My Favs for Food Day 2011

My mom and me at sunrise on Mt LeConte;
proof that every day really is worthy
of celebration.

Food Day is our most honest and under-celebrated holiday. Christmas is gifts and food, Valentines is cards and candy, Halloween is costumes and candy, and Thanksgiving is family and lots of food.  All of our holidays have food at the core of their celebration, so how can we allow a holiday that only asks that we revel in our food pass by without acknowledgement?

So if you are not gathering with friends and neighbors or attending a festival, consider making your favorite meal tonight; the following would be mine:

First, a salad with Organic Girl lettuce, shaved onions, Parm, and apple with a drizzle of Paul Newman's.

I would move on to my garlic pasta, which is only for the most devoted garlic fans, and has to be made with my daughter, as half the fun of eating is preparing it in excellent company.  Make sure you add some raw hot peppers and tomato over the top and do no leave out the fresh Basil.

As a veggie bonus, I would saute asparagus and add a sprinkle of Cayenne over the top.

In a perfect world with no fruit that goes out of season, I would end my meal with a variation on my Bowl of Berries Lunch, which for dessert would consist of just fresh berries and peaches chopped in French Vanilla yogurt and frozen for about an hour before savoring.

But as my yogurt-pairing fruits are out of season, I could happily settle for a variation of my mom's apple crisp, whose flavors sing of this most amazing time of year and the beyond-amazing lady, who taught me to love autumn, food, and the celebration of every day!