When my Twins were tiny babies this was my ‘go to’ dinner. I used to try many different versions of it so much so that my gang got tired of it and we hadn’t had it in a few years until this week when my oldest son (now 25) requested it when I asked him what he’d like as his ultimate ‘Mammy Dinner’ and I have to say I fell in love with it all over again
It was my saviour in those hectic days when I was completely overwhelmed with having to take care of two babies, the lack of sleep, the constant feeding, changing nappies, the two sterilisers on the go to cope with the 12 bottles we had to make every day and the feeling of my normal wonderful life being turned upside down.
I think it was during this extremely stressful time that I began to totally immerse myself in cooking. It was my comfort in a time when I felt I wasn’t coping, it helped me relax when I was fighting off the tears and the stress but most of all it kept me sane and gave me a focus outside of just surviving day to day with two babies.
It also helped me feel I was doing something for my two older children who I felt so terribly guilty about in that hectic, chaotic time where I struggled with being a mother to twins, at least I could make them happy with tasty home cooked food and hopefully send them off into the world full of happy food memories.
Fast forward 11 years and my Twins are now the absolute joy in our lives. Their older brothers are grown up and have left home. What was a stressful time is now a distant memory and with vision of hindsight we’re enjoying the younger two all the more now. We know the time with them is precious and all too soon in the blink of an eye they’ll be in different parts of the world like their big brothers.
I’m still immersed in cooking and now find myself following a path that I could never have dreamed of in those dark, tear filled days. I’m still standing at my cooker, I’m older, wiser and I’m so aware of how time goes by and how quickly things can change. I’m still immersed in cooking, I’m still making Food Memories for my boys but now I’m also making them for you 💕
You will see I have no oil listed here, that’s because the fat that renders out of the pancetta is enough and you don’t need oil, make sure your pan is hot before adding the pancetta. If you’re leaving it out or using smoked streaky bacon instead I would add a small drop of oil. Also you can use 1 can of chopped tomatoes instead of fresh ones but you may need to add sugar as they can be acidic. My tomatoes for this were in season and sweet so I didn’t need to add sugar but taste as you go and that’s the best way to know.
