I'm talking about food memories...we all have them. Those special comfort foods that transport our memories back to a place where life was good...easy even. When we occupied our day by climbing trees and playing tag....back when Mom and Grandma could make everything go away with a cup of milk and a cookie. Sometimes food memories are ao strong...a food memory of mine is what brought me to this topic today.
It really only takes seconds after I start cooking a fresh tomato to be brought back to my childhood. We always had a garden growing up, I suppose it was economical to grow some of our own food, plus there was plenty of child labor available!!! We spent a good portion of our summer in my grandma's hot and steamy kitchen canning tomatoes. I remember being quite little and peeling the skin off a freshly blanched tomato, and stuffing jar after jar full of warm, fresh cut, juicy tomatoes. I can still feel the sticky juice running down my arm!! Every time I smell a fresh tomato begin to cook, I can't help but see a picture of my grandma's kitchen...my family all around the table, buckets full of tomatoes and dozens of canning jars, both full and empty stacked around. It's a good memory...it reminds me of being carefree!
Food memories can trigger good or bad feelings...the can affect how we eat, when we eat and what we eat. I know the exact moment that I stopped eating seafood...it's due to an unfortunate craw daddy experience that occurred around the age of 10...yuck, still can taste and feel exactly how I did that day!! I don't think my dislike of seafood comes from truly disliking the flavor of seafood...but I have such a negative food memory related to it, it's awfully hard to get past it. Just like it's awfully hard to not feel good and comforted by some of those staples that were served to us by our mothers, grandmothers, aunts...whomever it may be.
I found it interesting when my husband Terry and I started dating, we both had a similar food memory...it was about popcorn. Terry talked about his family's Sunday night popcorn tradition. I remember the first time he told me about it, he was so specific about all the details, I could almost picture myself there with him eating out of the big silver bowl his dad had lovingly prepared for them all. My family had a similar tradition, so putting myself there wasn't much of a stretch! Almost every Sunday at the hunting club, after all the hunts were done and the birds were cleaned, it was time for us to wind down...and time for somebody to get popping the popcorn!! I remember the big shiny silver bowl that sat in the middle of the table, the popcorn got poured directly from the pan into the big bowl, covered in butter and tossed around then everybody jumped in. It was fun...I remember feeling so happy to be sitting around and enjoying my family....and my husband feels the same. Sunday nights were fun for both of us...good memories with our families...happy memories, good times...and good popcorn. Terry has a passion for popcorn...he pops it a lot....serves it in a big silver bowl...and shares it with our boys.
My recipes today are pretty simple. They are about tasting and enjoying delicious ingredients, building food memories...here they are:
Whole Wheat Fussili with Roasted Tomato and Portabello Sauce
1/2 lb whole wheat fussili
salt
4-6 ripe tomatoes
3 cloves garlic
olive oil
1 pound lean ground sirloin
1 med onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, diced
salt and pepper
1 can tomato sauce
1/2 c water
1/8-1/4 tsp oregano
4-6 fresh basil leaves
4-6 sun dried tomatoes, rehydrated and diced
4 oz portabello mushrooms, chopped
Fresh grated Parmesan cheese
Cook pasta according to package directions. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Grease a large cookie sheet with olive oil. Cut tomatoes in to 1/2 inch thick slices. Arrange is single layer on the cookie sheet. Drop 3-4 cloves of garlic onto pan with the tomatoes. Salt and pepper tomatoes. Bake in the oven for 8-10 minutes. In a large saucepan, season hamburger with salt and pepper and brown. When the meat is almost fully cooked, add onion and garlic, continue to cook until onions begin to soften. Add tomato sauce, water, oregano and basil. Reduce heat to low. Soak sun dried tomatoes in boiling water to rehydrate. Dice and add to meat mixture. Chop roasted tomatoes and garlic into small pieces and add to meat mixtures. Add portabello mushrooms. Continue to cook on low, stirring occasionally for about 20 minutes. Add to cooked pasta and stir to combine. Grate fresh Parmesan over top of each bowl as you serve.
Roasted Purple Cauliflower
1 head purple cauliflower
olive oil
salt and pepper
1 lemon
I couldn't resist taking a picture before I cooked it...just so beautiful!
Both of these recipes are simple and can be changed to suit your needs and tastes. I had to add ground sirloin to my sauce or my husband would have been quite disappointment...he doesn't think it's right to have a red sauce without meat!!! I think it would be delicious with just the mushrooms! I used a local "Parmesan like" cheese that I purchased at the farmer's market and it was wonderful! Terry said that it was the best pasta he's ever had...so that's saying something!!
My question to you is this, what food memories are you making for your children...grandchildren...nieces and nephews...your partner...and even yourself?? Are they the type of memories you want to make?? I hope my boys look back and think longingly about my roasted purple cauliflower...I also hope they talk to their partners about our popcorn bowl...and how their daddy lovingly popped popcorn and shared it with them.
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