So many of my childhood memories revolve around being at the dining table with my family and friends, having great (and long) conversations while enjoying a delicious meal. Food is my family’s love language.
Last year, my father was diagnosed with dementia. I think Covid had
a lot to do with it. He is an older father, but it took me a lot of time to process. My father is a philosopher, and he’s always been about reading and conversations. When he wasn’t as interested in these things anymore, that was quite hard to swallow. I think everyone processes things differently and heals in very different ways. My father always had a few signature dishes, and lately, I feel the need to represent what I grew up eating.
His thing was always one pot dishes. He’d get something he loved, like codfish, throw it into a big pot with vegetables and broth and then leave it for a few hours to cook. That’s how he did it with this particular garlic soup. It’s not the hardest thing to make, but he would make it so beautifully. He was a big Sunday brunch person. The kind of person that would start early to prep but would take forever to finish the food. As a kid, I always remember he’d start cooking, get very into it, and then take a moment to drink a glass of wine or read a book. The hours would pass by, and we’d all be waiting for this brunch.
Fast forward to now, and I’ve been on a lot of interesting journeys that have sparked joy and allowed me to reconnect with happy times. Food is an extremely important part of that. Despite my father’s condition, he’s still his wonderful self who loves to eat, which is pretty amazing. I’m really happy that we still have that, and that, as a family, these traditions are continuing. Just like this particular dish. There are things from your childhood that you have really distinct memories of. When you taste something and can be completely taken back to a time. This particular soup does that for me. It’s a simple soup — no frills, delicious, warming — yet for me it is full of so much meaning. I hope you will enjoy it too.
Find the recipe in issue 04, now available in our app!
