Let Me Feed You

      I have this thing where, if friends are coming over, I get embarrassed if I don't have food in my house to feed them when they're hungry. Yes, I suppose there is always take out or delivery, but sometimes that isn't practical. Maybe I get embarrassed because I grew up around my family entertaining so much, and I just want to make my friends feel welcome. It's probably something I overthink, given that my friends are typically content with a drink and some cuddles from my cats, but on the off chance that one of them is hungry, I want to make damn sure I can feed them. So that's what started to happen, and now they just come over hungry. I'm pretty certain that's why they refer to me, ever so fondly, as "mom."

      It started off in high school when I would occasionally bring a Rainbow Cake to school. I would let anyone who asked try it (as long as they got their own fork) and soon enough people would ask me if I could make it for their birthdays or even just random days. When I brought this cake to school people would literally follow me around to get a bite. Years later I got my own apartment and threw a party. I decided to make Salmon Quesadillas at this party and this is the moment I realized that I only like making food for people I can actually tolerate. The ones I tolerate know who they are. They are the ones I will do anything for. They are the ones that are like my family.

      There have been many dishes eaten and created at my place. Different kinds of pastas, egg dishes, sushi, sweets, veggies...I could go on and on. I remember a night where drinks had been consumed and I decided to make brownies. The Ghirardelli Triple Fudge kind. Before I knew what was going on, my friends were in my kitchen looking for other things we could put in the mix. Usually I'm fairly protective of my kitchen but this night I didn't mind because, well...you know, alcohol. What they decided upon was Kona Coffee grounds and Kahlua. *Heavy Breathing* They turned out amazing and I will never look back!

      Before writing this post, I reached out to a few friends and asked what some of their memories were in regard to the food at my house. Maya, my Jewish little sister, loves baking Chocolate Chip Cookies with me. Isabella, my creative muse, loves a pasta dish I made for us one night that involves pesto, asparagus, avocado, and a fried egg. My spirit animal Trystan, thought my One Eyed Sailors were revolutionary and "the best hangover food ever." My guy friends are exuberant with the overall concept of food so thats pretty easy. A concept that Matt, my boyfriend, is loving. He and I are trying to make a habit of cooking dinner at least twice a week. Our newest thing is Stir Fry. Matt loves to Stir Fry. Besides making me swell up with pride and love, the overall message I got from them is that they were excited. That is and will forever be my goal. I want people to be excited about making and eating food.

(Corrine and me making sushi for the first time)

       Honestly, I quite enjoy having my house be the place where people convene and eat. I genuinely want to say thank you to every single person that has ever come over to my place and cooked or eaten a meal with me. The creativity and inspiration that you all provide is something that is incomparable to anything else I've experienced. I feel so lucky to call each and every one of you a part of my family and the friendships are priceless. You are always welcome under my roof and I truly hope it feels like home.