Monthly Archives: November 2016

Family Traditions

I am feeling nostalgic about my mother’s Thanksgiving stuffing — not necessarily in a good way.

Nothing lights up Facebook faster than a “Do You Remember?” post like this: “Name something that your mother/grandmother cooked that was your favorite.” I’m one of nine children (and seven of us keep in touch regularly on Facebook). Throw a question like that out into the universe and the memories fly.

My poor mother, now gone a year, worked miracles feeding a family of 11 on my dad’s salary. Lots of potatoes with traces of meat.  The Facebook memories included her pork chop casserole (hated it); stuffed peppers (edible); her stuffing (a mush of sage, stale bread and celery, hated it, too); her baked beans (never tasted them); and, alas, a bizarre concoction of ground beef and watery gravy she called “Collops.” Turns out that it’s actually a real Scottish recipe, one that Allrecipes.com calls “a delicious way to stretch ground beef.” Not the way my mother made it (although my brother Jim would disagree with me). I always tried to get an invite to my girlfriend Joanie’s house on nights that Collops were on the menu.

As Mom got older and was unable to cook, she lamented that she missed her own cooking. A few of us would try to replicate her recipes (although nothing had been written down) and bring her dinner. She scoffed when Jim had the audacity to add parsnips to her beef stew. She was annoyed that I undercooked the vegetables. She possessed a sharp palate that detected spices she had never used. Garlic in her spaghetti sauce? Impossible.

Now that she’s gone, a conversation about her cooking congers up the happy memory of a massive, round kitchen table with each of us in a strategically assigned seat designed to keep potential outbreaks of wrestling or elbowing at bay for 30 minutes each evening. Food memories are so strong. We can smell the aroma and nearly taste the food, or gag again if that’s what we did on that particular evening.

Thanksgiving is around the corner, your sons and daughters will be coming home to you. Remember that home-cooked food at Thanksgiving is about tradition, comfort and family. Want to conjure up happy memories? Prepare a home-cooked feast your returning college student couldn’t get in the finest restaurant!

Here on campus we recognize that just about now students are longing for their parents’ home-cooking, that very same cooking that they turned their noses up at a few short months ago. With this in mind, the University hosted a “Taste of Home” dinner on November 17, featuring out-of-state regional recipes. Students submitted suggestions for Gourmet Dining Services to cook that evening. It was a fun way to allay home-sickness and remind each other of the diversity of our backgrounds.

We are an empty nest at my house now. Our youngest lives nearby and comes home for dinner on Thursday evenings (along with one or two baskets of laundry). He’s not looking for Chinese take-out or a fancy roast, he asks for our pot roast, beef stew or chili. Home cooking a la Gottlieb — comfort food.

I’ve never had much interest in cooking and I have no illusions about my talents in that regard. I’m sure that our three children in decades to come will poke fun at mom’s meatloaf, dad’s noodles in a cup and my special interpretation of “chicken fish,” (don’t ask!).

My sister Peg always says, “Food is Love.”  Enjoy your children around your Thanksgiving table this year and pay no attention when they gag at Grandma’s turnip recipe. Trust me, even if it never makes it past their lips, it will be a part of the family food lore forever. Happy Thanksgiving!