Trauma and nostalgia are linked in the taste buds of our grandmothers.
<br> My grandmother loved potatoes. But not quite like any other person I <br>have known. She loved cooking them, serving them, eating them, she loved talking <br>about them. As a child, my grandmother lived alongside war, coups and <br>regimes. During times of hardship for people in Bulgaria, often potatoes were the <br>only thing to eat. I always felt that due to the shortage of food, her memories were <br>focused almost entirely on food.
<br>Talking about food is an effective way of developing relationships ‘woman-to-<br>woman’, and of establishing shared perceptions and experiences. Trauma and <br>nostalgia are linked in the taste buds of our grandmothers. “Traumatic” past can <br>move between generations, aka "intergenerational trauma". Potatoes have become <br>carriers of that trauma. They have to be handled delicately, with respect and care in <br>order to satisfy my grandmother's expectations. They had to be peeled paper thin, <br>so as to waste as little of the edible material as possible. If the potatoes had to be <br>cut, it was crucial to cut them into stripes in such a way that each one turns out to <br>be odd shaped and has a minimum of four corners, in order to reduce chances of <br>sticking.
<br>The following recipe is not a potato puree, it is not mashed potatoes, it is mashed <br>potatoes expanded with eggs, cheese and citrus fruits. It is a celebration of eating <br>every damn cubic millimeter of that potato. It is the taste of the trauma and <br>nostalgia of post conflict societies, in the taste buds of our grandmothers.
<pclass="recipe_par">Trauma and nostalgia are linked in the taste buds of our grandmothers.
<br> My grandmother loved potatoes. But not quite like any other person I <br>have known. She loved cooking them, serving them, eating them, she loved talking <br>about them. As a child, my grandmother lived alongside war, coups and <br>regimes. During times of hardship for people in Bulgaria, often potatoes were the <br>only thing to eat. I always felt that due to the shortage of food, her memories were <br>focused almost entirely on food.</p>
<pclass="recipe_par">
<br>Talking about food is an effective way of developing relationships ‘woman-to-<br>woman’, and of establishing shared perceptions and experiences. Trauma and <br>nostalgia are linked in the taste buds of our grandmothers. “Traumatic” past can <br>move between generations, aka "intergenerational trauma". Potatoes have become <br>carriers of that trauma. They have to be handled delicately, with respect and care in <br>order to satisfy my grandmother's expectations. They had to be peeled paper thin, <br>so as to waste as little of the edible material as possible. If the potatoes had to be <br>cut, it was crucial to cut them into stripes in such a way that each one turns out to <br>be odd shaped and has a minimum of four corners, in order to reduce chances of <br>sticking.</p>
<pclass="recipe_par">
<br>The following recipe is not a potato puree, it is not mashed potatoes, it is mashed <br>potatoes expanded with eggs, cheese and citrus fruits. It is a celebration of eating <br>every damn cubic millimeter of that potato. It is the taste of the trauma and <br>nostalgia of post conflict societies, in the taste buds of our grandmothers.</p>
Boil the potatoes. Here you face two choices, to peel and cut into big chunks and boil, <br>or wash and boil the whole, uncut potatoes with the skin. Then cool and peel them. <br>In the episode we pre-peeled and cut them in order to boil faster. Originally my <br>grandmother boiled them whole with the skin.
<br>After the potatoes have been boiled, they have to be smashed. In the original <br>recipe, my grandma used a hand-cranked meat grinder to smash the potatoes and <br>grind the onion . That machine was an absolutely universal tool, she used it for this <br>recipe, to make tomato juice, cookies and rarely to grind meat. In the show, we <br>used a potato ricer for most of the potatoes, and then a regular potato masher for <br>about 10-15% in order to make some fariety in the structure and prevent smooth, <br>uniform blend. After the potatoes are smashed, leave them in the pot. You can <br>grate the onion, or use a chopper. Ideally you have a blend, mixed with fine as well <br>as slightly bigger pieces. Add the onion to the potatoes. Add 4 eggs, 250 grams of <br>ricotta, the lemon juice and the sunflower oil. Add salt to your taste.Then mix with <br>an electric mixer on a low speed until homogenous.
<br>Spread a thick layer on toast and sprinkle a bit more lemon. Eat and <br>weep.Consume within a day or two (raw eggs inside).
<pclass="recipe_par">
Boil the potatoes. Here you face two choices, to peel and cut into big chunks and boil, <br>or wash and boil the whole, uncut potatoes with the skin. Then cool and peel them. <br>In the episode we pre-peeled and cut them in order to boil faster. Originally my <br>grandmother boiled them whole with the skin.</p>
<pclass="recipe_par">
<br>After the potatoes have been boiled, they have to be smashed. In the original <br>recipe, my grandma used a hand-cranked meat grinder to smash the potatoes and <br>grind the onion . That machine was an absolutely universal tool, she used it for this <br>recipe, to make tomato juice, cookies and rarely to grind meat. In the show, we <br>used a potato ricer for most of the potatoes, and then a regular potato masher for <br>about 10-15% in order to make some fariety in the structure and prevent smooth, <br>uniform blend. After the potatoes are smashed, leave them in the pot. You can <br>grate the onion, or use a chopper. Ideally you have a blend, mixed with fine as well <br>as slightly bigger pieces. Add the onion to the potatoes. Add 4 eggs, 250 grams of <br>ricotta, the lemon juice and the sunflower oil. Add salt to your taste.Then mix with <br>an electric mixer on a low speed until homogenous.</p>
<pclass="recipe_par">
<br>Spread a thick layer on toast and sprinkle a bit more lemon. Eat and <br>weep. Consume within a day or two (raw eggs inside).</p>
