“I’d call him a sadistic, hippophilic necrophile, but that would be beating a dead horse.” ― Woody Allen

Aromatic – having a pleasant and distinctive smell

– fragrant or sweet smelling.

It seems to be that any food with a very distinctive smell is the best way to distinguish what is aromatic. For example, pickles have a very distinctive smell. No other food smells similar, however pickles are pleasant to many. Other types of aromatic foods could be spices, due to their sharp, distinct potence.

Made-from-scratch – a meal that is made solely from raw materials; no store-brought bread, pre-made packages, or previously added spices; each ingredient is added by the cook.

A great example of a food made from scratch is home made yogurt. Many people buy small, or large tubs of yogurt from the supermarket or general store. However, you can make yogurt it your home with the simplest ingredients: water and milk.

Bread would be another great example because most people buy store bought bread, when you can make it from flour, water, butter, sugar, and yeast.

Country-style – associated with rural areas, typically in “the south,” or southern United States. (Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Louisiana, South Carolina, North Carolina)

There are a number of different ways to make country style potatoes. Any way where you deep fry the potatoes, or change it up from the regular mashed potato,  french frie, or aluminum cooked could be considered a country style potato.

Burnt – cooked or heated so much to the point of blackening a food

Many foods can be burnt and still taste good, or even better depending on the person. I had burnt pizza the other day, where some of the crust and cheese were black instead of brown/yellow. Another food many people eat burnt is toast. Some people just like it black!

Doughy – not quite cooked to the perfect setting; left a wee bit un-cooked. Typically a way to describe bread, or foods with bread.

My personal favorite food always comes a little doughy. Pizza is another great example of food that could be described doughy, when it is not quite cooked all the way. You can taste the dough and the flower almost when eating doughy pizza or bread.

Famous – utterly well known and talked about frequently over a wide spread area, or over the globe.

– a famous dish could come from a restaurant, family home, state, or nation

Tiramisu is an italian dessert. Many people now serve tiramisu around the world because it is famous, even though it started in Italy.

Epicurean – luxurious and/or pleasurable

Tiramisu from a rather expensive restaurant would be considered epicurean. At a restaurant in Paris the service is good, the atmosphere is great, and the presentation is excellent. Oh, and the taste!

Get Out of Your Appartment

When you’re in Mexico it’s important to be polite, and eat tacos with your hands: not with a fork and knife. In Russia, it is rude to chase vodka. Only tourists eat bread before their meal in France, and sipping your wine in Georgia is unacceptable. All across the world different cultures have diverse table manners.

I guess what I’m trying to say is… experience different food cultures. But I would also like to take this opportunity to encourage exploration right outside your doorstep. The best times I have had when learning about food, learning about writing, and writing about food have been times when I was willing to leave the coziness of my dormitory to talk to people in the food business.

From my essay on avocado’s, you can see I went to Chipotle. One part I left out about that was when I talked to one of the guys who worked there, named CJ.CJ had been working at Chipotle for only about four months, but his experience was valuable to me.

After we both saw one guy very upset about the price of guacamole, I went up to talk to CJ about what happened. “I’ve been working here for four months and that’s the second guy to have a big reaction like that,” he said. “Most people still say yes but if they don’t I can understand where they’re coming from.”

This was crucial to my project. Forty minutes isn’t enough to see if a regular amount of people freak out about the price of avocado! I was able to see that they don’t, and infer that this was because people are just that willing to pay almost two dollars for guacamole.

I also learned another standpoint of the food industry. When people are dooping us, they know it, and we know it, yet we still accept this price discrimination for both of our best interests.

I had a lot of fun going and speaking with CJ, and I hope to see the manager in Jalepenos later in the future because I think it would be fun to talk to him. My findings were not just academic, but also for my own personal reasons.

Because I wrote about something I love, I get to benefit from that even more every time I go to Chipotle. I get to see my new homie CJ and catch up with him, not to mention that occasional free guacamole 🙂

Beruit Nourishment Was Here

I have to say an exploration essay rather than a planned out argument is much more interesting. While I may get confused as to what the essay is about, following the pattern of the authors thoughts and connections is interesting and revealing, and sometimes, very rewarded for both the author and the reader. A great example I have experienced came when writing about avocado’s. Initially, I chose them because I enjoyed the yummy, smooth cream. However, the essay became another when I realized the price people were willing to fork out for something as simple as guacamole. The entire subject can make or break your day even…

If you have your entire essay planned out before you, you have something closer to a research paper rather than creative non-fiction. It is not about the ending conclusion but rather the journey, and through the entire piece should an essay be foretold for a lasting effect.

