Taste the memories...

.....or not.

My mom called a couple of nights ago and said, "It's Derby's birthday on Wednesday and I've been really wanting a cake with boiled icing..."

"Okayyy..." I replied, "sooooo... are you just sharing this information? Or, are you inviting us? Orrrrr, well, what exactly is happening here? Because you sound really unsure..."

"Well, no I'm not unsure, I'm checking if that's okay with you two (Enz had answered and we were all just talking on speaker-phone) that cake with boiled icing is okay, of course I'm inviting you!"

"Oh, well you know boiled icing is my favourite so it's fantastic with me but Enz hates it."

"No, it's fine," Enz interjected, "I can live with it and I'm trying to lose some weight anyhow."

So, it was decided and I was totally stoked for boiled icing, which only happens once every few years or so when my mom gets the 'boiled icing hankering'. Now I know what you're thinking and you're right... I could just make it my own self whenever I want a boiled icing treat but when I tried it made me cry. It was probably only about two years after I had married when I called my mom to ask how to make boiled icing and she was happy to share the recipe; just like me, my mama loves to share and is not a keeper of secret recipes, even special old family recipes because we simply believe that deliciousness should always be shared! Anyhow, she found and gave me the recipe and told me all the steps in making it in a double-boiler saucepan. It was a simple recipe, turned out perfectly and tasted just like all the times she had ever made it for us in my lifetime. All was joyous as I spread the icing over the cake but then, when I moved to the sink to wash the pot... I had seen the scratch-damage the electric mixer beaters had done to the pot and I dissolved into a mess of hysterical tears. The scratches were small but they were all over the inside of our beautiful and very expensive pots and I was devastated that I had caused the damage in my quest for the perfect icing. If it happened now, twenty years later, I would likely shrug it off as just another lesson learned but back then we didn't have a whole lot of money to just easily replace things. We were newly married , had bought country property and were still in the process of building our first house so every penny we had, we sunk into the house. When we moved into the house after we were first married we were actually still at the drywall stage and somehow scraped enough money together to buy one interior door so we at least had bathroom privacy... so with still finishing with finishing our slow build and furnishing, replacing a scratched pot was wayyyyy down on our list of needs and I was beyond upset with myself for wrecking it in the first place. Anyhow, that is why I can't make boiled icing on my own...

But I still love boiled icing and looked forward to it all day long when Wednesday had finally rolled around... two WHOLE and looooooong days later. We arrived at my mom's house, the boys had their hello's before they all took their ritual first trip out to the pen together... I don't know why they have to check out everyone else's pen habits upon first helloes but they do and then they all came back inside and switched between visiting/sleeping mode and neighbourhood-watch mode.

Derby curled up between Mama and brother-in-law, Mike...

... and Play found a comfy pillow for a quick pre cake-time nap of his own.....

.....while Day plunked himself down on the pillow closest to the toy tin with his
chosen friend of the day, not to nap BUT to complain and heckle about the
"supposed cake..." and when it would be served and if it EVERRR would be
served or if they had all just been duped because he hadn't seeeeen any actual
pupcake waiting to be enjoyed! Clearly, waiting is hard...

Thankfully, there were neighbourhood-watch breaks to interrupt the (barely there) wait time.

I was seriously happy when my mom was cutting the cake...

...and went to help with serving and was overjoyed when she had a special piece st aside for me with TONS of icing! But then, a few minutes later when I actually fork-dug into the waiting deliciousness... well, I hate to have to admit it but..... I was a little disappointed.

"This icing is different..." I said and looked at my mom questioningly.

"It is a little different, isn't it? I don't know why..."she answered thoughtfully.

"It's not bad," I said, "but it's not the same like always..."

"I used the same recipe I've been using lately... but you're right, there is a different taste to it."

"What do you mean 'using lately'? I know you tried a different recipe a few years ago but I thought we fixed that! This is definitely NOT the recipe you always used to use!"

"Well, it's not the recipe I used when you kids were growing up and for years and years afterward, no..."

I couldn't hide my look of 'are you crazy??!!!' as I asked her, "Then, what's even the point???"

Even Mama didn't know how to respond to my question.

"I'll eat it because it's cake and it's still okay," I said, "but it's NOT the same! And this problem should never have to come up again because if something works we need to just stick with it. Or the next time you call and say you have a craving for boiled icing all you need to do is say you'd like to try a new recipe for boiled icing so that people, ie-ME, won't be expecting to taste the memory!"

All in all, the cake was good, it just was different than I was prepared for. The boys all thoroughly enjoyed their vanilla pupcakes and we all had a little visit for the first time in awhile. Derby is now the big 6 and everyone was so happy to get to share in his birthday with him.

Play even found a quick special moment to go over and sing Happy Birthday to his Uncle Derby while Gramma patted him and sang harmony... Day was too tired to join in since he'd spent his earlier naptime hammering on about being late for cake!

Do you have favourite recipes from when you were young that someone has tried to change-up on you without warning you first? How did you react? Politely? Or, were you a little more rudely outspoken like me? I tried to not say anything, I really did... but in the end I had to speak up and hopefully save us all for next time!