Great British Cooking, an 'English' Rarebit and a Giveaway

Carolyn and Chris Calidcott have travelled the world in pursuit of delicious food.  In this book they come home to explore the long-overlooked delights of traditional British Cooking. Tried and tested recipes, some with a twist, combine with a stylish evocation of the nation's style: pubs, country lanes, sweet peas in a jar and bracing Sunday walks.

A potted history of English cooking:  A very accessible history running through from the Roman settlement of Britain through to the twentieth century.

The Full English: includes recipes for 'The Fry-Up', Bubble and Squeak, Marmalade, Tomato Ketchup. Coddled Eggs and Kedgeree.

The Pub Lunch: some tasty recipes for a perfect lunch including Rhubarb and Apple Chutney, Pickled Onions, Raised Pork Pie, Piccalilli, Cornish Pasties, English Rarebit (see below) and Bangers, Mustard Mash and Onion Gravy.

The Sunday Roast:  We all love a roast and this chapter, not only provides you with the recipes for the roasts but also for the accompaniments, so with the Roast Beef there is Yorkshire Pudding and Horseradish Sauce, with Roast Pork, Apple Sauce and Sage and Onion Stuffing, not to mention that very popular crackling (not popular with me,  I might add).  Roast Lamb comes with Apricot Stuffing and Mint Sauce.  Recipes for Roast potatoes, gravy, clapshot and various vegetables complete your meal.  There are even instructions for cooking your Christmas Turkey with the accompaniments of Chestnut Stuffing and Cranberry Sauce.

The Nation's Favourites: Stroll, or eat your way, down memory lane with Lancashire Hotpot, Shepherd's Pie, Steak and Kidney Pudding, Toad in the Hole with Onion Gravy, Chicken and Mushroom Pie, Beer Battered Cod and Twice-Cooked Chips served with Mushy Peas and Tartare Sauce, and finally a Poached Salmon with Samphire and English Butter Sauce.

The Queen of Puddings: Starting with a recipe for a creamy home made custard which would go very well  with the Jam Roly Poly or a lovely fruit crumble.  A traditional favourite of Bread and Butter Pudding, or a Treacle Tart with a twist - a Gingery Treacle Tart! Rice Pudding, Raspberry and Banana Trifle, Spice Baked Apples, Queen of Puddings and for the grand finale a Christmas Plum Pudding with Brandy Butter.

Who is this book for?
I think this would be a good book to give to a visitor from another country, as it covers a good selection of traditional English (I'll come on to that in a moment) recipes.  It would also be ideal for someone who is relatively new to cooking and would like to recreate traditional comfort food recipes.

Pros 
A neat little book packed with recipes and excellent photographs.  As well as the history, each recipe has an introductory paragraph of interesting information.  The recipes are simple and easy to follow.

Cons
This book is called 'Great British Cooking', however I could not find a single recipe for a traditional Scottish, Welsh or Irish dish. So I feel that the title does not represent the content.  Even the Welsh Rarebit has become English Rarebit, although it was extremely good!


English Rarebit
Serve 4

1 tbsp plain flour
1 generous teaspoon English mustard powder
Pinch of cayenne pepper
6 tbsp strong beer, dry cider or milk
1 heaped tablespoon butter
250g/9oz strong Cheddar cheese, grated
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Black pepper to taste
4 thick slices of good bread
A small glass of red wine

1. Combine the flour, mustard and cayenne in a bowl and gradually pour in the beer, stirring untl smooth.
2. Place the butter in a small saucepan and melt over a low heat, Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the beer/flour mixture.
3. Add the cheese and gently warm, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the cheese has completely melted and a thick sauce forms.  Stir in the Worcestershire sauce and season to taste.
4. Toast the bread, sprinkle with a little red wine (I didn't do this and it was fine without) and spread with the cheese mixture, taking care to cover the crusts.  Grill until brown and molten. Serve immediately.

The rarebit was really delicious and I would definitely make it again.

Great British Cooking
By Carolyn Caldicott
Photography by Chris Caldicott
Published by Frances Lincoln
RRP £12.99

I have one copy of Great British Cooking by Carolyn Caldicott to Giveaway, just follow the instructions on the Rafflecopter Widget below:

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Labels: Carolyn Caldicott, English Rarebit, Frances Lincoln, giveaway, Great British Cooking, Welsh Rarebit, win

posted by Janice @ 00:00 90 Comments

Hot Chocolate and Comfort Foods

As autumn becomes winter, a walk on a cold bright day is a real treat.  I'm treating you to a few photographs from my weekend walk as well as some ideas for to warm you up when you get home,


A nice bowl of porridge will do the trick and this Hot and Steamy Porridge from Nature's Path hits the spot.  It's organic and gluten free and comes in three different flavours: original; maple syrup and Spiced Apple.  Add milk or water and either cook on the hob or 70 seconds in the microwave and enjoy a very tasty bowl of porridge. The porridge has a lovely texture and the flavoured sachets don't taste in any way artificial, we enjoyed them all, however the portions are quite small (hubby said he would need two!) but ideal for a healthy snack.



Chilly water, running fast after all the rain we had recently.  Brrr, that does make me feel cold, the ground was muddy and wet too and if I hadn't had my walking boots on my feet might have got cold and wet.
A lovely cup of hot chocolate to warm me right down to the toes! Hans Sloane Drinking Chocolate comes as pure chocolate beads, it melts easily and tastes of real chocolate, because that's what it is.  A packet of Hans Sloane Drinking Chocolate would be a perfect stocking filler or treat yourself to a Hans Sloane Cocoa Pod, a chocolate shell full of drinking chocolate beans, watch the video below to see how much fun it is to make hot chocolate this way.



