You may not know this about me, but I was born in England. I moved to the US with my family when I was in the 8th grade, and have lived here in Michigan ever since.
Now that I'm an adult (ha!) and have my own home, and (someday) will have my own kids, it's becoming increasingly important to me that I retain that part of my identity, the BRIT in me, and I think the main way to do that is through traditions.
(Random -- I promise you that as my Mum reads the above paragraph she will break out in the song "Tradition" from the musical "Fiddler on the Roof" -- she's cool like that.)
Anyhow, back to business!
I think one of the greatest ways we keep traditions is through food. How many family gatherings do you remember simply by what you ate? To cook a great meal for someone is truly a sign of love and family.
So... I'm adding a new series of posts to my blog titled "THE BRITISH INVASION" where I share my adventures in re-creating some traditional Britsh recipes. Some of the recipes I will get from my Mum, and friends still in the UK, and some will come from Delia.
Don't know Delia? She's kind of England's Julia Child, and I remember seeing her recipe books in my Mum's kitchen since I was a little girl. It just so happens I got Delia's basic book for Christmas...
Now I'm not going all "Julie & Julia" on you here, I'm not going to cook my way through the entire book and blog about it. I'm just going to pick and choose some staples that I'd like to perfect and cook for my family some day. Sound fair?
I'll be kicking this project off next week with the help of my Mum and my English BFF Claire. I'll be creating a link in my sidebar that will have all of my BRITISH INVASION posts listed. Fun, right?!
Until then... tell me about a favorite family recipe of yours? And why it's so special to you? I'd love to hear all about it in the comments section below!
7 comments:
Now tell us, do you still have any of your British accent left at all?
Do you care for Pimms?
Good for you! My grandmother was from the UK and my family (the part that's here- we still have family there) hasn't kept any of those traditions.
I dropped by my Mom's house over the weekend and she had homemade mac n' cheese in the oven.... YUM! It's a recipe that my grandmother made and I love it. Homemade mac is something I would never make for dinner (since we are trying to eat healthier) but it was fantastic to smell- and have a little taste of when I was home.
I love that my family is not the only family that breaks out into Fiddler on the Roof anytime someone says the word Tradition!
Well that's wonderful! I'm French in my heart, but American by birth and status. But seriously, I have never figured out how such a European soul as mine could have been born in the US! I think it's lovely of you to keep your traditions alive. My family didn't have very many traditions when I was growing up, but I've created many for my children (related to food, especially). On Sunday mornings we always have omelets (and "dad" makes them). On Halloween we always make a big pot of veggie chili and a crock-pot full of wassail. I make the same elaborate Christmas candies every year (homemade caramel and truffles). Things like that. I have put together a little cookbook with all of our regular family dinner recipes so that when my boys go to college (and beyond) they'll be able to recreate our family favorites. Not sure how well their future wives will like that, but we can't think of such things yet!
French Picnic loves tradition!
Saucy - no accent left. When you move across the ocean at age 12 the last thing you want to do is stick out, so I lost it pretty fast. My parents still have theirs! As for Pimms, at the tender age of 12 I had not explored anything alcoholic yet - but sure should get my hands on some now and give it a whirl!
Meg - Your grandmother was from the UK? Yet another commonality between the two of us!
Lorie - Yay! I'm not the only one!
Marie - Those sound like wonderful traditions! Good for you!
hello m'dear! greetings from Cornwall xxxx lots of lovely English recipes for you to try on my blog, I love the bits and bobs that you make xxxx
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