Cookbooks and Gladware as Archival Material

Cookbooks are extremely helpful, especially when you're like me and can never remember if it was a tablespoon or teaspoon of salt. Big difference. They're an archival material for cooking at home. If you can't remember what a recipe calls for or if you loved the casserole from Thanksgiving they help to recreate that moment, or in this case, the taste.

But another kitchen artifact that really digs deeper in to an archival is Gladware. These are the small, see-through plastic containers that left overs are kept in. Some are taken well care of, emptied quickly and cleaned often, showing the dish was a success. Some can be found in the back corner of your refrigerator, green and stinky. That meal won't be made again.

Each of these items plays an important role in home cooking, the actual task, and in the meaning put behind it. One keeps memories over years, even decades. Others last for the moment, maybe a week. Home cooking spans over many periods of time, and each era has a different way of preserving.