♫ Ain't no cookin' like yo' mama's cookin'

My mama and my baby!


I need to note, before I get started, that a lot of these things in this blog are meant to be funny, (I kid, I kid!) but for the most part, it's nonfiction.

I love to cook. I adore cooking, but lately, not only is it hard to find the time to do the entire project (come onnnnn, we all know it's not about wham-bamming something together...the prep and clean up are HUGE chores), but I also hate that I don't own a recipe. I've borrowed hundreds, I've mastered several, I can follow a recipe and tweak it a bit and still have it turn out fine.

BUT...as the saying goes, there ain't no cookin', like yo' mama's cookin'. Mostly, I want to know, now that I'm a mom, when this saying kicks in!

Here's the thing...my mom came from a mom that can COOK. Obviously, most grandma's (if you're my age) grew up in the depression, and learned pretty quickly how to make masterpieces out of thin air and flower. I think as of late, or society has made cooking too simple...problem #1 for those of us that want to be infamous by our kids someday.

My mom then married a man from Minnesooooohta. If you know anything about the midwest, you know that any food made in the midwest is deep fried, slathered, and covered in cheese. So, my mastermind of a mama, combined what her brilliant mom taught her, with my daddy's cravings her grew up with, and mastered recipes! Those that have ever had her (or my) chicken enchiladas, beer cheese soup, lasagna, chicken & noodle soup with practically homemade noodles, breakfast anything, baked delights, etc....know I'm not kidding.

Here's where the joking comes in...IF my mom utters the words, "Come for a meal! I cleaned out the fridge today, added eggs, and call it garbage...it's really good!", OR, "I tried a new recipe on my pot roast, it's good this time!"...skip the invite. (I kid, I KID!)

My mama is a heckova cook, and I honestly can't wait until I inherit her gravy-making skills, her instinct to season when/where, her ability to know how slow to stir, and whatever else magic happens that makes ME a good cook, because I'm a mama too. Until then...I love you all for forwarding every one of your favorite recipes, for attempting my "new" recipes, and for laughing with me...when I kid, I KID!.

What's your favorite mama-dish?
Aside from the ones I listed above? My mom makes a killer bone soup. <---Not kidding.

Yours Truly,
Nomz

Comfort Food.

There are those days, the ones where you just can't do anything right; the dog pees and poops on the new carpet; your kids acts like h-e-double-hockey-sticks on wheels; your husband decides to leave you. Those days (or weeks, or months) call for some serious comfort food. Fast forward to my mama's house. It is a haven, a safe place from all the storms and nasty surprises the world hides like an ace card.

Remember that scene from Ratatouille, where the mean old food critic eats the dinner that Remy makes and he has a flash back of his childhood? It shows him with a scratched knee and he runs home to his mama who has his favorite meal prepared for him. It makes his pain go away. I've been sheltered these past few days with my mama. She has hugged me, cooked for me, cleaned up after me and dressed Mal for me. Nursing my wounds, you could call it. Even with all the love that I'm being seeped in, it would be far less effective without the comfort food she provides:

~ Spicy Potato Soup (a staple entree from my childhood)
~ Caramel Corn (made from scratch- secret family recipe)
~ Raisin Griddle Cakes
~ Butternut Squash Soup
~ Toast drizzled in olive oil and sprinkled with salt (this is amazing, if you've never tried it, DO)
~ Canadian bacon pizza with sour kraut (I can just imagine Nomz's eye twitching. Don't freak out. It is really yummy.)
~ Chai tea, pumpkin spice coffee

I swear, I'm living my own version of Eat, Pray Love. As if that lovin' ain't enough, she has me busy making snowmen snowflakes and any other craft that suits my fancy. It's a whole pantry of comfort food here and I feel that pain slowly, slowly turning into hope.

-Sazaran