Comfort Food

Food isn't just for nourishing our bodies and keeping us from getting sick and unhealthy. Food becomes everything's "significant other." We are nothing without food in ways where when stress overcomes the body we turn to delicious sweetened Cocoa which we call CHOCOLATE(chocolate bars, hot chocolate, chocolate fondue, chocolate cake, etc) . When our minds think that things have just turned from happy to incredibly sad we choose to indulge ourselves with pasta and large mounds of meatballs and freshly grated parmesan in a thick and tasteful tomato sauce. Comfort food is the common name. Because food becomes such an essential part of life not only for health-wise issues but also for our soul.

Our souls not only feed on happiness and love and friendship but on what our bodies give our souls when our souls can't have happiness, love or friendship. We give our souls comfort food...

On days where alcohol is inappropriate for an early day of sadness, I go to a restaurant when I have nothing left to cook or when I just have no sense of motivation to cook. I go to a restaurant that gives good service and provides an ambience relaxing enough. The next dilemma? The menu. What to choose. So many dishes sound so good and yet you know that's not exactly what your soul wants. So you let chance take over and point at any random item. I chose the perfect comfort food: Shepherd's Pie.

The Shepherd's Pie was incredible the moment the courteous waiter set it on my little round table in the corner of the restaurant. The smell of cheese, lamb, steak, potatoes just filled my nostrils with ecstasy. I punctured the perfectly browned cheese on top and worked through the pie.

My first bite was when my soul felt that comfort warming it up little by little as each bite continues to pass through from the pie to my mouth. Finally with my last bite with the taste of the earthy steak and tangy lamb, creamy yet  dry and buttery cheese and smooth potatoes and the left over mushrooms and sauciness, I knew finally, that my soul was no longer sad.

*Shepherd's Pie of Hill Station, Baguio City, Philippines
http://hillstationbaguio.com/