Asha Anujeeva

Growing up in my parent’s house, when presented at the dinner table with a new or unfamiliar food, the household rule was that you are expected to (at the very least) try one bite. If you don’t like it, you force yourself to swallow it without a lot of drama or facial contortions and politely say, “I’m sorry, but I don’t care for that.” You were (and still are) to always respect the fact that our mother made a huge effort to shop for, prepare, cook and serve a variety of wholesome and tasty foods, day after day after day just for our benefit and enjoyment. And our mother respected that fact that trying to please the tastebuds of seven people every night was a daunting task, especially when little sister announced out of the blue that from here forward she would be a vegetarian and refused to eat meat, poultry or fish. But I do appreciate the fact that my parents exposed us to a variety of foods at the family dinner table and it not only enriched our lives but taught us to appreciate and respect each other, as well.

I was just scrounging around the kitchen, looking for a snack to eat that would not be a “horrible, bad for you” type of snack. I decided on an English muffin. Every couple of months I decide to buy a package of English muffins at the store and bring them home. I like them from time to time with some orange marmalade on them. When I prepare them and put the marmalade on them I often wonder who invented these fine items and who decided to pair them up together? I often wonder who discovered or invented different things we could eat. But don’t even get me started on scrapple! Once I found out what was in scrapple, I vowed never to eat it again!

I always think of my now deceased aunt and uncle when I eat English muffins with marmalade. They would always prepare them for us as a snack when we would go over and visit them. Funny how foods remind you of certain people, isn’t it! They taught me to use a long handled ice tea spoon to take the marmalade out of the jar, to control how much you got, and then to spread it with the back of the spoon. Funny how so many people I know use knives for their jams, jellies and preserves! I don’t know many who use spoons!

I invited a friend over for supper tonight. I invited her because her hubby is out of town for the week, and I didn’t want her to be feeling lonely the whole time. She accepted, but declared that she would bring the supper because she loves to cook! Well, that surprised me to no end, because the last time we talked about cooking, she told me that she didn’t know how to cook anything and NEVER cooks – just eats those Jenny Craig dinners all of the time! So, it is with much anticipation that I await her arrival. I don’t have a clue what she is planning to bring! I’ll let you know if its edible or not!

A co-worker brought some candy to work today and put it in a candy dish to share with the rest of the office.  Talk about immediate popularity!  There were a few types of candy in the dish that I’ve never had before; it was interesting to see and try them out.  There were some caramels with creamy centers that were really good!  And some jelly beans made by Starburst that were sour fruit flavors.  I didn’t think I’d like them at all, because I’m not a fan of sour things, but I tried them and thought they were great!  Is there a difference between “tart” and “sour?”  I don’t know, but the next time I buy some candy I’ll be looking for them in the store!

I am not a person with a “sweet tooth” by nature. I usually don’t eat dessert after meals. But every now and then I get the urge to treat myself to a piece or two of Dove’s milk chocolate. I used to eat Hershey’s Kisses, but one day a lady gave me a Dove chocolate, and now I have been spoiled for life! I was just treating myself to a piece of Dove chocolate, and thinking about coupons, and decided I would go online to see if I could find any Dove coupons to print off. Alas, my search was in vain, but I did find some Dove recipes to share!