Tradition in Cooking

During the Holidays, my family revives many old family traditions in cooking. I am grateful my Great Grandma wrote down all of her amazing recipes, and my Grandma is still around to teach me as well. This holiday season, my family lost an important member of our family, and it made me think about the importance of tradition and celebrating our family history. Creating recipes that have been around for generations can help us remember where we came from.

My family is Italian, so we love pasta. This year I took on the daunting task of making homemade Fettuccine Noodles and homemade Ravioli for Christmas. During a tough time for my family, I wanted to remind everyone of our wonderful history. My Grandma used to make 140 Ravioli’s for Christmas, so this was a daunting task to match. Fortunately, my Grandma was here to help me on Christmas Day, and she was so proud of my effort to make homemade pasta. It does not have to be perfect, but showing your family that you care can mean the world.

Making all of the pasta made me appreciate the thought and love that goes into traditional homemade cooking. We are all so fortunate nowadays to make almost anything in under 30 minutes. I encourage you to ask your family members to see your family recipes. You will be surprised by how fun and uplifting it can be to make something your family has passed down for generations. None of us would be here today without our family, and going back to your roots can be a very inspiring process.

These recipes won’t be around forever if you don’t ask. So try something new that is actually very old.

Buon appetito,

Madison Marsh