One meets the nicest people at church suppers. So imagine walking into the First Congregational Church of Montague on April Fool’s Day and seeing old friends Don and Judy Scott of Belchertown.
The Scotts were wonderful dining companions for the first “Soul Food” column back in October. Judy said they come up to Franklin County all the time to attend various church suppers. She was obviously telling the truth!
“Oh, you’re at table eight with Malcolm Corse! He’s a very important fellow,” Judy Scott said. “You’ll learn a lot talking to him.”
Sure enough, the Corses of Conway — Malcolm and his lovely wife Winona — were a wealth of information. Malcolm Corse is in charge of the Conway 250th anniversary parade in June. And on this night, the Corses were celebrating the 66th anniversary of their first date.
But there were tasks at hand. This is the Montague church’s 76th annual Sugar Supper. And at their table was a rookie.
That’s right: after 35 years in New England, I had never eaten sugar on snow. The presence of and assistance by others at the table made it a fun experience.
First, however, was the dinner — a hearty, rib-sticking repast that, if enough is consumed, can easily carry one to morning with a full belly. Brown beans, cole slaw, Harvard beets, an assortment of breads and corned beef hash. The hash was piping hot and creamier than expected. Almost the consistency of mashed potatoes, it was surprising, delicious and very filling.
Fellow diner Barbara Prescott of Turners Falls advised, “Don’t eat all that,” after observing the rookie at the table take a heaping portion. Served family-style, bowls were passed quickly and efficiently. “Save some room,” she said.
It’s like mom said: you have to eat dinner before you can have a treat. Dinner went very quickly in retrospect. It was obvious the 100 or so on hand were there for dessert.
Pots of coffee were distributed, and then came baskets of little fried doughnuts. Not at all sweet, these little confections and the pickles that followed had a specific task. They were there to combat all the sweetness of the sugar on snow.
Individual bowls of snow came next (that awful March 31 snowstorm? Remember that? This was the silver lining), followed by screaming hot maple syrup — boiled to about 235 degrees, or the “soft-ball stage” of candy making.
It was then that the Corses and Mrs. Prescott took over. “Be careful,” Winona Corse said. “That syrup will burn you.”
The idea is to pour little ribbons of the hot syrup on top of the snow. The syrup cools very quickly, but not so fast that it crystallizes. Taking a fork, you can twirl the ribbons through the tines and right into your mouth. It’s like chewy maple candy, not hot and not cold, and so sweet that a pickle and swig of coffee make perfect sense now.
Done over and over, it was the most participatory dessert ever. The calorie content cannot be divulged (and no one seemed concerned).
“This is New England right here,” Malcolm Corse said. Could not agree more.
A ham and bean dinner will be served at the First Congregational Church of Montague on Saturday, April 29, at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children. Walk-ins are welcome if space permits. Reservations and take-out orders can be arranged by calling 413-367-2652. The church is located at 4 North St. in Montague, right in the center of the village. There is a ramped side entrance, and parking is on the street.
Deena Ferguson had her first newspaper story published at age 15. She has worn many professional hats but likes the one that says “writer” best. She loves to eat but hates to cook, which is why the dog treat cupboard is the only one she keeps stocked.