Noble

Food is an obvious fact of life and essential for survival. Hunger is a driving force.

We all have to eat for sustenance and to fuel our “body machines.” But the human relationship with food—and the acts of choosing, preparing, sharing and eating it, and even washing the dishes after a big meal—goes much deeper than the necessity of merely providing us with nutritional value.

Sure, we all eat on the run on any given busy day and when we’re hungry, even drive-through fare eaten alone in the car is satisfying. Hunger is satiated and the biological cravings built into us all end up saying, “It’s OK. You ate and it was great.”

Think about the best meals you’ve ever enjoyed, though. The food is a big part of the memory, no doubt; but the social intercourse, the camaraderie, the family and friends surrounding you at the time will be just as important. Think about the love that went into the project and the meal that was realized at the table.

That’s the stuff that takes food from a mere necessity to a real joy.

As much as I’d like to live in a “Jetsons” world—flying cars, moving sidewalks and sweetheart robot maids like Rosie would be great—I don’t think humankind is ever gonna settle for the old science fiction cliche of “eating dinner in a pill.” Where’s the pleasure in that?

I grew up in Hermann, nestled in Missouri wine country and founded by members of The German Settlement Society of Philadelphia in the late 1830s. It’s assumed that George Bayer, acting as agent for the society, thought the area resembled the Rhine Valley where he’d lived in Germany. By the turn of the 20th century, Hermann’s Stone Hill was the second largest winery in the U.S., and its products were winning gold medals around the world.

The German heritage in Hermann influences most aspects of life there, including the fact that not a month goes by without a food and/or drink festival. The best known are Maifest, a traditional German celebration of spring, featuring music, maypole dancers, food, open air markets and a parade. This year it runs May 14—16. And, of course, there’s Oktoberfest, featuring German music, food and dance. It will take place the first four weekends in October. Every month Stone Hill has a day called “Grapes to Glass” that includes a tour of the winery. Go here for a full list of Hermann food and wine events.

Holidays are steeped in food traditions, and the two most “American” holidays are the Fourth of July and Thanksgiving. The food offerings at each are at two ends of the spectrum, though neither is less appealing than the other. Thanksgiving usually features a turkey and/or a ham, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, lots of fresh-baked hot rolls, cranberries in some form and pumpkin pie, served at a sit-down meal. Reading about the first Thanksgiving, observed nearly 400 years ago, one finds few facts about what was actually on the menu. Venison and wild fowl seem to be accepted as likely entrees. The holiday as we know it now grew out of Native American and English traditions coming together celebrations that gave thanks for the harvest that had just passed. It was a 3– day feast in those days. Imagine how long that would take to sleep off. And there were no football games on TV at the time.

Fourth of July is usually done up with hot dogs and anything else that can be cooked on a grill, some beer, homemade ice cream, hanging around outside, eating off paper plates and, of course, fireworks. (Not for eating…for entertainment.)

Christmas menus have a long and varied tradition. In the USA, most people do a variation on Thanksgiving, augmented by any traditions handed down from the history of their families. Other countries —with Christmas menus dating back hundreds of years—do things differently. In Mexico, there’s the Christmas posada.The traditional posada meal includes turkey soup, codfish with gravy, punch with marshmallows, and mashed potatoes served with a spicy cranberry sauce. The Danes favor roast goose. Italians, traditionally, keep their Christmas Eve free of red meat, and fish stew called zuppa di pesce is a favorite. In Ireland, lots of folks cook up oyster stew. In New Zealand (Southern hemisphere… summertime in December) a picnic on the beach is a favorite setting for Christmas dinner. During the Jewish celebration of Hanukah, latkes-potato cakes cooked in oil-are a favorite. The oil used for cooking symbolizes the oil that burned in the temple for 8 days.

New Year’s Day, though, has the most varied food traditions. There aren’t many traditional sit-down meals associated with the holiday, but many foods that have long-standing roots are connected to the day. Those of us in the Southern U.S.A. are used to having black-eyed peas every January 1. But not many of us know why. There are so many explanations that one doesn’t really know what to believe. Just embrace it. It can’t hurt. Unless you don’t tolerate beans well… A New Year’s tradition in Japan is red snapper, as red is a color associated with good luck. In Greece, a cake is made with a coin baked in it. The person who gets the slice with the coin is assured of having good fortune in the upcoming year. The Buddhists go the opposite route by baking a dish called guthok. One of the ingredients is a piece of charcoal. If you get the slice containing the piece of charcoal, it’s not exactly a good omen. The Chinese have the most extensive collection of New Year’s Day foods: Dumplings (good luck), lettuce (prosperity), noodles (never cut—long noodles represent long life), seaweed (the Chinese word for it also means “wealth”), whole fish (the Chinese word for fish is the same word for “success” and “abundance” serving the fish whole is a symbol of togetherness). The list goes on and includes turnips, meatballs, lotus seed, ginkgo nuts, tofu, turnips and oranges. Each food has its own specific symbolism and mojo.

Even holidays such as Halloween (which in America is associated mostly with candy) have traditional meals in some countries. In Ireland, which has long celebrated the holiday, favorite foods on October 31 are oatmeal porridge, raisin bread and colcannon, a mixture of kale and potatoes.

Food is so much more than fuel.

A meal with friends, family, co-workers, clients-or even when sharing a word with a stranger-is something to be treasured. Individual families and groups of friends develop their own food-centric special traditions. A weekly “homemade pizza night,” a regular night out or something like an annual “Super Bowl Party” where the guests bring food that is more gourmet than you’d expect on a day legendary for nachos and low-brow edibles-are commonplace these days.

Even though sometimes you have to eat alone and on the go, when possible make a meal a celebration. Include good food, tradition, family, friends and a warm heart. It will do everyone involved a world of good.