The Casserole

The NOT SO Basic Casserole

I recently spoke with a fellow mom who turned up her nose at the very notion of making a breakfast casserole for a moms group we participate in.  The word “basic” has become a trendy quip and apparently a "casserole" has fallen into that basic category.  I thought back to seven short months ago when we welcomed our fourth child (in six years) into the world, and the freezer and refrigerator were stocked with casseroles that friends, neighbors, and even acquaintances made for our family.  We ate for weeks with little worry on meal preparations, and it was glorious.   It was in this reflection that I thought, when did we become a society that turned away from the food that has brought people together in a time of celebration, in remorse, in loss, and even war?  When did we become too good for a casserole?

A casserole (whether it be the food combination itself or the vessel in which it is served) is derived from French or pan.  When I was inspired to write this post, I starting thinking and wondering, what was the actual historical significance of this “basic” sustenance?  

Judy Hervdejs and Lauren Hill of the Chicago Tribune must have been thinking the same thing about this one stop shop meal.  I read an article they had published called In Defense of the humble casserole and it made me wonder when the casserole was introduced into society?  Was it around the same time of the invention of the television? Maybe it was a way to make dinner fast and no fuss, but it turns out, a casserole has been around far longer then I anticipated.  How ignorant my snobby food critic acquaintance and I were.

Believe it or not, Pyrex (one of the infamous vessels a casserole is baked in) has been around since the early 1900's.  Tuna fish casserole was a spontaneous culinary invention of the 1940's during the meat shortage during WWII. Green Bean casserole, an American classic, was said to have been born in 1955.  So at this point, we can say that the casserole we are familiar with today, is over a century old but who knows what they looked like prior to the 1900's.

We overlook that a casserole has been called many flashy names in different cultures and languages; cassoulet (French), moussaka (Greece), Lasagna (Italy), and Strata (Australia…variety of levels.)  Truth be told, casseroles were a means to ration food (meat, sugar, dairy) in times of hardship in depressions and war.  They’ve been shared through fellowship of church gatherings, family potlucks, and the memorial services of loved ones we lost. 

So, next time you find yourself wondering what to make for dinner, what sort of dish you can bring to pass, or what gift of a meal you can take a friend or neighbor, remember…there are no shortages of casserole recipes out there that are too basic or boring to fill-up someone’s fridge, their stomach, and especially their heart.  

Article:

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I'm BACK!!!!!!!!!

I haven’t blogged in a really long time…well, technically two kids ago.  While in years/months/days that much time hasn’t really passed, however, in parenthood, it has felt like an eternity. Truth is, I’ve been in the thick of it for quite awhile.  I’ve had this gnawing feeling to start writing again, and also been asked if I have ever done a blog to document my daily realities as a wife, mother, and woman.  I don’t think I am an expert in any capacity for these subject matters, but I certainly was fast tracked through the many seasons of them.  Heck, I’m still learning every single day as I’ve grown in my case studies…Hallie, Hayes, Hollis and finally Henley have given me some great content to work with.

I’m realizing that time however long it can feel on really bad day, is also flying by toward school, sports, and activities and there is nothing I can do to slow it down.  Henley is somehow 3 months old today, and already losing some of her newborn/itty bitty baby-ness to her.  It makes me sad. I was still holding on to Hollis being my baby, and he is 2 and a tornado at that.  Don’t even get me started with Hallie (4.5) and Hayes (3.5) who are in the thick of preschool and Kindergarten prep years.  I see yellow school busses in my near future and it terrifies me.  

The responsibilities I have felt since becoming a legit stay at home mom carry a great weight on my chest.  I swore I would never stay home with my kids and raise them full-time, and yet here I am, raising four kids, and hoping to god I am doing something right. They are awesome though and make it hysterical and insane.    

I wasn’t sure what I was going to write in my first blog back after a few years hiatus, but I guess I took the biggest step, which was just to begin again.  So, stay tuned for stories of my chaotic world in our party of 6.