Opinion | Grandma Foods

At times of upheaval, people turn to comfort food.In early Covid, for example, it was the processed foods of childhood — cans of Chef Boyardee or fistfuls of Goldfish crackers.We seek these foods, food experts say, because they remind us of our childhood and the people who took care of us.

Mac and cheese makes us think about Mom.Hot dogs evoke Sundays at the game with Dad.So what does it mean then, teetering on the brink of Trump Again, I’ve turned to what I think of as grandma food? Instead of indulging in the madeleines of my childhood (Lucky Charms, SpaghettiOs, TV dinners) I found myself eating things I would never have touched as a child.

Foods that even throughout adulthood, I’ve thought of uninteresting or worse.The first sign of trouble was digestives, those bland, seemingly useless cookies eaten by British people.Even the name is repulsive.

Cookies aren’t meant to be good for you.But developed in Scotland in the 19th century, the digestive biscuit was believed to aid digestion, a matter of keen interest to an older demographic.

In other words, it is the stewed prune of snack food, a thing expressly intended for the mature eater.For the record, I am middle-aged.I no longer recall how I started on digestives (or am choosing to forget that it was my 80-something father-in-law).But having tried them, I’m forced to admit that the biscuits, made with coarse brown wheat flour and sodium bicarbonate, are surprisingly tasty.

I now buy them of my own accord and place them in a high cabinet where no one will else will go near them.I’ve experimented with various iterations, including the Marks & Spencer store brand, and resolved that “the original” from McVitie’s, that most stalwart of British brands, is the only correct choice.Certain old-lady ingredients I once thought had no right to be in cookies — lemon, nuts or, say, ginger — are now genuinely appetizing.

During Season 4 of “Slow Horses,” I observed Jackson Lamb (old) eating Ja...