There are a zillion reasons why I love food…but a very important motive is for all the memories that cooking and eating trigger.
For me, Thanksgiving is one big eating marathon. Growing up, it was generally a holiday that involved seeing relatives whom I would only see annually. Once past the obligatory jokes, cheek pinching and coat checking, the day was pretty boring. Except—the food was fantastic—and the food rules (or lack thereof) were the best. Shirley Temples, chopped liver, little hot dogs, nuts in the shell, olive trays—ok, not very Thanksgiving-ish—were my favorites. I had to pass on the deviled eggs but they had their place on the hors d’oeuvres platter year after year. We could stuff ourselves silly and not have to make excuses for why we weren’t eating the main course but managed to have room for dessert. We even got to watch television—the parade of course—while eating.
As I stood in my kitchen today, preparing for family and friends, I moved quickly from one dish to the next, multi-tasking—cleaning, prepping, chopping, sautéing, frying—one after another, memories popped into my head. Sometimes there was a direct connection, others seemed more remote.
The chopped liver and pigs in a blanket have been replaced by goat cheese and other contemporary foods. My menu is eclectic—not really traditional dishes but certainly traditional ingredients, made with a twist. You will not find green beans, sweet potatoes sporting pineapple or marshmallows and I shy away from everything pureed (until dentures become a reality). And of course, there are my kids’ favorites, regardless of whether they qualify for Turkey Day fare.
So as I made the ‘zippy tuna’, I was transported back to when my aunt & uncle would make this signature appetizer when we visited. We couldn’t hold a family event without it and have adapted it somewhat to make it our own. All my daughter has to do is say she’s coming home and zippy tuna appears on the menu. Needless to say, I picked up the cell phone while prepping this and called her. “do we use onions in our version?”— “No mom, but why not give it a shot.” Didn’t matter what the answer was—just an excuse to connect.
The corn fritters, a new concoction and added to the hors d’oeuvres list as a nod to the ‘three sister medley’ reminded me of making latkes! That triggered a quick call to my friend Lesley with whom I always share a knuckle grating story or two.
It was on to the wild rice dish, for our good friend and gluten free guest, Andre. It happens to be an old Silver Palate recipe that was a notable favorite of my mother’s—unfortunately her untimely death just following Thanksgiving has made this food fav somewhat bittersweet.
By dinner time the day before Thanksgiving, (normally a no cook zone but a must cook because both kids were going to be home together for the first time in ages), I was whipping up their favorite Japanese meal. As I ‘polished’ the sushi rice, I thought of my dear friend Kyoko and how much she taught me about Japanese cooking—not to mention her awesome meals.
By early afternoon on Thursday, the smells of roasting turkey mixed with freshly baked desserts wafted through the house. Although some important people were not able to be with us, I was nevertheless floating above the scene, mulling over Thanksgivings past and contemplating those yet to come. Free flowing associations of food , friends and family continued until the last dish was served—in fact until the last leftover was consumed.
Adding to the personal side are Rainbeau Ridge’s cooking classes, I’m happy to report that we’re creating new food memories at the farm for our friends too. My favorite these days has got to be the reports from our young cooks—kids in grades 4-6—making chutneys, pumpkin fudge and apple bread pudding at home for their families. I couldn’t be happier that these young people are actively involved in the holiday food prep and with what will ultimately be recollections of their early cooking careers.
From now until New Year’s, there will undoubtedly be tons more culinary efforts that will be filed away in the family scrapbooks—whether we’re a piece of it our not, just knowing that food is such an important piece of our collective memories—makes me smile to be in small some way a piece of the ‘pie’.
Recent Comments