Too Many Cooks: Do You Haiku?

You'll be hearing from the staff at FOOD52 every week in Too Many Cooks, our group column in which we pool our answers to questions about food, cooking, life, and more.

Today: 
April showers might
bring May flowers, but April
also brings haikus.

At Food52 we love to cook
But we also love to rhyme
And while our posts are often about recipes and books
We are publishing poems all the time.

So when we learned that April was National Poetry Month
We had to ask our staff to write us a little verse
Something fun and stress-free, maybe an ode to an overindulgent desk lunch
As long as it was not too rehearsed. 

As the haikus streamed in we read, 
And as we read we laughed—
Because what mattered was not the syllabic count, but rather, what was said. 
Turns out the whole of Food52 has a hidden craft.

This is our great confession.
Food tastes better post reflection.

Do you love to rhyme? Do you count to seventeen all the time? Share your ode to food in poetic form in the comments below!  

(Please note that some foods cannot be contained to the 5-7-5 structure.)

Samantha:
Beefcake. Not the name
of a hunky dude, but one
more word for meatloaf.

This One Goes Out to Derek, by Allison
Morels on my pie,
with ramps. Beauty and the Beast.
Tube meat of the spring.

Spring Vegetables, by Sarah
Just when I start to
fear you've gone the way of the
Dodo, you return. 

Ramps, by Erin
I wait all year long.
When you finally show up,
I will pickle you. 

Jeremy:
snip from the garden
colors combine in the kitchen
fresh flavors abound.

Leandra:
Frosted with sprinkles
Jelly-filled, sugar-dusted—
Give me all doughnuts.

Hannah P:
Eat cake for breakfast
Scarf down a salad for lunch
My diet is sad

Micki:
I love me some cheese.
There are 10 kinds in my fridge—
I clearly need more.

Lauren L:
Mushrooms, stinky cheese, capers
He does not care for.
Holding out hope children do.

Hannah W:
Chocolate chip cookies,
oatmeal raisin, and fresh blondies.
Don't tell my dentist. 

Nicole:
Please Ben and Jerry’s:
Bring back Oatmeal Cookie Chunk.
It is dearly missed.

An Ode to the Food52 Test Kitchen, by Leslie
My fridge is full of
chicken, rabe, and risotto—
all because of you.

Jaime B:
Pulled from the dirt, washed
under water, a turnip
in all its glory.

Rachel:
I asked your parents
how they've made it 30 years
your mom said takeout

Amanda S:
We ate dill pickles
without skins, mushed to a paste,
and called it salad.

Jane W:
April showers bring
soggy afternoon hours.
There is always wine.

Kelsey:
Not just for Friday,
my most favorite perfume:
Fresh challah baking.

Michael: 
I am not royal,
But I have dreamt of being
The King of Croutons. 

Mei:
Cold coffee is nice.
Shake it: Super milky, sweet.
Oh wait. That's ice cream.

Lucy:
dewy melons and
potato salad for days
waiting for summer

Lindsay-Jean:
She eats her veggies
by dipping them in mayo.
Parenting success?

Lauren K:
When I was little
I refused to eat without
ranch on everything.

Don't keep your poetry to yourself! Share your food-centric haikus in the comments below.