, eggs, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt, and whisk until combined and smooth.
Layer apple slices in concentric circles in the bottom of cooled crust. Pour sweet potato filling into crust over apples (you may have extra filling depending on the depth of the crust). Bake about 50 minutes or until just set in center of pie. Let cool to room temperature on a wire rack. Serve or chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.