Reworked from January 16, 2017
I sometimes think I have a really weird mind but blogging has taught me that no thought I can come up with, hasn't been thought of before and by a bunch of people. The Internet is a great leveler. We are not nearly as unique as we would like to think.
I have played a game with myself for years and usually when I tell people of it, they look a bit shocked at first, but then play right along. It starts with the hypothetical question, "If you were on death row, what would your last meal consist of?"
I guess I use death row because that is the only circumstance where your life has a time limit, down to the minute. Regardless of your heinous crime, in most prisons you are allowed to eat anything you wish right before the lights go out. Of course in my fantasy, I would be wrongly convicted but the call doesn't come from the governor till after I eat. So eat I will.
Often when I have been eating in a restaurant and the food has been exceptionally divine, I will say out loud, "That is going on my death row last meal list." This always starts the debate after the shock of my premise wears off.
I have found through the years that my "last meal" changes but there are the basics that never change. My only fear is that my stomach will not hold all I want. Besides having a free choice menu, there is also the blissful freedom at that point, knowing that nothing you eat will alter your longevity one bit. Bring on the fat and bring on the sweets. Cholesterol worries, take a hike.
I am sure I would want a pound of crisp bacon as an appetizer. Yes, you heard me, a whole pound. After I polished that off, the crisp skin from a roasted turkey would proceed a leg of lamb.
OK, by all rights I am exploding right now but this is a fantasy and I would continue. Hopefully, the Out Back Restaurant would cater part of the meal as I would want one of their sweet potatoes. Mercy they are good. They make pie filling seem bland. That would eliminate any need for dessert.
Since my fantasy stomach would still be on the empty side after chomping through a rare Filet Mignon then I'd enjoy some Popeye's chicken. My fill of Peppermint Patties would seal the deal.
Since they won't give me any wine with my supper (prison rules--no alcohol), I will just want water to leave room for the food. By now, they would probably be putting away the lethal injection needles or unplugging the chair for my gluttony would have done the state's work for them. Probably wouldn't even make it to the governor's call.
Fortunately, my fantasy is just that, a fantasy. I really do try to eat properly for health reasons. However, remove those health concerns and I would be scary at a dinner table. Those would be my choices today, tomorrow they could be different. Well don't know about you but I'm mentally stuffed. Think I'll take a walk after I finish my oatmeal. Whee.
Now my question for you. What would be on your "last meal" menu?
1 year ago
What, no alcohol?!? In that case, and me not being a foodie, I think I'd just cry my minutes away. You, dear Patti, would seem intent on blowing yourself up!
ReplyDeleteFlorence,
DeleteHa ha, that may have been my intent to deny Ole Sparky. Just blow up. State's happy, I'm happy.
Golly, that’s a meal to frighten me into my last breath, that’s for sure.
ReplyDeleteRight, here we go: some smoked trout or gravadlax and a minute portion of scrambled eggs to start, a touch of sour dough toast to mop up the juices.
A medium rare filet steak with a handful of French fries and some new peas to follow, with a touch of Bearnaise sauce to lick up off the plate.
For pudding something with cream, like Tiramisu. I can’t eat dairy so my last meal would include that, as I won’t have time for tummy ache afterwards.
And wine, I absolutely insist on wine. A Riesling with the fish and maybe a glass of Burgundy with the steak. And a dessert wine with the pudding.
Then coffee and Swiss truffles.
Right, why wait for my last meal? Apart from the dairy ingredients I could cook it all at home now.
Friko,
DeleteHa ha, you are a women after my own heart. Go for it and if you do it at home, take pictures so we can see.
Ever have those moments of standing in front of the fridge knowing you want something but just not knowing what it is? I think that is the state I would be in over too many choices.
ReplyDeleteOlga,
DeleteOh yes I have had those moments too. That is why I am doing a bit of pre-planning in case my brain freezes:))
I will eat any and all i choose, and they'll serve me 'cause best part...no cookin' no dishes. Ok, I can say it: "I'll die a happy woman".
