By Gates (Pam) Johnson
It’s beginning to look a lot like the holiday season. I can’t believe that I am five months into my year-long cancer treatments. There are only four more infusions to be done, then I should be declared cancer-free. It sure has been a long, rough road, but I’m still standing and still doing stuff. The cookbook is coming along. Think I have decided on a printing company. Now I just have to iron out all the moving parts and do a final edit. Can’t believe this is really happening, especially with all the other things going on in my life.
Had a baby shower last weekend for my pregnant granddaughter. That really took the energy out of me. Luckily, my granddaughter didn’t want a big party, just close friends and family. And she insisted that there be no games. All that left for me to do was get my house in order, decorate, and cook.
We decided to have a barbecue. My nephew is a whiz at smoking brisket, so I got an 11-pound one for the main course. He got up at four in the morning to start the smoking process, then had to go mop it every hour until it was done about twelve hours later. That really helped me out and it was so good. No leftovers.
My daughter-in-law and son decorated the place and my daughter helped cook and then cleaned up. It turned out to be a great little party to celebrate my first great grandchild.
Wednesday, it was “Catch an early boat and head to Swedish for my six-week infusion day.” We made a couple of wrong turns, but managed to arrive only five minutes late. The clinic was very understanding. My first appointment was with the IV team.
Since my veins are kind of wonky, they call in the special IV team with an ultrasound machine. That works out really well. One poke and they get it. Blood draw, then down to see the oncologist. We had to wait for the blood results, which were all good. Dr. Santana is pleased with my progress. We decided to continue with the infusions until May.
After the meeting with the doctor, it was back upstairs for the infusion. It takes half an hour just to mix the medicine, then another half-hour to infuse it into my arm. No pain. They give me a warm blanket and offer drinks and snacks. Once the infusion is done, it’s out the door and back to the ferry. Having a priority pass takes away the stress about possibly missing the boat. Once on the boat, that’s it for another six weeks.
Now on to the next thing, which is the holidays. I am a planner and like to know what the heck is going on. My son is on the Island, but his wife has family to consider. My daughter is in Onalaska and she has her partner’s family to consider. My granddaughter is in Kelso and she also has almost in-laws.
That leaves me to wonder what is in the cards for my Thanksgiving. To add one more thing to the mix, my next infusion is the day before Thanksgiving. The main side effect of the medication is extreme fatigue for a few days. So that takes me out of the running for holiday host.
My daughter is a fly-by-the-seat-of-her-pants kind of gal. She did not inherit my planning gene. I like a good, solid plan with lists and timelines. No idea what she has in mind about the holiday. My granddaughter is heavily pregnant, so not in a position to host. I think they are going to her partner’s family’s house. My daughter-in-law has to find out what her brothers are doing.
That leaves me hanging with no plan. Don’t know if I need to bake pies or make my famous dinner rolls. Or do I hope someone takes pity on me and invites me over? So far, I have a couple of tentative offers for this poor old orphan (me). Guess we will wait and see.
Since I am in the midst of creating a cookbook, The Loop editor asked me to throw in a couple of Thanksgiving side recipes. I thought long and hard and came up with three standbys.
One, Corn Puddin’, came from a friend of Jake’s years ago. I had never heard of it. Apparently, it is a southern staple. It is now in our holiday rotation because it is so good.
One, Coleslaw with Shrimp, is some weird thing my family always had at holiday meals. We never had plain old coleslaw. Mom always added a can or two of tiny shrimp. Strange, but that’s how we rolled.
And one, Turkey Gravy, is something that I have worked on for years and finally think I nailed it. This one is mine.
Happy Thanksgiving from Ma Johnson!
Corn Puddin’
• 15-ounce can whole kernel corn
• 15-ounce can creamed corn
• 1 cup sour cream
• 8.5-ounce box Jiffy corn muffin mix
• ½ cup butter, melted
Preheat oven to 375°
Add all ingredients and mix well. Pour into greased 8″ x 12″ baking dish. Bake for 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Coleslaw with Shrimp
• 1 medium-head cabbage, shredded
• 1 carrot, shredded
• 2 cans tiny shrimp
For coleslaw dressing:
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 4 tbsp white sugar
• 3 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tbsp white vinegar
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
Mix shredded cabbage, shredded carrot, and drained shrimp.
Mix dressing ingredients (mayonnaise, sugar, lemon juice, white vinegar, salt, and pepper) until smooth. I just put it all in a jar with a lid and shake it until it’s mixed.
Dump dressing on the salad, mix and eat.
Enough Turkey Gravy
For Dinner Today and Leftovers Tomorrow
– Neck and gizzard from turkey*
– Two turkey wings (available separately in the store)
– One medium onion, diced
– Four stalks celery, diced
– Flour
– Chicken broth
* Do NOT use the liver. Ick!
Once your turkey is in the oven (be sure to use a stovetop-safe pan),** move on to the gravy. Into a medium pot, place the neck and gizzard from your turkey.
Add a couple of turkey wings (they are cheap), and the diced onion and celery. Add any leftover chicken broth from making the stuffing, and water as needed to cover. Season with salt and pepper.
Simmer on low the whole time the turkey is roasting.
Once the turkey is done, remove the turkey from the pan and dump the drippings into a bowl. Strain everything from the turkey roasting pan. Then strain the turkey broth into another bowl.
I just toss the bones and cooked vegetables, but you can do with those as you will. Skim the fat from the drippings and use this to make the roux. After removing the fat, add the turkey drippings to the strained broth to make the gravy.
For every 3 cups of combined broth and drippings, use the following to make the roux: ¼ cup fat and ¼ cup flour. Place the fat (either drippings, butter, or a combination) back in the roasting pan. Add flour and stir and cook for a couple of minutes, until smooth and desired color. Slowly add warm broth, stirring until gravy thickens.
This gravy will not be super-thick. If you want thicker gravy, add a tablespoon each of fat and flour to your roux. Season to your desired taste. My spices are old-school: salt, pepper, garlic, and onion powder.
** Editors’ note: You can visit https://vashonloop.com/wordpress/index.php/2025/11/07/thanksgiving-recipes/ to see Gates’ soft dinner roll, stuffing, and turkey recipes, published last year in The Loop.
