Every summer the area where we lived became a place of "Adults Only". The first week of July huge super-buses pulled out of our town and surrounding towns and headed for Massachusetts, Vermont, Maine, and Upstate New York filled with our children heading off to summer camp for two months! After the first fifteen minutes of missing them, we moms wiped our tears and headed for the for the pool, golf course, hair-dresser, tennis lesson, best-seller, shopping spree or whatever it was that we were unable to do as full time parents when the children were around. We truly adored our kids but for two months there would be no homework to help with, whining, tantrums, attitude, special meals for picky eaters, car pools or parenting related stress. For two months we were on vacation...from the moment those bus motors revved up...parents were on the clock!
The first summer my two eldest went to sleep-away camp my youngest son was only five so he went to a day-camp near home. Every day he stepped off the bus with his little suntanned cheeks glowing, his golden curls bleached almost white and totally tuckered out from a hard day of playing...but exhausted as he was he still headed straight for his big brother's room. He really missed him. So when visiting day rolled around, we took the little one up to the Berkshires with us to visit his brother and sister. We got permission to take the children out for dinner and went to a "country" restaurant. With canoes hanging from the rafters, a giant stuffed bear in the lobby and moose and deer heads on every wall it seemed that we were in Taxidermy Hell. We were ushered to a table in a smaller room and sat facing a huge stag head with a giant rack of antlers.
I am NOT a fan of hunting and this guy seemed to glare at us from his lofty perch on the wall. Shortly after dinner was served our little one asked his brother to take him to the bathroom. Four or five times he took his big brother's hand and headed off to the Men's Room. Finally, I leaned over to my eldest and asked if his brother was sick. "No, Mom", he replied, "he just goes in to the bathroom, looks all around and then we leave. He doesn't even use the bathroom." I leaned over to the little one and asked him if he was alright. He looked at me with those big blue eyes, so filled with little-boy earnestness and said, "I'm OK Mommy, I was just looking for where the rest of the deer is!!!!!"
From this beginning we formed a tremendous attachment to the area and many years later we chose to get a vacation house in the Berkshires. We had favorite "Berkshire Meals" usually involving grilling the main course that was served with fresh picked corn and other vegetables. Produce there literally comes from the farm to your table, as do eggs and poultry.
I loved to entertain there and looked for any excuse to invite a crowd for a party ...our friends always loved to start the meal by grazing at an appetizer table that I set up with cheeses, crudites and Mary Gilligan's Mexican Dip...soooo....
Mary Gilligan's Mexican Dip
1 extra large bag of scoop style taco chips
2 cans refried beans
1 1/2 lbs. leanest chopped beef (turkey or chicken)
1 1/2 pkgs. prepared taco mix
2 lg.bags shredded cheddar cheese
2 large bags shredded jack cheese
1 large jar medium hot salsa
sour cream
guacamole
chives
Heat oven to 375 degrees
1-Prepare beef with taco mix according to instructions on the package
2-Spread refried beans evenly on the bottom of a large glass baking pan
3-Spread the taco/beef mixture over the beans
4-Mix the jack and cheddar together and spread 2/3 of cheese mix on the beef reserve
1/3 for topping
5-Spread the salsa on the cheese
6-Spread the reserved 1/3 of cheese mixture on top of the salsa
7- Bake for about a half hour or until it begins to really bubble around the edges
8- Garnish with "blobs" of sour cream and guacamole...snip chives over all
Serve with scoop style taco chips
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