ReplyDeleteAnni,
DeleteI know isn't it wonderful. All we want, no shopping, no cooking and no cleaning. Yes.
Not sure I would much care if it was my last meal, now if the question was "What would you eat all the time if it was not unhealthy?" FRIED CHICKEN!
ReplyDeletejoeh,
DeleteWe are kindred spirits. Given your question I would give the exact same answer. Boy do I miss fried chicken. It is almost gone from my diet and now when I do cheat, I feel guilty. Not fair.
I love this mind game! I'm going to use when I get a chance. My last meal would be a BIG juicy medium rare steak, a sweet potato and lots of herb bread ending with tiramisu, ice cream and a grasshopper without the alcohol. For my second desert I'd have a big chocolate malt.
ReplyDeleteJean,
DeleteIt is really fun to pull at a dinner party or luncheon. I have no fault with any of your choices. Well done--not the steak but your answer.
I think under those circumstances I'd lose my appetite. I'd probably just want a couple of stiff whiskeys. But if the question really is: What's your favorite meal? I'd have to say ... spaghetti!
ReplyDeleteTom,
DeleteDoubt they would give you the whiskeys but at least I think spaghetti would be an easy one.
We have played this game for years. It was always this roast Rick makes with roasted veggies and mashed potatoes and gravy. And then roll in the dessert cart. But since I've found I'm celiac and I would change it to be all gluten all the time. Cake, cookies, pastries, gnocchi's and Rick's meatballs and crusty Italian bread. The only thing not gluten is the sauce. Otherwise I will die anyway so why not load up on the thing that would kill me normally? Bring on the Italian food and desserts baby!
ReplyDeleteMargaret,
DeleteI know wouldn't it be wonderful to kick all the no-nos to the curb and just enjoy. Ya suppose they would let Rick in to do the cooking? Cool.
I haven't a clue what I would select. Fact is, I pretty much have exactly what I want on a regular basis. I have an idea that the upcoming gurney journey would take away my appetite for anything except liquids.
ReplyDeleteCarolyn,
DeleteOh I like that expression "gurney journey." I find my current healthy diet very restrictive so I would go nuts.
Patti, I should've set my coffee down before reading your awesome post--I almost sprayed my computer screen when I read your menu!
ReplyDeleteI was sitting here thinking filet mignon, pizza with the works, a Chinese buffet… then it hit me. I’d want my last meal to come from the Waynesburg Restaurant, a family establishment in my old hometown that closed 25 years ago. I was well familiar with the place growing up, as the Worlds Best Grandma (mine) baked pies there for 35 years. I’d want the WAYNESBURGER—a double decker hamburger with an extra thick slice of white onion & a creamy red pepper coleslaw, and their “giant fries” (extra long) in hot brown gravy & a couple large fountain Cokes. For dessert, an extra big slice of my grandma’s deep dish apple pie, still warm from the oven with a splash of cold milk.
For the record, I plan to ask for these same things if I wind up entering a certain pair of pearly gates someday :)
Doug,
DeleteWhat a sweet answer. You would not only satisfy your hunger but would get to revisit memories near and dear. Sounds like you might be guaranteed that pie at the pearly gates now she knows what you want. With a bit of luck, Waynesburg Restaurant is now catering Heaven.
My goodness, you're certainly a carnivore, aren't you?
ReplyDeleteI've never thought about this and my first reaction was how would I decide. But then as I read through the post, certain things came to me.
First off, the goat cheese souffle on Princess cruise ships would be the appetizer (and possibly dessert too as it has been on more than one occasion...it's that good). An 8 oz. filet mignon with sauteed mushrooms with a Caesar salad would follow. For dessert I'd have my mom's white cake with caramel sauce. And to finish another goat cheese souffle because I could!
Fun exercise, I think I'll use it the next time I go out for dinner with friends. :)
Eileen,
DeleteHa ha, yes I am which accounts for some of my health problems. I have never had a goat cheese souffle but I love goat cheese so I will look for one next time I am out. Have fun with your friends with this question.
