One thing you were made to eat as a child you won't look at now

[SeekerJen]

Did you ever try acorn squash, cut down the middle with brown sugar and pecans and butter and baked? Pretty good.

I’m planning to roast a chicken for tonight’s dinner, and the acorn squash (sans pecans) will be the side dish.

 

[OutinChgoburbs]

THAT is quite the story, 'Burbs! I had heard rumours of candied sweet potatoes with marshmallows, but I tried to believe that they were stuff of urban legends. Now I know that someone out there actually makes them. [shudder]

Not just candied, practically enrobed. I was 3 or 4 years old when this happened, and it is still burned in my mind.

 

[puzzleannie]

Oh, I had forgotten about my mom’s hot breakfast special: plain shredded wheat biscuits made into a hot cereal by pouring boiling water over them. d.

you must be my best friend from grade school, this was her mom’s idea of a hot breakfast, if I slept over I always said I had to go right home before breakfast to help my mom with the baby. gack. I cannot stand any hot cereal, oatmeal, cream of wheat (worst breakfast ever invented) no it is not, MAYPO is the worst.

I agree on the candied yams, take a veggie that is way to sweet for the name in any case, and add more sugar. right.

anybody remember when Bosco came out in a spray can? It was only available for a short time, I think they took it off the market after my mom gave it to her cub scout den to make chocolate sundaes (they had to replaster the dining room ceiling of that house when they sold it because no paint could cover the Bosco stains).

 

[SeekerJen]

you must be my best friend from grade school, this was her mom’s idea of a hot breakfast, if I slept over I always said I had to go right home before breakfast to help my mom with the baby. gack.

Well, you’re from Michigan, right? If you grew up on or near Cornell street in Taylor, and your friend was one of seven: 5 girls, 2 boys, then you might have been escaping my grandma’s hot breakfasts.

 

[SeekerJen]

anybody remember when Bosco came out in a spray can? It was only available for a short time, I think they took it off the market after my mom gave it to her cub scout den to make chocolate sundaes (they had to replaster the dining room ceiling of that house when they sold it because no paint could cover the Bosco stains).

Chocolate syrup in a spray can-

I wonder how quickly the product developer who came up with that one got fired when the parent complaints started coming in.

 

[maryj]

I’m planning to roast a chicken for tonight’s dinner, and the acorn squash (sans pecans) will be the side dish.

chop up an apple and some golden raisins to fill the cavity of the squash and you’ll be in heaven.:angel1:

 

[SeekerJen]

chop up an apple and some golden raisins to fill the cavity of the squash and you’ll be in heaven.:angel1:

Too late- dinner’s already been eaten. The squash was delish simply mashed up with a bit of butter (DH grew up on his dad’s “add a half-lb of brown sugar to the” squash and couldn’t believe I didn’t add ANY sugar and the squash was still sweet). I’ve got apples and golden raisins in the pantry, too. I’ll have to buy some more squash. Maybe I’ll do this up for Thanksgiving.

 

[Della]

None of you haters of candied yams (sweet potatoes) can be from Minnesota. It’s a Thanksgiving staple here. Although, we don’t use Kairo Syrup only brown sugar with marshmallows on the top, baked and browned in the oven. Yum!

 

[Willsfirecracke]

Last night DH told me I was a picky eater… so I had to think about it and i kinda really am… lol

Fried chicken, mac and cheese, ramen noodles, tofu, lemon merangue pie, pecan pie, my mom’s homemade cranberry sauce, turkey, cream of mushroom soup, PB&J’s, steak, and rhubarb.

and of course from my previous post… Lima beans, Brussel sprouts, and veggie burgers

 

[Ravyn_Guiliani]

vegetables are just not SUPPOSED to be sweet, mushy or orange! GAG! I could not even eat pumpkin pie for years because once my father wanted it so badly he cut the pie when it was still hot and covered it in whipped cream and we all got sick—and it looked the same coming back up as it did going down in the first place! (I know too much info)

 

[Nepenthe]

One of the worst mistakes people make with squash (especially the winter squashes like acorn, buttercup, kambocha, hubbard, and so on) is oversweetening them. Yukko! Kambocha makes fantastic tempura, and acorn does too…and those are light, thinly sliced, crisp on the outside, and a little salty from the dipping sauce.

