Hello Eaters,
As I started this list of things I’m sure about when it comes to food, this one that should absolutely be first. There are plenty of things I don’t know, but this is something I believe with my whole heart.
Fed is better than fancy.
Somewhere along the way, we’ve convinced ourselves that every meal has to be an event. Homemade everything, picture-perfect tables, and plates that look like they belong in a magazine. I enjoy those things as much as anybody, but I don’t believe that’s what makes a meal successful.
A successful meal is one that gets people fed.
Growing up, it was important to my mom that we ate supper together as a family. That didn’t mean every meal was a feast. Sometimes it was Hamburger Helper. Sometimes it was soup and sandwiches. Sometimes it was a slow-cooked pot of chicken and dumplings that had been on the stove all afternoon.
But the important thing wasn’t what was on the table.
The important thing was that there was something on the table.
We were fed.
I’ve spent hours making meals from scratch, and I’ve also stood over the sink eating leftovers and called it supper. I’ve had steak dinners and hot dogs on paper plates. I’ve opened canned soup and I’ve smoked meat all day. None of those meals were failures.
They all did exactly what they were supposed to do.
Families all over the world are just trying to make it through the day. They’re juggling work, school, practices, bills, laundry, and a hundred other things pulling them in different directions. On those days, dinner doesn’t have to be impressive.
It just has to happen.
There is no shame in frozen pizza.
There is no shame in takeout.
There is no shame in grilled cheese and tomato soup, rotisserie chicken from the grocery store, or breakfast for supper.
There is no shame in shortcuts.
Sometimes it’s simply making sure everybody gets fed. There should never be any shame in that.
Because if the people around your table are fed, you’ve already succeeded.
Fancy is nice.
But fed is better.
From my kitchen to yours,
– D 🍴