What can you do with the canned foods that
have been idling since last year at the back of
your kitchen cabinets? Facebook groups like
Pandemic Pantry have sprouted up as gathering
places for strangers to share advice.
Michael Volpatt, owner of the gourmet Big
Bottom Market in Sonoma County, California,
tackled the subject of canned goods on a recent
installment of the impromptu cooking show he
began hosting from his kitchen on March 14.
Scrolling through Facebook while gathering
ingredients to make himself dinner that night,
Volpatt noticed the Facebook “Live” button on his
phone screen. With his store closed, he realized it
was a way to connect with friends and customers,
and not be alone while preparing his meal.
“Hey everybody,” his first broadcast began. “I’ve
never done Facebook Live before. But I figured
since I’m kind of staying at home and going to do
some cooking later on, you’re going to join me.”
A growing audience now watches and
comments nightly as he prepares everything
from his mother’s marinara sauce to pot pies
made with his Big Bottom Market biscuit mix,
which appeared on Oprah’s Favorite Things list
in 2016.
“It’s heartwarming,” Volpatt says, “and it
takes a lot of the awkwardness of this whole
experience away.”
Returning to old recipes and learning new
ones can be both a necessity and a welcome
distraction during this strange time.
“Cooking brings back good memories,” Bierly
says, “like standing there at the pot on my stove,
cooking the spaghetti and thinking of when my
mother used to do that.”
Image: Cindy Yamanaka