My grandma Green did not leave behind a recipe box filled with family secrets. By the time I came around she was already slipping away from Alzheimer disease. I do not remember her ever cooking.
I asked my dad if grandma baked or did any cooking. I was surprised when he said she did both. Because I never had experienced her in the kitchen I had assumed that she did not do any.
He told me that she made sausage gravy, chicken and dumplings and goulash. This fascinated me because my mom did all of the cooking in our house but one meal. When we had goulash, my dad made it. I never thought about why he made it but now I understand. It was one of his mama’s dishes.
Just after my mother died I was going through her recipe cards and I found something that even now amazes me. In all my mother’s things she had something in my Grandma Green’s hand writing. It was a recipe for Coney Sauce. But not just any Coney Sauce, Flint Coney Sauce.
Mom never made the sauce but the fact that she held on to her mother-in-laws recipe means a lot. Over the years I have made it, the first time was a fail (I drained the meat even though she said not too….) but I have finally mastered it. To be honest I am not a huge fan of Coney Dogs. I make it and eat it simply for the fact that it was Grandma’s recipe.
When I stand prepping the ingredients I think of Grandma in the kitchen making a batch of the sauce. Letting it simmer on the stove while she goes about her day. I wish I had had the opportunity to make it with her.
Here is a picture of Grandma in the kitchen. I am curious what she was making.
The Recipe…
After a Google search I realized there are many schools of thought when it comes to Coney Sauce. Mostly relating to the meat but also the amount and type of fat used. My Grandma, when making this, would have used fairly inexpensive meet which means it would render more fat making it wetter.
Ingredients
1 TBSP Butter
1 TBSP Crisco
1 to 1&½ LB Ground Beef
2 Med Onions Diced
1 Clove Crushed Garlic
2 Tsp Chili Powder
1 Tsp Dry Mustard
1 Can Tomato Sauce
Salt and Pepper to Taste
Hot Dogs and Buns
Combine everything in pot and let simmer until cooked through. Do not brown ground beef first.
That is all she wrote, literally. I have a thing about my ground beef. The first time I made this I did brown first, even though she said do not. The second time I made it I made it as she wrote and it was 100% better. The first batch was too dry and the meat did not absorb the flavor.
I usually make two batches at once and freeze some. It can also be served on a hamburger bun like a sloppy joe. I make my mama’s coleslaw as a side with some homemade potato crisp. I have even served it as a topping in a baked potato bar. My favorite way to eat it is with some colby jack cheese and sour cream over a baked potato.
Well, now that I am hungry I may have to go make a batch!
In Memory of Helen Marguerite (Dellray) Green 1923 – 2000
