trange things happen when you
stop going to the grocery store.
I went 95 days without a trip to the
supermarket this spring, and during the
first month of that long, dark period, I
ordered all of our groceries through a
local delivery service. I was never quite
sure what would show up. I’d get weird
flavors of crackers and green bananas,
or three different brands of milk.
Sometimes I’d get smart substitutions,
like naan instead of pita, and sometimesMaile Carpenter
Editor in Chief
@maile__fnmag10 FOOD NETWORK MAGAZINE ●SEPTEMBER 2020
SHOPPING CART: GETTY IMAGES. CARPENTER PORTRAIT: TRAVIS HUGGETT.editor’s letter
8
I'd get less convenient ones, like cream
of coconut in place of coconut milk.
(Sorry, guys, we're having pii'ia coladas
tonight instead of Thai red curry!)
Don't get me wrong, I was so grateful
for the shoppers who were working
during that time. I just desperately
missed being able to choose everything
myself-and more than that, I missed
wandering around and discovering
new things.
Even as a kid I knew that grocery
stores were magical places. I was the
only one in the family who'd ever
volunteer to go to the commissary with
my mom (we lived on military bases, so
we didn't dare call it a supermarket).
I figured out that if I was along for
the ride, I would have a say in what
ended up in the cart- which is how
I discovered Capri-Sun and Toaster
Strudel and all of the other ingenious
inventions of the 1980s.
While my coworkers and I were locked
down this spring, longing to go shopping
again, we decided to dedicate our whole
Fun Cooking section to the supermarket
and all the things we love about it. I hope
you are out there wandering the aisles
again, but if you aren't, our list of the
most exciting new products on page 35
should be almost as fun.D