Canapés

As can be seen from extensive advertising the canapé has morphed into big business. I appreciate it's a fiddly, time consuming exercise, which is probably why the advertising is so successful and they make an absolute mint.

This is not a bah humbug moment - cast your mind back – of all the bits and pieces you've served over the past months what has been the most popular – you know what I mean, you've made a truck load and it has all disappeared?

So, why not stick to what you know, will vanish without trace and be a huge hit – the bonus is no waste and, if by chance there should be any left over, wrap and “fridge” and serve later as part of your supper/midnight snack.

Here's my contribution :

The smoked trout mousse mentioned in “Madness II – the Recipes” can be piped into Croustades and garnished with fresh chopped chives – photo of the Croustades attached to help. 

MiamMiam Cookery And The Last Croustade!

You could if you prefer use smoked mackerel paté – here's the recipe

Smoked Mackerel Paté

250g smoked mackerel

250g quark (it's a soft cheese made from skimmed milk – not nice on its own but great as a low fat product for healthy paté!)

Glug of lemon juice

Black pepper

Two tsps of creamed horseradish

Skin the mackerel, break up and put into food processor. Add the quark and blitz with the mackerel, then add the lemon juice, black pepper and horseradish, blitz again. You can gauge the consistency of the paté to your personal taste.

You can then add, for example, chopped onion, chopped capers.

Serve with anything you like, toasted bread, rice cakes or add to warmed pitta slit, with salad or, in this case, piped into Croustades.

If you can't get hold of quark you can use cottage cheese - low fat of course!

Remember the post on Crostini – check out “Lucky Dip” for the list - choose a couple of your favourites.

A friend uses the tuna and parsley rolls recipe all the time – it's on my list too - she never travels without it – by that I mean that she serves it when she's at her home in France. Check out “Summer Holidays” for the recipe.

The Croque Monsieur using festive cutters is bound to be a candidate I'd say.

Bake a batch of cheese scones and use a smaller cutter, serve warm.

What about the retro baked Camembert mentioned in “Bank Holiday Breeze”. Whilst it's potentially a smidge on the messy side – you could serve with cheese straws placed in a straight tumbler.

Finally, before I bore you beyond all reason, if you chose Option 2 of the suppers or you're not using the Festive Three Cheese Tart as part of Option 1, then I'd be making them individually, with or without the cranberries, as one of my canapés. Its a reliable, kind recipe and doesn't suffer at all from being made ahead and frozen.

Nadolig Llawen!

Breakfast

On a serious note – if you are the cook it's really easy to be so intent on making sure everyone else is fed and watered that you forget to eat yourself. Is this ringing any bells? A cranky cook is not a good look – if you like the “chef du petit déjeuner” idea, effectively what you're doing is spreading the load – who knows it could be the best thing you've ever done. It's also about timing – if you know that friends and family are dropping in late morning and so you won't be serving lunch until mid to late afternoon then by eating breakfast you're not going to wreck your appetite and spoil your lunch later. Alcohol on an empty stomach is not good either – not to be confused with the cook's privilege of a glass of whatever is your pleasure – there is no bah humbug here!

There are heaps of traditional breakfasts - from the bacon butty, probably everyone's absolute favourite - to smoked salmon and scrambled egg - full English if you must - to the more exotic – kedgeree, or my personal favourite - a really posh seafood omelette - smoked salmon and cream cheese on toasted bagels, yada yada yada.

Back to the “chef du petit déjeunner” and “keep it simple”. I don't think I know anyone who doesn't enjoy a toasted sandwich so, how about a festive Croque Monsieur for the inaugural breakfast? The beauty of this idea is that it can be assembled and wrapped beforehand – either way it's not challenging and in reality doesn't require any technical ability. For the vegetarians you can adapt the Croque Monsieur omitting the ham – bingo!

I know that the Croque recipe was first mentioned in GOM: Chapter 9 Class day – no pressure but for ease of reference, here it is again :

Festive Croque Monsieur

4 slices of medium sliced wholemeal bread

2 tsp Dijon mustard

75g (3oz) Gruyere cheese (grated)

2 slices of ham

30g (1½oz) unsalted butter

Festive cutters of your choice

Serves 2

Preheat oven to 150fan/170c/Gas 3.

Spread ½ tsp of mustard over each slice of bread.

Spread half the cheese on two slices of bread followed by the ham, remaining cheese on top and sandwich together with the other two slices of bread. Cut out the festive shapes of your choice.

Heat the butter in a frying pan until foaming – fry your festive croque monsieur for 1-2 minutes on each side and then transfer to a baking tray and keep warm in the oven until ready to serve.

