Favorite Meal

Hello my Foodie Friends! Hey, Johnny or Aubrey’s Dad or Mr. Paula (these are my names now), what is your favorite meal to cook? I get asked this everyday and my answer is boring because I think of the best meal I ever made. It was about 17 years ago and we had just moved here from Connecticut. Paula had been away for about two weeks because of her job and it was the first time that we had been apart for that long. The kids were missing her and so was I. Paula is the organizer and an overall wonder woman so being without her was a challenge. I tried to think of meal I could cook for her that would be delicious but more important remind her of the closeness of her family. Of course, I made a thanksgiving dinner in July. I called the greatest chef alive (my mom) to help me with every detail. My mom was not feeling too well and she said I made her day! She stayed on the phone with me the whole way. You know the phone with the 25-foot extension cord so I could walk everywhere and get tangled up in? She was excited to lend a hand and help me surprise my wife. She calmly talked me through every part of the meal the way she would have done it. She was missing us and wanted to come here from Connecticut to see our new house in person but had to wait until she felt better. My Mom even recruited my older sister to help with dessert. Remember when you have three people at once talking on the phone? The two of them even managed to tell me I was screwing it up a few times! They were in another state how did they know? I know that a Turkey dinner is not Chicken ala vodka or Pheasant under glass but it was perfect for a weary wife and mom who missed her family. Mom and big sister were so helpful that the end result was that Paula was blown away. Johnny and Aubrey helped too; they untangled the phone cord which as you know had to be done about once a week. We lost my mom two months later but I have a fond memory of her laughing and contributing. Remember my friends, it’s not always the sexy named meals that are the best it’s as Mom used to say “It’s the little things that matter John” and that’s why: “Life happens in the kitchen.” Take care, John and Paula