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When we were kids back in the 60’s my Mom and Dad were invited to a formal dinner at a country club on Long Island where we lived. Black Tie, gown for Mom and my sister and two brothers and I were in awe. For our middle class family this was a BIG DEAL. One of the items on the menu was string beans almandine. For my Mom that side dish was the “holy grail” and the key to taking us from middle class to the “upper crust”. She served them on all special occasions and presented the bowl on the dinner table like it contained the Crown Jewels. Their long gone but my sister and brothers still laugh about it and serve up string beans almandine on special occasions.
Is there a food item that was served in your youth that was your “fancy food” that is now standard fare?
Can't think of anything that special. If I revered something that much I just learned to make it myself. And that's saying something...no one who knows me would describe me as much of a cook!
We generally survived my mom's cooking. She was allergic to eggs and had absolutely no sense of small so there was some suspense at times. She couldn't smell spoiled milk or meat or if the gas burner was on, so we had to make a pass through the kitchen and be available for sniff tests. She was no great chef, but she could bake a cake and that was the special event. She could make a mean pork roast, too.
My mother was a fantastic cook, but for very special occasions, she'd break out the hand crank ice cream maker.
As kids, we'd . crank that thing for what seemed like hours, but that ice cream made with thick, fresh cream from pur milk cow and rich eggs from our chicken was a heavenly delight.
I've never tasted anything even close since, and I've worked as a certified chef in several very good restaurants.
That ice cream set a standard that I've never found anywhere, and I've been all over the world.
Salami, Mom always enjoyed as she prepared dinner; purchasing handmade ravioli from Genoa's Delicatessen. Mom learned from the butcher, rib eye steak had the most flavor, when we enjoyed steak on occasion, always marinated in soy sauce, garlic salt, then broiled till medium rare.
Mom meals were good, most meats were broiled, horrified to learn in Home Economic, people Fried steak.
Fancy these foods might not be, what Mom prepared, Pop always prepared the turkey.
Mom (a native of San Francisco), said people living on the East/West coast, enjoy a variety of foods, maybe more ethnic ?, more than meat and potatoes.
Hard to say but some of my favorites have not changed from Mom growing up to ms gamboolgal taking care of me for over 40 year...
Fried Chicken and/or Cube Steak, Mashed Potatoes, Gravy, Field, Cream and/or Purple Hull Peas, Sliced Tomatoes, Raw Onion, Corn on the Cob, Home Pepper Sauce and Chow-Chow, Serrano Peppers, and on special days we get the fancy Fried Okra and/or Squash.
All washed down by fresh brew Iced Tea - but I like it unsweetened
ms gamboolgal makes a Meat, Potatoes, Onions, Carrots, Corn, and Celery Stew that is abit on the Soupy side. Along with a Skillet of Cornbread....washed down by fresh unsweet tea.
She makes helluva good home made Meat Pies also.
I fry the Catfish Fillets and Hot Water Cornbread out on the Patio, along with Fries and then have plenty of Tobasco and Raw Onion and pickled sweet tomatoes.
ms gamboolgal will cook up a couple pounds of Red Beans & White Lima's and toss in a big old Hambone with lots of scraps still on it. Make up a huge pot of Brown or White Rice, slice up the Tomatoes, Raw Onion and Hot Serrano's and have lots of fresh tea to wash it down and cool off the peppers.
Once I retired and we got back home to Texas, she'll make me fancy Salads with some baked/broiled Yardbird in it. She makes it in a big old bowl for me as I like me some ms gamboolgals salads !
I like simple foods - and This Thread is Making Me Hungry !
Fortunately, ms gamboolgal cooks in big pots and pans and we have 2 X Freezers, and lot of plastic food containers from HEB - so I'm off to get some of her Stew, Cornbread, Tomatoes, Onions and some fresh brewed tea ! Might slice up one of them hot peppers so I can turn red, sweat and have water running out my eyes - Ha !
