I had the worst taste in the world. From elementary school all through intermediate (we didn’t have middle school or junior high when I went to school in The Bronx) I ate the most horrible foods and loved it.
At school lunch we always got half a buttered bread sandwich. The crust was always super hard and the butter was a very thick, cold slab pushed away from the hard edges. My favorite lunch meal was opening up the sandwich (careful not to tear the bread. This was hard because the butter was so cold and the bread so-- not fresh) and putting hot spaghetti and tomato sauce inside. Melted the butter up real good and even made the crust edible.
Another treat for me was those boil in bags of gravy with tiny shreds of meat in them. Poured them right over two slices of Wonder bread. The beef had the very dark brown gravy and the turkey had blond brown gravy. Do they still make these?
Most favorite lunch my grandmother made me-- Campbell’s Chicken and Stars soup with a cheese sandwich. Just a slice of Kraft inside two slices of Wonder, which was for dipping, of course. Wonder Bread and Kraft Singles. What was I thinking?
It was different back then. Humanity was stuck in that brief, glorious moment when processed food was the best, most beautiful thing ever. You know, before Atkins came around and respectable people had to stop pretending that a slice of Kraft between two slices of Wonder bread was perfectly sensible nourishment.
My husband’s mother, he reports, would regularly boil two pounds of pasta, pour a jar of tomato sauce on it, and call that dinner for the family. Or–even better (or worse)–rehydrate a whole box of mashed potato buds and pour jarred gravy over it.
I got stuck with hippy-dippy parents who always made sure I had meat and vegetables at dinner. How I longed for sweetened peanut butter, for white bread, for breakfast cereal that didn’t make my jaw tired from rumination. About the worst childhood food I can come up with is grilled cheese sandwiches, made with Kraft slices. But the bread was whole wheat and I always had to eat fruit with it.
Banquet Boiling Bags! This is a beef one. As I said, I remember the turkey one also but apparently they had Chicken a al King, Salisbury Steak and chipped beef. I don’t think they make them any more.
I remember when chicken was so expensive it was only for special Sunday dinners. In its place we often had fried ‘city chicken legs’ - breaded chunks of veal and pork on a wooden skewer.
Oh, God, you had those too? My mother always called them “mock chicken legs,” as if that imparted some kind of goodness to them. (I could never figure out how making them out of veal, which SFAIK has always been more expensive than chicken, was “economical.” Unless, of course, they used all kinds of meat scraps and fillers.)
My favorite meal as a kid was hot dogs smothered in Cheez-Whiz and Kraft Sandwich Spread (the kind with the pickle chunks in it), paired with a steaming bowl of Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom soup. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm! :o
(I remember puking my guts out one day after having this for lunch, but did that put me off it? No way!)
I also liked fried Spam sandwiches topped with scrambled eggs I’d make myself, sprinkled with a little Real Lemon lemon juice. And, of course, SOS in a boiling bag poured over white toast. (Chicken a la King in a boiling bag was reserved for special occasions, like my brother going into the Air Force.)
When it came to **real **food, there was a steak house in Minneapolis that my dad used to take me to when I was five or six. Luscious steaks that were so big they hung over the edge of the platter. On one occasion, I ate all of mine and half of my dad’s, they were sooooooooooo good! :o :o :o
I basically got through college on turkey legs (the only meat I could afford), generic canned peas, and generic mac and cheese, made with evaporated milk. The milk also went into my tea and boiled coffee.
Once in a while, I was able to make a pot of chili that would last for a week, followed by a week of pasta with Ragu and cottage cheese (couldn’t afford Parmesan).
I remember those:p I loved the chipped beef one. We made our own using the vacuum sealer and bags from the sous vide setup - made for a fast biscuits and gravy or chipped beef on toast treat breakfast for me, lay them flat in the freezer to freeze so they stacked well and toss into a pot of water to thaw and heat. Can’t wait until I have a house with a kitchen again, and replacement appliances:)
I remember eating those growing up, but not from school. My brother and I just sort of did that with bread and butter and spaghetti. We also did mashed potato and gravy sandwiches
That’s still one of my favorite quick snacks. Almost any store bought tortilla is pretty good once you’ve heated it on a gas stove or iron skillet to get a little carbon on it and slathered it with some butter. If you have guacamole, it counts as a meal to me.
I was pretty horrified by the OP’s descriptions. But then I remembered that I used to eat butter and sugar sandwiches, and also would have a ketchup and mustard sandwich on occasion. Nope, not really proud of either of those, and can’t fathom eating them by choice today.
Suppose someone could only be comfortable wearing vicuña wool and/or the finest silks, and would get sores from wearing any old cotton garments. Would you say they have good skin, or bad skin?
Suppose someone could only stomach food made from the most expensive, exotic ingredients prepared in a laborious manner. Would you say they have good taste, or bad taste?
As for your question, I remember roller-uppers: A quarter of a dill pickle (cut lengthwise) with a slice of bologna wrapped around it and secured with a toothpick. Yum. Also, pizza buns: take some hamburger bun halves, top with Prego sauce, a few slices of mozzarella cheese, and maybe a slice of salami each; heat them in the oven until the cheese bubbles and the edges are a bit brown. Double yum. I haven’t had either of those in ages, but I imagine I’d at least kind of like them if were to have them today.
Well – no, not really.
My favorite school lunch (mid-sixties) was fish sticks, usually accompanied by mashed potatoes with white gravy, and either peas or corn. The fish sticks didn’t taste much like fish, as I recall. They were salty, crunchy things doused in tartar sauce. Maybe I couldn’t taste the fish because of the tartar sauce.
Anyway, that was my favorite lunch. It was far better than the hamburger gravy over mashed potatoes, or the shredded turkey over mashed potatoes, or the soggy fried chicken with mashed potatoes, or the goulash (no mashed potatoes).
