My younger sister is enrolled in a memoir writing class and was reviewing some of her memories with me a couple of weeks ago. She and I are 14 years apart in age so our memories don't always coincide or even exist in some cases. With the memories idea in my mind, this week actually during my "prayer" time one morning (I believe these kind of flashes during contemplation are referred to as monkey mind!), I began to think about the foods that our Mother especially prepared or considered usually Sunday evening treats for the family.
-Pineapple Upside Down Cake with real whipped cream on top - cake nice and warm out of the oven
-Homemade, actually "cranked" in an old-fashioned ice cream maker - so cold it could easily give you a headache with too large a bite - this was usually prepared in conjunction with a gathering of family and/or friends as the cranking took a long time and lots of muscle. When peaches were in season, the freezing bites contained peach chunks
-Strawberry shortcake with real cream - fresh strawberries, shortcake like a big biscuit - recipe from a Bisquick box, not a spongey imitation bought at the store, real cream - not whipped and not Cool-Whip
-Popcorn balls made from scratch, shaped by us all with margarine-covered hands into sticky, gooey confection guaranteed to pull out a filling occasionally - we actually snacked on these one time while all huddled under a large bedstead fearing a tornado would blow us away at any minute
-Donuts - shaped and dropped into deep oil for frying
-Soda Crackers crumbled in a glass with milk poured on top - now this one was a favorite of our Dad's and I'm not sure any of the rest of us ever took to this idea of milk and crackers but he loved it
So, that strange assortment of special foods is in my memory bank. How about you - did your family or your Mother prepare any special treats in your childhood that you especially remember?
The one thing that comes to mind is our family tradition of eating potato chips with ice cream. It doesn't appeal to me anymore.
ReplyDeleteLisa - wow, I think that IS a brand new taste combo thought for me. I like them both separately - but together?
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing:))
Mmmmm, you are making me hungry SS! My mother took up Austrian cooking when she married my father and she made the best sachertorte (rich chocolate cake with apricot filling and fresh whipped cream on top) I have ever had, and linzertorte (almond cake with raspberry filling). I just found out last week I have to give up dairy, eggs, and wheat so now I am hungry and frustrated! ;-)
ReplyDeleteChristine - talk about mouth-watering - your Mother's dishes sound delish!
ReplyDeleteYikes, there is "life after dairy" as that's a strong issue in our house (although I can cook with eggs and wheat). I think your frustration is well founded!
Tx for letting me dream about cakes and fresh whipped cream with you:)
Cakes, cookies and brownies - we had an over abundance of them. Dad's company produced a lot of different kinds of food products, and he brought home everything new to try them out on us. The worst was a high protein oatmeal like stuff that tasted worse than sawdust. But the cakes, cookies and brownies kept us going.
ReplyDeleteCP
i remember many of the same dishes that your mother made although pineapple upside down cake did not make my list...i seem to remember a couple of my brother's favorites - german chocolate cake (i hated coconut) and tuna noodle casserole (also not my fave). sunday pot roast - a really great fried chicken and when i had been sick with the flu and got my appetite back, she would grill me a steak and make homemade french fries :-) oh, i think these food memories could go on for quite sometime and might be quite appropriate fodder for memoir writing!
ReplyDeletethanks for the memories!! xoxo