FollowI remember a dinner that we sometimes had when I was young and waiting until my parents got their pay and wanted to share it with you. This, of course, was before the long walk to the grocery store with buggy in hand to pick up groceries for meals for the week. Neither of my parents drove and whichever weather was tossed at us, we all walked through it to get our weekly rations. Things were expensive back then, according to most folks, considering the amount of the weekly wage. So, sometimes we had breky for dinner! I’m sure that some of my blog readers can recall days in their childhood when this also took place. Nowadays, this is considered a budget meal!
One of my favorite dinners just happened to be home made potatoes, done with the old potatoes that were brown and dusty. They had to be washed and scrubbed to remove the dirt, and then we got out the chip slicer, one of those steel gadgets with the little squares, ours was red and I loved to watch my mom or dad press the potatoes through it. I would have loved to try it, but I was too little and did not have the strength! Sometimes though, if we were in a rush, out came the paring knife and one of my parents quickly went to work, expertly slicing those potatoes into huge, chunks of potatoes that would soon be tossed into a wire basket and then dropped in the bubbling lard and deep fried until they were a golden brown.
Next came the eggs! We all had two eggs, sunny side up. However, my Mom always covered the pan as they were frying so that the tops were not raw. The steam from the heat was encapsulated under the lid, which, of course, cooked the top of the egg just enough to have the top turn white. Afterwards, the breakfast bacon came out, and after that was cooked to perfection, out came the bread. And my parents were never wasteful, no way! That bacon grease served a purpose! That leftover, hot bacon grease that was left in the pan suddenly became butter in a sense, for our bread. Bread slices, one by one, were placed in the pan and flattened with the flipper and fried to a golden brown. Oh, the thought of it all and the smell of fried bread from my memory is making my mouth water!
But wait, that was not all. As all this food was lovely placed at the table for us to have our dinner, out came the can of small, green peas that were quickly warmed in the pot on the stove. These were then ladled out of the pot with a slotted spoon and made their way to our plates. They were then topped with a couple of shakes of malt vinegar, as well as the golden, homemade french fries.
Well, it is about time for me to turn in for the night and I know what I am going to be dreaming about! Those special dinners of long ago when my parents were alive and I was just a little girl. I think I might make brekkie for dinner tomorrow night for my kids! Those wonderful, loving memories of days long ago.
Such beautiful memories. Thanks with love, Mom & Dad.
