When I first thought about writing on this subject, I was worried that I would not find enough to say. However, having thought about it I realise that we are constantly referring to things from the past. In fact, as children that is how we learn, recognising an item or a sound that we have learned. As adults it is different, a sight or sound can immediately transport us to a previous place or time.
I remember that when I moved from Extremadura to Almería, there were lots of such occurrences, specifically in relation to cuisine and customs. In Extremadura one of my favourite tapas or starters was migas. There the dish is created by cubing day old bread and adding it to a frying pan that has cubes of chorizo gently cooking and exuding its colourful juices. The bread cubes soak up the juice and become red as well. Then garlic and sometimes chopped peppers are added, and often it is served with a fried egg on top.
The first time I saw migas on the menu in Almería I was immediately transported to a restaurant in Cáceres. I could see in my mind’s eye the décor, the wooden beams, the wooden tables and chairs, hear the noise of the other diners, and remember the gorgeous smell of the fried chorizo. It was often served in Extremadura in the winter months, and so it is in Almería, often being prepared in local Spanish restaurants on the (fortunately seldom) rainy days. Unfortunately, I was somewhat disappointed as Migas Almerienses is totally different, and prepared in a different way according to which restaurant you are in. The one I happened to be in the first time I tried the dish down south served a plate of fried breadcrumbs with a fried pepper (whole) and a sardine! Such a difference, and to me, such a disappointment!
However, the longest mind travel timewise occurred when I made my first Christmas pudding, in the kitchen here in Antas. My mind was whisked back to the kitchen of my grandmother, who was making the Christmas pudding that day. My mother and I were with her for the sole purpose of getting the recipe and keeping it for posterity, as my grandmother´s Christmas pudding was the most delicious, darkest pudding that I have ever eaten. On that day I had paper and pen to make notes, and my mother was trying to get my grandmother to say how much of each ingredient she was putting in, and to please slow down while I made a note. It was futile, Nanny just shrugged her shoulders and said she didn´t know how much she put in, she just added the ingredients, without weighing them, just by knowing from doing it so many years that it was right. We did our best, but it was never the same as Nanny´s, hers was unbeatable, and apparently unrepeatable!
John says that the pudding I make is very good and laughs at me when I say that it still is not right, it’s missing something, it’s still not the same as my grandmother’s, no matter if I add a little more treacle, or make any other adjustments. I guess that I should just relax and enjoy the lovely memory, and my exceptionally good (but not the best) pudding.
I was taken back to my grandparent’s house another time, this time not by a flavour, but whilst writing about Nanny and her pudding, I recalled how a little gift that John gave me once, evoked another memory. The gift is a spoon with the phrase “You are my sunshine” and when I hear that phrase or look at the spoon, I hear my mother, sitting at the piano in my grandparent’s house playing and singing the song “You are my sunshine”. Lovely memories treasured forever.
Are there particular flavours or recipes that wing you back to your past? I would love to hear about them.
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