With the summer in full swing, our gardens are producing a variety of vegetables. Zucchini, tomatoes, lettuce, green beans and one of the most popular recipes, summer squash, also known as yellow squash and gooseneck. At this time of year their skins are still soft, and easy to work with in the kitchen.

Mary waits all winter long for our garden to produce these fine yellow vegetables. She picks them when they are about ten inches long. Not yet bumpy, which is an indication their skin has become tuff. She has two recipes she likes to cook. One, she bakes the yellow squash in an egg mixture, a type of casserole. The other, she slices the squash, rolls it in egg and then flour. She then plops each piece into hot oil and Frys until crispy. That is my favorite, along with my home-made hot sauce to dip them into. Not as good as fried green tomatoes, but pretty close.

Now, if you are wondering why I am rambling on about yellow squash, it is because I have come across a new recipe for the yellow vegetable.

Over five decades ago, a good friend in high school, a guy most called, “Choppy”. In real life his name on his birth certificate, Charles Patterson, “Charlie.” It has been nearly fifty years since I have seen my old friend, yet we still talk on the phone and exchange text messages on occasions.

Back in the day, I will have to say Charlie was one of the cool guys, meaning he went his own way, drove hot cars and took no crap from people. I remember him taking his cars to Fairmont and running them at the old Eldora Drag strip. One time on his birthday we purchased a small keg of beer. Sitting it in the front seat of my Metropolitan car, we dressed it in a coat and hat and paid to take it into the drive-in. A metropolitan is a very small car, so Charlie had to be inside the trunk to get in, because we didn’t have enough money to pay for him. Once inside he loudly proclaimed, “GET ME OUT OF HERE, OR I’LL PULL THE WIRES TO YOUR LIGHTS.” I quickly let him out. That was long ago. If you had told me one day we would be talking of gardens, flowers and yellow squash recipes, I would have laughed.

Recently Charlie sent me a recipe that uses only a few ingredients and sounded great to cook and enjoy for supper. To make sure I share the wealth of the summer squash recipe, here is the story of how he came to discover it.

In 1974 he worked for a company by the name of Value Engineering in Alexandra Va. His job was the point man as the purchasing agent for projects. Harry T. James was his boss. He described the man if you met him, you would remember. Standing 6 ‘8” and weighing in at 325 pounds. Charlie explained Harry gave him the recipe, needing only, yellow gooseneck squash, onions, and tomatoes. Harry cooked this recipe at the time in the growing season when squash were plentiful. In fact, so plentiful it was not uncommon if you left your truck unlocked, it somehow was filled with yellow squash from the neighboring garden fields. Rumor was, the wind blew them into the unexpecting new guy’s truck.

Harry began with a pad of butter melting in the pan. He began by proclaiming, “Butter, boy, not that damned margarine stuff.” He melted the butter on low to middle heat adding half a dozen tomatoes during this cooking time. Again, Harry would point out to me, “Half a dozen, not six.” He was very clear in his cooking instructions. Next, he added the young tender slices of yellow squash. Enough to fill the pan.

When properly cooked the squash, tomatoes and onions were served over noodles then topped with Velveeta cheese. Harry again stated, “I said Velveeta Cheese, not that damned fancy sharp cheddar stuff.”

Charlie finished his story of the yellow squash by explaining, “This to me is what cooking, and eating is all about, good food, good memories and good people. I am sharing this story because tomatoes are ripening in my neighbor’s garden.” He goes on to explain that his neighbor is in Norway and won’t mind if Charlie helps himself to sun ripened tomatoes and golden squash.

Like cooking, sharing family recipes is part of social culture. You can find recipes on the internet and online. Somehow sharing them with friends is a little better. Charlie shared with me and now I have shared with you, my friends. The HAPPY SQUASH GARDENER!