Olde Country Buffet

My sister and I grew up in a gourmet void and it is something that we never let my mother forget. We never understood my mother's inability to cook meat to anything less than a charred block until now.

My mother's ancsestry originates in Ireland - just a hop across the North Channel to Scotland. Have you ever ordered a hamburger in the UK? If so, then you understand the black, charred, dryness mixed with the over salted seasoning that is a British hamburger. Such was my mother's Roast beef, meatloaf and of course burger. Can you guess how her vegetables are prepared?

That's right - all vegetables of any color are boiled to the point where they are white and mushy. No teeth required.

Anyway, for most of you, this means nothing, but for me it was an epiphany. It wasn't that my mother didn't know how to cook well, it's that bad cooking was part of her upbringing. That's all....