Discover Walla Walla

When Annie and I first moved to Walla Walla, our daughter Jolie was a senior at Whitman College here in town. She worked part-time as a teacher’s assistant in a local kindergarten classroom and invited me to visit her class one September day. I arrived in time for lunch, which was served at 10:30am if I remember correctly.

Joel was my guide to all things kindergarten. He had a lot to say, but went quiet as we made our way through the cafeteria line, approaching the lady serving the hamburgers. She wore clear plastic gloves and an institutional-green hairnet and asked whether we wanted onions on our burgers. That’s when Joel held up his hand to stop me from answering. He said he’d handle it.

He turned back to the lady and asked, “Are they Walla Walla Sweets?” ’Cause we only eats Walla Walla Sweets.”

Little Joel–-a five year-old boy who ate onions. That was a wonder. But a five-year-old boy who only ate Walla Walla Sweet onions? Well, that was special.

My kindergarten cafeteria experience caused me to think back on my own childhood. Rummaging through some dusty files at the back of my brain, I remembered that I too ate onions at five years of age, but I only ate them one way—on cheese and onion sandwiches made by my mother, Coco.

My brothers and I lined up at the oven door for these. No kidding! So give ’em a try. And don’t forget Coco’s rule: if you haven’t got something nice to say about the food, don’t say anything at all…

COCO’S CHEESE & ONION SANDWICHES

Makes 4 sandwiches

Ingredients

½ cup minced Walla Walla Sweet onion
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, freshly grated
¼ cup mayonnaise
8 slices white bread

Combine onion, grated cheese and mayonnaise in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Spread onto four of the bread slices and put the other bread slices on top. Cut the sandwiches into quarters. Place the sandwiches on a baking sheet and run up under the broiler until toasted on one side. Flip sandwiches and toast on the other side.

Enjoy! For more of Sam’s musings, visit www.sammcleod.net/blog