It's even more fun if you add some mini marshmallows and candy canes to dress up your hot chocolate.


Maybe you would prefer a nice cup of tea.  I've reviewed Tea Vivre teas before (All the tea from China) they are very high quality teas sent direct from China. This time I was invited to an Oolong tasting and have the following teas to tell you about:
Anxi Monkey King (Ma Liu Mie) Tie Guan Yin Oolong Tea

• Grown and produced in Anxi, Fujian
• Hand made into small, rolled up, jade colored leaves.
• Pale yellow-green colored tea when brewed
• Delightfully fresh floral taste and aroma

Taiwan Jin Xuan Milk Oolong Tea (Flavored)

• Grown and produced in Alishan, Nantou, Taiwan
• Evenly and tightly rolled tea leaves
• Pale yellow-gold tea liquor
• Strong milk fragrance

Taiwan Monkey Picked (Ma Liu Mie) Tie Guan Yin Oolong Tea
There is a baked flavor when brewed Monkey Picked Oolong tea, which was ever named Maliumie in China. It is come from Li Mountain, Taizhong, Taiwan, which belongs to the top 10 of Taiwan teas.

Labels: Carolyn Caldicott, China, chocolate, Comfort, Drinking Chocolate, Frances Lincoln, Hans Sloane, Hot Chocolate, Nature's Path, Oolong, review, tea, Tea Vivre

posted by Janice @ 20:36 7 Comments

On my 'Mother's Day' Kitchen Table

Mother's Day is nearly here, it's later this year on 30th March so you still have  little time to choose and buy your gifts. The gift you choose for your mother will depend on some key factors including price, availability but most importantly the gift should be something that your mother will like.

That got me thinking about different kinds of mothers and what they might like to receive so here is my little guide to gifts for different mothers.

Chocoholic Mum

Image - Last Door Down the Hall

Along with flowers, chocolate is probably one of the most common gifts to buy for Mother's Day and it's an absolute must for the Chocoholic Mother.  This is a time to look for something a little different and special like this Hotel Chocolat Hazelnut Spread. 


Oh my, this is a delicious spread.  It's richer and more chocolately than similar spreads that are available and, as well as making the perfect 'tartine' for breakfast or tea, it would also be delicous warmed and poured over ice-cream or baked into a muffin, or for the true chocoholic eat it straight from the jar with a spoon!
At £6.50 for 150g, Hotel Chocolat Hazelnut Chocolate Spread is a luxury product at a reasonable price.  Hotel Chocolat have a wide range of different chocolate treats you are bound to find a special chocolate gift.

Image: Last Door Down the Hall

Dunelm Mill have a great selection of silicone moulds suitable for oven and microwave use, prices in  The Silicone Collection  range from 75p for a silicone heart shaped mould up to £8.99 for a chocolate house mould.  The 6 Flowerpot Silicone Cupcake Cases are £3.99 and the Macaroon Baking Set is £4.99.

Tea-Jenny Mum 










Masterchef Mum 

Image: Millie Motts

As you can imagine, I have no trouble at all thinking of gifts for Masterchef Mum!  One idea that will appeal to the the gadget lovers is this simple but effective whisk.

The Nova Multi-Quirl is simple to use and requires no batteries and no cables, you just push the handle down and it twists and whisks. I found it to be well constructed and particularly liked being able to put it in the dishwasher.  You can see how it works HERE
The Nova Multi-Quirl is available from G3 Direct Ltd for £12.95

Foraging Mum 

Image: The Graphics Fairy

Foraging Mum likes to make the most of the food that can be gathered for free, whether it's blackberries in autumn or wild garlic in the spring.  Rosehips on a Kitchen Table is delightful little book full of hints and tips about foraging and recipes to make the most of your foraged goodies. Now is the time to forage for fresh, young leaves,  and I'm sure Foraging Mum would love to learn to make Wild Garlic Pesto or Nettle Risotto.  Elderberries, Blackberries, Rosehips and Sloes all feature with their own recipes. Tipsy Sloe Fairy Cakes: dainty fairy cakes with a hidden tipsy heart sound so tempting especially when served with clotted cream, as suggested in the book.

In addition to the foraging chapters author, Carolyn Caldicott writes about how to Grow your Own fruit and vegetables and includes information about how to deal with the inevitable gluts!  Some of the recipes that stood out for me were: Broad Beans Baked with Asparagus, Eggs Baked in Passata, Pepper and Chorizo Sauce,  Parsnip Gnocchi and Rosemary and Honey Roots.

The final chapter is entitled 'What on Earth do I do with This?'  and is a chapter devoted to the more unusual vegetables which might turn up in your veg box.  Celeriac Champ looked good and I can't wait to try Beetroot Leaves with Walnuts, Raisins and Orange.  Convert the most ardent Brussels Sprout hater with Brussels Stir Fry with Ginger Cumin and Chilli.



Rosehips on a Kitchen Table by Carolyn Caldicott
Photographs by Chris Caldicott
Published by Francis Lincoln Limited

Labels: Carolyn Caldicott, Chinese Tea, Dunelm Mill, Flowbox, foraging, Francis Lincoln Ltd, gifts, Hazelnut and Chocolate Spread, Hotel Chocolat, Mother's Day, Nova Multi-Quirl, silicone bakeware, Tea Vivre

posted by Janice @ 20:56 27 Comments