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Recipes - Main & Side Dishes
Jeff Wrangler:
I still have a newspaper article from 1981 that discusses an article from the December 1897 issue of the Ladies' Home Journal about the perfect Christmas dinner. No mac and cheese, but the menu given includes deviled spaghetti.
(Of interest to me is that the turkey is described as "Roasted Turkey with Chestnut Filling." The interesting thing to me is the use of the word filling. "Where I come from," that's what people call it, not stuffing, and certainly not dressing. The article also seems to assume that Christmas dinner is a mid-day meal, as there is a directive not to have "a heavy supper" after Christmas dinner. On the contrary, one should have "a light repast" at 7:30; the author's idea of a light repast is bouillon with some sort of crackers, broiled oysters on toast, lemon jelly in scooped-out oranges, and sponge cake.)
Front-Ranger:
Interesting how the juxtaposition of food and the holidays reveals the complexity of our culture. Behind the question I asked about mac and cheese is the curiosity I have about changing food preferences. Certain foods, like m&c or lobster, rise and fall in popularity not just due to supply changes but also cultural, sociological, and even political (remember the discussion we were having about beer boycotts and country music last spring?) reasons.
All year I've been reading a fascinating (to me anyway) book titled A Revolution in Eating by James McWilliams. He starts with a chapter on the development of the cuisine of the West Indies and then another chapter on how the Pilgrims of New England developed their food and agriculture. The two areas formed extreme opposites in approach. Then, he discusses the Chesapeake Bay region and the Carolinas, which had approaches that were hybrids of the two extremes. I have yet to read about the Middle Colonies and the summation, which ties it all together. A brilliant book.
Jeff Wrangler:
Of course, macaroni and cheese, whether served as part of a holiday meal or otherwise, is inexpensive and filling (especially inexpensive if you buy the boxed store brand).
Before I learned how apparently widespread is the practice of having mac & cheese as a side dish at a holiday dinner, I had a theory of how that came to be, but that theory was both racist and classist, so I'll keep that to myself.
Front-Ranger:
Now here's a pasta and cheese dish that I would proudly serve during the holidays: Venetian Fiocchi! I had this at a local restaurant on Wednesday and am looking forward to making it myself. The little pasta "purses" are filled with a mild cheese and pear mixture, and are bathed in a light butter and sage sauce.
serious crayons:
--- Quote from: Jeff Wrangler on December 28, 2023, 05:12:48 pm ---I had a theory of how that came to be, but that theory was both racist and classist, so I'll keep that to myself.
--- End quote ---
Actually, I think your theory is correct, but I wouldn't call it "racist" or "classist" -- i.e., negative or critical. A quick google indicates what I suspected: that it's a custom in the South, and particularly in the Black community.
None of us here at the moment are from either. But I know I never heard of such a thing until I was at least in adulthood. Which of course is when I moved to the South, to a city with a mostly Black population. I don't have any clear memory of attending a New Orleans Thanksgiving dinner and suddenly seeing m&c, but I do think they occurred at around the same time.
I don't think it's racist any more than saying that matzo ball soup is a traditional Jewish cuisine is anti-Semitic. As for classist, most customs traditional in the Black community are going to come from poorer families almost by definition. And mac 'n' cheese, even if it's not boxed Kraft, is relatively inexpensive.
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