Classic foods
In the car, coming back from one of those last minute runs to the frozen food store. On the radio, an interview with an author about his new cookbook. And, I’m gobsmacked. My kids missed out on some staples of the Canadian diet, probably because I was willing to thaw on their behalf.
Before anything else, let me include a link to his book: The Bologna Cookbook by Kevin Phillips. With that detail out of the way, it’s time to reminisce about meals from when I was less in charge.
Bologna came in various styles. Sliced and sliced. The skin, as we called it, could be waxed or unwaxed, and the quality of the cotton was related to the cost. You could make sandwiches, or you could fry it. On a good day, no semi-circles; better bubbles. Here, look:
Bologna bubbles
Steak is good, but baloney is gooder…
That wasn’t the only culinary delight. There were hot dogs in plastic skins, that you peeled off once the boil was finished. If the weiner was already bare, you could fry it, just like the bologna. Bubbles… always the bubbles. Didn’t need bread, although that was a good idea when you were camping; fewer burned fingers. And yes, both could be eaten raw, although we used to hear that it “might not be good for you”. With a full half century of reflection over that, I call the bluff.
There was also potted meat, although there were two distinct schools on that stuff. The good tasting variety, and the one that needed the assistance of the dog. When the parents weren’t looking. Food cost money, and the dog wasn’t as high as the rest of us on the priority list. His food came in cans, and smelled awful.
As I say, my kids have missed out on some great meals.
