What I do have, however is something of a retrospective. With the 20 year reunion of my high school graduation (yes, I AM that old) only weeks away and getting in touch with people I haven't spoken to or seen in that length of time has got me doing some serious self inventory. I know it's not really the point of this blog, but I promise to include some food related things...:)
Looking back, I've been thinking about my earliest food memories and probably the first food memory I can think of is learning to make crepes with my grandparents when I was about 6 or 7 years old. My grandmother - who did all the cooking - taught me how to mix the batter with a hand mixer and how to adjust the consistency of the batter until it was just right. My grandfather, who was always the one who liked joking around, was the one who taught me how to flip the crepes by shaking them to the edge of the pan and giving a sharp flick with my wrist. I'm sure many of them ended up on the floor, but it was a lot of fun learning. I still make crepes the same way (except with an electric mixer) and remember my grandparents and their kitchen each time I do.
Experimenting with food was also a significant part of my childhood, as I'm sure it was with many kids. Making crazy combinations of ingredients for a sandwich or proving I could eat the grossest things was a common theme as a teen. Ice Cream with Tomato Sauce anyone?
My strongest food memories are always those that involve other people and often the strongest memories of certain people have to do with food (or drinks) we shared. With Christmas right around the corner, I think back to all the huge gatherings that are a staple of that time of year. I am part of a very large extended family, with my parents having 6 or 7 siblings each. This makes for a lot of cousins - about 50 or so at last count.
For several years running, one of my dad's sisters and her husband would host a big family get together with an enormous spread of food. Seafood, roasts, salads, cakes, and of course copious amounts of alcohol. They were a great chance to catch up with members of the family that I almost never got to see at other times of the year and we would talk and laugh and reminisce until late into the night and continue relationships from right where we left off the previous year without missing a beat. Everyone understood that there were constraints on people's time and that it wasn't always possible to see each other often, but we made the most of the time we had and relished each others company and the brief time we had knowing we might not see each other again for another year.
Later, I remember our Christmas gatherings got a bit smaller as many of us who were teenagers eventually turned 18 and got our licenses and had other commitments and party invitations which at the time seemed more important, but it wasn't long before I started to miss those family feasts.
For several years at Christmas, we would open the doors of our house to friends who didn't have plans for that day, either because they lived far away from the rest of their family or because they had nowhere else to go that day (or maybe after the first time we did it, they heard about it and wanted to come...) and my parents would put on an impressive spread of food and we would spend a day sharing and enjoying the company of others and remembering what Christmas was all about.
In fact it wasn't just on special occasions that this happened, our house was always full of visitors and my parents were always welcoming. They opened the doors of their house (and their fridge) to a long line of friends of mine and my two brothers when we would show up at any hour of the day or night with groups of people in tow and they would almost never complain. Except for the noise when they were trying to sleep...:)
I guess that the example of my parents was very significant in the way I feel about hospitality and I like to think that in many ways I show that same spirit of acceptance, sharing and love that they taught me through their actions even though I probably show it in a different way.
In the last few years, I started getting a lot more serious about food and cooking and have made some effort to revive the traditions that I grew up with. Christmas is a big deal at our house and I start thinking about it months ahead of time. I always try to make it a big deal, not just for myself, but for family and friends. I hate to do a post without pictures, so I've included a couple of shots of some of the finger food I made last Christmas.
Mini salads served in garlic croutons
Mini pizzas with Olive Tapenade, Caramelised Onion and Goat's Cheese.
The relationships I have with other people are the reason I am who I am. Of those people who I hope will one day read this post, some of you have been lifelong friends, some I have reconnected with after a long time and some are new friends, but you are all part of who I am today. I guess in a lot of ways I like to cook for people because I feel that it shows that I care about them, that they are important to me and that I want to do something special for them because they are a significant part of my life.
I'm sure some of you will think this was a bit sappy, in fact I just re-read it and even I think so, but hopefully I've done what I wanted to do which is explain a little about why I feel the way I do about cooking.
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Duncan these are beautiful reflections and I am so glad I saw this post. Thanks for sharing your memories, that means a great deal.
ReplyDeleteWe enjoyed offering hospitality to our and your friends, always. No matter how much or what kind of food you have, sharing it with those you love makes it much more enjoyable. We learned this from our parents and although they were poor they shared what they had. Our house was open to all and it is lovely to see that you value this kind of hospitality.
Remind me to tell you a story about the 'flying frypan' in your grandparents kitchen.