Serve with festive pickle or chutney of your choice – caramelised red onion chutney is delish.

There are other breakfast/brunch recipes mentioned in Break out the brunch – Part I and Part 2 if you want more alternatives.

Another pause …. more thoughts

I know I'm probably stating the obvious but here's a few reminders :

Don't be too ambitious, for example, don't wait until Christmas Eve to try out a new recipe – not good for the “infinity and beyond” stress levels when it goes pear shaped.

Your mantra over the holidays should be those three little words, “keep it simple”.

When you make your holiday shopping list, sit in your kitchen with all your food cupboards to hand – ensuring of course that you have a little reward, in the way of a glass of wine - or chocolate – or both, by your side – they help to concentrate the mind for such tasks – after you've finished of course! If you are sat in another room it's easy to convince yourself “of course I've got sauce to go with the bacon sandwiches” - when in reality there's only fumes at the bottom of both bottles - how wrong can you be and how irritated when its too late!

Remember the motto, “be prepared”. To that end, if you are a devotee of doing your supermarket shopping on line – three more little words, book your slot! Think of it another way – do you really want to do a “Supermarket Sweep” like some crazy person with a trolley piled high with random food that you'll throw away in the New Year. A little over the top may be but think of your overdraft – planning will save your pennies and the pennies become pounds – how twee is that!

Whatever you are serving for Christmas lunch if you intend to order from your butcher pick up an order form and return it completed. If I can I'll collect my order on the 23^rd for two reasons, the first is that it's a tick off my list and second, it'll be mobbed on Christmas Eve – do you really have 30/45 minutes to waste standing in a queue – you'll never get that time back.

If you intend to buy frozen poultry from the supermarket bear in mind you have to allow adequate time to defrost it. Read the instructions – trying to defrost a large turkey in a bath of cold water on Christmas morning is not a good idea.

Break the habits of a lifetime – be radical – create a new tradition of your own for the holidays. Promote one of your nearest and dearest to “chef du petit déjeuner” (breakfast chef – there's nothing like a fancy title) for the day. It doesn't have to be a Michelin star event and I'm not objecting to a little supervision. You may not like the idea of relinquishing the reins – sooooo sorry, couldn't resist - it could be a master stroke and a task that turns into fun, not to mention breakfast.

Mele Kalikimaka!

The Method in my Madness

The Creaking Table

Christmas Eve Supper – Option 1

Seafood Platter

Smoked Trout Mousse

Smoked Salmon - sliced

Asian Spiced Salmon – broken into small chunks

Prawns – defrosted if frozen

Smoked Mackerel – skin removed and broken

into small pieces

Marie Rose sauce

Creamed horseradish

Sliced lemons, baby tomatoes and sliced cucumber

Festive Three Cheese Tart

Winter Coleslaw

Miso Maple Glazed Chicken

Honey Roast Beetroot

Baby new potatoes, roasted with parsley and butter

Cheese & Pecan Loaf with butter

Cheese Board and grapes

This menu covers all the bases – salty, citrus, sweet, crunch, colour and all the other bits that guests love – potatoes and bread.

Taking in turn, the seafood platter uses only two recipes, both of which are simplicity itself and can be prepared a day or two beforehand and “fridged” - the mousse and the Asian Spiced Salmon. The recipe for the mousse follows – where would we be without James Martin – the mousse recipe is one of his. The Asian Spiced Salmon recipe appears in the posting “Life with GOM: Chapter Two”.

Dig out a large shallow bowl – 32 cms approximately or a platter – 37 x 30 cms approximately (a couple of photos attached to illustrate). Arrange your seafood in the bowl or on the platter – serve the sauces in ramekins and place centrally. Garnish with wedges of lemon, baby tomatoes and sliced cucumber. If you have small ramekins, fill 3 or 4 with the mousse and arrange between the seafood on your serving dish of choice and garnish with the lemons, tomatoes and cucumber.

The Three Cheese Tart appeared in the posting “The Shindig”. I am including a festive twist for the tart – optional of course. The tart can be made beforehand and frozen.

I am including a recipe for a winter coleslaw. What I will do is prepare the red cabbage, carrots and onions ahead, bag separately and “fridge”. It's then 5 minutes to combine and add the remaining ingredients.

Miso Maple Glazed Chicken is the easiest recipe, here it is :

Miso Maple Glazed Chicken

4 chicken breasts

1 tbsp baking powder*

4 fl oz/½ cup maple syrup*

2 fl oz/¼ cup white miso paste*

Mix * together, add the chicken breasts and

marinate for 24 hrs

Sprinkle with chopped spring onions

Bake in a pre-heated oven 180 fan/200c/Gas 6

for 35 minutes

Again, takes no time at all and, if you marinate the chicken in one of my famous, washing-up free foil dishes, it can go straight from the fridge, into the oven at the same time as you are roasting your baby new potatoes. The honey roast beetroot recipe appears in the post “Kitchen investments and Wednesday supper”. You don't have to roast beetroot from scratch if you don't have time – use vac pack organic beetroot.

