This blog entry has been entered in Scribbit's Write Away Contest for June.
My family and extended family is very food oriented. We enjoy food. Food draws us together, and gives us common ground. At times food is an expression of love for one another, a comfort, a sign of celebration and a tradition. We never get together with my parents, siblings, Aunt and Uncle without some kind of food involvement.
I personally love food. I use food not just to comfort myself at times, but to comfort others. Cooking a good meal is one of my joys in life, and sharing food makes me feel like I am giving someone a hug. I love cooking not just for myself, but for other people as well. If I bring you a plate of cookies, a cheesecake, a hot meal or any kind of food, that is my way of giving you a hug. If I make you a special meal, and I spend a lot of time making it, then you are an extra special person to me. I am by no means a gourmet chef although there are some meals I make that take hours of preparation. I simply enjoy cooking, I enjoy eating, and I enjoy feeding other people.
Many of my childhood memories are tied to food.
Going with my Dad to run an errand and getting to stop for a special donut at the bakery is one of my earliest memories.
Decorating sugar cookies with my sisters and cousins every Christmas Eve was one of the highlights of the Holidays.
Making giant cinnamon rolls for our teachers as gifts every Christmas was one of the things we loved to do. Food was one of the things that taught us how to give and be generous with others.
I remember my Dad teaching me how to make omelets when I was nine, and how much I loved to make scrambled eggs for my little brother because he loved eating them.
Licking the beaters when someone made cookies or cake was something we looked forward to back before the days when everyone worried about salmonella and other food poisoning.
When we would visit my Grandma Irene she always had a big glass bottle or two of sprite in the door of the fridge. She had Golden Grahams cereal for us to eat at breakfast and she made fried chicken and black eyed peas for dinner. I was young enough when she died that I don't have as many memories of her as I would like to, but I make oyster stuffing just like she did whenever I make a turkey dinner.
My Grandma Nora was a great cook. She made a wonderful hot potato salad every Christmas. She never gave anyone the recipe, but eventually my Dad and my Aunt worked it out together from their memories of her making it, and now we enjoy that tradition of eating hot potato salad every Christmas Eve. I can remember eating her gingerbread while it was still hot and the fresh whipped cream melting into the top of the cake. Soups, beef, potatoes...Grandma Nora always fed us well.
After I was married we moved to Utah. Both of my Grandmothers had passed away years before then. D's Grandma and Grandpa lived in Salt Lake City though, and I enjoyed being close enough to visit them, and to have a Grandma in my life again. Grandma W was always baking. She kept frozen cupcakes (already frosted too) in the freezer, and as soon as we got there she was always pulling out some kind of treat from the freezer for us to eat. She made twice stuffed potatoes, and jello with carrots grated in it, and she made the best wheat and honey bread I have ever had. Unfortunately she took that recipe to the grave with her, much to all of our dismay as well as Grandpa's. She also made cinnamon twists often, and I have the recipe written down in her own handwriting. It is a treasure to me.
When Memorial Day comes around I always find myself thinking of those Grandparents and missing them. A few years ago I had an idea of how to share a little bit of our memories with the boys. So every year around Memorial Day weekend we buy or make food that our Grandparents made or loved. Hot Potato salad, pringles potato chips, fried chicken, twice baked potatoes etc. My Grandpa Bill loved circus peanut candy, and Lemon Meringue pie. The boys look forward to this time of year because I buy a bag of circus peanuts and tell them about how my Grandpa Bill loved them. I tell other stories too, and the food works like a bridge to make memories for my boys. The Great Grandparents they never met become real to them, and become a bigger part of their lives instead of only being a part of their history.
My family and extended family is very food oriented. We enjoy food. Food draws us together, and gives us common ground. At times food is an expression of love for one another, a comfort, a sign of celebration and a tradition. We never get together with my parents, siblings, Aunt and Uncle without some kind of food involvement.
I personally love food. I use food not just to comfort myself at times, but to comfort others. Cooking a good meal is one of my joys in life, and sharing food makes me feel like I am giving someone a hug. I love cooking not just for myself, but for other people as well. If I bring you a plate of cookies, a cheesecake, a hot meal or any kind of food, that is my way of giving you a hug. If I make you a special meal, and I spend a lot of time making it, then you are an extra special person to me. I am by no means a gourmet chef although there are some meals I make that take hours of preparation. I simply enjoy cooking, I enjoy eating, and I enjoy feeding other people.
Many of my childhood memories are tied to food.
Going with my Dad to run an errand and getting to stop for a special donut at the bakery is one of my earliest memories.
Decorating sugar cookies with my sisters and cousins every Christmas Eve was one of the highlights of the Holidays.
Making giant cinnamon rolls for our teachers as gifts every Christmas was one of the things we loved to do. Food was one of the things that taught us how to give and be generous with others.
I remember my Dad teaching me how to make omelets when I was nine, and how much I loved to make scrambled eggs for my little brother because he loved eating them.
Licking the beaters when someone made cookies or cake was something we looked forward to back before the days when everyone worried about salmonella and other food poisoning.
When we would visit my Grandma Irene she always had a big glass bottle or two of sprite in the door of the fridge. She had Golden Grahams cereal for us to eat at breakfast and she made fried chicken and black eyed peas for dinner. I was young enough when she died that I don't have as many memories of her as I would like to, but I make oyster stuffing just like she did whenever I make a turkey dinner.
My Grandma Nora was a great cook. She made a wonderful hot potato salad every Christmas. She never gave anyone the recipe, but eventually my Dad and my Aunt worked it out together from their memories of her making it, and now we enjoy that tradition of eating hot potato salad every Christmas Eve. I can remember eating her gingerbread while it was still hot and the fresh whipped cream melting into the top of the cake. Soups, beef, potatoes...Grandma Nora always fed us well.
After I was married we moved to Utah. Both of my Grandmothers had passed away years before then. D's Grandma and Grandpa lived in Salt Lake City though, and I enjoyed being close enough to visit them, and to have a Grandma in my life again. Grandma W was always baking. She kept frozen cupcakes (already frosted too) in the freezer, and as soon as we got there she was always pulling out some kind of treat from the freezer for us to eat. She made twice stuffed potatoes, and jello with carrots grated in it, and she made the best wheat and honey bread I have ever had. Unfortunately she took that recipe to the grave with her, much to all of our dismay as well as Grandpa's. She also made cinnamon twists often, and I have the recipe written down in her own handwriting. It is a treasure to me.
When Memorial Day comes around I always find myself thinking of those Grandparents and missing them. A few years ago I had an idea of how to share a little bit of our memories with the boys. So every year around Memorial Day weekend we buy or make food that our Grandparents made or loved. Hot Potato salad, pringles potato chips, fried chicken, twice baked potatoes etc. My Grandpa Bill loved circus peanut candy, and Lemon Meringue pie. The boys look forward to this time of year because I buy a bag of circus peanuts and tell them about how my Grandpa Bill loved them. I tell other stories too, and the food works like a bridge to make memories for my boys. The Great Grandparents they never met become real to them, and become a bigger part of their lives instead of only being a part of their history.
3 comments:
food works like a bridge....wow. I like that. There are so many holidays that seem to be all about the food. Many Jewish holidays have food that sybolize something important and I think that is very cool. But I never thought of it like a bridge or building a tradion. Duh.
So much of our traditional family events center around food. And I come from a family of great cooks where at each event the women try to outdo each other (in a fun, non-competitive way).
Using food to comfort others -- yes, that's what I often do, too. I feel complimented when my students' parents send me a special home-made treat. If it's the thought that counts, cooking and baking count for a million.
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