Comfort Foods... What's Yours?

As my daughter and I were driving home from a football game this past week, I asked her what she wanted for dinner. It was one of those rare nights when my husband is out of town and it's up to me to put dinner on the table. Now, granted, I'm not a great cook, but I did learn a new dish this past summer that is delicious (thank you, Paula Dean), and I can put some tasty vegetables on the table, but my daughter knew just what she wanted.


"Red Noodle Soup," she said without an ounce of hesitation in her voice.


"Are you sure?" I asked. This would be pasta night #2 if we went with Red Noodle Soup.


"Yes," she replied. "Definitely."


When most people hear what the ingredients are for my family's own Red Noodle Soup recipe, they make faces. Sometimes they even vocalize their distaste with a "yuck." But for my daughter, Red Noodle Soup is comfort food. It's what we eat when her dad's away. It's a Saturday lunch. It's comfort.


It's what I ate as a kid -- probably because my mother had worked hard all day and didn't have the energy or the time to put a meal on the table. Perhaps it was all my sisters and I knew how to cook. At least it has seemed that way as I've gotten older and acknowledged, regretfully, my shortcomings in the kitchen.


And fortunately for my daughter, its three ingredients place it directly where it needs to be on the food pyramid. It's healthy. Really. It counts as a grain, it doubles as a powerful cancer-fighting antioxidant and fruit, and it's a dairy product.

• 3/4 of a box of sea shell noodles (too many and it doesn't leave enough sauce) Why sea shells? They hold the sauce in them like tiny cups. When you bite into a sea shell, you get to savor the flavor of the sauce as it seeps out. Preferred brand: Mueller's. (Yes, there's a difference).


• 1 16-ounce can of tomato sauce (it can't have oregano or basil or any other added ingredients... it can't be stewed tomatoes or anything resembling a jar of spaghetti sauce. Only tomato sauce. Plain.red.tomato.sauce. Preferred brand: Hunt's.
  
• A dollop (rather big) of butter or a butter-wanna-be.

I saw that! You scrunched up your nose and nearly said, "yuck." But I urge you to not turn your back on my daughter's comfort food unless you try it first.

Now, I certainly claim Red Noodle Soup as a comfort food, but for me, creamed potatoes rank at the top of my list. ... a side dish my mother always cooked for me when she knew I was going to be driving up for a visit. ... Not too creamy, though. Probably "mashed" is more like it. Just chunky enough to let me know that real potatoes were washed and peeled and cut and boiled and mashed... not some fake flakes packaged in a box.

So what's your comfort food? What do your children ask for when it's just you and them scraping together a quick dinner? I want to know... And, as you can guess, I can use a few recipes, too!

Feelings of Comfort

When Octamom wrote about feeling loved and cherished, it made me think of my own childhood and my life now with Hannah and her dad. The painting of my childhood is not as colorful nor as cheerful as hers, but there are memories I savor.

Of spending time with my grandmother whose love for fabric was woven into my layers, yet in the form of papers and fibers. Of playing Barbies with my sister, who may have been a little too old and definitely a little bored with the idea, but played anyway. Of the same sister slipping me extra money on Friday nights when I went to the skating rink, so I could eat or play games while I was there. Of drifting into other worlds and other people's lives through the books and stories I read as a child. That was a safe haven for me.

And while my childhood memories may have been fraught with more anxiety than comfort, I am blessed and I do feel loved and cherished now. And it's the simple acts that really wrap me up cozily in this feeling of comfort. Having my breakfast warm and ready as I walk out the door each morning for school. And the packed lunchbag tucked under my arm. I'm always delighted and surprised to see what my husband has chosen or prepared for me. Dinners created, flowers given, and those cards! Not much of a talker, my husband can write three or four words that are just perfect. Words that sum up his feelings in a way that would take me 100 or 200 words to do.

It's not even the actions that give me total comfort. It's just being here. In this home with this family of mine. It's lazy Saturdays when I can clean or create. It's the smell of dinner cooking or the fresh just-showered smell that lingers in the bathroom after one of us has showered. It's feeling safe even when alone. It's the comfort of our dog, Scout, as he curls up next to me... all 70 pounds! It's being snuggled up with Hannah while we look at magazines, read, or watch something on TV together. Or just talk. It's drinking a cup of hot chocolate and then dozing off to sleep and waking to find a warm afghan over me.

Sadly, my childhood is probably typical for many of the children I teach. For all those children who don't feel cherished and loved, there is hope and a prayer... that their lives will also be blessed and rich in abundant love.