Essay One: Food Narative.

My name is Ashley Darnell and I am an Oreo-holic


As I sit down to write my narrative on what food makes me, Ashley Darnell. I think to myself what a perfect excuse to grab a giant ice-cold glass of milk, three Oreos, and a spoonful of peanut butter. I know what you are thinking, ‘Wow, this girl is an absolute freak.’ But just wait and let me tell you what Oreos mean to me.


Ever since I was a little girl I have had Oreos in my life. I’m not exactly sure if I truly remember what it was like sinking my teeth into that outer chocolaty shell and tasting that first taste of the warm sugary frosting but I surely like to imagine that I do. As a little girl I grew up in Marietta, Georgia where almost my whole family, except my Aunt, lived. This meant I spent most of my summer days spending time with my Grandmother and Pawpaw. I would keep myself busy by helping my Pawpaw work in his garage, at the end of the day I would help cook the dinner then my Grandmother would bake dessert. One day we sat down for dinner, only soon after to find ourselves very dessert-less and quite disappointed. This was the day my Pawpaw became the culprit to my Oreo addiction. I remember it, or so I think I do, like it was yesterday. We were all gathered around my Grandmother’s old kitchen table, one of those tables that has seen more Christmas dinners than I could even imagine and that reeks of that old musty smell, right away when you enter you know elderly people live there. When the next thing I knew, my Pawpaw set exactly three Oreos in front of me, he had a precise way of stacking one upon the other, he then filled up one red solo cup full of milk, he stopped it exactly at that top line, and then he placed a little plastic spoon right next to my tower of cookie goodness. At first, I just kind of stared blankly at him; I had never seen anybody be so specific while dealing with food. I for one thought he was crazy but now it all makes sense.

If you have ever heard of tradition, you usually don’t think of food, unless you are talking about Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner, but looking back on it this was the beginning of a new tradition. My pawpaw, without even knowing it, started a tradition that would be stuck with me for my whole life. Since that day I have added on to my weird Oreo tradition a little bit at a time. If you have ever seen the Parent Trap with Lindsay Lohan you may think I got this from her, but oh no Lindsay was not so much the trendsetter this time. I, don’t ask me how or why, came up with this weird combination all on my own. While eating Oreos I still only eat three at a time, which of course I make sure I stack one upon the other. Also, I still pour my milk precisely to that one line in the solo cup, but now instead of just putting an empty plastic spoon next to my cup I make sure that my spoon has a big dollop of peanut butter on it. It may sound like the most disgusting combination ever, but for me it has become my comfort food. I can’t tell you what it is about an Oreo smothered in peanut butter and saturated with milk that can turn my worst, walking in the rain, everything went wrong all at once day around, but somehow it can. Some girls drown their sorrows with a gigantic carton of Ben and Jerry’s Cookie Dough ice cream but Ashley Darnell only needs three Oreos dipped in peanut butter and milk.


Eating Oreos with peanut butter has become my signature trademark among my friends. They always ask me “Ashley, why don’t you eat them without peanut butter one time?” or the worst question, “Why don’t you try them without milk?” An Oreo without milk would be like Pb&J without the j. Also, why would I want to change a good thing right? Wrong. Lately, the media has been tempting me with a change to my Oreo obsession. Just the other night while I was lying in my teeny bed, watching TV, actually indulging in my Oreo heaven. When all of a sudden a Domino’s commercial came on. This wasn’t just any Domino’s commercial though this was the Domino’s commercial created for Ashley Lauren Darnell. Let me tell you about this commercial. As I was eating my Oreos, barely paying attention to the TV, I heard an announcers voice, ‘Oreo meet pizza. Pizza meet Oreo.’ I thought to myself, ‘I must be eating way too many Oreos or something. There’s no way there would actually be an Oreo pizza. That’s just madness.’ So I decided I should go to sleep, I was obviously loosing my mind. Next day, as I am getting ready, I hear the same commercial come on in the background. This time I knew I wasn’t going crazy. Someone out in the world obviously has a deeper Oreo passion than me to have created a ten-inch pizza, covered in Oreo crumbs, and drizzled with warm, melted Oreo icing. I’m still pretty skeptical about trying this so-called heavenly dessert pizza. It has brought a frenzy of thoughts to mind though. Who would honestly be crazy enough to come up with the idea of combining pizza with Oreos? Could it actually be delicious? Could this be the change to my traditional three Oreos, peanut butter, and a cup of milk? I just may have to experiment with this new temptation. I may even get a spoonful of peanut butter to spread over this new Oreo pizza. One thing is for sure though, as soon as I get home this weekend. I am going to rush over to my Grandmother and Pawpaw’s house, order one large Oreo pizza and one very large jug of milk, and sit out on the back porch with my Pawpaw. Every tradition has room for improvement if you ask me.