I'm writing a fictional short story, based off of the "Project Spaghetti" dish that the foster dad, Al, used to make before he died, & also the peach cobbler that the foster sister April used to make when I was 7 years old. Her peach cobbler was the only peach cobbler that I used to like to eat. Mainly the crust. Nowadays, you couldn't pay me to eat peach cobbler! 🤮
I realized that "Slap Ya Mama" products weren't invented until 2001, but I'm just going along with the story.
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It was the year 1992. 10-year old Tyrell was looking in the kitchen cupboards. There was hardly any food in the apartment (in the Fischer projects in Algiers - New Orleans). He started crying because he got tired of the food insecurity in the household. He was an only child, living with his single dad. He had just come home from school, & his dad had just come home from work. He was a latchkey kid.
His dad, Keyshawn, came inside with some commodity groceries. He automatically stopped crying, & his eyes lit up from tears to cheesin'. Pun intended, because the boy LOVES him some cheese!
Tyrell doesn't like when there's spaghetti with meat sauce. He likes meatballs, because he thinks meatballs are more fun. He thinks meat sauce is boring. Keyshawn tried to bribe him to have another fun way to eat the spaghetti & meat sauce by adding cheese, because after a hard day's work, he didn't have the patience to roll up meatballs, along with adding eggs, breadcrumbs, seasonings, etc. He just wanted to keep everything as simple as possible.
Keyshawn told his son, "Naw, naw, listen. I got a new recipe, called 'Project Spaghetti'. I promise you. It'll taste SO good that you'll NEVER look back at 'dem meatballs. & it's the quickest & simplest dinner you'll ever cook."
Tyrell gave a weird look & asked him, "Project Spaghetti!? Why that? Is it because we live in the projects?"
Keyshawn was stirring the pot, while he was smoking a cigar & said, "You answered your own question correctly, son. For that, I'm gon' make you a simple, surprise dessert to go along wit' 'dat."
After he got done cooking the spaghetti & stirred in the government cheese, his son started jumping for joy. He combined the cooked spaghetti & meat sauce & then added the commodity government cheese until it melted. He let his son pick out whatever flavor of Flavor-Aid that he wanted to drink. The boy picked the lemonade flavor. His dad said, "Son? That's all? Now, I got fresh squeezed lemons for that!"
His son wised up on him & said, "Yeah, but isn't cutting up the lemons more work? For all that, I could've had the meatballs."
Keyshawn put his head down & laughed, feeling embarrassed, even though it was just them 2 in the apartment kitchen. He told his son, "Yeah, you rite!" So, he let his son have the lemonade Flavor-Aid.
Keyshawn started preheating the oven. Tyrell was slurping & smacking his food. He said, "Where's my momma, so I can smack her, too? Because this here tastes off the chain!" Keyshawn laughed & said, "Oh, you got jokes, huh!" He was looking right at some "Slap Ya Mama" Cajun seasoning & Tony Chachere's Creole seasoning that his dad put in the spaghetti dish. That boy LOVED the Project Spaghetti, & he used to beg for it every time his dad came home with commodity groceries.
Keyshawn made quick, easy, lazy peach cobbler. He took a pan, & he took the commodity canned peaches & put them in the pan. Then, he put some yellow cake mix on top. After that, he sliced butter on top & then threw it in the oven.
Tyrell asked him, "Are you making Project Peach Cobbler now?" The boy must've thought that everything cheap, quick & simple is the "project " version of doing things, which wasn't the case.
Keyshawn looked @ him funny. He scratched his head & had another embarrassed laugh. He said, "No, son. Just ea'cha food."
So, both father & son enjoyed the Project Spaghetti, Project Peach Cobbler & Project Kool-Aid.
THE END