Great Post.... I agree with you that our tastes/desires change through the years..... NOT sure I could get all of my fav's in ONE meal!!!!! What I want NOW the most are things I cannot or should not eat anymore (due to my A Fib, my Diabetes, etc.).... SO--what do I want for that final meal???
ReplyDelete-As much coffee as I could drink (limited to 2 cups a day now due to A Fib)
-A big big hunk of homemade CHEESECAKE (I don't eat sweets much at all these days)
-The biggest, fattest most delicious cheeseburger like my favorite ones many years ago from a place near where we used to live in New Orleans (don't eat burgers anymore... boo hoo)
-Big wad of good French Fries (don't eat anymore)
That would be it --as of today!!!!! Wonder if I could even eat that much in one meal these days???? ha... BUT---it makes my mouth water as I sit here eating a salad for lunch.... Dang it.
Hugs,
Betsy
Betsy,
DeleteGreat choices. I am like you and am denied for medical reasons all the good things to eat. And like you, I just had a salad for lunch. We are big talkers:))
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteLOL! I would definitely pick bacon wrapped filet!!! YUM and then "the end". HA HA
ReplyDeleteAnn,
DeleteHa, glad to see bacon in there with a chunk of meat. Good choice.
Well, this is an interesting exercise. I realize that I would just love to taste my mother's post-Thanksgiving turkey hash, with buttered homemade biscuits, and finish with coffee and chocolate ice cream. I would die happy, and I wouldn't have to worry about the coffee keeping me awake! :-)
ReplyDeleteDjan,
DeleteInteresting about a post Thanksgiving dish. She must have been a great cook. The beauty of this exercise is that none of it can hurt us or keep us awake:))
Patti, I'm not sure I'd have any appetite at a time like that... but if I had to choose, it would probably be DH's red beans and rice, a fried soft shell crab sandwich, and beignets and coffee aulait' for dessert... (and maybe a few pieces of salted dark chocolate too!).
ReplyDeleteI am a dedicated carnivore but I would want sweet corn fresh from the field, cut off the cob and cooked in my mom's cast-iron skillet, freshly shelled purple hull peas, Uncle Levi's just picked ripe red tomatoes (with all the salt I wanted), fried okra--not the breaded kind, but tossed in another cast-iron skillet with a little bacon grease and corn meal. Several slices of Hubby's homemade pepperoni pizza and his fettuccini alfredo. Dessert would be fresh strawberries cut and mashed with sugar and served on TWO of those little supermarket cakes that soak up that sweet juice. Can't eat that anymore, but I dream of childhood when I see those little cakes that are always right by the strawberries.
DeleteAnd since this is a last meal, probably a second dessert of our favorite coffee shop's scrumptious Italian cream cake.
Rian,
DeleteActually that is a pretty healthy meal. All meals need a bit of dark chocolate to top it off.
LC,
DeleteNow that is a downright healthy meal, cept maybe for the little cakes and dessert. We should all eat like that.
On occasion, when I'm having a hard time falling asleep, I play a version of this game, the main difference being mine is a "day of indulgence" rather than just one last meal. Rules are simple, all choices must be food I have actually eaten in the past either at restaurants, family gatherings and/or church pot luck dinners. Also for that one glorious day the man upstairs banishes that pesky "full/stuffed tummy" sensation. Lots and lots of crispy bacon, homemade cinnamon rolls, chicken fried steak swimming in cream gravy, fried catfish, chicken and dumplings, cornbread, rice pudding and pecan pie (can you tell I'm a born and bred Southern girl). The list goes on and on until I blissfully drift off to sleep. Better than sleeping pills and no morning after guilt!
ReplyDeleteBetty Mc,
DeleteThanks so much for stopping by and commenting. Love that lots of bacon choice--how can we go wrong with that. Yes that is a great Southern Menu. Well done. I have not tried this exercise as a sleep aid but I'll bet I do tonight. Thanks.
