What better place to start my food travels than at home with a recipe that has been passed down from generation to generation. The family lasagna recipe started in Italy, traveled with the family to the orange orchards of Florida and has now made its way to Simpsonville, SC, USA. The recipe shows its age as well as its journey of love, laughter, heartaches, pain - the tattered paper now electronically preserved. As I looked over the old recipe turned yellow with age and with cross outs, retractions, and mixture of typed verses written edits- it is clear that each person has their own interpretation of the recipe. I tried to read through the edits to the original text and I sourced ingredients as close to the real Italian recipe as possible. It seems that time does more than change the written instructions but varieties of tomatoes, cheeses, and even types of heat play a role in extracting the flavors from the homeland. Unfortunately many recipes will be lost forever and the taste is left up to the chefs and the consumers' palette, but this one, this little lasagna continues to carry its comfort, laughter and love as it travels around the world.
Will I share the recipe? No, this one is a family secret, but might I challenge you to create your own recipe that can be passed from generation to generation. I mean who follows the recipe anyway, right? The best tastes are left up to the palette of its beholder and the company he/she shares.
