My Favorite Recipes By Linda Marler

The Appels can hardly believe that they have lived in the Colfax area just more than 20 years, the longest they have lived in one place since they were married. Dave graduated from Colfax High School and Alice from Pomeroy High School in 1957. They are both Washington State University alums, and met there at the Newman Club during their junior year. David graduated in agricultural engineering with an emphasis on water resources and Alice in interior decoration.

Immediately after college, Dave was hired by the United States Geological Service. Dave did not study geology at WSU, but took a class in Southern California while living there. He looked at jobs in food processing, water resources, and other jobs typical for ag engineers, but the USGS was a stable job. In fact, Dave said, “It was an outstanding job.” It was a career field that had plenty of need for the background and skills of an agricultural engineer.

The Appels first lived in Spokane for three years and had two children. The next position was in Iowa for two and a half years and one child. Tacoma was their home for six years and two children, and Southern California for four years. They lived the longest during his working years in West Virginia, for 14 years and two children. Their family spans twenty years from oldest to youngest.

After West Virginia, they moved to Denver, Colo., for four years, while David worked out of Las Vegas at Yucca Mountain. The advantage of so many moves was that their children saw lots of the country and met a diverse group of people.

Their first five children finished high school in West Virginia. They attended college in the east, met their spouses in the east, and got jobs in the east. The two youngest were in junior high school when the family moved to Colfax. The Appels lived in the country in West Virginia, but he worked and the children attended parochial schools in Charleston. David drove the kids to school, and he attended their sports and events and took them home. Often he was the only dad sitting in a group of mothers. Meanwhile, Alice had the two youngest at home.

Their grown children and their families now live in South Carolina, Georgia, Kentucky and Washington, and his brother Fred lives in Tennessee and sister Colleen in New Jersey. When they go to visit, they fly to one of the cities with relatives, renting a car and taking a loop trip to see everyone.

While they lived in West Virginia, Dave traveled extensively for his job in the state and throughout the region. Alice was able to travel with him frequently if they paid for her costs.

Moving from West Virginia to Denver was a good plan to get the family westward bound. He worked at the Yucca Mountain Repository, which has not had nuclear waste stored there yet for political reasons. The project consisted of boring seven miles into solid rock, with train tracks for transporting spent fuel, which would stay in place on trains. Instead, nuclear waste is still being stored amongst the population, including on a flood plain of the Mississippi River near a large population instead of in a remote desert. Working on this project was a high-stress job, but Dave knew it would be for just four years, at which time he retired.

Dave summed up his work at the USGS, “You do a lot of learning on the job,” and Alice added, “like being a mother.”

Their children are all busy and raising families. Jennifer lives in Georgia and is an IRS regulatory administrator for excise tax, and has three children. Charlie, who is living here and recuperating from knee replacements, has a business in South Carolina and two children. Janet is a dietitian in Kentucky and a marathon runner with eight children.

Laurie is a kindergarten assistant in South Carolina and has two children. Tom is an engineer for Louisville Power in Kentucky and has three children. Angie and Michelle, who graduated from Colfax High School, live in Washington. Angie lives in Kennewick, teaches kindergarten and has two children. Michelle is single and manages Precision Countertops in Spokane.

Dave is involved in Knights of Columbus at St. Patrick Church in Colfax and is a busy dinner organizer for the group and is the meat buyer for several dinners and events.

He volunteers with the Whitman County Historical Society and belongs to the Dusty Gun Club.

Whitman County Historical Society is trying to increase involvement of Colfax citizens in supporting the Perkins House. Colfax, said Dave, should be proud to take care of such a beautiful example of early Colfax life. Helpers are needed to be docents for tours so that the house can be open several hours each month. For more information about the house or the historical society, go to http://www.whitmancountyhistoricalsociety.com. Interested people can also contact David Appel or Cheryl Kammerzell.

Both of the Appels were involved in scouting. Alice led a Cub Scout troop for many years, and they went on to Dave’s Webelo group. In California, the Webelos enjoyed hunting fossils.

Alice calls herself a “trained amateur interior decorator,” and she is also a flower arranger, gardener, volunteer in her children’s schools, quilts, makes drapes and shades, and designs David’s wood furniture. Alice taught art each week to third and fourth graders in California at her children’s school. She previously was a member of Dusty BB Club and St. Patrick Altar Society.

In the winter, Dave is busy and productive in his woodshop. He does beautiful wood projects, and his works include built-in cabinets at St. Patrick Parish Hall, candle and thurifer holders in the church sanctuary, as well as handrails leading to the altar.

When Dave retired, Alice wanted a new house. However, the house on the property they bought was too good to tear down, so they began planning their new home and gardens. Alice took a landscaping class the year before they moved, planning the lawns, gardens and orchard. They added a sunroom, enlarged the kitchen, added a bedroom, converted a garage to basement rooms, built a new garage and planted more trees and an orchard.

Their large garden and orchard produce a lot of food. They have raspberries, cherry trees, six varieties of grape, and five varieties of apples. Apple-grape juice is a family favorite, and Dave has a faster method than a cider press to express the juice. In all, he cans 500 to 600 jars of fruit, juices and tomato products to use and share with their Washington daughters.

Dave and Alice may be retired, but they continue to be very productive.

Recipes:

Sweet Potato Casserole

Thanks to daughter Janet Fluty

2 cups fresh sweet potatoes, cooked and mashed

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

6 Tablespoons butter or margarine

1/4 to 1/2 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Beat all ingredients together and place in greased 11 1/2 x 7-inch baking dish. Bake 30-40 minutes at 300 degrees F.

While sweet potato casserole bakes, mix topping:

6 Tablespoons butter or margarine

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup nuts, chopped

1/4 cup crushed corn flakes

Melt sugar and margarine/butter. Pour over potato mixture. Sprinkle nuts and corn flakes on top. Bake 10 to 15 minutes longer. Serve hot!

Spinach Salad

1 bag fresh spinach

1 can water chestnuts

2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped

6-8 strips bacon, crumbled

1 can bean sprouts

Dressing:

3/8 cup sugar

1/2 cup oil

2 Tablespoons vinegar

1/4 t. salt

3 Tablespoons catsup

1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

Place dressing ingredients in a pint jar and shake or use a wire whisk. Mix salad ingredients, then pour on salad, toss and serve.

Lazarus

Cheese Cake

Lazarus was a West Virginia department store chain with a restaurant, much like the Crescent in Spokane.

Crust:

1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs

1/3 cup melted butter

1/4 cup sugar

Filling:

3 8-ounce packages cream cheese

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

4 eggs

1 Tablespoon vanilla

Alice and David Appel have made Colfax their home

for more than 20 years.

Topping:

1 1/2 cups sour cream

1/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

For the crust, blend graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and butter together. Press crumb mixture on sides and bottom of well-greased 10-inch spring form pan.

For the filling, mix cream cheese and sugar for 3-5 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla. Beat the entire mixture for 30 minutes. Bake at 300 degrees F for 50-60 minutes. Remove from oven; cool at room temperature for 20 minutes.

For the topping, blend sour cream, sugar and vanilla together. Pour on top of cooled cheesecake; return to oven for 10 more minutes. Cool and refrigerate.

Alternate variety--chocolate chip. Add 6 ounces of chocolate chips to the filling. For the topping, decorate with shaved chocolate. Serves 12 to 16.