As I work on a Lesson Plan for Third Graders, “The Best Meal I Ever Had,” thoughts run through my head. What was my favorite meal? The foie gras at the Hotel Crillon our first night in Paris? My birthday lunch with Bette Midler? Or was it one of those Sunday feasts from the deli in the years before my father left us, when we were still a family?
In a Kids Talk Story class, we get the kids to write about their favorite meal ever. They write about the food. Then, we ask them who was there. Who made the food? Was it Mom? Dad? Did you make it yourself? Whatever the dish, the best meals are the ones we share with the people we love, the ones that mark those important moments in life.
What was your favorite meal? I really want to know.
Hmmmm so many meals so little space to describe. My favorite, besides every Thanksgiving bird, bisquit, and breadcrumb stuffing of course, would have to be the baked bluefish my mom would make the day after my father and brothers would return from a day of deep sea fishing. Believe it or not my favorite part was the crispy, yet oily skin. I don’t remember any of the sides which may or may not have been served along with that fish of blue, but I’ll never forget the taste of the dark gamey meat and the contrasting texture of slick and crunch.
I’ve tried to bake blue fish myself and it never tastes as good. Perhaps it was the fact that the fish was freshly caught, or the fact that I was a hungry teen, or perhaps the idea of the men bringing home the hunt and the mom cooking it appealed to my desire for a close knit family. I don’t know, but it was good!