As the for Cheese & Pecan Loaf, watch this space – coming soon!

Pause for thought …

Before moving on with the method in my madness and the creaking table can I ask you to pause for thought. I am concerned lest you become overwhelmed with stress as the Festive Season approaches and to borrow a most appropriate quotation from our esteemed hero Buzz Lightyear – are catapulted “to infinity and beyond” so, take a moment or two and read on.

Is there anyone out there who is thoroughly fed up with cooking the same old thing for Christmas Day lunch? Dare I suggest – and please don't shoot the messenger – ring the changes and do something different.

My Christmas Day with my Family is, I think, a little outside the norm. There will be a choice of turkey crown, gammon, rich steak casserole, fillet steak or Russian Fish Pie with cheese sauce. A little over the top – absolutely not. The fillet steak will be cooked to order, otherwise the other choices will be cooked in advance and ready to roll when we are.

The jewel in the crown of the meal will be my Sister's chips – yes it's chips with everything. No-one makes chips like my Sister and so when we were having our pre-Christmas committee meeting, the motion for chips was carried unanimously! There are five of us for the holiday and so I concede that cooking chips for 20 isn't such a practical idea. If however you are like us and a smaller number, there's a thought. I can also reveal that there's no fancy plug-in fryer – a small investment has been made and a new old fashioned chip-pan has been purchased – no expense spared! A word of caution – to be used by responsible, alcohol free adults only.

It's “fess up time” – are you sucked in by all the party food adverts on the television? If you do succumb how much of it do you buy and, more to the point, how much of it do you throw away or find buried in the freezer as you create space for Easter – tell the truth!

Before I go here's my final bonkers idea for Christmas Day lunch. These days you can buy really good quality disposable table cloths – you really wouldn't know the difference. If you have a large table to set and have decided to use said disposable cloth engage the services of the younger members of the family and get them to design each place setting. Use a felt tip pen and trace round a place-mat for each of your guests. Give the kids felt tip pens and let them create unique place-settings.

I did say bonkers!

P.s. After all a chip is only a roast potato in a different form.

What's for afters?!

I thought you'd like a couple of non traditional suggestions for afters – the first involves prep – it's worth it and you can make ahead and freeze, but a word of caution – you might not want the work if your party is a large one.

Anyway, here goes :

Perfect Chocolate Fondants

Makes 2

60g unsalted butter, cut into dice, plus extra to grease

1 tbsp cocoa powder

60g dark chocolate, broken into pieces

1 egg and 1 egg yolk

60g caster sugar

1 tbsp plain flour

pinch of salt

Pre-heat the oven to 180fan/200c/Gas 6 if cooking immediately and put a baking tray on the middle shelf. Butter the inside of 2 small ramekins or pudding moulds, and then put the cocoa in one and turn it to coat the inside, holding it over the second mould to catch any that escapes. Do the same with the other mould.

Put the butter and chocolate into a heatproof bowl set over, but not touching, a pan of simmering water and stir occasionally until melted. Allow to cool slightly.

Vigorously whisk together the egg, yolk, sugar and a pinch of salt until pale and fluffy. Gently fold in the melted chocolate and butter, and then the flour. Spoon into the prepared moulds, stopping just shy of the top – at this point the mixture can be refrigerated until needed, or even frozen, as the puddings will not wait around once cooked.

Put on to a hot baking tray and cook for 12 minutes (14 if from cold, 16 if frozen) until the tops are set and coming away from the sides of the moulds. Leave to rest for 30 seconds and then serve in the ramekins or turn out on to plates if you're feeling confident – they're great with clotted cream or vanilla ice cream.

This recipe absolutely works – make sure you have your kitchen timer sellotaped about your person – precision is everything!

The next suggestion is lighter and again you can dress it up or down depending on your workload.

Lemon Pots

600ml (1 pint) double cream

150g (5oz) caster sugar

finely grated zest and juice of 3 lemons**

To serve

fresh raspberries

small ramekins or shot glasses

Heat the cream, sugar and lemon zest in a wide-based pan over a low heat until at simmering point. Stir continuously for about 3 minutes until the sugar has dissolved.

Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly until lukewarm.

Mix the lemon juice with the cooled cream in the pan and stir.