Someone asked me that once and my answer was pinto beans and ham, cornbread and homemade butter. Homemade peach pie with homemade churned vanilla ice cream, and a piece of dark chocolate. That sounds about right.
ReplyDeleteSusan Kane,
DeleteI was just talking to my neighbor and that was almost her exact choice to the pie and ice cream. We were saying how butter today just doesn't come close to homemade.
I have thought about this before, especially when I am lying in bed awake long after I was hoping to be asleep. It's kind of like counting sheep. Anyway my last meal always ends up being breakfast, with perfectly cooked over medium eggs, bacon, hash browns, maybe french toast with maple syrup, and.....
ReplyDeleteLinda,
DeleteBreakfast is wonderful any time of the day. You are another who has mentioned how this has helped bring sleep. Guess what I will be doing tonight if sleep hides.
I suppose being confined in a cell there isn't much else to think about that they would let me do except eat. I guess just bring me lots of ice cream — am partial to Baskin-Robbins Pralines ‘n Creme, that and Black Cherry; maybe all kinds of fresh fruit; a ultra deluxe green salad; broiled or braised tender moist fall-off-the-bone tender chicken, fresh corn on the cob, asparagus, corn bread. That’s the mood I’m in tonight, but tomorrow could be totally different, going for the exotic.
ReplyDeleteJoared,
DeleteIsn't that the truth how our wishes would change from day to day. I just hope I wouldn't stand in front of the prison refridgerator unable to make up my mind.
For starters I couldn't even get through a whole pound of crispy bacon, so I'd skip the meal part and just go for dessert. Spiced apple pie with fresh whipped cream. I'd die happy.
ReplyDeleteRiver,
DeleteYou are not alone for several have stated that just dessert would do it for them.
Oh, your post is hilarious! My last meal would be baby back ribs, fried onion rings, fried zucchini, brie cheese with Ritz crackers, and some other goodies, too.
ReplyDeletegigi,
DeleteSo glad you enjoyed. Now how did I forget baby back ribs. Thanks, will add them along with the fried chicken.
Definately potato salad.. and German Chocolate cake, and oh, that coconut cake that's made with frozen coconut. May eat the whole thing. Ice tea and a Dr. Pepper. Baked beans and a great Bbque. That does it. I'm boring after your wonderful meal.
ReplyDeleteLatane,
DeleteHey, you are going to eat a whole cake. That is not boring. The beauty of this game is that our stomachs will never hurt from over eating. Ahh.
Aren't peppermint patties the best? And fried chicken is a MUST. I'm a fan of paella and Chicago style pizza.
ReplyDeleteSherry,
ReplyDeleteOh yes they are. If I had to whittle the list down a bit, I do the bacon, fried chicken and the York patties.
Never had the Chicago style. Something to try.
Whoa...my stomach fills bloated just thinking about it! I think I would go for dessert first with a bakery cake..the best icing ever! Then on to texican chips and salsa (OTB works for meor Pablanos). Then to the mundane but oh so good pizza..YUM! And then I will top it off with purple hull peas and cornbread..like my grandma used to make. Ok, I am stuffed..I need a good long nap now.
ReplyDeleteA fun question but I find my answer to be very dull. I find very few things that appeal to me in the food category. I think a lot of it is due to esophageal reflux that seems to get worse as I age. I guess I would be satisfied with a bowl of
ReplyDeleteFrench Onion Soup !
I’ve lost a bunch of my sense of taste so I don’t crave a lot of things anymore. HOWEVER, I’d like a fried chicken drumstick and a chocolate sundae with marshmallows and cherries. Oh and chocolate covered strawberries too. OK... now you got me thinking about food and it’s time for me to get to bed.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was still eating meat and eggs, I once had poached eggs on braised beef with a chipotle cream topping. I'd want that with an assortment of homemade breads with salted butter and homefries. I'd want a traditional Caesar salad prepared while I watched. For dessert, I'd order a double chocolate mousse cake with strong caffeinated coffee. By then, I'd probably need cardiac resuscitation!
ReplyDelete