Bena Mae’s Kitchen: To Fluff or to Mash

 Ever since the tragic death of his mother, Princess Diana, the eyes of the world have been focused on her eldest son, Prince William, second in line to the British throne.

Our hearts broke as we watched William and his younger brother Harry  walk behind the cortege of his mother on the way to her funeral. We have continued to watch as the then 15-year-old grew into the fine young man that he is today. Since Diana’s death, it has become obvious that the young prince is following in her footsteps by practicing the same acts of kindness that made her so beloved to the world. Example: This story from the BBC News.

Prince apologizes to 109-year-old

A 109-year-old woman wrote to the Queen to complain about the birthday cards she received and Prince William turned up by surprise to apologize.

Catherine Masters from Oxfordshire wrote to say the Queen was wearing the same outfit in each of the five congratulatory cards she had received.

The Prince visited Ms. Masters at her nursing home and said his grandmother would change her outfit this year. The two chatted over tea after Ms. Masters got over her "total shock". The great-grandmother told the Prince the Queen needed to find some new outfits.

Wendy Mead, a senior nurse manager at the Grange care centre in Stanford in the Vale, said she was not expecting the Royal visit. "We received a call and within five minutes, Prince William had arrived," she said.

"It was a total shock, and Catherine was speechless. Prince William came in and she asked if he was real. She squeezed his hand to check." They chatted about the Prince’s great-grandmother, the Badminton horse trials and his cooking.

"He told her he liked making shepherd’s pie and said he used a masher to mash the potatoes, but she told him he was doing it wrong – he should use a fork to fluff the potatoes," Ms. Mead said.

Catherine Masters has now been invited to a garden party with the Queen at Buckingham Palace on July 7.

"And now Catherine is off to buy a new dress and hat," Wendy added.

What a sweet story.  Diana would have been proud.

Locally grown strawberries are the best.  This  has been a good year for them in my area and I’ve found them sweet and juicy, not like the shipped ones that have the green hard core in the center. I can hardly keep them for cooking because I’m constantly grabbing one to eat dipped in sugar. They taste like they have been kissed by the Gods. The following recipe is almost effortless.

 Easy Strawberry Pie

1 ea 9" pie shell, baked 

1 c  Sugar 

1 c  Water 

3 tb Cornstarch 

2 tb White corn syrup 

4 c  Strawberries

Boil together the sugar, water, cornstarch, and corn syrup. Cook until it starts to thicken. Cool. 

When cool, add the strawberries pour into the pie shell. Refrigerate before serving.