Tea with Nigella

Yes, that is Imelda and I... at the Ritz Carlton... having tea with Nigella Lawson... She spoke beautifully about love, loss and food... Food and memory of family was the over all theme of her discussion. In particular, how do you create those kinds of memories in your own family when we all lead such busy lives. She described some of her favorite foods from childhood and from her family now and how she manages to keep it all going...

Pointing out that three pre-early teenage kids inevitable means extra mouths to feed, I had to laugh as I recalled the day my girls brought six, yes, SIX girls over for an inpromptu sleepover... Since her children are the same ages as mine, I definitely felt a connection to her. Maybe it is what connects all mothers, or women in general.

She lamented how television and chefs have complicated cooking making it look so precise and complicated when in fact, it can be as simple or as complex as you wish to make your meal.... When told by an editor that she needed to list the amount of parsley that the dish she was writing about should be sprinkled with, she described being completely perplexed. How should SHE know how much parsley the reader at home wants to use. And that is part and parcel what I like about her. It doesn't have to be complicated, nor should it be.

She told a story about coming home at the end and literally wanting to cry at the thought of chopping onions... so she used scallions... just because they are so much easier to chop up. Also she pointed out that when you are hungry at home and want nothing more than roast chicken and mashed potatoes, the last thing you want to see on your plate is eggplant stack. And you know what? She is absolutely correct.

The things that she tends to worry more about are the freshness of the ingredients that she uses when cooking. She will try to use organic if it is available but only worries overly when it comes to eggs and milk as there has sadly been too much cancer in her family. Other than that, she claims to buy her food from the people that know it best. Meat comes from the butcher, fish from the fishmonger... All things that I feel strongly about myself. So I can't argue there...

Cooking at home should be about feeding your family and creating memories together.

I know that Imelda and I won't forget this experience....