Summer comfort foods are often related to family picnics. The Andersons had a tradition of bringing together all of their family relatives for the fourth of July picnic. Great Grandpa Joe's barbeque always brought smiles to everyone. Great Grandma Sue once said that she married Joe because he grilled the meanest chicken west of the Mississippi. Whether she said that to make him feel good about his cooking or not is still a family discussion.

Since the 1960's, great Grandma Sue has been taking over the preparation of barbeque chicken. The family secret barbeque rub is prepared a week ahead of the picnic event. Time and care and heart are all important ingredients for comfort foods. Great Grandma Sue always would tell the little Andersons that preparing the chicken is like a full-time job. Whether that is true or not, great Grandma Sue would wink when she says this.

The marination starts the afternoon before the picnic. The chicken pieces are smothered in the barbeque rub, covered in plastic wrap airtight, then left in the refrigerator until the following morning. The chicken is then brought up to room temperature in her kitchen for about an hour before hitting the hot grill. Great Grandma Sue would say that the chicken needed to prepare itself for the hot grill. That special preparation is what makes it comfort food, she would say.

Yahoo! News Search Results for comfort foods
Yahoo! News Search Results for comfort foods

Cheer up wisely: Comfort foods can be made healthier (Asheville Citizen-Times)
By definition, comfort foods are generally not the healthiest.
Remaking comfort foods: Cheddar and beer soup (South Bend Tribune)
Healthful eating and comfort food don't have to go together like spinach and brownies.
Back to basics: Experts predict food in 2009 will be comfort driven with more...
ANDREW SULLIVAN/STAMFORD ADVOCATEFrugal fare such as bean soup can be a reliable comfort when money's tight in uncertain times. Food trends are fickle. They ebb and flow with economic times and over the past few years they've run the gamut...
The Recipe for Cool Weather Comfort Foods (Today's News-Herald)
(ARA) - As the weather gets brisk and the sun sets earlier, we find ourselves yearning for food and beverages that are simple, familiar and home-made. Comfort food is as soothing as a warm sweater, but it doesn't have to be boring if you add a little creativity.
Recipe Makeover: chicken-fried steak and gravy (San Jose Mercury News)
In making over chicken-fried steak, "we skip the deep frying, but with rich country gravy as consolation, you won't miss it," writes Jessie Price in "Comfort Foods Made Healthy.
Coffee and Chocolate Holding Up in Down Economy (AG Weekly)
In the United States, the true comfort foods are chocolate and coffee -which may provide relief for investors battered by plummeting prices for oil, gold, wheat and other products.
Comfort foods can be healthy too (The Charlotte Observer)
(By Heather Lalley, Chicago Tribune) Healthful eating and comfort food don't have to go together like spinach and brownies. It's just that we've become so accustomed to thinking good-for-you dishes can't be warm, gooey and soul-satisfying. But Jessie Price and her fellow editors at Vermont-based EatingWell magazine want to prove that conventional wisdom wrong. They've compiled nearly 200 ...
Feel-good Foods to Battle the Winter Blues (Lexington Clipper-Herald)
(ARA) - It's that time of year again when temperatures hit single digits, clothing gets heavier and it can be difficult to resist the urge to curl up all day under a warm and comfy blanket with an engaging book.
Cold comfort (The Age)
Justine Costigan savours a range of flavours that take some licking.
Kettle adds sweet onion chip (The Portland Business Journal)
Kettle Foods added a new flavor to its line of ?Big Game? chips.