What was the meal you had when Mum didn’t want to cook?

We called it ‘scratch nights’ because it was either before pay night and we had to search the larder for what might make a meal, or it was Sunday night when we had eaten a huge roast and a filling pudding. Then we used up the leftovers and made bubble and squeak from the vegetables. Potato, mashed carrot, peas and cabbage, cooked in the pan, and all crispy and brown underneath. There was often leftover custard so we had banana custard.

Some of my friends said they had tomato soup and toasted cheese sandwiches, a treat, as they were allowed to watch Disneyland and have the meal on a tray.

Friday night is often fish and chips or pizza in some homes now but before they came along, mothers had to be more inventive. Takeaway was not always an option. My mother-in-law made a sort of bread and butter pudding, but a savoury one with cheese and grated onion in it. When the family stayed over she made fish fingers and her special touch was putting out the mashed potato with an ice cream server, so they had neat little mounds of potato which the children loved. They also adored the blancmange made in a rabbit mould, how cute. Whatever happened to pink blancmange and rabbit moulds?

Do you have any similar memories? My ‘empty larder’ special was a pikelet night. Usually Sunday, and the children ate them hot from the pan with butter, jam and honey. One son said it was his favourite memory; winter nights, all snug by the fire after a bath, and in clean night clothes, eating hot pikelets.

How things change, my grandchildren grew up loving olives and hummus, amazing isn’t it? Modern children have a babychino, chai latte, and eat sushi. Wonder if they will be telling their children about their food memories too?

What did your family eat for dinner? What are your favourite memories and meals from when you were younger? Do you still enjoy them now?