I Made Your Favorite

Holidays are made for good memories. They are baked and cooked then.

I was lucky enough to grow up with two complete sets of grandparents. And to me, they were just that: grand (except for very minor peculiarities, but loving and understanding those is what family is for).

They knew the world about everything and had great style, could fix anything, could talk to animals, had fascinating stories about exotic places they had been and interesting people they had met, listened to all my childhood stories and worries with never-ending attention, knew how to grow delicious vegetables and fruits, and so much more. Spending my childhood summers with them was amazing

Unfortunately, time has faded many fond memories of these four people. However, one remains very clear. I think it may be because I have told others about them as a source of my own inspiration. As might be expected in this context, the memory involves food.

You see, my grandparents did not all live close to us. So we frequently had to undertake extended journeys by car to visit them.

I do not like to remember the trips themselves. Since I have a very sensitive stomach, many of the stops along the way got to know me on a rather personal level, if you know what I mean.

But as soon as we arrived, everything was forgotten. My grandmother would hug me, smile at me, and whisper in my ear: “I made your favorite.” Which in those days meant the most delicious asparagus (fresh from the field) with butter, young potatoes and a delicious pot roast with a thick brown sauce. All made by hand with a true passion for good food.

Today, when I cook for friends or family, I sometimes think of my grandmother. And I hope that my people can taste what I could taste in her food: that I really care about them.

My grandmother would hug me, smile at me, and whisper in my ear: “I made your favorite.”

Side Notes:

• There is no more common pot roast on any of our family occasions these days (or at home with us). There are some members of the family, who eat meat or poultry, but only in modest quantities. We all still love to cook though. And a good gravy – not from roasting meat, but from browning vegetables today – is still highly regarded.
• More stories on the background of recipes: [Unfamiliarities], [Hoppidge on Tour], [The Good Greens], [Quite a Handful], [Flying Lessons: ‘I’ll just wing it!], [Deep in Broth], [Pulp Friction], [The Cheese of Change]