SCHOOL DINNERS

Sorry if this subject has been discussed before, but I was watching MasterChef the other night on telly, and William Sitwell (food critic) asked the contestants to cook meals from their memory of school dinners, but to elevate it into something special. It would seem that they all hated their meals in school, so it got me thinking.

Apparently, long after I left school, chips, burgers, turkey twirls (?), pasta dishes and other “fast food” crap which contained no thought for diet was introduced; but when I was at school, I loved my din-dins.

The two puddings I hated the most were sago and semolina, which I refused to eat. My favourite was apricot flan with clotted cream.

One of my favourite main meals was the Irish stew and mashed potatoes. Deeelish!

Which did you love and hate the most?

I remember My first Skool dinners from the 1950's and a typical meal was, Boiled potato's , green beans, some times butter beans and boiled fish,
then as you say semolina, tapioca or rice pudding and the Nuns would stand behind us and insist we ate it all, every last crumb and if we left any, It was a crime , the used the story of, " there are little blackies in the jungles of Africa who would like to eat that, its a sin to leave it " no one dared to say what everyone was thinking , so we had to eat it,

My children enjoyed stuff like sausage roll n chips with ice cream desserts for afters, Its no wonder there are loads of fat kids about today, I can't remember any fat kids at skool

That's because there weren't any, Tom, but I was also thinking how fat kids are today. There's nothing wrong with the odd burger, sausage roll, pie or any of those other things, as a treat, but not for what I would call normal meals.

Sorry you had to endure the wrath of the nuns making you eat something you didn't like. That's a sin as well.

I also remember the fish meal but ours was with mashed potatoes and beans.

I was chatting to my friend Ann in Canada (ex-Wiganner) and she reminded me of that cake and pink custard we used to get as well.

I remember being forced to eat liver and limp cabbage by a dinner lady. Never touched either since.

yea I remember that pink custard too , Our skool that i started in had no kitchen, The food came on stainless steel containers in the back of a van and I vividly remember the rice pudding's and custard having layers of ' skins' were the container had been warmed up from the previous days left overs and, thats why we have a good immune system, The germs in those containers would kill half of the kids in skool today,,,

I also remember a day when the headmaster at my skool ' Mr Tenant' , he liked me and sent me down to a local chippy to get his dinner, he said get your self a bog o chips for going, He never like the skool meals either,

I like the skin on a rice pudding.

Angel:

I don't remember having liver or cabbage at school, but I do love liver now, and me cabbage has to be just so.

Tom:

I think you're right about our generation having a good immune system. We had to eat what was available at home, but at school we were allowed to say no.

First Mate:

Yuk! Mind you I don't like the skin on anything, including chicken.

Liver is disgusting. I used to like the "meat" pie especially if it was a corner piece because for some reason it was always bigger than the rest. Loved semolina with jam too.

Liver can be disgusting if it's pig's liver, but calf's liver is lovely, but only if it's cooked properly. Mind you, it's relatively recently since I started to eat it.

We used to call semolina "sick" and tapioca was frog spawn! Rice pudding with jam was good though.

Yes, the meat pie! I'd forgotten about that, but now I come to think of it we did have cabbage with that, and carrots and potatoes. Now that was really good.

What gets me is that the local Medical Officers of Health employed by a Council are always going on about more people being obese when the same Council is forever allowing more unhealthy fast food shops to open in their towns and cities.

Evidently, business tax from the fast food shops is more a priority than people eating a balanced diet!

Many will called it hypocacy!

I used to lilke the meat dinners. It always seemed to be served with boiled potatoes , not mash for some reason?

Owdcodger.
Are you suggesting its the councils fault if someone fancies a takeaway?

Molly, I could have ritted the same as you ritted, I loved the stew and I eat quite a bit now,èeee it were good, the teacher used to walk round to make sure you had eaten every thing on you , r plate so I would put the green cabbage in my hanky till I got outside,

On the whole, school dinners were fine. Sometimes, they were great! Okay, there were some things which were far less desirable, such as: boiled cabbage, sago pudding... But, as in life, not everything is perfect.
Additionally, we kids were very happy to get something to eat at lunchtime, because we were starving by then!

