Food - Life - Food...by Shell

Food has always been a common theme in our family.  From my Mom writing her cookbook, to our family owning a café, to my husband and I running a pizza parlor, great food runs in our veins, nourishes our body and soul and can make a good day turn great. 

I have had a love/hate relationship with food for some of my life in that my body does not require much of it for survival, however; my entire being craves it for its own necessity.

In most careers that I have been in, food is either a theme, main money motivator, or what the whole office revolves around.  The most mundane job I had, in a cubicle processing insurance forms, actually had an entire cafeteria inside of it.  I would look with envy and confusion as my co-workers would down whole turkey dinners and return to work without falling asleep at their desks.  They would munch hot dogs, smothered with cheese and bacon, with a healthy helping of crinkle cut fries without batting a mascaraed eye lash.  I mostly ate fruit salad or soup.  Sometimes I would just have a little packet of oyster crackers and call it good.  However, this cafeteria had one redeeming quality: pita bread that was so pillowy and chewy, it would make you weep.  I would treat myself once a week to this delight, warmed on the grill and filled with roasted veggies or chicken.  The pita bread steamed when pulled apart and was a culinary delight if combined with red peppers, black olives, grilled onions and sometimes chicken. It truly was the one and only highlight of this job.

Along with owning the pizza parlor, I am a technical services librarian at the library in my town.  You would think that pictures of food in cookbooks would be the only food here.  Not so!  The many patrons in our town share their baking adventures with us willingly.  Often we have lots of treats to choose from and not your average sandwich cookie.  Oh, no, we are treated to the likes of thick lemon bars, cinnamon sugar donut bread, white chocolate dipped pretzels and cherry coffee cake among other delights.  We can wash it down with fair trade organic coffee graciously supplied by the Friends of the Library.  If that isn’t enough, soon after I started this job, my boss showed me the “chocolate drawer”.  Yes, we have an entire drawer filled with giant gourmet chocolate bars. 

I think I am destined to a life revolving around food, a fact I actively avoided for some years.  I no longer run away from it, but actively embrace it.  And, if it makes me blue, I can find easy solace in a giant chocolate bar – I know where to find them.

Food Memories

Greetings and Happy New Year from Ter.  I was thinking this morning, while preparing a big Sunday brunch, about how food has shaped my life and created many memories.  Like most families, ours has been shaped by food and drink.  Just like G blogged about Grandma Kate teaching her to bake bread, my G has done the same for me.  I remember being a little girl, Grandma's "Petite Little Flower" as she so affectionaltely called my sister and myself, and experiencing so many cool food-related things with her.

I remember the picnics on Grandma's living room floor and that drool-worthy homemade cheese sauce she made to top our pasta (that I have NEVER been able to accurately duplicate.).  I remember the Christmas Crepes that were tradition for so many years.  I recall the Cinnamon toast, the monkey bread, the snow ice cream.  I remember getting into her magical car (named Bermelda Lou) once a week and trekking around Northern Wisconsin in search of the best pie.  I remember traveling to Minnesota with Grandma and Grandpa and ordering a hamburger at the Vietnamese restaurant we stopped at.  Yes, you read that correctly.   Although I was too little to remember it, story goes that Grandma and Aunt Shell took me to a Chinese restaurant when I was tiny.  Something about me spitting an almond across the room, or squeezing coffee creamers until they exploded.  They would need to clarify that one...:)  Either way, my point is = family + food = stories. 

The power of food tradition is so strong.  I am enjoying forming new food traditions with my husband.  We go for our clam chowder every other week, which I have already written about... but one of my favorite new things is the mystery of my Friday night drives home from work --wondering what toppings Andy has developed for the pizza this week.  Sometimes it's cilantro, tomato and onion pizza fries -- another time kalamata olives, grape leaves and crispy ham, or crab and spices.  I love Friday mystery pizza night. It's always so good.



Golden funnel cake goodness

As I write this, I am preparing our latest once-in-a-while indulgence- funnel cakes.  This time around the funnel cakes have a bit of cinnamon and rum in them (We tend to rumify everything we can).  I just snuck a piece and it's quite good.   -->

husband's cup and thick "grogg"

<-- Coupled with our spiced Vermont Country Blend Coffee, this is shaping up to be a tasty day.  Another one of husband's newest concoctions is a grogg for his coffee.  It's a thick mixture of raw honey, molasses, cinnamon, fresh ground nutmeg, maple syrup, vanilla and ginger.  We didn't use a recipe - we just hit the pantry and started throwing things into the jug.  It's pretty sweet, but a little goes a long way, making for an earthy, spicy cup that you could never buy in a coffee shop.


Last week we experienced our first Nor'easter (which was easy-peasy compared to the blinstering WI winters we are accustomed to) and were blanket with beautiful, fluffy -glittery snow, perfect for making some of that snow ice cream that G taught me as a kiddo.  A huge, mounded bowl of fresh *WHITE* snow, when mixed with some simple staples, becomes an incredible delicacy.  We took some culinary liberties this time around and added maple syrup - and yes, spiced rum.  Very good!  Below you will find the recipe from the cookbook G wrote... another wonderful memory is trying out all of the foods as she wrote the book...and what a super special thing for a little girl to have a recipe named after her and published?    G's the coolest.

The recipe from G's cookbook...

       

Our 2013 Maple and Spiced Rum Snow Ice Cream

I will leave you with one more memory - that I am reminded of often.  Below is a photo of my cubicle at work... the framed item was given to me by G in a card for my birthday a few years ago.  I believe it sums this post up better than I could ever hope to.  

"The most important things to do are to get something to eat, something to drink, and somebody to love you." - Brenda Ueland.

Happy feasting -- with family.  A lesson I have learned - family is what [and who] you make it.

What are your favorite food memories? Please comment below and share!

-Kate's Granddaughter