The Heirloom Pan: January 2011

Friday, January 7, 2011

'Tis The Season To Enjoy Life

Winter Happenings:

This year I had the opportunity to visit with two different families over the holidays. I spent Christmas in Roselle, New Jersey and New Year's in Hockessin, Delaware. It was great to get away from Philadelphia and visit some really good friends for a change. The highlight of my winter break was starting a family oral history project, having really amazing food and making new discoveries such as:

Creamed onions, which I actually had a hand in making
Eggless, Milkless, Butterless Cake
Wild Rice Salad
Freshly pounded pomegranate juice, which I used to make sangria
The cookbook Spoonbread and Strawberry Wine
Simon Pearce

I had the opportunity to be in the kitchen with other people who love to cook and have as much passion for food as I do. It was such a great experience that I resolved to spend more time cooking with other people in the new year. I have also resolved to spend more time enjoying the simple pleasures in life.

2010 was not my favorite year, by far. I had a lot of ups and downs mostly due to living in Philadelphia. However, I managed to remain optimistic and hopeful. The new year will be spent enjoying life and cooking even more. To anyone reading this, a joyous Happy New Year to you and yours!

More about me...

I grew up in the rolling hills of North Mississippi with four large garden plots directly adjacent to my home. I spent my summers sowing fields, eating fresh, homegrown produce, and steering clear of indigenous reptiles.

My first food memory is shelling purple hull peas with purple-stained fingers at our kitchen table, and most of the early part of my life revolved around food. As a family, we farmed the land. We hunted the woods. We fished the lakes. We raised our own pigs. We foraged the native foods that grew wild around us (such as blackberries, plums, muscadines, and poke salad). Quite naturally, we also did a lot of cooking. So, it's no surprise that I take the Virginia Wolfe approach to life: "one cannot think well, love well, sleep well unless one has dined well."

At age 23, I became pesceterian. Some people tell me, I've lost my southern roots. I find that absurdity pretty funny. I find solace in my buttery, delicious cornbread muffins. As I strive to live healthier and continue to expand my culinary repertoire, I build on the history and traditions that have brought me and sustained me thus far.