Recounting a great BlogHerFood 10 “aha” moment
If you enjoy reading about my journey and my Bubbe, here are more.
In March of 2010, I wrote a post called How Did Bubbe Bake It - Part 1, exploring a sketchy recipe I had written down capturing how my maternal grandmother baked a Jewish 3-sided cookie called a hamantaschen. In the post, I promised to write Part 2, exploring my grandmother’s undocumented recipe for a Jewish yeast bread called challah.
After attending BlogHerFood in San Francisco last weekend, I’ve decided to go backwards and write a prequel to that post, instead of part 2. I figure if it was a good enough strategy for George Lucas and Star Wars, maybe it’s an acceptable approach for me too.
Here’s why I’m starting at the beginning. I had a breakthrough at BlogHerFood during their Culinary Ambassador’s session. For some of you reading this post that are literate and well-versed in American history, my personal enlightenment may seem trivial and obvious, but for me it was an epiphany. My mother is one of six children in her family and not one of the six (4 girls, 2 boys) learned my grandmother’s fabulous baking skills or have a single recipe of hers written down. But my mother will tell you, at every opportunity, how food was the gathering point for her extended family and that despite the tiny size of their apartment, it was there that everyone gathered to socialize. Why? Because my grandmother’s baked creations (and savory) were impossibly delectable. So whether it was to break the fast after Yom Kippur or celebrate the New Year or mourn the loss of a relative, it was at their very humble abode in Brooklyn that everyone gathered. And even years later, after I was born and we would visit her in her even tinier apartment in Brooklyn, she would still have fresh, hot challah waiting for us when we arrived on Friday night. She continued baking, despite her very poor eyesight and incredibly small kitchen, until she was over 90 years old.
So I’ve always wondered: if food was so special and central to their family, how could a whole generation exclude themselves from learning to cook it? I found the answer during BlogHerFood’s session called Food Diplomats and Cuisine Ambassadors with Elaine Wu, Donna Pierce (BlackAmericaCooks.com), Laura Beck (Vegansaurus.com), and Srivalli Jetti (Cooking 4AllSeasons).
The big “aha” moment was when I asked the panel why my grandmother’s food traditions skipped a generation, explaining that my mother was born in 1929, the start of the depression. Donna Pierce immediately answered, explaining that my mother was a young housewife in the 50’s, the era when fast and pre-packaged foods were introduced. In the 50’s, women were encouraged to spend less time in the kitchen by using simple, prepared foods that were quick to the table and easy to clean up. My grandma’s challah did not fit that description.
Here are just a few of the paradigm-shifting food trends born in the 50’s that influenced my mother’s time in the kitchen:
- McDonald’s
- Duncan Hines Cake Mix
- Dunkin’ Donuts
- Swanson TV Dinners
- Burger King
- Casseroles made with condensed soups
So why would a housewife make her own soup, if she could buy it in a can cost-effectively (remember these were depression babies) and why slave over kneading fresh bread dough if Wonder Bread is available? (Wonder started selling pre-sliced, pre-packaged bread in 1930, smack dab in the middle of the depression.) And of course, why prepare a 3-course meal, when she could heat up a frozen dinner with a main course, vegetable, starch, and even dessert, all in one plate.
I even remember in the late 60’s, the big family treat was eating a frozen dinner in front of the TV on a TV tray watching Wizard of OZ when it was broadcast once a year. Nothing wrong with the Wizard of Oz part, but what’s up with the frozen dinner?
The good news is that while all these nasty, processed, prepared foods were being introduced to the mass market, some revolutionary food icons were coming on the scene to help counteract this trend. For example, in 1951, Julia Child opened up her cooking school L’Ecole des Tres Gourmandes with Louisette Bertholle and Simone Beck, in 1955 Thomas Keller and Michael Pollan were born, and in 1956 Bon Appetit magazine was introduced.
So while still today we continue to fight the strong influence of unhealthy, processed, prepared foods on the American diet (thanks EatingRules for taking on the processed issue), we also have this growing group of food bloggers as well as many other food icons that are espousing a myriad of alternative forms of eating that involve healthy, unprocessed, approachable methods of lovingly putting food back on the American dinner table. And I am so happy that I had the chance to put this historical view into perspective and clarify to myself why I feel so compelled to carry on a tradition that I so fear might whither away. And it was BlogHerFood that provided me with the venue to explore this part of my family food history and even to meet an old friend who is interested in exploring just the same thing with her grandmother’s recipes as well.
So a big thank you to BlogHer for gathering up such a great group of panelists, guest speakers, attendees, sponsors, and vendors to educate me and inspire me to pursue my passion to keep my Bubbe’s memory and traditions alive for my family, and many more generations of families to come.
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P.S. If you try this recipe, please leave a star rating and/or a review in the comment section below. I so appreciate your feedback! AND find more inspiration on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram. Signup for my email list, too!
chapmanjodi
This is such an interesting post, and I learned so much from you. I'm all about cooking a home-cooked meal from scratch. 🙂
nan @ lbddiaries
What an amazing post. My mom was born in 1923 and while we did eat those interesting Swanson's TV dinners, she was more apt to save the tin "plate" and make her own TV dinners. For some reason, she ended up making more meals from scratch than joining too much of the fast-food and pre-packaged trend as I was growing up. I guess it could be the influence of the Army (we moved a lot and she gathered recipes everywhere we went). Who knows? I LOVED this post because it brought back so many memories. I'm off to dig thru some of my mom's old cookbooks now. Thank you for the trip down memory lane!
omgyummy
Oh gosh - I just love your comment! So glad to hear I've motivated you to pull out those old cookbooks - that makes my day - possibly even my whole week! Love the part about using the tins to make her own dinners - great stuff.
