Mom Thornton’s Chili with Steve’s ‘BAMs!’

By Marcia Thornton Jones

This is the time of year that I start pulling out ‘family favorite’ recipes. What would Thanksgiving be without sweet potato casserole topped with melted marshmallows? What would Christmas be without sugar cookies or Irish cream truffle fudge?

Flipping through my binder full of recipes is like turning the pages of a photo album. I can see Dad standing by the stove, patiently turning the chicken when making his spicy fried chicken, and feel the steam rising up to fog his glasses. I can see Mom rolling out dough, thin and even, and smell the cinnamon of my brother’s favorite apple pie. I can hear the sizzle of chicken-fried-steak in the electric skillet and the rattle of the cookie jar that Grandma filled with sugar cookies just for us.

Most memories I can never taste again because the people are gone (and I don’t cook the way they did). But I must admit that as the days grow shorter and cooler, the little girl in me craves one of Mom’s recipes because, really, what would fall be without her chili? Just the thought of it makes me feel cozy, warm, and safe.

As with most recipes, Mom’s chili has changed a bit over the years. My husband Steve has experimented by adding pinches of this and that until Mom’s really good recipe became great. That sounds a lot like the revision process, doesn’t it? Where we, as writers, take a good story and make it even better? My recipe even looks a bit like an edited page of one of my manuscripts!

This makes me wonder…what are my story character’s favorite foods? What tastes and fragrances would elicit emotions of warmth, comfort, safety, and unconditional love? What might she eat when she’s happy? Depressed? Angry? What food would she stash under her bed? What would she never-ever-ever eat—even on a dare?

How about your characters? What foods might they hide in their sock drawers? Care to share?