Of Cabbages and Goiters

Cabbage.  A great start to a new year.  I wondered about why people eat sauerkraut and pork on New Year's Day.  And that started me on a train of thought about cabbage.  I think maybe cabbage flows through my veins.   My dad is of German descent...his grandparents were immigrants.  My mother is Slovak...her parents came to America looking for a better life.  Both of my parents have stories about big barrels of sauerkraut made to last the winter.  My mother said that they would put apples in the sauerkraut to keep the apples and flavor the kraut.  Her sister LOVED these apples and would sneak into the cellar and reach way into the barrel to fish for her prize.  But an arm soaked in sauerkraut juice would give away her secret! 

Then there is the cabbage and noodles.  My favorite.  But only the way my mother makes it...loads of butter.  I've had other cabbage and noodles at various Western PA functions and there is no comparison to the loads of butter method.  After steaming the cabbage for hours until it is nice and soft, the key to perfect cabbage and noodles is to then fry the cabbage in more butter before adding noodles.  Oh, did I mention to add more butter?  And salt and a little pepper.  Perfect.

So I wonder...how is it that so many foods have so many different ways to prepare them, each according to the culture and climate?  Who were these first cooks that came up with these dishes?  And how many attempts were deemed inedible?  I thank you whoever you were!

Interesting fact found on Wikipedia in regards to cabbage...it is actually a goitrogen...yes, that's right, it can cause goiters!  I found this fact to be entirely and wholly amusing.  Not that a goiter is in and of itself a funny thing...especially if you have one.  But it has always been a source of amusement to me that when my mom and her sisters would get together and talk about the old days there was always mention of "so-and-so with the goiter".  There were women who were defined not by what they did or who they loved or what kind of a person they were but rather by their goiter.  So the whole cabbage and goiter connection is like a link to my ancestry.  Kind of like finding a missing link. 

I have to add that I currently have sauerkraut and pork and kielbasa in a crock pot for the first time at my house on New Year Day.  I love it.  Marty hates it but assured me that he would be OK if I cooked it.  I think this might mean I should let him open a can of tuna some day.  Up to this point I have only made cabbage when he was away at camp and he only eats tuna when I am in Florida or California.   This must be true love.

Happy New Year to all of you and I hope you learn something new every day...even if it isn't particularly interesting or important.  You never know, it might help you answer a question on Jeopardy.