In my mom’s hometown, when the going gets tough, the tough bake a cake.
So when my Papaw passed away recently, by the time I arrived in Kentucky—the day after his death—the sympathy food had already started rolling in.
Food as love
Indeed, in the days following his passing, scratch-baked cakes of every variety (including a carrot cake aptly labeled “comfort cake”) showed up at my Papaw’s house, along with brownies, bars, cookies, and pies. Beyond desserts, women delivered platters of sandwich fixin’s, homemade bread, Tupperware containers brimming with soup, and bowl upon bowl of potato salad. Since people know my mom and I are plant-based, we even received a huge fruit platter and not one but five vegetable trays.
Accompanying the food were hugs and warm words for us and one of my grandpa’s caretakers, who helped take care of us in the days after his passing. (D, if you are reading this, thank you for all you did.)
Papaw would have been pleased. Not only with the food—which he would have loved!—but with the show of support.
Because the vast majority of his life was lived for others.
An inspiring life
Born in 1922, my Papaw—Grover—started with very little. The oldest of six children, he worked his way through the Great Depression, delivering newspapers by mule, working the land, and cutting timber. He married my Nana, Juanita, when he was 20, then served in World War II for 3 years.
When he returned from the war, he and my Nana started a family, eventually welcoming 6 children, 9 grandchildren, and 15 great-grandchildren (!) over the course of their 64-year marriage before my Nana’s passing in 2006.
Nana, Papaw, and me in the early 1980s
Starting in 1946, they also launched a business that would grow and thrive, eventually encompassing lumber, construction, and retail operations.
In so doing, they not only created numerous jobs, but went out of their way to help employees, family, friends, and the community. I can’t begin to count the number of lives my Papaw (and Nana) touched, but at both visitation and the funeral, everyone had a kind word or story to share.
This message, written by Mary Holman in response to my Papaw’s obituary, was typical:
Grover was a dear man who, with Juanita at his side led a life of commitment to helping others. When there was a need, they were eager to reach out with love and compassion…
I was honored to hear stories about the man who’d loved and supported me as long as I could remember. Stories of a man who loved God, family, his country, and his hometown; who listened more than he talked; who shared both wise words and his wonderful sense of humor, each at the appropriate time.
Hundreds of people paid their respects at his visitation, and the funeral at his little country church was standing room only. The luncheon afterwards was a potluck beyond anything I’d ever seen—some 30 feet of serving tables lined on both sides with salads, casseroles, side dishes, and rolls, with a whole other table for desserts.
I am still awed by the outpouring of kindness, comforted by the home-cooked food, and inspired by my Papaw’s legacy of hard work, quiet wisdom, and unwavering care for others.
Following his example
While I’ve grieved upon returning home, I’ve also been inspired by my Papaw’s legacy. But where he built hospitals and schools and so helped people build fruitful lives, I hope to help people build fit, healthy bodies through nourishing food.
So I’m dealing with my sadness the best way I know how—working in the kitchen, creating life-affirming recipes that also happen to be downright delicious.
First up? This no-added-oil white bean dip, bursting with the fresh flavors of basil and chives and lemon zest. It’s good enough to eat with a spoon, and whether offered for comfort or as a tasty dish at a potluck, making this delicious dip is a wonderful way to show someone you love them. (While taking care of their health, too.)
Anyhow, I hope you’ll join me in the kitchen for a moment of thanksgiving: for my Papaw’s well-lived life, for the kindness of country cooks, and for the health-promoting power of food prepared with love…
- ½ c toasted pine nuts (see note)
- 3½ cups (2 15-oz cans) cooked cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
- 4 Tbsp fresh lemon juice (you'll need 2 lemons, with some juice left over)
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- ½ c chopped basil leaves (packed) (30 g)
- 2 Tbsp chopped chives (3 g)
- ½ tsp lemon zest
- In a food processor or blender, process pine nuts until nut butter is formed. (Stop processor and scrape sides 2-3 times as needed.) As pine nuts are soft, this should take less than 1 minute.
- Transfer pine nut butter to a small bowl and set aside. Wipe out food processor. (Blending beans separately from fat helps ensure fluffy hummus.)
- Combine beans and lemon juice in food processor until smooth, at least 3 minutes.
- Add pine nut butter and garlic to food processor and blend again until velvety smooth, another 3 minutes.
- Add basil, chives, and lemon zest. Pulse and scrape sides until mixed, leaving visible herbs.
- Garnish with extra basil, chives, or toasted pine nuts.
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I'm Lee, an RD thriving on a healthy plant based diet.
Dips are insanely addictive to me! Gah! I cannot be left alone in a room with one! “Naughty” things happen! LOL!
Hi Lee
I’m so sorry to hear about your Grandfather’s passing but the angels are celebrating his return! Hope you can come back to Kentucky on a more joyful occasion sometime. Thank you for the great recipes!
Kathryn
Thanks for the kind wishes, Kathryn. Fingers crossed that my next trip to Kentucky is for a happy visit. You’re welcome on the recipes, and more to come–cooking helps me stay balanced when the going gets tough!
