All of the Anderson family members and relatives marked on their calendar the annual fourth of July picnic every summer. Gina and Jessica were married to Anderson brothers. Although they were ten years apart in age, they would exchange comfort food recipes with each other. Each started a recipe box of Anderson family secret recipes, although they could not get great Grandpa Joe’s barbeque rub recipe. Comfort foods bring people together, especially family members.

Jessica had her own potato salad recipe. So did Gina. Jessica started a garden and used home-grown herbs for her potato salad. Gina did not have the luxury of a backyard in her Miami, Florida condo. The produce at grocery stores in Miami offered an interesting twist for the potato salad recipe. The two would phone each other and spend hours talking about what they were going to bring to the Anderson family picnic. Now, that is dedication to comfort foods.

One year, Jessica tried some cilantro in her potato salad recipe. She did not tell Gina about this. Gina picked up some cilantro at the store and put it in her potato salad. When they next met, they were pleasantly surprised that the potato salads tasted very similar. When they revealed to each other what they had done, they remarked how they were thinking like an Anderson. Such family stories accompany comfort foods.

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