The Carrot Casserole

Casserole was a new word for me when I was probably 11 or 12 years old.  As I told you before, I grew up right here on the Windy Knoll and we were quite secluded.  There was not another house in sight.  All we could see was row crops growing in the fields bordered by thick woods.  We had no telephone and no car until I was 12.

We grew what we ate — lots of vegetables and always pork and chicken — but never grew carrots. We didn’t know what a casserole was.  Then my brother gets married in 1938 and brings this lovely  lady into our family.  She’s the one who introduced me to carrot casserole and I fell in love with it.  I must admit the recipe was lost (at least to me) until a few months ago when my 101 year old friend shared some recipes she had from an old  Delta Kappa Gamma cookbook where Ruby had contributed recipes.

I have to admit this is the first time I’ve ever made the casserole and I think it could profit from a little more sauce, so when I make it again I’ll add a little more to the recipe for the sauce.  Another thing I must confess is that I didn’t know there was such a thing as horseradish sauce.  I used chopped onions, but I wonder if in days gone by if they didn’t use an onion, chopped.

I really do like the flavor and hope you will enjoy it too.  It enhances this business of country living.

Carrot Casserole
8 to 10 carrots, sliced in rounds and cooked

Sauce:
1/4 cup water                         1/3 cup mayonnaise
3 Tbsp chopped onion         1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp horseradish sauce   1/4 tsp. black pepper

Topping:
3/4 cup cracker crumbs
Butter
Paprika

Cook the carrots; drain.  Pour into a casserole dish.  Mix sauce ingredients together; pour over carrots.  Top with cracker crumbs; dot with butter.  Sprinkle with paprika.  Bake 20 minutes at 375 degrees or until brown.