Comfort Food

Three days ago I got the call that I had been waiting for. My sister, Lori, was having the beginning signs of labour and it was time for me to head down to Niagara for the blessed event. As she was opting for a homebirth, my big role was taking care of the food and drinks and basically accommodating her every whim. I packed my bag with a few clothes and some of the special necessities that I would need - sparkling wine, maple syrup, clotted cream, Raincoast crisps, cherries, chocolate-covered buttercrunch, etc...
Thursday night she opted for nachos. What is so gourmet about nachos, you are probably thinking. There was no mystery to them, but I did use pasture-fed beef from my local organic store (from the owner's own cows), old Balderson cheddar, field tomatoes from Essex county, green onions, and lettuce. She had the small bite-sized nacho chips which I spread on a baking sheet, covering this with a layer of each ingredient. Into the oven it went for about 10 minutes or so and then it was served with sour cream (full fat!). According to Lori, they were the "best nachos I have ever had". If the avocados would have been ripe, I would have made guacamole too, but no such luck.
The next morning, I was up early making coffee and currant scones. My mom cut up a big bowl of fresh Harrow peaches and I fried up some delicious breakfast sausages from the butcher shop down the street. Add clotted cream and my mom's fresh raspberry jelly to the scones and we had a breakfast that was fit for royalty. Lori's labour was mild enough that she could sit and eat and she would just stop every now and then while a contraction was happening.
For lunch I made a big pot of the Barefoot Contessa's Cheddar Corn Chowder. The pot was big enough that that there was still a litre left by Saturday night. People were able to just help themselves whenever they were ready to eat. I also made the Salmon dip and made sandwiches on toasted Ace Focaccia.
In the afternoon, I made two pans of the Eggplant Parmigiana. The sauce that Lori had in the fridge was homemade from her mother-in-law and it had meatballs and chunks of sausage in it. I spooned the sauce over the eggplant and also cut the meatballs and sausage thinly and spread that over the eggplant as well. Lori also had some fresh Parmesan so I grated that and spread that on each layer. Delicious!
By Saturday morning, I was beginning to wonder what else I should make so I checked with Lori and she requested banana muffins. They don't have their internet hooked up yet and I didn't have the Caribbean Desserts cookbook handy so I didn't make my favourite banana muffins. Instead, I made the Barefoot Contessa's banana muffins from her first book. It was the second time I have made them and both times I have not really been impressed. However, Lori was happy and that is all the matters. At lunch time things were starting to really heat up so it was pretty much every man for himself. I did have the foresight to marinate some chicken legs and thighs in the homemade BBQ sauce that I brought from home (Barefoot Contessa's recipe from first book).
At 1:20 pm, Hugh Ryland Elstone arrived and it was an incredible experience watching him be born. Both Lori & Hugh are doing well! But back to the food...
I had a bottle of sparkling Bellini on ice and I took some flutes upstairs and popped the cork. The Bellini was something I saw in the Food & Drink magazine from the LCBO. It was really good and in fact would have been lovely with our scone breakfast on Friday morning. I'll have to remember that for next time. Next thing I knew, my Dad was whipping up some fresh peach daiquiris for everyone. I think it is fair to say that we needed a drink!
Lori had requested BBQ chicken for her post-natal dinner. I got the coals going on the BBQ and started the mashed potatoes. Jake cooked the chicken, luckily, as I don't have the patience NOT to put the chicken right over the coals and burn the skin. Add fresh green beans and it was a wonderful dinner.
At this point, I packed up my two cookbooks that I brought - The Barefoot Contessa (original) and The Open-House Cookbook by Sarah Leah Chase - and headed home to my family, who, I would hazard a guess, hadn't eaten nearly so well while I was gone!