Foods I've missed, somehow

Can you believe that until about a month ago, I'd never heard of scalloped corn? It seems to me like a food that would have fit right in there with the homemade macaroni and cheese, and tuna noodle casserole of my childhood. I'm not even sure how I stumbled across it on the internet. Someone mentioned it on a blog, I think, and I thought "Scalloped corn? What the heck is that?"

We did eat creamed corn now and then when I was a kid. I loved how sweet it was, although I sort of found the slurpy nature of it a bit icky. Tasty, but icky.

Now, had one of my friend's moms plopped scalloped corn down on their dinner table, or had we learned how to make it in school, I surely would have been whining to mom about turning those cans of creamed corn into a casserole. Heck, all you needed were a few eggs, milk, and Ritz crackers or saltines, which we always had around.



I also remember coming to Ithaca as a student, totally clueless to the concept of Buffalo wings. I honestly had no idea what manner of beast they came from when I saw them on the menu at Dos Amigos. I believe it was in the ABC cafe that I first learned of huevos rancheros. Once upon a time I always topped my eggs at home with cheese. Now I eat them scrambled with a side of salsa. And roasted Brussels sprouts (Just a Taste)? Who knew they could be so good? Yet those are all "restaurant foods" that you bring home to your own kitchen.



(note, the photo directly above is of eggs and salsa, not scalloped corn!)

Scalloped corn? That is family food that some people have at every single Thanksgiving dinner. And I'm pushing 48 and never heard of it. Now I wonder what other absolutely average American pan-o-food is out there that I have totally missed out on?