It turns out that April is a surprisingly eventful month.

On the 1st, we had April Fool’s Day, April 15th was U.S. Income Tax Day, and the 22nd was Earth Day. April is also the yearly home of National Grilled Cheese Month and National Poetry Month. And of course, this year April was the month where Passover and Easter fell.

In life, it’s always wonderful when old and new passions get an opportunity to mix. Years ago, our shared passion for poetry led my wife and I to found Zuzu’s Petals Quarterly, a literary magazine (and later, the website Zuzu.Com) which we edited together for 14 years.

Today, because April is National Poetry Month, we get to combine our passion for poetry and food by sharing here on Hugging the Coast a selection of poems that celebrate all the memories and experiences stirred up by the world of food, eating, and cooking.

If you’re also looking for some delicious recipes that might just inspire poetry (and memories) of your own, please see our growing collection of original recipes…nearly 100 so far!

Enjoy!

First, A Humorous and Silly Rhymed Culinary Poem From Hugging the Coast:

• A Food Poem Inspired by Dr. Suess: Green Eggs and Ham Salad, Plus a Recipe

Unrhymed Poetry About the Culinary Life:

• Crazy About Her Shrimp by Charles Simic

• I Ask My Grandmother If We Can Make Lahmajoun by Gregory Djanikian

• Bread Soup: An Old Icelandic Recipe by Bill Holm

• Eating the Pig by Donald Hall

• A Pot of Red Lentils by Peter Pereira

• Farm Style Pink Lemonade Nonet by Juleigh Howard-Hobson

• Eating Alone by Li-Young Lee

• Corned Beef and Cabbage by George Bilgere

• The Cleaving by Li-Young Lee

• Grilled Cheese Haiku by M.A. Pecen

• Perhaps the World Ends Here by Joy Harjo

• Onions by William Matthews

• Maple Syrup by Donald Hall

• Thirteen Ways with Figs By Michelle McGrane

• Food by Myesha Jenkins

• Brief Reflection on Killing the Christmas Carp by Miroslav Holub

• The Vegetables by James McMichael

• Wonderbread by Alfred Corn

• Eating Together by Kim Addonizio

• Aunt Jemima by Lucille Clifton

• They Eat Out by Margaret Atwood

• Biology by Stephen O’Connor

• The Sound of One Fork by Minnie Bruce Pratt

• Another Insane Devotion by Gerald Stern

• The Potato Eaters by Leonard E. Nathan

• Depression Glass by Ted Kooser

• The Icehouse in Summer by Howard Nemerov

• The Composer’s Winter Dream by Norman Dubie

• Everything Good Between Men and Women by C. D. Wright

• Milk by Shirley Kaufman

• Ghost Supper: After Pavese by David Wojahn

• Passion for Solitude by Cesare Pavese

• Canned Food Drive by Kathleen Lynch

• The Invention of Cuisine by Carol Muske-Dukes

Food Poetry That Rhymes:

• How to Mash Potatoes: A Sonnet by Juleigh Howard-Hobson

• I Wave Good-bye When Butter Flies by Jack Prelutsky

• The Clean Plater by Ogden Nash

• The Housewife by Charlotte Anna Perkins Gilman

• Kentucky Derby Villanelle by Gourmet Grrl

• Our Hired Girl by James Whitcomb Riley

• The French Fry Thief by Alfred Noyes

• Deep in Our Refrigerator by Jack Prelutsky

• Lines on the Mermaid Tavern by John Keats

Please join us tomorrow to read our newest Fish For Friday Recipe: Seafood Tarts.

If you liked this article on HuggingtheCoast.Com, you might also enjoy:

• Hugging the Coast Book Excerpts and Food Articles (including a look at the humorous side of culinary life)
• Our 20 Most Popular Posts on HuggingtheCoast.com
• 17 Party Friendly Cookies: Cookie Recipes Your Guests and Family Will Love
• Orange Fig Chorizos with Brandy & Pine Nuts Recipe
• Fish For Friday Recipe: An Easter Breakfast of Scrambled Eggs with Smoked Salmon
• The Art of Decorated Easter Eggs: From Hard Boiled to Chocolate

Enjoy Doug's Original Seafood Recipes on About.Com Fish and Seafood Cooking

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Find Out More About the Knack Fish & Seafood Cookbook by Doug DuCap and Linda Beaulieu