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Makes a great gift for Food and Film lovers alike

Film Released: 1979
Genre: Drama
Directed by: Robert Benton
Cast/Actors: Dustin Hoffman, Meryl Streep, Justin Henry
 

Set in New York in the 70s, Ted Kramer (played by Dustin Hoffman) and Joanna Kramer (played by Meryl Streep) have been married for over 7 years and have a son called Billy (played by Justin Henry). Ted is an advertising executive who is totally immersed in his career, working long hours at the office. Even when he’s at home, he neglects family life and spends most of his time there planning his work schedule.

After months of loneliness and dissatisfaction with her marriage, depression sets in and Joanna announces that she is leaving Ted but will be leaving their son behind for Ted to look after. Ted’s world is totally disrupted as he finds him having to balance his work and home commitments and soon his career starts to suffer. He struggles on and over the months, Ted and Billy develop a close father and son relationship.

Almost a year later, Joanna reappears having been in California undergoing therapy and having sorted herself out with job has come back to reclaim her son totally unaware of the close attachment Ted and Billy have formed. After all these months he and Billy have achieved a relatively comfortable state and warm and loving relationship so not surprisingly, he refuses to hand his son over to the mother who abandoned them both.

The resolve to fight for custody over their only son through the courts.

After much heartache, the courts side with the mother, but throughout it all, Joanna has realised that the Billy’s home is now with his father and on the morning that she is supposed to pick Billy up to take him away, she admits to Ted that Billy should stay with his father. The movie ends with Joanna getting into the lift and heading up to the apartment to tell Billy that he'll be staying.

The food aspect comes when the newly abandoned Ted is struggling to make breakfast for Billy. Although Joanna has left a note of instructions next to the "natural grain" cereal, a jar of honey, some wheat germ, and a banana, with carefully written, Ted is so angry with her that he throws the note away in defiance and suggests that he cooks some French toast (Billy’s favourite).

Trouble is, he doesn’t have a clue how to do it. He gets egg shell in the mixture, forgets to add the milk and ends up burning it then dropping the entire contents of the frying pan on the kitchen floor when he forgets the pan handle is very hot.

Below is a classic version of this recipe.

 
Happy Cooking!

French Toast    Veg HT 10mins

Serves 2    Hot Vegetarian Breakfast Brunch Snack

Ingredients
2 Eggs
60ml/2fl.oz. Milk
1 level tbsp Sugar
½ teasp Vanilla Essence
¼ teasp Ground Cinnamon
2 Slices of White Bread
25g/1oz Butter (approx)