My kitchen smelled like memories this past weekend. \u00a0Apple kugel, cinnamon-raisin french toast drowning in maple syrup, roasted butternut squash, honey bbq chicken tenders. \u00a0It’s amazing, how much smells can bring back memories of my parents’ and my grandparents’ kitchens, and it’s times like this that I wish I had kids to pass these smells and recipes on to. \u00a0The good news is that my sister-in-law is doing just that for my nieces, so they won’t be forgotten.<\/p>\n
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Food is such a family thing, I’ve found. \u00a0Eating healthy hasn’t been as hard for me (although the gluten-free part has been a bit of a struggle – I love bread!) because my parents encouraged us to eat healthy. \u00a0I love me some ice cream (yes, there is a pint of Cherry Garcia in my freezer right now – I’m human!), but even more, now, I’m realizing how much I love things like a crisp apple from the fridge, or the natural sweetness of roasted butternut squash with cinnamon. \u00a0The bite of cheddar cheese with that apple. \u00a0Creamy peanut butter and apple butter on top of a rice cake. \u00a0Fresh popped popcorn, with fresh melted butter. \u00a0Homemade Chex Mix.<\/p>\n
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I eat these foods, and I remember: making Chex Mix, before a family holiday party at Gram’s. \u00a0Or getting to “try” the popcorn balls she always bought for Halloween. \u00a0Kugel for Christmas morning, if Mom had a chance to make it. \u00a0Or for breakfast out on the field, cold from being in the cooler, as we camped. \u00a0Apple picking when I was younger, and we’d take over an orchard. \u00a0(Four kids – trust me, we took it over). \u00a0Hulling strawberries for Mom after we picked in Uncle Charlie and Auntie Marion’s fields, so she could make strawberry jam.<\/p>\n
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I really didn’t know how to cook before I got married. \u00a0I didn’t need to – there are SO many good cooks in my family (including one pro! ) but once I was out on my own, I went the boxed route and realized very quickly that no, most things that come in a box are NOT food. \u00a0(I’m looking at you, macaroni and cheese. \u00a0Shudder) \u00a0So I learned. \u00a0And trust me, if I can learn to cook, you can too. \u00a0I was SO bad. \u00a0I burned water. \u00a0 And jello. \u00a0Seriously.<\/p>\n
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No real food plan this week. \u00a0I’m heading into a remicade treatment on Wednesday, so food is going to depend on what my tummy is up to. \u00a0 \u00a0I made sure to stock up on yogurt, nut butter, and rice cakes, and tuna fish. \u00a0Mild stuff, so my tummy doesn’t rebel too much on me. \u00a0We’ll see how it goes.<\/p>\n
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My kitchen smelled like memories this past weekend. \u00a0Apple kugel, cinnamon-raisin french toast drowning in maple syrup, roasted butternut squash, honey bbq chicken tenders. \u00a0It’s amazing, how much smells can bring back memories of my parents’ and my grandparents’ kitchens, and it’s times like this that I wish I had kids to pass these smells …<\/p>\n