MarcaRelli 2024
The 1960s was the heyday of the American Soap Opera on network daytime television. I remember my mother ironing clothes in front of our black and white set glued to the melodrama unfolding before her on that little square box. I think she burned a sleeve or two every now and then.
Back then television programs were free. That’s right boys and girls – FREE! All you needed was a television set and some “antlers” and you were good to go. The networks made their money from corporate sponsors, the two largest being soap manufacturers (thus the term “soap” opera) and breakfast cereal companies both of whom would insert commercials into the episodes, often right before a suspenseful scene and heralded by a blast from what sounded like a poorly tuned pipe organ – thus assuring the viewer’s attention.
If you were a child of the sixties then you’ll remember some of the hot cereals that were being hocked on daytime TV commercials back then. Cream of Wheat. Maypo. HO Farina. And, of course, Quaker Oats. As a kid I was never a real big fan of any of those hot cereals. But Pastina was another matter. I remember mom taking a break from pasting S&H Green Stamps to make pastina with butter for me when I wasn’t feeling well. Smooth, silky, buttery and ever so easy on the stomach. Ronzoni pastina (the tiny stars) in the little blue box was our go-to brand.
Later, during my wild days, this recipe was my hangover-helper. It worked! But all that was a long time ago.
“Like sands through the hourglass, so are the Days of Our Lives.”
Need This
1 – 16 oz package of Pastina (little stars)
Butter
Salt
Do This
– Put clean cold water into a medium sauce pot and bring it to a rolling boil
– Add a generous amount of salt to the water
– Dump in pastina (about a 1/4 cup per serving)
– Boil (uncovered) for 8 – 10 minutes until desired chewatation is achieved
– Drain the cooked pastina through a strainer (not a colander) into a bowl
– Add about two tablespoons of butter immediately and stir it in.
– Test for saltiness to taste.
– Serve hot.
My cost: About 65 cents per serving.