Welcome to the first edition of Sunday Sobremesa, a bimonthly thread to discuss food and culture while sipping on a cafe con leche (or pacharán1, if that’s more your style!).
Earlier in the week I read this excellent piece from Anne Byrn about the history of Jell-O salad and was reminded of my own childhood family reunions glistening and jiggling with various versions (always sweet, never savory, though!). It made me think a lot about celebrations and food traditions, and I’d love to hear your thoughts.
We all associate turkey with Thanksgiving, but what are some of your favorite lesser-known food traditions from your family or culture? Have you made any new traditions over the years as you’ve gone through life changes, such as moving or combining families? Excited to chat with you in the comments!
A Spanish liquor made from blackthorn berries, often served after a meal as a digestif liquer. It’s similar to sloe gin, but with a slight licorice flavor due to anise. I will always choose the cafe con leche (de avena).
What a wonderful theme for a thread! I often think about this very subject, especially because I come from a family where there were no culinary traditions at all. I've created my own while living abroad and now that I've settled down (or so it seems) and I'm experimenting with baking and cooking, I'm also enjoying testing recipes to add to my little repertoire. Some of those recipes: a wonderful walnut cake by Mimi Thorisson that I made endless times last autumn and winter, a savoury pumpkin & almond pie for lazy Sunday snacking, fig cookies as Christmas presents, and lemon curd tart to celebrate the beginning of spring... It warms my heart thinking I will be making them over and over again from now on. (Never heard of pacharan, thanks for sharing about it)
I imagine many of our childhood experiences revolving around food were similar given we are from the same family (LOL) but since I have moved to NY and married into a large Italian American family, I have been exposed to many new and interesting food traditions. One that fascinates me is “The Feast of the Seven Fishes” on Christmas Eve. It is a Catholic tradition that likely applies to more than just Italian Americans but this has been my only experience with it. It is so different from my childhood and experiences around Christmas but also so interesting to me!
I love this thread! We didn't have a ton of food traditions in our family. I've enjoyed making my own as an adult. Also, my mom and I were able to make some traditions together later in life. Every fall, we met at a cider mill where we started the day with hot cider and donuts. Then we picked pumpkins for our porches. We made Christmas cookies together every year. We made pierogies from scratch.
Sunday Sobremesa #1: Family food traditions
What a wonderful theme for a thread! I often think about this very subject, especially because I come from a family where there were no culinary traditions at all. I've created my own while living abroad and now that I've settled down (or so it seems) and I'm experimenting with baking and cooking, I'm also enjoying testing recipes to add to my little repertoire. Some of those recipes: a wonderful walnut cake by Mimi Thorisson that I made endless times last autumn and winter, a savoury pumpkin & almond pie for lazy Sunday snacking, fig cookies as Christmas presents, and lemon curd tart to celebrate the beginning of spring... It warms my heart thinking I will be making them over and over again from now on. (Never heard of pacharan, thanks for sharing about it)
I imagine many of our childhood experiences revolving around food were similar given we are from the same family (LOL) but since I have moved to NY and married into a large Italian American family, I have been exposed to many new and interesting food traditions. One that fascinates me is “The Feast of the Seven Fishes” on Christmas Eve. It is a Catholic tradition that likely applies to more than just Italian Americans but this has been my only experience with it. It is so different from my childhood and experiences around Christmas but also so interesting to me!
I love this thread! We didn't have a ton of food traditions in our family. I've enjoyed making my own as an adult. Also, my mom and I were able to make some traditions together later in life. Every fall, we met at a cider mill where we started the day with hot cider and donuts. Then we picked pumpkins for our porches. We made Christmas cookies together every year. We made pierogies from scratch.