Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes

What in the world is Bell's Seasoning?

I grew up in the heart of the Mountain West and Jenn grew up in New England, so needless to say, our tastes in food are quite different.

Jenn grew up eating lobster while I grew up eating burritos.

She thinks cracked black pepper spicy enough while I can't get enough hot green chili.

My mother, the daughter of a mining engineer, grew up in far flung places in the Orient so I learned to eat all sorts of exotic food at a young age. Jenn's folks are stanch New Englanders so meatloaf, chowder and mashed potatoes were staples on her table as a kid.

You might think this disparity of food experience makes it hard for us to agree on what to eat.

But it doesn't.

We like sharing our lives with each other.

Not just our lives together, but our lives before we met too.

And that means trying food that the other person likes.

Last weekend we got a package from Jenn's Mom. The package contained Bell's Seasoning. I have never heard of it and it isn't available here in Colorado.

But Jenn swore that Bell's is the key to the perfect meatloaf.

So when we were at the store next, we bought all the ingredients Jenn needed to make meatloaf and mashed potatoes, rushed home and made one of Jenn's favorite childhood meals.

I'll have to admit that I couldn't really tell the difference between the meatloaf with the Bell's and the meatloaf she made before with out it.

But that really wasn't what was important.

What was important is that Jenn was sharing a piece of her childhood with me and I'm grateful to be able to experience it with her.

What does your sweetie do to share parts of their childhood with you?