childhood favourite

barmyoldbat that was always one of my childhood favourites too. My mother used to make it with meaty bacon bones from the grocers when pennies were short; in better times, a bacon hock. I still make it now, though as you say, it isn't quite the same. The hocks you buy now don't have the same cure I don't think. In the last days of my older sister's life, when she couldn't eat much, I made some for her. She managed to eat just the tiniest amount - about a tablespoonful - but she said just the smell of it was comforting .

My Mum made a delicious dish consisting of onions, cheese and semolina .I never got the recipe ! I remember it was simmered on the hob , then baked in a slow oven , which was at the side of the fire

Everything my mother made was lovely - she was a good cook, and very traditional. When I was asked what I would like for dinner on my birthday, I always chose lamb chops.

After 40 years of my own marriage, I now realise how relieved she must have felt not having to think up at least one meal a year!

In restaurants, however posh, we always went for fish and chips. I later learned that my father found this embarrassing!

Welsh Cawl, I make it but not as good, perhaps the veg ?

My absolute favourite was mashed potatoes with beetroot. In later years I realised we had that when there was no meat or money or both but at the time I loved the potatoes being turned red by the beetroot. Another favourite was egg and tomato sandwiches. Mum used to skin the tomatoes in hot water first then mash with the egg. Oh and sugar sandwiches too, probably another example of the cupboard being bare. No wonder I had rotten teeth

I loved my mum's yellow split pea and bacon soup too. It was comfort food. She would then remove the meat from the ham hough and serve with cabbage and mashed potatoes.
In fact I bought a piece of ham today and I am planning to make it this week, but I know it will never taste as good as mum's.

Annie I have never made cawl, but they serve it in a pub we go to in Solva and it is absolutely delicious. My Welsh DH won't eat it. Silly man doesn't know what he's missing!

My mother made tasty potato fritters often in the early evening. Sooooo fattening but yummy.

My Mum used to make home-made fish and chips and she always made what she called "collops" to go with them. They were simply two thin slices of potato dipped in batter together to make a sandwich then deep fried. I suppose looking back they were useful fillers for five hungry children and cheaper than putting fish in the middle to make what she called fishcakes (which she also made). She was a brilliant cook and manager and we never went hungry even when times were hard and money short.

I was a skinny kid in the 50s and 60s and loved all dinners. The butcher delivered twice a week and apart from Sunday's dinners joint, beef or lamb the meat rarely varied on weekdays. Monday, cold left over sliced joint, Tuesday, mince and onions, Wednesday, lamb chops, Thursday, liver and onions, Friday, tripe, onions and mash. Saturday was always fish and chips from the chippy until mother decided we should all be a bit more adventurous after discovering Vesta Beef curry. Dreadful reconstituted lumps of dried meat and gritty rice.
My favourite was roast chicken but hard to believe now, it was so expensive we only had it on special occasions also salad was only available during summer months and consisted of floppy lettuce, tomatoes, Spring onions and cucumber. Happy days eh?