One of my favorite things do to is climb mountains. Whether rock climbing, hiking, biking, or backpacking, reaching the summit is an amazing thing. Whether there is a waterfall at the top or an amazing view, this is not the most important part of climbing. Rather, it is the journey you took. Maybe you went with a bunch of friends and wandered off trail a ways. Or maybe this climb was the hardest thing you’ve ever had to do. The journey to the top, just like in writing, is what adds substance to you’re overall conclusion.

When researching the demand for avocado’s at Chipotle, I quickly found that seventy percent of the people went in bought guacamole. So awesome, we know statistics now and everything is hunky dory. But you want to know what else I found out? That a middle class father with a family of five thinks it is absolutely ridiculous to pay extra for guacamole. And asking your boyfriend to pay for guacamole can be an awkward, uncomfortable situation for all who are present. Sure, I had fun writing about avocado’s and their awesomeness. But going out, doing research, and experiencing events with my own eyes as opposed to a computer screen gave my blog substance.

From my food manifesto I gathered much information on how a plant based diet was better for you than eating meat. I still stand by that eating much meat decreases your life span and/or adds to your risk of disease. However, when talking to my health fanatic friend over Spring Break, she brought evidence against my argument. I was explaining my manifesto to her when she interrupted me, explaining there was a certain protein that only comes from meat. I brought up numerous protein sources, such as fish, tofu, eggs, anything I could think of on the spot, and she went on to prove that none of these had the certain protein… If only I could remember what it was called.

My point being, writing about food is a never ending conversation. While my blog contains much information, you as a reader have to meet me half way and take what you want out of the writing. Rather than providing you with facts, I bring information that is relevant to the discussion and then take that information places due to my own personal opinions and experiences.

In the words of my man Julius Caesar, I say to you veni, vidi, vivi- I came, I saw, and I conquered. Now it is up to you to do your own exploration, to see with your real eyes, and to conquer the information for what it’s worth to you.

So, here I am finished with a class!

Surprise. This entire blog was originally from a class. Four months ago I was just staring English 103 with many questions and hope for the new semester. Since then I have practiced rhetorical writing three times a week, and haven’t looked back to the ways before Writing About Food. Every sentence is not great, but if it isn’t good, it won’t be published.

And that project about Aunt Jane and the amazing Lebanese dishes she made for me as a kid? That was the first project I wrote about in this class, showing me how rewarding my writing could be, to myself as well as others. I sent her and my mom a copy in the mail and they loved the piece! Talking to Aunt Jane after the matter, we agreed to make Mjaddarah together this summer so I can know the recipe and make the meal from scratch. After all, I might need buckets of the dish for leftovers next year, when I’m humble abiding in a house with four other dudes.

Through this class I was enlightened to how writing is about much more than your topic of focus. When I wrote about Mjaddarah, not only did I tell the story of the amazing dish, but the story of my childhood, my definition of American culture, and my family as well. Avocado’s aren’t just awesome because they taste good, but because people are willing to pay a second mortgage for them too!

Part of the reason writing isn’t solely about avocado’s is due to exploration when writing. This class above all has taught me how writing can be an adventure. When writing about one topic, the thoughts, journeys  and passions in between lead to an entirely different path. This journey is the fun part that makes writing worth while, as opposed to the final product. Sure I learned avocado’s are awesome because people are willing to pay a second mortgage for their home. The fun part, however, was watching a family man freak out in front of the register at Chipotle, and seeing a girl hopefully asking her boyfriend if she could get $2.00 guacamole!

What good is writing if the reader is not constantly engaged? This goes back to the “every sentence has to be good” idea. If you have too manny sentences that don’t engage the reader, you’re writing about food blog you worked all semester on is going to have a minimal amount of views.

This class was called Writing About Food, so naturally, I learned a decent amount of things about food. For one, there is much more to food then the taste. There is history, personal experience, texture, color, presentation, global significance, consumer prevalence… My personal favorite, being atmosphere. While the only thing at the filling station I enjoy for breakfast is coffee, I still find myself sitting there on those Friday or Saturday mornings when my friends have to drag me out of the dorm room.

Probably the most important thing I learned academically speaking is how important it is to enjoy what you do. It is crucial to take classes, especially in college, that are enjoyable. This is how one will get the most out of any blog post, project, or capstone they have to complete. If doing the assignment to get a letter grade, the results won’t be rewarding or helpful. Unless of course the class is required for your major… and starts with account and ends in ing… Then the enjoyment aspect is hopeless!

The only thing I didn’t accomplish in English 103 that I prospected was finding a girlfriend, which I had in one of my first blogs. I had high hopes seeing some cute girls for the first day, but they all had boyfriends or left the class. Whether or not this last sentence is true, I will pretend…

So here I am finishing my freshmen year at Chapman, about to finish English 103. I learned about the importance of providing more than just the proposed conversation, but to add background and experience for relevance in your writing. I learned that writing is about exploration and following your passions, along with academics in general. And I learned that I need to work harder when looking for someone to settle down with 🙂