Is that all there is to Mmmarch?

And just like that it’s over and I’m back to eating Celeste pizzas and TJ’s frozen dinners. Just kidding—well kind of, I actually did hit up Mama Celeste the other night, but my good eating habits from last month haven’t totally gone out the window just yet…

I’m sure it was evident in my posts, but if the joy of cooking didn’t come across, let it be known that I really enjoyed Mmmarch. It was great to cook up so many new recipes and just to eat better in general, but the part that I enjoyed the most was spending time with so many people that I love and care about. A few recipes in, I realized that this month’s lent was just as much about the people with whom I shared the food with and the stories and history contained in each recipe, as it was about the actual meal itself.

When I studied abroad in Italy, one of my first observations was how seriously the Italians took their meals. Restaurants didn’t even open until 7 in the evening because once you sat down at the table, it was presumed that you’d be there all night. Meals were dragged out (in the best way possible) for hours and hours, and long after the last course was served, there was no antsy waiter hovering over you, waving the check in your face. On the contrary, you were invited to stay as long as you liked, and when you felt like you’re dining experience was through, you would ask for the check yourself. While microwave dinners are certainly convenient for our over-worked lives, it completely removes the experiential element from the meal, and to me, that’s just as important as the food.

Dan and I spent the first half of our weekend at the funeral of someone who died far too young and it made me even more grateful that I was able to share so many happy memories this month with the people that I hold near and dear to me. Not to sound like a public service announcement, but it’s so important to make time to get together with your loved ones, and even more important to tell them how much they mean to you.

That being said, I love you all, thank you for joining me for dinner, and hey, if you didn’t make it over last month, the invitation still stands. Viva la dinner party anytime you want!

Next Up: The Wardrobe Diet. Full-post coming tomorrow, it should be interesting haha.