Thanks for coming by! Keep those old cookbooks safe and well-used - they are so precious!
Jamie H
What an awesome post! I learned something today! Thanks for the history lesson. I never even thought about the introduction of prepared foods influencing family tradition recipes!
omgyummy
I hadn't either until that session at BlogHerFood - truly an AHA moment for me!
Aly ~ Cooking In Stilettos
Some seriously good food for thought and I get the skipping a generation when it comes to cooking skills. I have to say, my Bampa could cook like there was no tomorrow but both of my parents were "box mix" cooks. So, it's no surprise that when I started to cook, I cooked what I knew. However, over time, my skill-set grew and the less I utilized canned soup, etc. I will say that the more I learn about processed food and convenience, the less I want to have it in my house and cook from scratch.
omgyummy
Yes, through blogging, I have learned so much about processed food and it's negative affects and have become more inspired to cook from scratch, even if it's just fried eggs and toast. There's always something you can pull together right?
Christine @ Love, Life, Surf
A beautifully written post. I liked that you decided to do a prequel and this provides a rich history. Thank you for sharing.
omgyummy
I was so excited when I figured out there might be some logic to why all 6 kids didn't learn to bake that I just had to write about it. It was like getting a piece of the puzzle to fit.
Amy @ Counting My Kisses
Such a meaningful post! I loved reading all about your family history...and "Bubbe" is the best grandmother's name ever. 🙂
omgyummy
Thanks Amy! Glad you came by to visit with me and my Grandma 🙂
Tara @ secretsofamomaholic.com
I have to tell you- cannot get bubbe out of my head all day! Such a great name for Grandma...making me think of mine all day.
omgyummy
Isn't though? Goes so well with the matzo meal pancake she always used to make for me called a bubula! Glad it made you think of your Grandma - what could be better!
LifeAsModernWife
I share so many of the same sentiments - thanks for sharing your Bubbe's story 🙂
omgyummy
Thanks for the virtual visit all the way from Toronto!
MARIE COLE
Wow, that was really insightful and makes total sense...Glad you are picking up where your Bubbe left off.
omgyummy
I have a long way to go and boy do I wish I had all of her recipes! But I realize that the more I bake, the easier it gets and I love thinking of her!
Tara @ secretsofamomaholic.com
Love the bit of history implemented into this post....LOVE Challah french toast!
Louise Ducote
Goodness, that photo is priceless. Very interesting ideas, a little sad for the young women who missed out but nice that things have swung back the other way a bit. I make everything from scratch (including our bread), so convenience for me is quickly finding a recipe on a great food blog or cooking from a recipe on the iPad that hangs in my kitchen. Best of all worlds!
omgyummy
Wow - so nice to meet someone so committed to making food from scratch. I'm still fighting my convenience demons but at least recognize healthy choices from processed, unhealthy ones. It can be scary at the grocery store sometimes just watching what goes into some carts!
Isn't great to have technology to help us now? Instant answers, techniques, and creativity!
Sally
Hi! I came here from your comment at Casual Kitchen.
What a wonderful post! I'm one of the few people who grew up in the 1950s and 60s who ate out more than I ate at home. There were several reasons for this, but the biggest was that my parents were self-employed and generally worked 12-14 hours daily Monday-Saturday and often on Sunday, too. So, time was an issue, but I also think that my mom didn't enjoy cooking and/or just wasn't a very good cook. There were a few outstanding things that appeared occasionally, but overall I think I did better because we ate out! But even that was different then than now. Most of the food was "real food."
I never knew one of my grandmothers and remember very little about the other and cooking/food. The only thing I remember is that her kitchen was very tiny, had absolutely no counter space -- the kitchen table served that purpose. Also, she loved Tang!
Over the last 10 years or so I've been teaching my daughters about the necessity of cooking and eating real food. Even a simple meal of real food is preferable to a diet of convenience food.
Their grandfather (my former father-in-law) died earlier this year. They were shocked to learn that their grandmother has started eating nothing but frozen meals. So, their Christmas gift to her this year is a supply of homemade frozen meals. They're both making several meals (that make 3-4 servings each), portioning them and freezing them for her. With the exception of fresh vegetables or fruit, there will be nothing to add.
I was pleased to realize that they got the message and even more pleased that they're doing that for their grandmother.
omgyummy
What an interesting story! I am so glad to hear that your children realize the importance of home-made food and are doing such a wonderful thing for their grandmother. Interesting about you eating out in the 50s and 60s - sounds like for very good reason. We actually eat out quite a bit - I am a firm believer in making life as simple as possible and if that means a meal out or even "semi-homemade" sometimes, then so be it. Sanity above all else. But to learn to prepare and enjoy homemade food is like no other experience, I think. Especially the food that is handed down from generation to generation. It's the memories and stories that go with the food and the meals that are the best of all.
Georgia B.
What a wonderful picture of you and your Bubbe! And you know, it is not unheard of for skip-generational appreciation. Very often children don't appreciate what our parents have done in their lives and disregard the things they do as "old-fashioned" and/or "unnecessary." Well, that is, until they are gone. Then it is too late to hear all the good stories. For some reason, though, the previous generation is fascinating to us, maybe because they are so different (we think) from our own parents. I'm glad you had the chance to bake with your Bubbe and look forward to hearing about the challah.
Srivalli
Beth, what a moving post! Thank you for writing on this. I am so glad that you participated our panel and made us think so much on different aspects..:)..
Michelle
Excellent post! At my house we often discuss where and when our food habits went wrong - you've definitely hit the nail on the head. Convenience foods have nearly killed us, but we seem to be slowly emerging from that unhealthy trend and are getting back to homemade good-for-you foods at last.
Thanks for sharing with us. I look forward to reading more of your posts!
Peace,
Michelle 😉