Kate Wing's Blog
What we think about when we think about food
November 26, 2007
Posted by Kate Wing in Living Sustainably
The unity of Thanksgiving makes it one of my favorite holidays. It's the one day when everyone in the U.S., regardless of religion or background, does essentially the same thing. More people celebrate Thanksgiving than vote, after all, and I like having a whole day where we all take time to think about food.
We had 23 people gathered in an SF apartment, with food from near and far. The turkeys were free range, but flown in from a turkey farm owned by the brother of a guest. B. & K. brought the far-flung sounding Thai welcome snacks, but they'd grown the peppers and sauce ingredients in their Palo Alto backyard. The squash in the butternut squash soup were local, while the chocolate in the cake certainly was not. The turkey cooked in the empty apartment next door had jazz music playing and regular visits, lest it feel unappreciated. We'd meticulously worked out who was bringing what beforehand on the official Thanksgiving spreadsheet and some of the tastiest surprises were dishes prepared not by our known culinary genius friends (see the aforementioned sauce) but from folks who we thought used their ovens just for storage.
We savored that meal for hours, until the host/DJ coaxed us from our chairs. Later that weekend, I listened to Jonathan Gold, the LA food writer, talk about eating a live prawn on an old episode of This American Life. How being aware of what you eat matters, not just to what you are eating, plant or animal, but to your appreciation of a flavor, the composition of a meal, the fact that you are able to eat at all. Billy Collins was thinking about eating a fish, how his meal:
was graced not only with chilled wine
and lemon slices but with compassion and sorrow
Giving food is such a primal gift, an offer to share a basic need out of generosity or kindness or a sense of plenty. There's no lack of research on the connection between food and emotions, and having a grandmother who was a home economics professor I am bound by that chain as well. When I moved to California and lost my ability to make her pie crusts, I felt adrift in this strange country of oddly shaped butter (east coast butter = long sticks, California butter = short, fat sticks). Note to other transplants: don't be afraid to use a little more water. Pie crusts know when you're afraid.
So, when we talk about eating local, or organic, or fair trade, we're not just talking about apples and coffee. We're talking about your relationships with your family, how you spend your free time, and a world of feelings beyond any USDA certification process. Changing those habits is a lot to chew on, so you can start small. Pick one dish and make it with care. Get organic marshmallows for the sweet potatoes (those square ones are really tasty). Have someone over to eat it with you. Maybe your neighbor, in case you need his oven for next year's Thanksgiving.
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Comments
j lightner — Nov 26 2007 09:20 PM
For what it's worth, pie crust-wise or otherwise, Organic Valley butter sticks are longer and thinner than the regional brands.
Along with adding the extra water, shouting theats at the pie is always a good idea. Especially if the neighbors have already let you into their kitchen.