Aaack! When I was a kid my mom would fry up 'smelt' in butter and serve them whole (heads too) with rice and peas.
They were SO bad you wouldn't believe it. I learned to love rice and peas. I hated those boney bastards, I used tons of tartar sauce to disguise the taste and stench.
I never made my kids eat food they hate, never used dessert as a reward. barf
OMG my mom served those smelts too. They are awful. And the canned yuky peas.I once lined them up under the rim of my dinner plate so I wouldn't have to eat them. We got tater tots with the smelts and peas and I hate them too. I don't make food my children won't eat, what is the use? Its funny how one person can say something and the memories flood back. Its been a while since my mom passed away and you brought back some really good memories....thanks & have a Happy Thanksgiving, Pandora