Longtime residents of the Old Mission Peninsula will remember Lucile Lindsey for her yummy cinnamon rolls, baked for the kids at Old Mission Peninsula School (OMPS) when she worked there as a cook, along with Jo Brown, Clarissa Boursaw and many others through the years.
All of us kids who attended the school in the 1960s and 1970s look back and marvel at those cinnamon rolls and, in fact, marvel at all of the food, which was home-made right there every day by Old Mission ladies well-known for their culinary skills and comfort foods.
Help Support Old Mission Gazette - Click Here
Mrs. Lindsey looms large in my life for a lot of reasons, including the fact that she and her husband Bob (the custodian at the school) guided me in my faith early on. They attended Ogdensburg Church (now known as Old Mission Peninsula United Methodist Church, where I still play my violin every Sunday), and my first Bible study classes were held at the Lindsey’s house. They lived in the old Mapleton schoolhouse which sat on the corner of Center Road and Seven Hills Road, but which burned down many years ago.
My dad, Walter Johnson, grew up down the road on our home farm just north of Mapleton, so he went to school there. In fact, here is his 8th grade graduation certificate from the Mapleton School, circa 1936.
I ate a lot of Mrs. Lindsey’s cooking over the years, not just for lunch at OMPS every day, but also whatever yummy dishes she brought to church potlucks – of which there were many during my growing-up years (and still are).
I have a lot of church cookbooks in my archives, but this particular recipe comes from a cookbook published by the Old Mission Peninsula United Methodist Church in 2009 titled “A Harvest of Recipes.”
The recipe is from Mrs. Lindsey’s daughter, my friend Helen Mumford, in honor of her mom. I haven’t tried it yet, but it’s definitely on the schedule. The coffee creamer is an interesting touch.
Lucile Lindsey’s Chicken Supreme
- 3-lb. frying chicken, cut up
- 2 Tbsp. melted butter
- 1/2 tsp. pepper
- 3/4 c. powdered coffee creamer
- 1 Tbsp. flour
- 1 4-oz. can of mushrooms, cut up, drained (save the liquid)
- 1 tsp. paprika
- 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
Place chicken in shallow baking dish. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes. Drain mushrooms, measure liquid, adding water to make 3/4 cup. In a bowl, combine coffee creamer, flour, mushrooms, mushroom liquid, paprika and Worcestershire sauce and mix with a fork until blended. Spoon over chicken in the last 15 minutes and continue baking until chicken is done.
Note from Helen: “We always doubled the sauce because it is so tasty,” adding that this dish is also very tasty the next day, if there’s any left!
Do you have a favorite memory of Mrs. Lindsey? Leave thoughts in the comments below.
Also Read…
Lucille Lindsey also was a cook for me at Mapleton and my mom Dana taught primary there…I was best friends with her son Warren and spent a lot of time with him when they lived on the Mert Gilmore farm. Thanks Jane for all the flood of memories..
To read this article really touched my heart. To hear after all these years how much my Grandmother touched so many lives. I grew up taking summer and holiday vacations to visit my Grandparents on the Old Mission Peninsula. Spent many of Sundays in the Methodist Church. Thank you for sharing you memories w/ all of us
When my mother needed an emergency babysitter for me she would send me to school with my brother, Ralph. We would walk through orchards and cross Center Rd to get to Mapleton school. Ralph would go to class and I would go downstairs to stay with Mrs Lindsey. I always remember mixing the peanut butter with honey for sandwiches for lunch.
Love the recipes from the past!!! I will make the peanut butter cookies the next time I have a need for cookies…..Thanks for keeping the memories alive.