Archives of Eat

meet along the way: Gracie Aguirre

By Jasmine Jones This story was first published in the September 2023 issue of The Best Years. Gracie Aguirre grew up in Durango, Mexico, where she says everyone knew everyone. As a child, Aguirre enjoyed “rolling all over town” on her bicycle and playing volleyball, but she spent most of her after-school hours working at […]
2 years ago

meet along the way: Taffy McMullin

By Jasmine Jones This story was originally published as “Community Cookbook: Barbecue Brisket, by Taffy McMullin from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Cape Girardeau” in the May 2023 issue of The Best Years. Taffy McMullin grew up on a farm between Sikeston, Mo., and Dexter, Mo., with her mother, father and 14 […]
2 years ago

Eating Foods from Childhood Again: A v. sophisticated taste test

Kids of the ‘60s, ‘70s, ‘80s, ‘90s and ‘00s, unite: We grew up in the heyday of pre-packaged foods advertised to children — especially if you’re a product of the 1980s, 1990s or 2000s — and it’s fun to reminisce about those snacks all these years later. But the question remains: Do these foods hold […]
2 years ago

meet along the way: Shu-Chuan Wang-McGrath

By Jasmine Jones Recipes tell the stories of communities and the people who shape them. Each recipe is more than a list of ingredients and steps; it is a written legacy of the individual who created the dish, their family and history. This monthly series highlights one of these legacies and gives readers the chance […]
2 years ago

The People Who Know Our Names: Let’s get to know them.

On many Thursdays, members of the flourish crew go to Burrito-Ville for lunch. It’s a ritual we call Burrito-Ville Thursday, and amidst the orange, yellow and red-muralled walls, we break bread — or burritos and tortilla chips — together and find a sanctuary of friendship. There each week, we’re greeted by the people who work […]
2 years ago

meet along the way: Phyllis Johnson

By Jasmine Jones This story was first published in the September 2022 issue of The Best Years with the title “Community Cookbook: Goulash, by Phyllis Johnson from the Golden Angels in Cape Girardeau.” Phyllis Johnson was raised by her father on a farm in Caruthersville, Mo. She remembers picking and chopping cotton, pulling corn and […]
2 years ago

Eating Together

A meal starts with a desire: to eat and be nourished. To know and be known. To slow down and grow in body, spirit and mind. In his book “The Supper of the Lamb: A Culinary Reflection,” Robert Farrar Capon teaches us how to have a dinner party. His main theme — from the guest […]
3 years ago

Eating Together: Lisa Essmyer

I love nourishing people with food that not only tastes good but also looks good and is good for you! I want to make food with all of the nutrition, color and flavor — that is my ultimate goal. Cooking for people is one of the ways I show people I care about them. There’s […]
3 years ago

Eating Together: Maria Wade

When I was a young child of seven years, I learned cooking from my mother. We would make Miranda (snacks) to take to various places like construction sites and to the river where there were lots of people swimming or washing their clothes and sell them so we could make money for our family. This […]
3 years ago

Eating Together: Stephenie Gardiner

With baking, I love that I can take some pretty normal, sometimes bland, things, put them together, and out comes something so mouthwateringly tasty! It’s always fun to have those “use what I have” days and see what I can come up with. I also love that most life is done around food and drink. […]
3 years ago