Skinny Girl Comfort Food

“Back on its golden hinges the gate of memory
swings and my heart goes into the garden and
walks with the olden things.” Author: ella wheeler wilcox
Every family has those recipes that are associated with home. Those dishes that your mom, grandmother, aunt, uncle… prepared that everyone loves. Those are your comfort foods. Those are the recipes that are taken to potlucks, passed around and handed down to the next generation. When you smell them cooking it takes you back to that special place. A place where so many memories were born.
Did you ever wonder where the term comfort food originated? Are you surprised to learn that the whole idea of comfort food was born in the heart of a home-a mother’s kitchen? There are a lot of words associated with mother and comfort is definitely at the top of the list. I think when you become a mother, your heart is forever changed, and your soul awakens to a new purpose, a new song and a new existence. Part of loving and caring for a child, as we moms do, is making sure they are well fed. In the process of loving them and feeding them, we create many special food centered moments that are the beginnings of many great memories for our children. The term comfort food originated in mom’s kitchen. For some it originated in grandmother’s kitchen. Who ever it was for you, we all have those meals. Those meals that instantly put a warm feeling in our heart, and take us back to special places of our past. Memories created around comfort food are some of my most treasured possessions.

Love to feed my kiddos!
I have so many special comfort food recipes that originated for me in my mom’s kitchen. She was always cooking, entertaining and feeding the masses. She was indeed a great cook. Holidays were always over the top with the food. No one ever left our house hungry! The food was always great, and I looked forward to all my favorites at every meal. The icing on the cake, no pun intended, was being surrounded by so many family and friends. The way we grew up, a get together just wasn’t a get together if there were not at least ten people involved. Ten was on the conservative side too. It was not uncommon for us to have 20 plus people for meals, especially on holidays. I miss those days so much! Now getting everyone together is very few and far between because every one is so spread out, and has families of their own. Below are three people who created so many food centered memories for me, my mom and both grandmothers. What legacies they have left in their memories and recipes!

My Mom

My Italian Grandmother, Pete

My Nana

What are your favorite comfort foods? A few of mine are my Grandmother Petes’ spaghetti and meatballs, my mom’s chili and Nana’s vegetable soup. You may think that comfort food and skinny girls can not go co-exist. Well, I am here to say, OH YES YOU CAN! Without comfort food, what is the point of eating, other than to survive?
If we are in a good place, which consists of constantly exfoliating our hearts and minds of excess baggage, then the majority of our days should be days we eat to live, and not vice versa, but we all have those days that we need a little comfort food. Always consider the holidays as free passes. Food is such a staple icon of American Holidays, so don’t deny yourself, just exercise moderation. If you know you are going to have a huge Thanksgiving dinner, eat a smart, light breakfast and lunch.
The good news about comfort food is that not all of it is unfit for a skinny girl. Nana’s Vegetable Soup for example, is very clean and lean, not to mention yummy! It is all about imagination friends. You can take a comfort dish, and turn it into a clean, comfort food, and get all the same warm, fuzzy results. There are a lot of ways to substitute bad ingredients for healthier ones without compromising flavor in any way. As a matter of fact, many things that are very good for us, actually boast very intense flavor such as many spices like rosemary, basil and thyme.
Below is one of my favorite comfort foods: Pete’s spaghetti and meatballs. I have tweaked the spaghetti recipe to be cleaner and leaner without compromising any flavor!

The turkey meatballs going into their sauna!Ready to enjoy!

The sauce-very healthy!

Ready to enjoy!
Recipe for the sauce:
Homemade Italian Sauce, (one of many variations in Pete’s recipes)
1 T Vegetable oil
1 large clove garlic sliced
1 28 oz. can chopped tomatoes, do NOT drain
1/2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. fresh oregano, chopped
1 tsp. fresh basil chopped
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/2 to 1 tsp. salt
Heat oil in a heavy skillet and add garlic. Saute until softened, being careful not to burn. Stir in remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer uncovered 45 minutes, or until thickened. Stir occasionally. If you like your sauce real chunky, leave it as is. I don’t like mine really chunky, so while it is simmering, I take a potato masher and mash the tomatoes up to my desired consistency. I also find this releases the tomatoes flavors even more, making for an even tastier sauce.
Pure, velvety perfection bursting with intense flavor! I love all the colors and flavors going on in this sauce. I promise it tastes as good as it looks.
As my sauce is cooking, I am boiling a big pot of pasta. I probably used a half pound for this amount of sauce. If you need more, just double your sauce. Be sure and let your water come to a boil before adding the pasta. Also, it isVERY IMPORTANT to liberally salt your water after it is boiling, and before adding the pasta. This is your only opportunity to flavor you pasta, and it really needs to be done at this point. Also, be sure and do not over cook your pasta. Pasta is meant to be AL DENTE- one of Pete’s favorite words. This means the pasta should be slightly firm and chewy, but not hard. A trick Pete taught me is to take a piece and throw it at the backsplash. If it sticks, it is done- AL DENTE! I used a multi grain, whole wheat pasta in order to be more health conscious. There are so many good multi-grain pasta options now days, and you are not sacrificing flavor while fostering healthy eating habits. Be sure and reserve 1 to 2 cups of your pasta water to add to your sauce. The starchy water adds a great depth of flavor to the sauce.
Meatballs-oh so amazeballs!
Next, at Pete’s house, there was no such thing as a bowl of pasta without meatballs. These are the yummiest, easiest meatballs to make. It requires you to use the best tools you own-your hands! The little mess, however, pays off at the table later! The recipe is as follows:
1 lb. ground chuck, use lean meat or substitute turkey like I did.
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 to 1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder, depending how much you like
1 egg, beaten
12 crackers finely crumbled, (I use whole grain saltines. Put them in a baggie, seal it and use a pastry roller to get them very fine)
2 T milk
grated parmesan cheese-amount to your desire. I use about 1/8 to a 1/4 cup.
Incorporate all ingredients with you hands, being careful not to over mix or your meat will be tough.
Form into balls to your desired size. I make them a little smaller than a golf ball and it makes about 18. Put them on a foil lined cookie sheet and bake at 350 for about 12 to 15 minutes. I then broil them on high for about two minutes to get a nice crust on them.
After the meatballs are cooked, I combine them with the sauce and pasta on a low flame to incorporate all the parts. Serve with a nice green salad, and you have a nutritious and satisfying meal. Of course, a good loaf of garlic bread only makes it all the sweeter, but if you want to eat “clean”, opt for whole grain or wheat bread and skip the butter! There are also some great butter alternatives if you just have to have it. Try, I can’t believe it’s not butter.
It has been a sweet time of reminiscing about old times and much loved people. I have so many wonderful memories of Pete. She and I always had so much fun together. She is forever etched into my heart, and no matter where she is, her memories will always be alive in my mind and my cooking.
I hope you can bring special memories alive of someone you love by cooking one of their recipes in the near future. It is not the same as being with them, but it is the next best thing. Sometimes when we can’t have what we want, we just need to make the most of what we have! Cooking Edible Heirlooms is a great alternative! Suddenly cooking dinner will not be a chore, but a pleasure. you will find yourself in a happy place, and your mind will be so preoccupied with great memories that dinner will be done in a flash. Now as for the cleaning up…well that may be where the good memories stop!!! (Insert laugh!)
Happy eating to all my skinny girl~fat gene friends. Please take a few culinary strolls down memory lane to warm your heart and brighten your smile. Don’t let dinner be your chore, make it your pleasure! Until we meet again, keep your special people and places alive in your kitchen, and as always, keep it clean and lean!