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Original poster

Odd eating habits of your childhood

175 replies

Sparrowlegs248 · 13/10/2018 22:31

I was talking to a friend recently, about things we'd considered a treat as a child. Turns out some of mine aren't usually considered a treat! And also that sone of my other eating habits were considered rather odd by this friend.

I used to love being allowed to eat a "raw" cube of jelly. Or a spoonful of black treacle. Drink the juice out of tinned pineapple.

I would often take a swig out of a jar of pickled onions (just the vinegar), eat raw potato when my mum was making dinner, crunch on uncooked spaghetti.

Did anyone else have these habits? Is it really that odd?

OP posts:

ifigoup · 17/10/2018 12:36

TurtleBeach, I used to do your Mini Cheddars thing but with Twiglets. I would chew one up till it was soggy (which I called “Twiglet bread”), spit it back out, and scoop it up with a crunchy one then eat together.

MNHQ

HebeMumsnet · 17/10/2018 12:53

We also had banana sandwiches 'for a treat'. Sometimes with honey on. Halcyon days. But there is no sandwich to beat plastic white bread with tinned sweetcorn and salad cream in it.

I do remember a girl at school who brought raw jelly cubes in for her breaktime snack every day. I was incredibly jealous with my measly digestive biscuits, and thought her parents must be total hedonists. My kids would now think a digestive biscuit at school some kind of Bacchanalian feast, being as even 'too much' fruit is discouraged in favour of raw vegetable sticks in their breaktime snack pots. We didn't know we were born!

florriepeck · 17/10/2018 13:05

cardy1969
cheese in milk melted in a frying pan
Oh, I could be back in 1974!
I thought only my DM made this: ours was served with sausages and was known as "cheese dip".
It might be making a comeback in the peck household.

TurtleBeach · 17/10/2018 13:47

ifigoup - knowing I'm not the only one somehow makes me feel a little bit less dirty

I've also remembered a really shameful episode from my childhood when my mum sent me to a friend's house two streets away so that she could "borrow" a stock cube. As I was walking back, it occurred to me that if some of the cube were to "leak" out from the foil, it would be okay to eat it. So I started squeezing... I had a bit more, and then a bit more... Long story short, I arrived home with an empty foil packet. There was no way of lying about what happened so I had to own up to having eaten the stock cube on the 5 minute walk home. Poor mum then had to call up her friend, explain that her daughter was an out of control glutton, and send me round again to collect a second cube. The embarrassment and looks of disapproval were more than enough punishment for me.

waterlego6064 · 17/10/2018 13:53

Yes to raw jelly cubes, and the skin on custard!

Sometimes for breakfast, my mum gave us Weetabix topped with butter and sugar. She had some strange ideas about catering. 🧐

It was delicious. We would lick the butter and sugar off and then reapply.

waterlego6064 · 17/10/2018 13:54

The Weetabix was merely a vehicle for buttery, sugary deliciousness.

MNHQ

HebeMumsnet · 17/10/2018 14:40

Waterlego you've just awoken a childhood memory. I also had Weetabix with butter... AND VEGEMITE on. What was that about? The damn thing crumbled to a million pieces at the first bite. It was ridiculous. I might need to have words with my parents about all this.

waterlego6064 · 17/10/2018 14:42

Oh my, that IS strange Hebe! Healthier than my mother’s concoction though.

Cambalamb · 17/10/2018 20:59

A boy at school used to bring a beef oxo cube to school every day and he would have crowds around him asking for a bit!

Cambalamb · 17/10/2018 21:00

Anyone else drink all the ice poles before they had a chance to freeze?

Anasnake · 17/10/2018 21:02

Always said ice pops not poles and frozen drinks in plastic cups were called jubblys !

Titsywoo · 17/10/2018 21:13

I used to eat raw supernoodles - lovely alternative to crisps!

Azelma · 17/10/2018 22:41

Umm... toothpaste

Flobalob · 17/10/2018 23:09

This will out me to my brother! Sneaking downstairs early on a Saturday morning, taking an Oxo cube out if the cupboard. Us both having a nibble then hiding it under the sofa in the best room (only used at Christmas and when my parents hosted friends) to save it for next week! We kept it for at least a month before my Mum found it!!!!

Flobalob · 17/10/2018 23:10

Yes to raw jelly cubes to help our nails grow!!!

Flobalob · 17/10/2018 23:48

Stealing Quickjel out of the cupboard and eating the powdered jelly. Just weird! But, in my defence, I think my Mum was really controlling over food so that was my idea of a treat.

Sladurche · 18/10/2018 00:02

I ate tinned ravioli cold out of the can, dairylea and salt n vinegar crisp sandwiches, condensed milk out of the can.

MadMum101 · 18/10/2018 00:05

Sugar and evaporated milk sandwiches. Delish!

I bought evaporated milk for the first time as an adult a few weeks ago to make a pumpkin pie. Had to send teen DS to the shop to buy another tin .

MadMum101 · 18/10/2018 00:09

Also used to sneak spoons of Horlicks straight from the jar. Bloody loved that. Gonna buy some tomorrow now!

My DCs all do that with hot chocolate now.

Shadow1234 · 18/10/2018 00:30

My best 'treat' was a trip to the local 'Wimpey' once a week (instead of home made food every day)
Sardines or pilchards on toast
Left over cake mix in the Bowl
Banana sandwiches ( I now prefer a toasted banana sandwich, but add chocolate spread as well)
Angel delight (banana was my favourite flavour)
Home made Rhubarb crumble (Rhubarb picked from our garden)
Liver and bacon (was always told liver was good for me - rich in iron)

RavenLG · 18/10/2018 00:50

God I've not thought about raw jelly cubes in years!!

I would eat bits of raw dough when mum was making pastry. I would take raw sausages (richmond usually) and eat them raw (eww) or sometimes if my parents weren't home I'd toast them in the fire.

Carnation Milk from the tin was my fave. It would get opened with two little holes in the can to pour over tinned fruit as a pud, then the rest of the tin would mysteriously evaporate over the week as I'd drink a little mouthful every time I was in the kitchen.

RavenLG · 18/10/2018 00:54

cheese in milk melted in a frying pan
Oh, I could be back in 1974!
I thought only my DM made this: ours was served with sausages and was known as "cheese dip".

Oh god. Major flashback. My mum use to do this with bacon and have it with bread. It was so horribly salty and greasy. I hated it. I'd probably love it now.

MaidofEyes · 18/10/2018 18:46

Raw jelly, Bovril on toast (rather than Marmite which was RANK). Tongue (vom) but I thought it was ham until it was too late. Haslet. Spam.

Horlicks.

Bread and dripping - that was a never-to-be-repeated experience.

Banana sandwiches - as above.

Cream cheese and chive crisps which were very 1980s.

Raw pastry. I loved it. Still do.

FrankensteinsKnuckleDuster · 18/10/2018 19:19

Yes to Ribena and milk - i still have it occasionally now.

I used to spoon the horlicks powder out of the jar straight into my mouth.
I also used to spoon mint sauce in the same manner (still do!)

Ketchup sandwich.

Lemond1fficult · 18/10/2018 21:19

Raw rhubarb dipped in a whole eggcup full of granulated sugar.

Boil in the bag liver and onions

Pickled onion vinegar drizzled on leftover turkey

The desiccated carrots in pot noodles (jackpot!)

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