meeting mary emma in d.c.
Earlier this spring Joe and I took a roadtrip to our nation's capital. For me it was an overdue return trip, but for Joe, a history major who had never been further east than ohio, our journey took on the epic nature of a pilgrimmage. He would be satisfied with nothing less than stopping at every monument and walking the entire length and width of the mall until we literally couldn't walk any more. Fortunately for both of us, we had impeccable weather and even got to see a few cherry trees in bloom.
During our time in D.C. we stayed with a friend, Tim Kennel, who was most hospitable in sharing his living quarters with us. Although space was somewhat limited, we made ourselves at home in the living room and enjoyed the short metro commute downtown (although NOT the rats burrowing in the front yard).
So where does Mary Emma fit into all this? you may be wondering. Well, it definitely wasn't the Ethiopian restaurant in Adams Morgan. Nor was it the mall where we spent $15 on a lunch of hotdogs and pizza. No, Mary Emma of course was waiting for us at home, where Tim had fixed a meal of mostly-Mennonite recipes (the exception being a Pad Thai dish which is something quite unlike what you will find in MCC:FFR) In addition to the Pad Thai, we enjoyed Potato soup with Bacon and Browned Bread Cubes, pg. 40, Banana Bread, pg. 12, Hot Slaw, pg. 146, and Fruit Salad I, pg. 187.
Talk about putting us to shame! I can't believe we find fixing one recipe a month such a trial when Tim Kennel, in one night, can fix four of them. Of the four, Hot Slaw was a surprising hit - in fact it proved to be a favorite of almost everyohne at the table. The other three were, following in the tradition of our recipe book, rather bland, but certainly not objectionable. The banana bread was the same recipe I used for my last entry, and it was quite tasty. Overall, I was impressed with the endeavor and thrilled to be participating in the project away from my own kitchen table. It is so nice to enjoy a taste of Mennonite hospitality - whatever the recipes, it makes the experience so much sweeter.
posted by A Knutson at 10:04 AM
3 Comments:
We never claimed to be cooking from this book for the culinary expertise of previous generations of Mennonite women. If that's what our purpose was, we'd be cooking recipes from Julia Childs. Our purpose, I thought, was to explore the cultural connection we have to this tradition and this way of eating.
I'm quite jealous you got to hang out at Harvard House...and they even cooked you Menno food to boot! You should have waited a few weeks and gone on April 25 for Free Cone Day at Ben & Jerry's, which has become a tradition of that house and their friends. Good Mennos can hardly pass up free food, especially when it is rich and normally expensive so you feel like you are REALLY getting a deal.
i am totally not on the level with B&J!! Don't get me wrong - I love it - but somewhere in during my westcoast exile I missed out on this eastcoast food delight. Never even heard of their free cone day until visiting Harvard house, and Tim Godshall mentioned that we were a few weeks early for it (Joe and I: "Early for what???") I do feel a little deprived that I never got to enjoy another eastern/Midwestern city after Pgh, which I adored. The west is very different. Although right now I just miss living in any city, period (excluding Baltimore).
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