Wanna be a Paula, shot caller

Ladies and ladies,

Our mother, Paula Stewart, celebrates her birthday tomorrow. What better way to commemorate her big day than for her to share a recipe? There probably is a better way, but we are still proceeding in this manner. Before we get to Paula’s pastas, we thought we’d share a little about her. Here are a few things we have learned as the favorite half of her children.

1. You can NEVER have too many jars of peanut butter in your pantry. I bet if I walked in there right now, she’d have at least 8 jars. JIF, Skippy, Peter Pan, she doesn’t discriminate.
2. Cake is perfectly acceptable to have for breakfast.
3. ALWAYS ALWAYS write a thank you note, and don’t delay in sending it. It’s tacky if you do.
4. M&Ms can do the same job as Prozac of keeping you calm during a pandemic.
5. Nostalgic sitcoms from the 50s AND trashy, reality TV can cure even the worst of moods.
6. You NEVER leave the house without lipstick.
7. Murphy’s Oil Soap goes on any surface.
8. Know your audience and leave them wanting more.
9. You don’t have to worry about what the back of your hair looks like. You don’t have to see it.
10. If you’ve got passions, pursue them. If that means putting a kiln in your basement and an organ in your youngest child’s room, then go for it.

She decided to share pasta salads since we are approaching the heat that comes with summer. She likes to be relevant. This first pasta dish has been affectionately dubbed “parking lot pasta”. For my 29th birthday, some friends treated me to a NeedtoBreathe concert. The concert venue was an amphitheater. Our original plan was to tailgate outside the concert then leisurely go in and enjoy the show. We had bougie sandwiches courtesy of my friend, Kate. We had drinks. We had a pasta salad like good southern women. And we had birthday cake.

Atlanta traffic is a thing of beauty. #jokes. It’s awful. We were scarfing down sandwiches in the car sans beverage because we were going to be late. I almost got the Heimlich maneuver as a birthday present, but we made it.

After a concert of bearded men with acoustic instruments, we proceeded to have the tailgate moment that we originally wanted at around 11:00 pm. The pasta salad was dubbed “parking lot pasta” and has been called that many times in my friend circle. It’s delicious. It’s easy. Make it.
Paula. Parking Lot. Pasta

1 (1 lb) package uncooked rotini pasta
2 cups chopped cucumber (from 1 large cucumber)
2 cups chopped tomato (from 1 large tomato)
1 cup mayonnaise
1 Tablespoon of Greek seasoning

1. Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water. Drain well.
2. Stir together the cooked pasta, cucumber, tomato, mayonnaise, and seasoning in a large bowl. Cover and chill at least 1 hour before serving.

She decided to share two because she’s generous like that.

A cookbook that looks as weathered as this one is the equivalent of Franklin Graham’s bible. Also…#BebeInabinet

Recipe tweak: the suggested cheeses are great, but feta is a delicious substitute.

There you have it, folks. We hope you’ll try one or both of these soon. Do it for Paula; she’d want you to.

Thanks for stopping by today. Now go wish this patriotic diva a happy birthday and put a jar of peanut butter on her porch. She deserves it.