Stories Served Around The Table
take a seat, eat something and join in
I was not familiar with rhubarb. My mom never ventured with the tart and fibrous vegetable that needed an abundance of sugar and fuss. I discovered rhubarb from my mother-in-law, Helga Martin. She grew it! There was a big cluster of the purply red stalks growing happily on the edge of her garden. She planted one… Continue reading R Is For Rhubarb
Q was a challenge. I’ll apologize in advance for the overuse of adjectives and subliminal imagery. Remember the book Real Men Don’t Eat Quiche? It was a tongue-in-cheek satire masculine stereotypes. I have baked and eaten many quiches. I believe it is a delicious metaphor for the perfect man. First off, there is the pie… Continue reading Q is For Quiche
Pastina is a tiny star shaped pasta. It is cooked like rice whereby boiled water soaks into the pasta creating plump creamy stars. Add butter and a splash of milk, stir, and a perfect baby to granny lunch is ready. I had always known pastina to be a pantry staple. My favorite memory of pastina… Continue reading P Is For Pastina
Cancer reoccurred in 2012. I was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer—a forever battle. It was a scary time for my family and me. There was so much uncertainty. Everyone coped in their own way. My youngest daughter, Robyn, needed to take a walk. She took off for Spain to hike the Camino de Santiago, an… Continue reading O Is For Octopus
N got tricky. I had a hard time coming up with a food memory that began with N. Perhaps I was starting to feel fatigued with this Blogging A to Z Challenge. I was prying open pistachio shells pondering the work it takes to get to the meat of a nut. Ah—I was taken back… Continue reading N is for Nuts
Sundays were always macaroni and meatball days. Mom would start the sauce first thing in the morning. She claimed that my little brother wouldn't know the next day was Monday if he didn't have macaroni and meatballs on Sunday. When I was a young kid, Sundays were spent in Brooklyn at my grandma's. Grandma worked… Continue reading M Is For A Meatball On A Fork
My best lobster story was during my first pregnancy. I was the first one pregnant in my friend circle. No one knew what to expect from a pregnant friend, so I got to make up a few demands—err cravings. At that time, two of my good friends were scuba diving regularly around the old shipwrecks… Continue reading L Is For Lobster
Do you remember the Meat Boycott of 1973? It was primarily organized by women’s groups protesting the rising cost of food. Meat, in particular, had skyrocketed along with oil and gasoline prices. In the metropolitan New York and suburban Long Island areas there were a number of rallies and protests. The boycott was scheduled for a… Continue reading K is For Kidneys
To be accurate, Jell-O is a brand name for the sugar and food dyed gelatin in a box. Jell-O was offered when I was sick and accompanied tea with honey. Consequently, the food association was not positive. Even sugar-free, zero calories, free food Jell-O is avoided when on a strict diet. ******* It was another… Continue reading J Is For Jell-O
When I was a brand new mom, I enjoyed bringing my one baby girl, Sara, to Walbaums for a morning of grocery shopping. I'd tucked infant Sara into a front knapsack carrier and easily push a shopping cart up and down the familiar aisles. When she grew out of the carrier, I lined the shopping cart with… Continue reading I Is for Italian Bread
