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Sharing Recipes For Life And Memories With Evelyn Quesnel

photo by Marcie Bolton Like anything made by Evelyn Quesnel there is a guaranteed good taste and a great deal of love that goes into it.

Tuesday November 15, 2011

By Marcie Bolton

   Walking into Evelyn Quesnel’s kitchen is a treat for the senses and the mind. You are wrapped up in aromatic smells and the picturesque setting of butternut squash bubbling on the stove and sunlight streaming through the window. While Evelyn offered to sit in any room to conduct the interview and be more comfortable, it was easy to see that the kitchen was the heart of the house and the kitchen table a place to explore her memories.

    Evelyn was born in Burlington, Vermont on May 1, 1937 and grew up in Cornwall, where she shared a home with her parents, two younger brothers, Arthur Jr., and Freddy. Evelyn’s incredible work ethic stems back to her mother and father and sharing recollection of her parents Evelyn said, “My mom was a worker. Everything had to be just so. She did not like to cook so at about ten years old I learned to cook. Cookies were my favorite thing to make. My father always worked on the dairy farm that was called Beaver Brook Farm in Cornwall. He was the caretaker on Arthur Bingham’s farm ( Beaver Brook). My dad was a kind person and as a family we played cards-especially Crazy Eights. For fun, my dad took a ski and put a block on it and a board as a seat so we could go sliding. The snow seemed harder and colder then, but you could slide fast.”

    Growing up, Evelyn shared that school had a great importance in her life and she remembers each and every year of it as if time had stood still. For the first six years of her education she went to school in West Cornwall. When junior high came, she walked to where the fire station is now located in Cornwall and eighth grade was held in a family home in town. When she went off to high school at the Municipal Building in Middlebury, her class had about 100 students, and many like Evelyn had to get creative about finding ways to get to school. “Charlie Boardman, who worked at the post office was a neighbor,” remembered Evelyn. “Sometimes he would drive us back and forth. Sometimes I would ride with the Gero family. Only once in the four years of high school did we have to walk the eight miles back home. Back the, you see, girls were not allowed to wear pants, so we would pack our pants in our bags after getting to school and put them on for after school.  It was a cold walk home.”

    Graduating from school in 1956, Evelyn worked several jobs in the local area including waitressing at Smith’s Park Diner (Steve’s Park Diner today) and I also cooked at the Cornwall Guest house and cleaned rooms. Married in 1957 to Albert Quesnel, a man whom she met when he would drive the bus to square dances in New Haven and Lake Hortonia, the couple will celebrate their fifty-fourth year of marriage this year in June. Their three children Yvonne, Tammy and Michelle all live in New England and Evelyn enjoys her seven grandchildren, who also know the delights of stepping into grandma’s kitchen and sampling her foods.

    Growing up Evelyn took great pride in the 4-H programs and classes that she took.  Through those many classes and activities she learned to cook, sew and knit. And to this day baking remains one of Evelyn’s joys for her family. “I work one day a week at Rosie’s now, “she shared. “ In 1993, I started there and at first worked five days a week. While I love cookies, pies became my favorite.” Devoted to family and friends, Evelyn volunteers at the local nursing home and helps feed patients on the Alzheimer’s wing. “You feel pretty good because you have helped someone to eat,” remarked Evelyn “and my mother was in that unit for six years.” At seventy-four years young, Evelyn attributes her good health to hard work and eating the right foods, and places great emphasis on being active and socializing with friends and family. While she does have a pet peeve about persistent telemarketers, she lets little get her down or stop her enjoyment of life.

    The next time you go to  Rosie’s have a mouth watering dessert to complete your meal, take a minute to ask if it is Evelyn out back working her magic in the kitchen. Chances are it’s her or maybe one of her patented recipes guaranteed to make you smile and to make your day just a little brighter. “I bake pies, cakes, cookies, biscuits and special desserts,” concluded Evelyn. “The cookies are really big at Rosie’s. I use an ice -cream scoop for the cookie dough, and lately they’ve been after me to make pumpkin whoopee pies.”

    The Valley Voice salutes Evelyn Quesnel for her joy, her positive nature and her passion for cooking and seeing the best in people in all situations. Whether in her kitchen or Rosie’s, it is a treat to share recipes and life lessons with this wonderful Vermonter.

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