"Pan Meat"

We used to go to Myrtle Beach every summer, for Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, and a random long weekend in August. We had a favorite hotel, and for some unknown reason, the staff always remembered the red-haired couple with all the little redheads. Quite a number of years ago, when I still had only 6 or 7 children, I happened to be seated on the beach beside a lady from Canada who had 4 little girls of her own. We saw each other for 3 or 4 years at Labor Day. Once, out of the blue, when we were comparing notes on the business of running large households, she asked me, "So, do you cook pan meat?" Now, I'd never thought of pan meat. But I knew instantly what she meant. The last time I cooked anything other than fish on the stove top was about 1982. So, I frequently peruse Pierre Franey's & Craig Claiborne's cookbooks, and am often dismayed at the number of things I can't cook because they're cooked in skillets. Seriously, how do you cook 5 pounds of anything in less than 5 or more skillets? This weekend, I'm going to try varying a couple of those recipes. Our difficult closing is over. No more stinkin' lawyers tying us up until 10PM every night. Next week we can finally start school; this weekend, I'm eating great food, sewing, and basking in the shade (who needs a sunburn?). My youngest and Thor, shown in this picture, are enjoying the last weekend of summer, too.