Owd Codger:

I wasn't talking about fast food outlets, but I would concede that there are too many of them these days. The only "takeaways" I have are either from the Chinese or Indian, and that's not very often as I can't afford them; but this is about school dinners, so which did you like or hate the most?

Bentlegs:

Good on ya me owd pal. As I remember it now, it was white cabbage that we had, but I don't mind green cabbage now as long as it's not over-cooked; but pray tell, if your cabbage was in your hanky, what did you wipe your nose with? On the other hand, I'd rather not know.

Ian:

We were indeed famished by the time we had a meal and, all in all, we were not only grateful for it, but we enjoyed it as well, most of the time.

Good point thou about the takeaways, There was't any then so. If you did't like the meal on the table m there was nothing else till tea time, Even the chippies only opened late,

Why don't mums pack a lunch for their kids, especially if mum is working? A flask of hot soup/broth in winter with bread and butter and some sandwiches, or a chicken salad, a pie or pasty, and then an apple/orange/banana.

That would be cheaper than a takeaway, and more nourishing. Perhaps mums today either can't be bothered what their kids eat, or they don't have the common sense to put together a nice lunch of food that they know their kids like. I once knew a couple that only fed their 3 year old on burgers, kebabs, etc.

That's probably why school dinners came about in the first place.

The Mums of today are the product of our kids that we treated on fast foods and they liked it so, they think its better to 'treat' them and let them eat stuff they like and. It saves them cooking/planning/shopping and saves on washing up, in short,,,,, Lasyness

Most if not all schools these days have a packed lunch policy

Here's one

I also liked pink custard with chocolate sponge. Went to Shevington (Shevvy) and the food was cooked on site and I think it cost 2s and 6d a week.

i am a great believer that you feed your kids what you eat as kids in the late 80s the food changed in school from school cooked food to like mollie m wrote to chips, burgers, turkey twirls (?), pasta dishes and other “fast food” crap... so the parents that eat that food then gave it to there kids and so on leading to the problem we have today.....
Only chicken liver for me with apple to make it a bit sweet....

linma it was green mint custard at my school.... i had my first crush on my dinner lady

Peter Israel

"i had my first crush on my dinner lady"

Yoo weirdo

I can understand a crush on the French teacher, or even on a nice young lady gym teacher, but not on a bloody dinner lady LINK

Mollie M you posted about school dinners in July 2008 when some one asked about green mint custard

I, together with all the other girls in my class, had a crush on our teacher the handsome Mr Arnold.

Posted by: PeterP (11272)
Mollie M you posted about school dinners in July 2008 when some one asked about green mint custard

Did I Peter? Mind you, that was 16 years ago, so I imagine a lot more has changed in schools since then. Ah well, I can't be expected to remember every word I've ever written!

First Mate:

Thanks for that link. Very informative.

Peter Israel:

Sadly, what you say is true, and that's why many kids today are morbidly obese.

I was watching a documentary on You Tube a while ago about fat children, and it was horrifying. One little 3 year old boy weighed in at 4 stone and counting!! I was shocked to see how much food his mother put on his plate. There were so many chips it looked like something you'd climb with crampons, rather than eat, together with a double cheeseburger and, laughingly, salad! The poor child could barely walk, he was that fat.

Mollie M yesterday I was asked by a district nurse did I remember Yvonne having a airline fracture of her right heel in March 2013 I said I cannot remember what I had for my tea yesterday never mind something what happened 11 years ago. Like you have said school meals have changed a lot in 16 years

Peter p
Looks like you have a selective
Memory but you can remember the doctor at Leigh telling you that your knees were nackered 20 years ago. Mollie
School dinners lot of story's we all remember

PeterP

-
"Airline Fracture"?

surfer tom just what is your problem with Peterp? There's enough picking going on without you starting.

Agreed, Angel. I was thinking the same thing, and I hope he doesn’t think he can start picking on me as well because I’m more than a match for a troll.** He's not going to spoil my threads! All I’ve read from him so far is negativity and, as you say, there’s been enough of that on here already.

** a person who intentionally antagonises others online by posting inflammatory, irrelevant, or offensive comments or other disruptive content.

