Whenever I reach for the tin of family recipes, I think of the relationship of food and family. Each culture has a unique cuisine, and families are no different.
Why do we eat green bean casserole? Because it’s good or nutritious? No. We eat green bean casserole to honor our grandmother who fed three children, a husband and herself on a shoestring budget.
We prepare pierogie from scratch to remind us of our family’s origins in Poland.
When far-flung families are reunited, these are the dishes they prepare. When the childen are brought to the stove for the first time, this what they learn to cook.
This is where we come from. This is who we honor. This is why we all have a tin of recipes in a cabinet.
I ought to make a formal collection.
