No Harm, No Foul….or a dinner to remember?
The Greene County Historical dinner served in Rippey on September 2nd was not without excitement for those working in the kitchen. Prior to the guests arriving the committee was in the back hall deciding how to serve dessert when someone mentioned they smelled something burning.
Returning to the kitchen there were flames on a stove burner. Soda was thrown on the flames and about eight people stood in disbelief as they watched “stuff” bubbling on the burner. Determining that a plastic lid was the bubbling substance a spatula (a Rada spatula, no less) was used to scoop up the bubbling material and a razor blade scraper completed the cleaning of the burner.
When the committee looked up from the stove they found the dining room had filled with foul smelling smoke. In a rush, doors and windows were opened, fans and exhaust fans turned on hoping the plastic smell would soon be overtaken with the smell of roast beef.
As the guests started arriving they discovered another crisis: the potato masher was missing! The same eight people must have looked like the Keystone Cops as they opened cupboards and drawers looking for the masher. They ALL looked in every cupboard several times.
A couple of suspect guests were even “patted down” as we attempted to locate the potato masher. Finally the potatoes were mashed with a smaller version of our larger masher.
Following all that excitement and dinner who should arrive but Thomas Jefferson! Who says exciting things don’t happen in small town Iowa!
Sunday morning the masher was found in close to where it was supposed to be but covered with something in a box and on Tuesday the burner was tested and would still work. Whew–no harm, no foul!