If you've ever joined us here in the Cottage kitchen (through the miracle of youtube), you probably noticed our rather large vintage electric range.
This old girl is a circa 1954 Frigidaire Electric Range that my grandparents bought brand new. Grandpa Bud and Grandma Elverna built their house in the mid-1950s, and so it seems, with a new house must come a new stove. It features TWO ovens, three regular burners, one Thermizer Deep Well Cooker (or the element can be raised from the deep well to function as a regular burner), a built-in timer, a light, and a storage drawer.
Miss Frigidaire in Grandma Elverna's pink 1950s kitchen.
Miss Frigidaire joined the Moonbeam family in 2011, when we still lived in a great big Victorian house with plenty of room for such a large and capable appliance. Here at the Cottage, she tends to make herself the focal point of our kitchen, simply because we have such a tiny one. But, oh, the wonderful things we've baked and roasted and fried and boiled and broiled over the past 13 years! And for all the big family dinners we hosted in the past, having two ovens was often a great advantage - and a headache-saver!
Andrea welcoming Miss Frigidaire to our previous (much larger) home, 13 years ago.
Speaking of family dinners, I have many memories of my Grandma Elverna, at this very stove, using it to create a beautiful meal, much as a conductor draws out the musical magic from an orchestra. But my fondest childhood memory of my grandmother and this stove is when she would make real, from-scratch hot cocoa for me. As a child of the 1970s and 1980s, instant hot chocolate was usually the order of the day, so my Grandma Elverna's homemade hot cocoa was a real treat, surely made with love!
Grandpa Bud and Grandma Elverna in the mid-1940s with their two boys - the little guy on the left is my Dad.
As family heirlooms go, my grandmother's Frigidaire Electric Range is among my most treasured. There may come a day, though, when Mr. Moonbeam and I will seek out a stove that better fits the size of our kitchen and our cooking needs. Until then, the Cory vacuum coffee pot will be on and the Revereware tea kettle at the ready on Grandma Elverna's stove for whoever visits us at the Cottage. I just might even make you real, from-scratch hot cocoa - a treat surely made with love.
Cheers!
Andrea
How lovely that you're able to continue the tradition of cooking on the same range your grandmother once owned. It clearly brings back a lot of wonderful memories. And now that the cooler weather is setting in, made-from-scratch cocoa is a must! - Angel :)