You’re bringing a casserole?
Okay, I cannot think of any other way to put this but….BLACK PEOPLE DO NOT MAKE CASSEROLES, lol. No, I am not the type to make generalizations but as far as I am concerned, it is a mere fact. While channel surfing the other night (because I’d never admit to purposely staying on the program) I came across The Wendy Williams Show as she released the day-breaking news that there was a pumpkin crop shortage that affected Thanksgiving this year. She went on to point out that it went unnoticed in the black community because we simply did not eat pumpkin pie and that the sweet potato was the crop of choice for “our” pies. However, she had a black female audience member that begged to differ and claimed that her mama’s pumpkin pie was among the greatest. (Whose mama’s something aint?….moving on, lol)
Now, Wendy may have been wrong but I would bet my life on it that the extent of our casseroles is baked macaroni and cheese and lasagna; and my mother very rarely made lasagna. What better survey of people to consider than my church community, to prove my observation? In my 30 years, I’ve been to every Church Bizarre, Cook-off, Picnic, Week-long revival, Pastor’s Anniversary, Mother’s Day Brunch, Building Fund Dinner, etc…and I have never, ever come across a casserole of any kind. So it was quite the surprise when some of my closest friends and colleagues in this world, whom happen to be white, brought in casseroles for every food event we had at the job. Green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, chicken and rice casserole, rice and peas casserole …you name it….they’ve casseroled it! AND I LOVE IT!! Let’s face it, anything baked with cream, cheese, or both, is bound to be awesome. For those of us that aren’t necessarily the “best” cooks…cheese makes it all better and is very forgiving (although the calorie count of the meal may not be). I make a killer mac n cheese (case and point I guess) but for our Christmas Luncheon, I wanted to get into the real spirit of the casserole. I decided to try my hand at a Corn Pudding recipe I found in the Food Network Magazine. I’ve altered the recipe a little and posted it to the site. It’s three of my husband’s favs- corn, cornbread and cheese. Anyway, it was comforting, sweet, tasty and super easy. My next casserole will be Sweet Potato casserole (with pecans, brown sugar, milk and eggs etc.) for the in-laws next week for Christmas dinner.
If you make casseroles of any kind, let me know…that way, I won’t be the only one. ; )
