Comfort Food

We've been listening to some Garrison Keillor tales, including ones about Lutherans and eating.

A little later I was making mashed potatoes for supper, and wondering how often a person would bother making mashed potatoes if he was cooking only for one person. But mashies are one of the easiest ways to serve potatoes to a crowd. There are certain foods that are much easier to make for 1 or 2 people, and other foods that I'd rather make for a crowd. When you're feeding a big family (or 30 or 100 people at a church dinner), it's simpler to serve spaghetti than stir-fry, easier to serve meatloaf and mashed potatoes than chicken-stuffed crepes.

Does it seem that "comfort food" is usually the kind of thing that is more likely to be served in a family-sized crowd? Mac-n-cheese. Beef-n-noodles. Chicken-noodle soup or chili.

It makes me wonder if those kinds of food remind us of days/years past when we ate with a bigger crowd of cousins, or with many siblings around the table. And maybe that's part of the reason it evokes comforting memories?