Food is not just food.
Food is nourishment. It is needed to make it through the day without passing out. Food is… fuel. At one point maybe, that’s all food was, something to keep you alive and well. But now, it has turned into so much more.
My family has always been a Saturday morning breakfast family. With everyone’s busy schedule, it seemed the one time the five of us would get together would be at Saturday morning breakfast. Usually this breakfast began at 9am with my mom banging around in the kitchen. Then I would hear the bacon and sausage begin to sizzle, and the smell would spread throughout the house. This got me out of bed. I went down to the kitchen and helped my mom mix the eggs and the first layer of cheese. Then we mixed the pancake batter and I made those until the batter was gone. The oven was set on broil and we put the pancakes in there to keep them warm, with the slightest bit of butter on each one. Once the pancakes were done, and the sausages and bacon were just about done too (we always cooked those slowly), we made the eggs.
Cheesy eggs became the centerpiece of our weekend gathering. When I was little, it was always a treat to get cheesy eggs. I thought my mom was a magician, because the first time I had cheesy eggs, my mom made them. My friends’ parents never made them the right way. Every time they made their version of 'eggs with cheese', it was an unsatisfying experience. No, they are not scrambled eggs with a piece of yellow American cheese on top of them. I would think. I didn't know what cheesy eggs were, except delicious. Now I know that they are eggs with cheese mixed into them along with some whole milk.
When the cheesy eggs were ready, we made plates and set them out. The extra eggs, sausage, bacon, and pancakes were set in the middle of the table with the ketchup, syrup and butter. My brothers were usually downstairs at this point as well- cooking bacon is the best way to wake people up. We each got one large glass of milk and one smaller glass of orange juice. We were all gathered around the feast, in pajamas with wild hair and hungry eyes. With one look at each other, we would dig in. The delicious food promoted conversation as my family slowly woke up. We were not just sitting near each other, we sat with each other, laughing and talking over some excellent food.
Food is so much more than food. Food is something that brings families together. Food creates memories. Food is connected to holidays in our culture. Mainly, it is a common ground among different cultures. We can learn about others through what type of food they eat, and they can learn about us through our own food habits. Food has grown beyond just being nourishment, it has transformed into an important daily social reality.
My family has always been a Saturday morning breakfast family. With everyone’s busy schedule, it seemed the one time the five of us would get together would be at Saturday morning breakfast. Usually this breakfast began at 9am with my mom banging around in the kitchen. Then I would hear the bacon and sausage begin to sizzle, and the smell would spread throughout the house. This got me out of bed. I went down to the kitchen and helped my mom mix the eggs and the first layer of cheese. Then we mixed the pancake batter and I made those until the batter was gone. The oven was set on broil and we put the pancakes in there to keep them warm, with the slightest bit of butter on each one. Once the pancakes were done, and the sausages and bacon were just about done too (we always cooked those slowly), we made the eggs.
Cheesy eggs became the centerpiece of our weekend gathering. When I was little, it was always a treat to get cheesy eggs. I thought my mom was a magician, because the first time I had cheesy eggs, my mom made them. My friends’ parents never made them the right way. Every time they made their version of 'eggs with cheese', it was an unsatisfying experience. No, they are not scrambled eggs with a piece of yellow American cheese on top of them. I would think. I didn't know what cheesy eggs were, except delicious. Now I know that they are eggs with cheese mixed into them along with some whole milk.
When the cheesy eggs were ready, we made plates and set them out. The extra eggs, sausage, bacon, and pancakes were set in the middle of the table with the ketchup, syrup and butter. My brothers were usually downstairs at this point as well- cooking bacon is the best way to wake people up. We each got one large glass of milk and one smaller glass of orange juice. We were all gathered around the feast, in pajamas with wild hair and hungry eyes. With one look at each other, we would dig in. The delicious food promoted conversation as my family slowly woke up. We were not just sitting near each other, we sat with each other, laughing and talking over some excellent food.
Food is so much more than food. Food is something that brings families together. Food creates memories. Food is connected to holidays in our culture. Mainly, it is a common ground among different cultures. We can learn about others through what type of food they eat, and they can learn about us through our own food habits. Food has grown beyond just being nourishment, it has transformed into an important daily social reality.