In Marci's house, the comfort noodle dish was macaroni and ketchup. Again, it is exactly what it sounds like. It sounded disgusting to me, but to Marci, it was love on a plate. When she was sick, her mom would make a homemade porridge starting with a flour and butter roux. She would add milk until it was the right consistency and then sweeten to taste. When I was sick, my mom would make jello using the speed set method with ice cubes. She would spoon out the ice cubes before they melted and serve them to me in a glass. I loved it at the time, but somehow it pales in comparison to hot porridge.
Not all of our unique family dishes were hits with me. There was what my dad affectionately referred to as kretchloff (this is a phonetic spelling of what I believe to be a nonsense word created by him). Kretchloff was canned pink salmon formed into patties and pan fried. It was served with (gag as I think of it) pea gravy; a basic bechamel sauce with a can of green peas tossed in. That was a meal difficult for me get past my nose let alone swallow. My dad loved it though! I didn't much care for chipped beef on toast either, although I didn't mind the white gravy over the toast. I could have done without the tough and chewy freeze dried beef though. It never seemed to break down or get any smaller in my mouth.
As Marci and I reminisced about these meals, a realization hit us. These dishes were very low in cost. Our mothers likely made them because of that very reason. We were kids of the 70's and 80's during times of inflation and soaring gas costs. Could it be that our weird family dishes were just products of desperation to feed a family when money was tight? It could very well be. Do you have any weird dishes in your family?
One of my favorites, and one that my kids love too is macaroni and egg. It is basically a poor man's carbonara. Cook 1 pound of macaroni until tender. Drain it and add it back to pot with a tablespoon or so of butter. Put it back on the burner at a medium low heat. Add in 3-4 large eggs. Gently scramble and toss into the hot noodles just until the eggs solidify. This takes mere seconds. Remove it from the heat immediately. You want the eggs to be softly scrambled into the noodles, not hard. Generously salt and pepper to taste. This is a great side dish for grilled meats, or a nice lunch.
