I get so many forwarded emails from Italian American and non-Italian American friends on the topic of: “You grew up Italian if…..” The emails describe what Italian Americans experienced growing up, from the family dynamics to the food we ate, and even the plastic covered furniture.
Yes, I have to admit there was a brief time my mom covered our “good” furniture in plastic. All I can think of was that she must have succumbed to peer pressure. We also had a second kitchen in our basement that my dad built. Every self respecting Italian mother had a second kitchen if she was going to entertain large family gatherings, can tomatoes and butcher unknown small animals that came home alive in burlap sacks. (Unknown because I have intentionally blocked it from my memory, although my brother graciously indicated he can remind me.) But that’s what you did if you grew up on a farm in southern Italy, never mind that they now lived in a middleclass suburb of Detroit.
Even with all the modern conveniences available, including butchered meat J, my parents understood the value of freshness. It was the same with fruits and vegetables. We always had a garden in the summer that included things like tomatoes, peppers, basil, grapes, peaches, apricots, and plums. All squeezed into the backyard of a small ranch home and next to the garage my dad built, with the help of my uncles naturally. My dad would be mortified if he were alive to see the prices of red peppers today. He probably would have converted the entire backyard to red pepper plants so he could start selling them himself! When we couldn’t pick the produce from our backyard, we visited one of the many Italian fruit markets in the area because that’s where the next freshest produce was to be had.
To be continued…..
Tags: food, growing up italian, italian american, italian food, italian parents
