More Is More, October 24th

I guess it’s not a surprise that my son’s very first word was “more” but it came out sounding more like “mow-wha” when he was but a tot. Out of the mouth of babes! And not too shockingly he was referring to the chocolate ice cream I was eating that I let him taste– his fave both then and now. (Proof positive that I was a good Mom!)

I have a dear friend who literally uses an obscene amount of ketchup on both her burgers and her fries. (Whatever image comes to mind, triple it and dump on another 12 tablespoons. Yes, really that much.) Her meal is so doused in tomatoey chutney that you can barely see burger beneath the thick red coating. This gives new meeting to the phrase, “Where’s the beef?” (No judgement, really. Have at it!)

The more is more concept reminds me of a memorable quote from the movie The Help when lead character Eugenia ‘Skeeter’ Phelan says to her date, “Oysters are a vehicle for crackers and ketchup.” Perhaps they are. I might be guilty of ordering a salad just to enjoy some thick blue cheese dressing. And sometimes I munch on all of the crispy tortilla strips before I take even one bite of a Southwestern salad. I definitely will eat the crust and goo of an apple pie but avoid the mushy fruit chunks– just not my thang.

I think kids tend to lick all the fun sprinkles off of an ice cream cone before they dive into the actual scoop. And I know a guy who uses a huge dollop of sour cream with each and every bite of his burrito. We all have our foodie favorites.

I’ve been witness to the massive peppering of feta cheese, a generous re-mayo slathering on both sides of a hero after a first coat had already been generously applied, and I’ve seen a pal up the ratio of cream over coffee to be about two to one. (Yep, that last one is in fact an adult!) Have you seen over the top Bloody Mary drinks lately? There’s more food than drink in some of them!

My BF Michael loves strawberries with homemade whipped cream. Because he makes the delicious topping himself, he makes it extra thick. And he does this specifically so that a small seeded berry can withstand double its weight in whip. The amount of cream he uses per strawberry is astonishing. If I’m being honest, sometimes I even ditch the berries and just eat the whip! He makes it oh so good.

I’m not sure who coined the phrase, “Less is more.” Because well… it’s not! Burger King had the right idea when they launched their “Have It Your Way” campaign. I hope whatever you’re eating today it’s made perfectly to your specifications and that it tastes just great.