Another way I like making acorn squash is a little compromise for those who like a touch of sweet in their baked squash - just a little bit of brown sugar (or better yet, maple syrup!) a small pat of butter, then sprinkle the whole thing prettily with good paprika and either white or black sesame seeds. heck, a little sesame oil instead of the butter can work too.

Edit - I forgot that one year I made a vegetarian Thanksgiving dish that involved baked acorn squash filled with a saffron/pine nut/ basmati rice pilaf…mmm. I’ve also made some other nontraditional holiday-season things like inarizushi made the usual way (sweet little fried tofu pockets filled with sushi rice) but the rice was mixed with toasted, lightly spiced pumpkinseeds. Those went over like crazy too!

Hubbards, I think are best in hearty winter stews, not anything sweet.

And lastly, if you can stand pumpkin pie (even people who hate pumpkin pie wolf mine right down - no idea why, since i don’t do anything different than anyone else - I suspect i just have a good hand at making custard and balancing spices), try acorn (or even better, buttercup!) squash pie, using much less sugar than pumpkin, and barely anything besides roasted, scooped acorn squash as the fillinng. A little dab of sugar and spice is fine, maybe a bit of egg and condensed milk for texture, and it’s just beautiful, as well as very healthy!

 

[Consecrated]

THAT is quite the story, 'Burbs! I had heard rumours of candied sweet potatoes with marshmallows, but I tried to believe that they were stuff of urban legends. Now I know that someone out there actually makes them. [shudder]

This dish is a treat in our house! My Aunt from down South always makes them like this. I’ve never ever liked them, or any kind of sweet potato dish. But my midwest hubby likes them, so they’re on the table once in a while… esp. at Thanksgiving! I boil the 'tatos in cubes, then put them in a dish, sprinkle them with brown sugar, a pinch of salt, dot with butter, and heat through. then top with mini marshmallows and broil til a nice brown. (I don’t think this is the traditional Southern way, but apparently it’s good.) The kids LOVE them, and so does DH. I go without.

 

[puzzleannie]

Well, you’re from Michigan, right? If you grew up on or near Cornell street in Taylor, and your friend was one of seven: 5 girls, 2 boys, then you might have been escaping my grandma’s hot breakfasts.

no, Royal Oak, but maybe they were related

one thing we used to have for a snack that I cannot even think about now is marshmallow fluff on a graham cracker. Either its a real s’more with a hot cooked marshmallow, real hershey bar, or forget it.

the other things that were staples for holiday parties and entertaining were the crushed pineapple, green jello, coolwhip thingy with marshmellows and nuts, or anything remotely resembling this concoction, and the turkey stuffing made with beaten eggs and raisins. why? why? why?

the other thing people raised in Michigan are apt to encounter is some poor animal shot by a drunk guy in a red plaid jacket, the carcass of which (the animal, not the guy) has been on the top of his truck for 12 hours while he has driven down from up north, nice food safety practice there, and chopped up by somebody with an imperfect notion of butchery. Soak that half rotted meat in vinegar before you cook it, and you have the stuff of nightmares.

 

[Nepenthe]

Ack, I was too late to edit my post, but in the last recipe for squash pie (admittedly it was a bare sketch, but i think I conveyed the idea well enough), I made the mistake I -always make: I said ‘condensed milk’ when I meant evaporated, and half and half would work fine too, changing proportions appropriately. Pardon the mistake there!

 

[Magicsilence]

OH MY GOSH, GROSS! (not the hashbrowns, that insane second pic you posted!) :knight2:

Hashbrowns are yummy.

Too yummy. Why does everything that tastes so yummy, most likely end up not being good for you? Dontcha hate that, Magic?

Well, it’s not strictly true WG , there are some great tasting healthy foods out there (sweet ripe mango fruits, avocados with olive oil and basil, grilled salmon with lemon, and so on), but couscous!, lol, it has to be one of the worst foods ever invented

In the days before food served at school was ‘regulated’ by our government, I remember hash browns being one of my favourite breakfast constituents. Now, the kids have to settle for apple slices and so on

Things I have never tried and will not try are tripe or snake.