I will say that the last 18 year before retiring of us living on a Compound(s) in Africa and having to ship over our food stuffs (think like a ~100+ of the 1 lb packs of Red Beans, Lima Beans, and Pinto's) and other Food Staples. This taught us to get by on what you have and to eat what you cook up yourself.
As ms gamboolgal would cook about a 3 lb pot of Beans every weekend and we would eat on it all week. We got the big bottles of Tobasco Sauce, we would get our Raymon Noodles over yonder and also our white Rice. I had to wash the Rice multiple times to get the bugs out before cooking.
We had to be real careful of what we ate over yonder due to getting food poisoning from the Bush / Mystery Meat if we were adventurous enough to try it.... ha !
It's still hard for me to throw away a Plastic Baggie as we washed them out and reused them as we only had the ones we shipped over.
Hard to say but some of my favorites have not changed from Mom growing up to ms gamboolgal taking care of me for over 40 year...
Fried Chicken and/or Cube Steak, Mashed Potatoes, Gravy, Field, Cream and/or Purple Hull Peas, Sliced Tomatoes, Raw Onion, Corn on the Cob, Home Pepper Sauce and Chow-Chow, Serrano Peppers, and on special days we get the fancy Fried Okra and/or Squash.
All washed down by fresh brew Iced Tea - but I like it unsweetened
ms gamboolgal makes a Meat, Potatoes, Onions, Carrots, Corn, and Celery Stew that is abit on the Soupy side. Along with a Skillet of Cornbread....washed down by fresh unsweet tea.
She makes helluva good home made Meat Pies also.
I fry the Catfish Fillets and Hot Water Cornbread out on the Patio, along with Fries and then have plenty of Tobasco and Raw Onion and pickled sweet tomatoes.
ms gamboolgal will cook up a couple pounds of Red Beans & White Lima's and toss in a big old Hambone with lots of scraps still on it. Make up a huge pot of Brown or White Rice, slice up the Tomatoes, Raw Onion and Hot Serrano's and have lots of fresh tea to wash it down and cool off the peppers.
Once I retired and we got back home to Texas, she'll make me fancy Salads with some baked/broiled Yardbird in it. She makes it in a big old bowl for me as I like me some ms gamboolgals salads !
I like simple foods - and This Thread is Making Me Hungry !
Fortunately, ms gamboolgal cooks in big pots and pans and we have 2 X Freezers, and lot of plastic food containers from HEB - so I'm off to get some of her Stew, Cornbread, Tomatoes, Onions and some fresh brewed tea ! Might slice up one of them hot peppers so I can turn red, sweat and have water running out my eyes - Ha !
I will say that the last 18 year before retiring of us living on a Compound(s) in Africa and having to ship over our food stuffs (think like a ~100+ of the 1 lb packs of Red Beans, Lima Beans, and Pinto's) and other Food Staples. This taught us to get by on what you have and to eat what you cook up yourself.
As ms gamboolgal would cook about a 3 lb pot of Beans every weekend and we would eat on it all week. We got the big bottles of Tobasco Sauce, we would get our Raymon Noodles over yonder and also our white Rice. I had to wash the Rice multiple times to get the bugs out before cooking.
We had to be real careful of what we ate over yonder due to getting food poisoning from the Bush / Mystery Meat if we were adventurous enough to try it.... ha !
It's still hard for me to throw away a Plastic Baggie as we washed them out and reused them as we only had the ones we shipped over.
I was stationed in Bosnia for a while, and your post reminded me of that. I had several meals that you didn't ask what is was made of. I'm pretty sure some of the meat would have made better pets than meals.
There was one small restaurant near my post. They made a real lamb goulas I couldn't get enough of. Fresh lamb so tender it melted in your mouth with fresh peppers, onions and potatoes in a tomato broth, real Hungarian paprika, fresh thyme and oregano from the herb garden by the kitchen door, and a big dollop of real sour cream on top.
Always served with a crusty loaf of fresh made bread baked in a stone oven.
Simple, fresh and delicious.
Unforgettable.
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