Nostalgia Food....

I'm allergic to shellfish, I found out about 5 years ago after an encounter with 3 tiger prawns that put me in intensive care. The thing is despite the horror of that particular night, I won't trouble you with the gruesome details, I really miss prawns, shrimp, langoustines and all that good stuff. It rates as my favourite kind of food and yet I can't even touch the stuff now without my hands puffing up like fat savaloys. In fact, the only way my girlfriend can guarantee that I won't attack her plate in a restaurant is by some strategic ordering of crustaceans. If I ever decide to commit suicide I'll probably have a lobster before blowing my brains out.

It got me thinking about what other food I simply don't eat anymore or is impossible to get hold of here in Sunny England. So here's my top five list of nostalgia foodstuffs in no particular order:

1) Horchata - Spanish Iced Tiger Nut Milk. I love this stuff but it is nigh on impossible to get hold of in the UK. It is served with crushed ice and odd pastries called fartones (I kind you not).

2) Macintosh's Texan Bar. A face ache inducing lump of nougat coated in chocolate that all used to fall off after the first bite. Long since discontinued and sorely missed.

3) That White and Dark Chocolate Nutella. Yes, I am well aware that you can still get hold of this but I simply don't have the constitution anymore for that much sugar in one go. My teeth hurt and the sight of it. As a child I could have happily lived on this stuff spread on hot buttered toast.

4) Packet Crème Caramel. We'd have these after Sunday lunch and remember them setting in tea cups in the fridge wobbling gently when you pulled open the door. You can probably still buy them but I bet they don't taste the same.

5) Banana in Salad. My dad use to do this in the seventies and I imagine it was probably very exotic at the time. There was something quite satisfying about sweet slices of banana soaked in vinaigrette.