There are certain foods in our lives that become our favorites. We get many of those recipes while growing up. A lot of our favorite foods probably came from our mother or even our grandmothers. If you were lucky enough to also have a dad who liked to cook, then you probably have some food favorites from him as well, I know I do. Here’s to you dads. Happy Father’s Day.
My dad enjoyed cooking and did so quite often. Both he and my mom had full time jobs when I was growing up in the mid-sixties. Dad would make chili, macaroni and tomato juice, goulash, which is basically macaroni and tomato juice only with cooked hamburger in it and S.O.S. which in our case was creamed tuna on toast not the chipped beef variety. He also made one of my favorites, pancake eggs!
If you don’t know what pancake eggs are then I’m here to inform you. A pancake egg is basically two eggs scrambled up in a small pan and left to cook (flip once) so it resembles a pancake, then it is placed between two pieces of toast that have each been smeared with creamy peanut butter and WALLA! Pancake eggs!
I know what you are thinking, eggs and peanut butter?? Yes! The flavor is a rich buttery flavor with egg and warm melted peanut butter, plus look at all that protein your body is getting! What better way to start off your morning. Just add a cup of coffee and you are good to go. It’s also very portable which is important in today’s world.
I know I’ve made these many times over the years and tried to get my children to try them and/or like them. To be honest, I’m not sure any of them do, so now I will start on the grandchildren. Someone must carry on this fine tradition.
Macaroni and tomato juice is another favorite of mine and was one of my dad’s favorites. It’s basically cooking up a pan of elbow macaroni noodles (about a cup of noodles in a pan of boiling salted water) drain and rinse noodles and return to pan. Add a quart of fresh tomato juice or canned tomato juice, about a tablespoon of butter, salt and pepper to taste and heat until the juice is hot but don’t boil it. That’s it. Simple and delicious. If you are like my husband, you will eat this on top of mashed potatoes. I know, I know, I agree that it’s odd. To be fair, he thinks the same thing of my pancake eggs.
My mom made great spaghetti sauce and was the baker in the family. I remember my dad and I used to get in trouble for slicing into the still hot loaves of fresh baked bread and eating a slice with melting butter on top. Does anything smell better than bread baking in the oven? Ok maybe fresh cake or brownies, but bread really does warm the entire house with that wonderful smell. My oldest son Jason carries on this tradition with baking artesian breads. My mom would have been proud.
My husband Jay has also learned to cook over the years. He says its out of necessity, and he has become quite good at it. His chili is one of his best culinary feats as well as his roast beef and his broasted chicken. Yes, we actually have an authentic broaster. No, we’ve never owned a restaurant. Broasted chicken is one of my favorites, I wish he’d make it more often. It also means I don’t have to cook, so that’s a bonus!
If you would ask my children what recipes make them think of their dad I’m sure they would all say spaghetti. Jay is always making spaghetti sauce and we eat it at least once a week. This is coming from a man who never touched a stove until several years into our marriage when he found out he was not married to a B. Crocker type woman. I have my moments, but I have to be in the right mood to really crank out some great meal. When any of the kids or grandkids come to visit, I am in that mood. On a regular nightly routine, not so much. I have burnt my share of meals over the years I will freely admit. It’s even more annoying to burn your meal when you’re just cooking something for yourself. This perhaps explains my love of my microwave.
One of the better things I do make well is my homemade pizza and I think my kids would say that is their favorite food that I make. I wish they would all say my pancake eggs were their favorite, it’s much easier to make! Less labor intensive. I’m all about shortcuts. And microwaves! Microwaves are one of my favorite inventions. Not so much for my family.
Shared recipes from our parents that we can pass along to our children and their children and so on are part of the legacy that we can all give to generations to come. Even if your best recipe is orange jello with sherbet and shredded carrots, its something. Hopefully it will bring smiles when it is made and shared in years to come, or at the very least it will spark conversations on how could anyone eat that. Kind of like my beloved pancake eggs.
So to all of you dad’s out there, if manning the grill is all you have tried, I would tell you to give the kitchen stove or oven a try. You will be amazed at how much bonding there is in a kitchen with your children and shared over a meal at the table, especially one you cooked.
I hope you will give pancake eggs a try. If you do, email me and let me know what you think, good or bad. Thanks dad for sharing these with me. Thanks to all you dad’s out there who take part in your children’s lives and in their exploration of foods. My hats off to all of you!
Until next time…Toni
Pancake Eggs:
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