Jan 10 2009
Food Memories
Growing up, there were certain foods that were part of every get together. If it was just the weekly family get together, we had a certain set of foods. If it was a holiday or some other special occasion, we may have a different set of foods. There were some foods that were a daily staple. As time has passed and we have all grown up and went our seperate ways, the foods of yesterday are often only a memory.
Memories of favorite foods can be brought to mind at some of the most inconvenient times. This very moment happens to be one of those times for me. Right now, I would simply love to have one of my grandmother’s dishpan full of banana pudding. Yes, you read right. She often made it in a dishpan. Hey, she had to! We had a large family and it was wonderfully heavenly that we all wanted more than just a simple serving. When that pan was set on the table, you best have your plate ready. If you thought you would be nice and wait until everyone else got served, you would not be getting any pudding.
The pudding was definitely a taste of heaven. No matter what was going on in your life, for the few moments you were eating that pudding, nothing in the world could bother you. Maybe that is why she fixed it so often. She knew that we all needed a break from our troubles from time to time.
As much as I crave the sweet, mouth watering goodness of my youth, my husband has a craving for his mother’s coconut cake. In all honesty, I’m petrified at the thought of trying to find the recipe for it. She has yet to share it with me. Instead, she simply tells me a day and time to pick it up. It is her way of saying that she loves him. How could I possibly break her heart by telling her that I want to let him know that I love him enough to try to bake something similiar. Believe me, his mom can far out cook me any day of the week. I just simply hope that my trying would be one of those rare times when it is the thought that counts.
I’ve tried looking for the recipe. I’ve even had several nice people share their recipe with me. I’m just too chicken to actually try it. Maybe I should take the time to find a recipe to try for him but instead of making it, first build up my confidence. I think if I could find a comparable recipe to my grandmother’s banana pudding, then I might be fortified with enough courage from eating that to allow me to at least attempt the cake for him. If not, at least I will have a few minutes of total bliss trying to build up my confidence. Hmm… I wonder, what other foods from my past could I attempt?