Angelwood and Mollie M I have taken A lot of shit from Surfer Tom but I used to work in a Toilet roll factory so can just wipe the shite away I am fast approaching 70 yrs of age and I defy anyone to remember every thing they have done in their life including Surfer Tom. We all have had bumps and bruises in our lives and some things you remember and other things you may have to be reminded about.Our Doctors permits you to look at your medical records on line,using this after the Nurse had left l looked up Yvonne's notes and even though the notes are abridged then remembered not only her heel fracture but she also fractured her 5th metatarsal on her right foot at the same time and I remember how she injured herself. This was the second time she had fractured this toe but cannot remember how or when she did this the 1st timeSo is this selective memory that I can remember the injury but not how it happened

I am 84 years old we got a doctor's appointment for my wife this morning she has a serious complaint but I don't plaster it all over Wigan world about it hope that pleases you

Even though I personally don't know Angelwood or Mollie M I thank them for having concerns about Yvonne and I was asked what was wrong with her. I hope even with our differences your wife gets sorted out

Surfer Tom:

I’m really sorry your wife isn’t well, and this must be a terrible time for you but, because someone else feels the need to express their feelings on here, doesn’t give you the right to be unkind to them for feeling the need to share, or call them a liar, which you have done. If you’re 84 years old as you say, you ought to know better than to purposefully attack someone else’s feelings, and perhaps Peter feels the need to confide in others when he’s feeling down and has nobody else to talk to, but just because you don’t feel the need to chat to others about your wife, doesn’t mean you can be nasty to someone who does. We’re good people on here, and are able to sympathise with those that need it, when they need it.

It’s not easy to talk about your feelings to strangers, but sometimes it’s the best way because they don’t judge you, and you’ve no right to judge Peter just because you can’t share your feelings with others. He’s worried about Yvonne, just as you are about your wife, so try to find a little compassion in your heart. Despite your unkind words to Peter, he replied nicely to you about your wife.

Now then, I started this thread about School Dinners, so why did you choose to write your unkind comments about Peter here? That’s very rude, if you didn’t know. At 84 years old you must have memories of your school dinners, so let’s get back to the topic in hand. If you have no comment to make about this subject please leave it alone, because what you’ve said so far is making you unpopular on this board, and I’m sure you don’t want that. We all want people to like us, don't we?

I remember things like corn beef hash and cottage pie mashed potato with lumpy bits in them.Rhubarb and custard. Some times if you were lucky they did apple pie and ice cream.Minced beef pie with a flaky pastry. I also remember because there where so many pupils there were two sittings for dinners and at times the second sitting was best because there was so much food laid out for each sitting if there was any left you could get seconds to use the food up

Something no one has mentioned , saying Grace.
'For what we are about to receive may the Lord make us truly thankful'. Believe me we were in late forties early fifties whatever was on the single menu.

Wigman, welcome to Wigan World. Yes, we all had to say Grace. No choice as we didn’t eat until it was said, but this really is about the food we got. There was no menu to choose from so we got what there was so, what did you like/not like?

Had another thought we used to have; apple crumble, and one that I think was called coconut pie. It had pastry at the bottom, then a thick layer of raspberry jam, then something else and topped with desiccated coconut. Anyone remember that?

Was it Bakewell Tart? They used to give us Cherry Bakewell, it was vile! I would've been ok with Raspberry Bakewell though.
Rhubarb Crumble was my No.1 !

Thanks, Tonker. I was wondering if it was Bakewell tart but, on looking it up, Bakewell has almonds on the top. I can't stand almonds so it wasn't a true Bakewell.

Just had a thought though. It could have been Manchester tart.

Rhubarb is a bit too sharp for my taste buds, but apple and rhubarb is okay - wi' custert on't top!

I remember the cheese pie with mash….disgusting…brought in by Lancashire County Council cream vans each day…2/6 week…my favourite was the mince meat pie

I am 84 years old we got a doctor's appointment for my wife this morning she has a serious complaint but I don't plaster it all over Wigan world about it hope that pleases you surfer_tom wrote....... Sometime people need to get things off there chest!! And you should be honored that peter p is willing to share with you/use what he is going though with his wife i know i am.....
Wigman, welcome!!! never had to say Grace. but i think my head master had a thing about the song Jerusalem we must have sung it at least once a week for 5 years....