Through the Glass ~ Family Dinner

I was born into an English / Australian family. My grandmother was an amazing baker, always served boiled vegies and no bit of food was ever wasted in our house, a legacy of living through the depression.

The foods I remember from my childhood are:

Jaffles - not the sandwich press ones, the ones which divide your sandwich in half and are perfect for tinned spaghetti.
Gelatin cheesecakes with Golliwog biscuit base - Always served up at family gatherings. I only ever ate the base and threw the rest in the garden.
Baked apples - Because the apples were about to spoil, cooked with sultanas and served with icecream.
Cups of brewed tea - At 5am when I got up at the same time as my grandmother and we would chat.
Chicken tonight - It was the early 90's and everyone was into it.

When I met my father's family at 14 years old I realised really where I had come from. That Italian food brought me to a sense of home! I always felt there was something missing, then watching the fresh herbs be sprinkled over the chicken cacciatore, I knew I had found that link.

Then I married a Croatian! On my first cook up I was deemed a failure. Thus began 5+ years of kitchen retraining before I was allowed to cook again for the parents.

Get to the point I am sure you are thinking? Ok, here is the point. I love family dinners, even better if someone else is cooking because it means I am not being criticised.

What we ate and drank at Bro and Sis in Law's Suburban:
Gin and Tonic
Villa Maria Sauv Blanc
Home made pork spring rolls
Roast pork
Roast potato and sweet potato
Light salad

So basic, so yum and so family! The realisation and dread of hosting Christmas lunch is beginning to consume me!