Food-Memories

My dad only knew how to cook a few dishes, but he was proud of each one. He loved making boxed mac and cheese. It was usually the blue generic box, and not brand named KD (Kraft Dinner for anyone not from Canada). Dad would start by heating a few tablespoons of margarine in a tiny, janky aluminium pot, stirring in the cheese powder, adding in some fresh milk. He cooked the noodles in a larger copper-bottom pot, draining it, and then adding back his special sauce. ...

I remember an old cast aluminium pot, handed down from my grandparents. It was pockmarked, with a patina of polymerized oils in the depressions. It once served as a pressure cooker that exploded in my grandmother’s kitchen, so it no longer had a lid. The handle was loose and the bolt seized, making it a death trap when loaded with a hot sauce. This pot was mostly used for my mom’s frugal spaghetti sauce, which was a simple combination of beef, puréd tomatoes, and just a hint of oregano, salt, and pepper. ...