I don’t understand how anyone can eat tripe - we feed it to our DOG, and the smell alone makes us all gag. If I hadn’t heard it with my own ears, I would have assumed it was forbidden for humans to eat tripe, lol, .

 

[OutinChgoburbs]

This dish is a treat in our house! My Aunt from down South always makes them like this. I’ve never ever liked them, or any kind of sweet potato dish. But my midwest hubby likes them, so they’re on the table once in a while… esp. at Thanksgiving! I boil the 'tatos in cubes, then put them in a dish, sprinkle them with brown sugar, a pinch of salt, dot with butter, and heat through. then top with mini marshmallows and broil til a nice brown. (I don’t think this is the traditional Southern way, but apparently it’s good.) The kids LOVE them, and so does DH. I go without.

Our version has Karo syrup blended into 1/2 cup of brown sugar. This is poured over the canned and drained sweet potatoes. On top of that, a can of drained crushed pineapple. On tops of that, the marshmallows.Broil until browned.

 

[SeekerJen]

the other things that were staples for holiday parties and entertaining were the crushed pineapple, green jello, coolwhip thingy with marshmellows and nuts, or anything remotely resembling this concoction, and the turkey stuffing made with beaten eggs and raisins. why? why? why?

Ah- the jello “salad”. DH’s family had a small dinner at my in-laws’ house when his grandmother died. Aunt M offered to provide salads. SIL took one look at the “salads” (both with cool whip, one orange jello with mandarin oranges and white marshmallows, one green jello with canned pineapple and multi-color marshmallows) and went to the grocery store for a veggie tray.

the other thing people raised in Michigan are apt to encounter is some poor animal shot by a drunk guy in a red plaid jacket, the carcass of which (the animal, not the guy) has been on the top of his truck for 12 hours while he has driven down from up north, nice food safety practice there, and chopped up by somebody with an imperfect notion of butchery. Soak that half rotted meat in vinegar before you cook it, and you have the stuff of nightmares.

I can’t say I’ve had this particular delicacy pressed on me, but I have had the- er- pleasure of driving behind a pickup truck with hooves sticking straight up from the truck bed or a dead deer face staring right at me.

 

[zab]

Never did like cooked poke when I was young. And I wouldn’t think of trying it now.

 

[CarolAnnSFO]

I don’t understand how anyone can eat tripe - we feed it to our DOG, and the smell alone makes us all gag. If I hadn’t heard it with my own ears, I would have assumed it was forbidden for humans to eat tripe, lol, .

A long time ago, I accompanied my mother on a food shopping trip, and we were intrigued by Campbell’s Pepper Pot soup. Neither of us had ever heard of “Pepper Pot” soup, so we had to try a can. When we got home, we heated it up, and tried it --bleeeeccchhhhh! It was really gagworthy! So I checked the ingredients – tripe! I asked my mother what “tripe” was, and she told me. Eeewwwwww! We never bought that variety of soup again.

 

[OutinChgoburbs]

A long time ago, I accompanied my mother on a food shopping trip, and we were intrigued by Campbell’s Pepper Pot soup. Neither of us had ever heard of “Pepper Pot” soup, so we had to try a can. When we got home, we heated it up, and tried it --bleeeeccchhhhh! It was really gagworthy! So I checked the ingredients – tripe! I asked my mother what “tripe” was, and she told me. Eeewwwwww! We never bought that variety of soup again.

That is so funny!!! Yeh, it’s West Indies’ menudo, big time.

I actually bought a can of pepper pot as a kid, about ten or eleven, because I liked pepper. You are very correct. EWWWW. My mother had no idea what it was, pepper pot, so I went to the encyclopedia. No luck. So I went to the library. Found it in a book about Jamacia. It looked spicy and included tripe. I also found information about it in a book on Valley Forge and Colonial America. Apparently, the hodge-podge effect of pepper pot kept the boys alive while they wore rags on their feet during the War for Independence. They thought the use of pepper of various kinds kept it from spoiling. They allegedly got it from the Native Americans.

Actual pepper pot and the pepper pot in the Campbell’s can are not surprisingly different animals. There are recipes with and without tripe.