About mid morning I was feeling blah.
All of me hurt, not badly, but all of me.
I do not belong in a cold climate and unfortunately, this week, my Southern locale isn't holding the line. Temperatures squeaking along the teens with threats of ice over the weekend is not to my liking . Literally, when I am too cold I do not maintain body temperature. All of me aches and I get a tad cranky. Some would say more than cranky. I left my desk and took a walk about where I slowly recognized I had a serious hankering for Pot Roast.
Like many, Pot Roast is a favorite comfort food. My mother taught us girls how to cook ours in a big , oval shaped, LeCreuset pot. Mostly I like mine with onions, mushrooms and carrots served with rice, not potatoes. But we learned to cook a version using red wine and yet another version cooked in tomatoes.
All of them comfort and none of them showed up on my menu today. Pot roast takes time and attention so usually it is a weekend endeavor or a first of the week left over. We do have plenty of the "Meat+3" places in these parts but I maintain a low sodium regimen and they do not. So, for me, a hankering for pot roast means I must cook.
These days I am trying to shed some pounds so am making the effort to eat my main meal of the day before 4pm. "Dinner" these days is often apple slices with almonds and a cup of tea. I did not have time to make pot roast today, nevermind before 4pm. In the freezer I did have a container of lentils which had been made with pork , onions and carrots. So I thought, I'll just make rice and heat the lentils; with minimal effort I will have a great cold day comfort meal.
The lentils and rice served a need.
Filled a hole.
But,
it did not squelch the pot roast craving.
Nor did it comfort.
Not a bit.
That got me to thinking about why we crave different comforts.
If I have a craving for a fine cup of hot chocolate then a cup of tea will not suffice.
If I have a craving for a great cup of tea, there best be some half and half available.
If I have a craving for real french toast, a waffle simply will not do.
If I am craving a thick juicy steak, a thick juicy pork chop doesn't satisfy the craving.
I know there are some who say cravings are our bodies method of filling a need for a specific vitamin or mineral. That is probably true but for many the craving is as much emotional as it is physical. My mother always made a pot of vegetable beef soup with a cabbage base for my homecomings. I make the classic
Southern eggy-cheesy baked mac and cheese for Mermaid's homecomings. There are other mother made comfort foods for us both but those are not our "homecoming" favorites.
The crave quenchers.
Why do we crave?
If I crave light, do I just need vitamin D?
If I crave a hot massaging shower is it just to release muscle tension?
Do I choose a movie to help me laugh or cry as needed?
Do I crave laughter? Can one crave a really good cry?
If I yearn to spend a day in the hammock reading a book from cover to cover is it medicine or indulgence?
It is odd the number of things we can crave. If I feel the threat of the unknown I crave the feel of my Dad's shirt on my face. If I have an aching spirit I crave heart pounding physical activity.
Is a craving a necessity or a want?
I do not know .
Today I learned if there is
no half and half,
no pot roast,
no chocolate
and
it's really cold
I CRAVE comfort .