Thank you for sharing the story of your wonderful grandfather. From the sounds of things, he left the world a better place than he found it, and helped many people along the way. May you find comfort whenever you need it.
Thank you for sharing this bean dip recipe. Just yesterday, I made a pot of white beans with the intention of using some of them in a dip. I’ll try your recipe this very week!
Thanks for your warm wishes, Kathryn Grace. I’m still missing Papaw, but the sadness is starting to settle, thankfully.
I’m glad this recipe came at the right time for you! If you didn’t salt your beans after cooking them, you’ll want to add ~1 tsp of salt to this recipe to make up for what’s normally found in canned beans. (I’m actually glad this came up; I’m going to add a note to the recipe right now!)
I’m so sorry to hear about your Papaw. It’s so tough losing someone you love and are so close to. It sounds like he had an amazing life.
What a great recipe to celebrate loved ones with a healthy and tasty dip like this.
Thanks Mary Ellen, I think he would have liked it too. 🙂
I’m definitely going to be bringing this dip to gatherings this summer–it’s light, yet rich enough to be filling. Just right for showers and picnics!
Sorry to hear about your Papaw. He sounds like a great man. I’m sure he’s love this recipe! Fresh ingredients are always best.
Thanks Laura! The only way this recipe could get fresher is if I made the beans myself. Someday…
What a beautiful post, Lee, to honor your Papaw’s amazing life. I am so sorry for your loss, but you do him a lovely honor by writing about his life and the outpouring of love–and food!– from those who knew him. I am glad all of it was such a comfort to you and your mother. The bean dip looks fabulous–basil and lemon zest with pine nuts and white beans–yes let’s eat that right off the spoon! Thanks, and take gentle care. oxox
Hi Maria, as always, thank you for your kind, wise wishes. Loss is hard, but as they say, “Grief shared is half grief; Joy shared is double joy.”
Luckily cooking is therapeutic for me, so making this dip for hubby and me was a welcome diversion. I think there will be more recipes than usual coming up!
Visiting you via Healthy Vegan Fridays. Beans are so tasty, that dip sounds really wonderful! Thank you for sharing.
Thanks Clotilde!
HI Lee,
What a inspiring and moving story. It is such a blessing to have such wonderful people in your lives and for your own community. It is people like your grandparents that make this world a better place and change people lives forever. I love your recipe for the dip – sounds quite tasty. Thanks for sharing your story and recipe on Real Food Fridays. Pinned!
Thanks Marla, I really was blessed to have them in my life. I’ll miss my Papaw (and my Nana too), but they’ve given me such wonderful examples of how to live. I hope I can make even half the difference they did!
Dear Lee, Sorry for your losses and think you were blessed to have had both grandparents in your life. Food can indeed be a healer and works wonders to make us healthier. Your recipe for lemon white bean dip is a winner; I like it so much I pinned it. Nancy A @ obloggernewbie.blogspot.com
Aw, thank you Nancy, I really appreciate your kind words. I’m also delighted that you pinned the dip. Just be warned–it’s a little addictive. (I finished off the last of mine with a spoon, whoops!)
Such a yummy dip! Thank you for sharing your healthy and delicious Basil and Lemon White Bean Dip recipe with us at the Plant-Based Potluck Party. I’m pinning and sharing.
Thanks Deborah!
I’m so sorry about your grandpa Lee. This is a beautiful tribute to him. His spirit will live on with you.
He sounds like a hard worker, a loving family man and touched many lives.
Your dip sounds really good! I’m in a total hummus rut and this will help take me out of it. Thanks so much for sharing this with Healthy Vegan Fridays – I’m pinning & sharing. I hope you’re having a good week Lee.
ps. Did you get new pictures? Gorgeous! You are completely adorable!
Hi Kimmy, thanks so much for your kind words. We’re all still missing him, but it does help that he lived such a wonderful life.
Glad you like the dip; instead of falling into a rut, I’d just stopped eating hummus! But then I got a yen for something with lemon zest, and this was the result. In creating this, I also discovered the absurdly expensive yet INSANELY AMAZING flavor of homemade pine nut butter! I made a little on the side when I was recipe testing, and I’ve been jealously hoarding it in the fridge. One day I’ll actually eat it! 😉
And yup, my mom did a photo shoot for me back when we thought my Papaw was doing better. She’s not technically a photographer, but she takes a pretty good picture, and I was having a blast while we did it! Also, it turns out that the macro lens I have for food is actually perfect for portraits, so that worked out.
I’m sorry to hear about your Papaw, Lee. He sounds like he was an amazing man in the community. I turn to food during sad times in my life too, and this dip looks very comforting! I actually just put some dried white beans in some water to soak overnight – great timing, I hope to try this dip tomorrow once I’ve cooked the beans! <3
Hi Kyra, thanks for your kind words. And that is perfect timing! Just be sure to add a little extra salt if you’re using homemade beans, since I “calibrated” the recipe with full-salt canned beans. 🙂