Okay, so I must admit that I really don't know that much about food. I've never taken much time to stop and think about what I eat. For me food has always been a means of support to help you get through the day and nothing more. I must admit that I'm rather surprised that my palette is not more developed considering the amount of different foods I have been exposed to in my life. However I think I have my parents to thank for that. Even though my parents both grew up in families that have very different backgrounds and tastes, none of this diversity seems to make it's way into the kitchen. Instead they meet each other in the middle, and the result is nothing short of mediocre. I often feel the only way I get to experience any sort of new and exciting (or at least different) dishes is when I spend time with my relatives whose culinary skills exceed that of mere parents.
My dad is a Colorado native born and raised and my mom is from Vicksburg, Mississippi. I do find it a little ironic that I have a parent from the healthiest state in the union and a parent from the fattest state in the union. However my dad's side of the family probably wouldn't fall into the healthy majority of Coloradans. It seems like every party we go to there is some dish prepared which is completely and overly decadent. A strange obsession with Mexican food can be found throughout my family and it tends to dominate the menu at many of our parties. I'm always in luck here because my dad grew up in a house of seven children so it always seems like it's somebody's birthday or anniversary on top of all the other holidays that most people celebrate so I have a good chance of avoiding a simple home-cooked meal at least once or twice a month. This Christmas we went over to my Aunt's house where a Mexican Christmas feast awaited us. The table in the kitchen looked like it was about to collapse due to the amount of enchiladas, chimichangas, burritos, jalapeno poppers, tamales, taquitos, chile rellenos, carne asada, and other things piled on top of it. And of coarse there were also several different kinds of Salsa, Guac, and Queso with lots of chips to go with it. And for the downers who don't like the Mexican cuisine there were also the essentials of a regular Christmas feast. Such as turkey, ham, mashed potatoes and so on. The highlight for me however was the fruit salsa with cinnamon chips that my cousin made. I had never even heard of this dish before that night and I favored it throughout the evening often coming back for more. Usually for desert we have some kind of cake or pie (usually both) that my Aunt made from scratch, chalk full of all kinds of fruit and berries smothered with thick frosting. I'm so lucky I have a high metabolism.
One of the downers at this party would no doubt my mother. Who pretty much detests all that is hot and spicy. She hails from the great south where they prefer the tastes of creole and cajun cuisine like crawdads, crab, oysters, lots of shrimp and fish. Don't forget the gumbo, biscuits with gravy/honey, cornbread, catfish, tea with tons of sugar in it, and of coarse some delicious pecan pie. Which my great grandfather LOVED, his freezer was filled with nothing but bags upon bags of pecans. A lot of people I meet never seem to like fish but because of where my mom comes from I feel like I have more of an appreciation for seafood then a lot of my friends do. I think one of my favorite vacations was when me and my family went down to New Orleans. I remember loving the energy of the city and eating in restaurants by the side of the Mississippi River, and getting beignets at Cafe Du Monde. Ever since Katrina in 2005 we unfortunately haven't been able to go back down there for a while but I think a well overdue visit is in order. Sadly I don't get to see my relatives from this part of the country too often so I don't have as much to share about their ways in food but I'm very eager to find out more now that I think about it.
When we were first given this assignment I have to admit that I was at a loss. I've never really cooked before and since I still live at home I have not had a chance to face the trials of really having to learn to cook for myself. Writing this has really given me a wake up call that I should start to take cooking and food a little more seriously unless I want to live on Chipotle for the rest of my life. And while I find Chipotle quite delicious, I must admit that sounds quite dangerous to my health. My parents are two different people. In my house finding something to eat that we all agree on can be quite the task. Like any marriage you have to compromise and try to find something that everybody will like. I have never been a picky eater but it shocks me to see how picky my mom and my sister will be over something, it can be very crippling to one's palette. The moral of the story is that it's about time to take my own steps to figuring out what I like to eat and how to make it. Good thing I can probably take a cooking class next semester!
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