It’s funny how some of the Nostalgic Childhood Foods I remember most weren’t anything particularly fancy. A trip to McDonald’s, picking out a package of candy, or my mom making chocolate chip cookies could feel like a really big deal.
Maybe part of what made those things so special was that we didn’t have them all the time.
I’ve been thinking about that lately. There are so many foods that immediately take me back to being a kid, not necessarily because they were my favorite foods in the world, but because getting them meant something special was happening.
Nostalgic Childhood Foods Made Eating Out Special
When I was growing up, going out to eat was a real treat. We just didn’t do it very often.
Of course, when you’re a kid, McDonald’s is pretty exciting.
I have this funny memory of going there with my family and always being very conscious of how much everything cost. I was the oldest, and apparently I had an innate sense of money even back then. I would order something small because I didn’t want my parents to have to spend too much.
Then I would get after my brothers when I thought they were ordering too much.
I know, I know.
I was the oldest, after all. And when it came to things like that, I was apparently far older than my actual years.
I also remember when having a birthday party at McDonald’s was completely normal. Sometimes there would even be a McDonald’s birthday cake. I have no idea if they still do anything like that, but back then, having your birthday party at McDonald’s was pretty exciting.
What I remember most, though, is simply how special eating out felt.
That makes me wonder about something. Eating out became much more normal when I was raising my own kids. It wasn’t the rare event that it had been when I was little.
Sometimes I wonder if we went back to the days before credit cards made it so easy to spend money we didn’t physically have in our wallets, would eating out start feeling like a special occasion again instead of something ordinary?
Just a thought.
Taco Time Was Even Better Than McDonald’s
As much as I liked McDonald’s, there was actually another restaurant I loved even more.
Taco Time.
When I was little, Taco Time was my absolute favorite place to eat. I loved their bean and cheese burritos with lots of hot sauce.
Then Taco Time disappeared from Boise for many, many years before eventually coming back.
It’s funny what sticks in your memory. I can remember that bean and cheese burrito and hot sauce all these years later.
That’s the thing about Nostalgic Childhood Foods. Sometimes the food itself gets connected to a time in your life, and suddenly a bean burrito isn’t just a bean burrito anymore.
Homemade Cookies and Sneaking Cookie Dough
Anytime my mom baked, that was another treat.
My favorite was when she made chocolate chip cookies.
And if I’m being completely truthful, one of my favorite parts wasn’t even the finished cookies.
It was the cookie dough.
I loved sneaking bites of chocolate chip cookie dough so much that I eventually taught myself to bake at a pretty young age. That meant I could make cookies myself and, more importantly to my younger self, have access to cookie dough more frequently.
Apparently my love of cookies started early.
Looking back now, I realize eating raw cookie dough wasn’t the safest choice. I certainly wasn’t thinking about raw eggs or raw flour as a kid. I just knew it tasted good.
These days, the FDA recommends not eating raw cookie dough because both raw flour and raw eggs can potentially contain harmful bacteria. So this is definitely one of those childhood memories I enjoy without recommending that anyone repeat it!
Still, there’s something about the smell of chocolate chip cookies baking that takes me right back to those days.
And considering how many giant bakery-style cookies I bake now, I suppose that particular Nostalgic Childhood Food had a lasting effect on me.
Candy, Fondue, and Lee’s Candies
Candy was another one of those things that felt special because we didn’t just get it whenever we wanted it.
If we went swimming, went to a movie, or did some other special activity, my siblings and I would sometimes get to pick out a fun candy.
I had a few favorites.
Sweet Tarts were one. I also loved Dentyne cinnamon gum and rum-flavored Life Savers.
Just typing those names brings back memories.
Fondue was an even bigger treat. We would fondue meat and then have chocolate fondue afterward. It was something all of us loved, and unlike some of my other Nostalgic Childhood Foods, I still think fondue is a huge treat today. I still love making chocolate fondue, and it’s one of those traditions that has followed me right into adulthood.
There’s something about everyone sitting around the table cooking little pieces of food and dipping things into warm chocolate that makes dinner feel like an event instead of just another meal.
And then there was Lee’s Candies in Boise.
Going there with my grandma and my parents was something we kids really looked forward to. Their candies and chocolates have always been our favorites, so a trip there was definitely special.
Those are the memories that make me realize how closely food and family can become connected. I don’t just remember the chocolate. I remember going there with my grandma and my parents.
Why Nostalgic Childhood Foods Felt So Special
Looking back at all of these things, I notice something they have in common.
We didn’t get them all the time.
Going to McDonald’s was exciting because we rarely went out to eat. Picking out candy was special because it was connected to going swimming, seeing a movie, or doing something fun. Chocolate chip cookies meant Mom was baking. Fondue meant we were all gathered around the table. Lee’s Candies meant a special outing with my family.
Maybe having less of something sometimes makes us appreciate it more.
I’m certainly not suggesting that we need to recreate our childhoods or stop taking our families out to dinner. Life changes, families change, and what was unusual when I was growing up can be completely ordinary today.
But I do like remembering how exciting little things used to feel.
A bean and cheese burrito with hot sauce.
A package of Sweet Tarts.
A spoonful of chocolate chip cookie dough that I wasn’t supposed to be eating.
A box of chocolates from Lee’s Candies.
None of those things sound particularly remarkable on their own.
But to a kid who didn’t get them very often, they could feel like the biggest treat in the world.
And maybe that’s part of why I still remember them so clearly.
What food felt like a huge treat when you were growing up? Is there something you rarely got as a child that can still take you right back when you have it today?
Making every house feel a little more like home.
