Boerenbont

Sometime in the mid-1970s, before moving to Canada, my mother bought Boerenbonten dishes at the Albertcuypmarkt in Amsterdam.  Boerenbont is a type of traditional pottery from the Netherlands, handpainted in a blue, red, green and yellow floral pattern, originally made more than a century ago.  Still popular in the Netherlands, Royal Boch out of Belgium continues to make and sell it.

The Boerenbont became my mom's "good" dishes and over the years as she travelled back and forth to the Netherlands for vacations, she expanded from the original cups, dinner and luncheon plates, serving and soup bowls to almost every piece available, including a teapot, salt and pepper shakers, dessert dishes, juice cups, cups and saucers, a gravy boat and much, much more.  Every Christmas and birthday dinner was served off these dishes, and I knew my mom would react with "gezellig!" (cosy!) whenever we set the table with them. 


Christmas dinner being served by my mom back in 1979

About six years ago my mother moved into my house and brought the Boerenbont with her, destined to be my good dishes.  A lack of room in my kitchen resulted in them being stored in my basement in a container and I never got my act together to bring them out at the more important meals.  It was probably a disappointment to my mother because I had always loved them but they were just going unused.  She even suggested selling them.  However, when my mom moved into a nursing home we constructed a separate kitchen for my cake design business in our basement.  Many of the specialized baking tools I was storing in the armoire in the livingroom beside my upstairs kitchen moved out and the Boerenbont moved in!  Just like my mom did before me, I now pull out the Boerenbont for special occasions!  It makes me feel great to continue this tradition and finally own a set of "good" dishes! 



Christmas dinner 2011



My childhood meal from hell and how I am repeating the cycle

I think I was 5 or 6.  Dinner sat before me on the table.  It was hideous!  It was monstrous!  It was vile!  I was not to leave the table until my plate was empty.  The night seemed to last forever.  How was I ever supposed to finish this horrible, disgusting, revolting plateful of food that teased me with its grossness?  My parents had long ago finished their meal.  My brother (in the same predicament as me) and I still sat there, hoping the food would magically disappear from our plates.  I remember our parents' irritation with us at not eating this meal.  Finally, in disgust, my parents said we could go straight to bed instead of finishing the food.  I couldn't choose that option, because it would mean missing the only five minutes of daily children's programming Dutch television offered.  No, I slogged on, while my brother chose to go to bed hungry.  He cried and cried (small house, our shared bedroom was right beside the diningroom/familyroom).  I tried to offer him comfort him by calling out to him that I would tell him what he missed on our television show.  I must have finally eaten that dinner from hell and I am pretty sure my mother never served it again.

 

Fast forward 35 years.  I found falafels at Costco yesterday.  An awesome vegetarian option!  Not tofu, not gas-inducing beans and no animals had to die for this meal!  I sauteed peppers and onions and mushrooms, served it on pitas and added tzatziki.  I thought it was wonderful.  Three out of four of us ate it right up!

About my family - in addition to my husband, I have two tween daughters: two wonderful young ladies who are special in their own ways.  One loves horses, nature and food, especially dinner; the other one loves dance, fashion and breakfast and lunch.  While one of my girls will try any kind of food, loves most everything she tries and could eat all day, my other daughter has always been a picky eater.  Born premature, diagnosed with anemia at 5 months, she weighed 10 pounds at 1 year old.  She has always been healthy, but the food thing has caused strife between my husband and I since she started on solid food.  I believe she will eat when she is hungry.  If she won't eat her dinner, I figure - whatever!  Her choices are fruit or something equally healthy or she can wait until breakfast.  My husband thinks she will suffer greatly if she doesn't eat dinner.  And it isn't easy.  I once served a tofurkey, and it was awesome!  Miss Picky bawled.  Just bawled about it.  She just couldn't eat it.  We still tease her about that one.

So back to last night,...  I was excited about this meal.  While the rest of us ate, Miss Picky hummed and hawed, picked at the pita, fished out some peppers, "accidentally" dropped a falafel ball on the floor...  It was torture.  For her and for me.  I was so irritated with her.  I wasn't feeding her garbage, it was yummy!  It was saving an animal's life.  It was healthy.  It wasn't tofu.  I read her the ingredients - chick peas, celery, carrots, cilantro, spices...  I wanted to yell at her to go to bed without supper.  She had tears about it.  I left the table in disgust.  Finally she finished.  I won't be serving that meal again...  I ask you, is that such a horrible meal?  Am I such a horrible mother? 

So back to 35 years ago, that horrible meal my mother served me?  It was an omelette.