Pour the lemon cream into the pots and transfer to the fridge to set for a minimum of 2 hours.

When set and ready to serve arrange raspberries on top.

**If you don't have fresh lemons you can use juice and omit the zest – 4 tbsp of juice is equivalent to one and a half lemons.

Strawberry Coulis

200g Strawberries, hulled and halved

200g Raspberries

75g icing sugar, sifted

Heat the fruit in a large pan for 4-5 minutes or until the fruit starts to break down.

Add the icing sugar and continue to cook the fruit for a further 2-3 minutes or until the sugar has dissolved.

Transfer the mixture to a food processor and blend until smooth, add a splash of water if necessary to loosen. Strain the coulis through a sieve and set aside to cool. Chill in the fridge until needed. If you have a squeezy bottle in your kitchen kit it's ideal for the coulis - so easy to control when dressing up your pots!

Dressing up

Crumble Amaretti biscuits and place in bottom of shot glass. Pour lemon mixture on top of biscuits and place in fridge to set – minimum 2 hours. When ready to serve top with the coulis.

If you wish you could mix praline with the Amaretti biscuits.

The finished effect looks fab.

Continuing my revolutionary bent, I prefer to have something that the kids and the grown-ups will like that isn't related to mincemeat or Christmas pudding – in truth I don't know many kids who are fond of either, so I'll be making one of the favourites – Malteser cake – actually it's more like a tray bake, cut into cubes and boxed.

Whilst we're on the subject of “de rigeur” Christmas – what about making Rocky Road? Check out the “Outside the box” post for all the options. You could make it more festive by decorating with edible gold glitter and stars, both of which are easily available these days. Nigella gives a recipe for Christmas Rocky Road, strangely enough in “Nigella Christmas”!

Phew – Christmas Day breakfast and canapé ideas coming next.

Madness III – tee hee!

Remember what I said in the previous post :

“If you love feeding your family and friends that love travels from you to the table and creates an atmosphere where everyone is laughing, fighting to finish a sentence - as Kenny Everett always said, “in the nicest possible way” - there is nothing to beat it and it cannot be manufactured.”

I came across the following quotation :

“Good food is always a trouble and its

preparation should be regarded as a labour of love”

Elizabeth David 1951

I rest my case!

In “The dreaded “C” word” I asked “how does your day go?” - whatever floats your boat, you can pick and choose bits and pieces from The Creaking Table, it's not set in stone. If there are choices you don't like it may trigger an idea that you do. Even if you're in the “bah humbug”, shutters down, veg out, category there will be something to tickle your fancy. The intention is to give everyone something nice to eat with minimum fuss and palaver and maximum yum.

If low key is your preference for Christmas Eve, here's Option 2. You'd think it really unusual if I didn't make use of the slow cooker, especially at this time of year – never one to disappoint, have a glance at this :

Slow cooked pulled chicken

Winter coleslaw

Roasted baby new potatoes

Pulled chicken and coleslaw

4 large chicken breasts

2 tbsp Worcester sauce

½ tsp chilli

pinch of cayenne

250ml tomato ketchup

2 tbsp Dijon mustard

2 tsps lemon juice

1 garlic clove, crushed or 1 tsp garlic paste

125ml maple syrup

Place the chicken breasts in a slow cooker – low setting. Place the remaining ingredients in a bowl and mix until well blended.

Pour over the chicken and cook for 6 hours. Shred with two forks and cook for a further 30 minutes.

If you like heat you could add a couple of drops of Tabasco or a similar hot sauce to the marinade – don't overdo it!

There are alternative serving suggestions :

Serve the pulled chicken with rice and garlic bread to mop up the marinade

Serve with sliders and the slaw – any marinade leftover you can freeze

Omit the slaw and serve baby corn and mange tout or any veggies that you like.

Easy peasy lemon squeezy!

Madness II – The Recipes

Smoked Trout Mousse

400g smoked trout

2 tsp creamed horseradish (optional)

3 tbsp double cream

1 squeeze lemon juice

pinch of black pepper

Serves 4-6

Flake the trout and place in a mixing bowl with the horseradish and the double cream. Mash with a fork until well mixed, add a squeeze of lemon juice and season with black pepper – salt if required.

Serve with toast, blinis or as part of a creaking table.

Will keep in the fridge for 2 days.

Festive notes

for Three Cheese Tart

Add 4oz of chopped cranberries to the original recipe.

Following the recipe roll out the pastry and use a 12 hole bun tin – you'll get 18 individual canapes – may be more depending on how thin you roll the pastry.

Make up the filling as per the recipe and mix in the chopped cranberries.

They can be made ahead and then warmed before serving. On this basis I baked them for 15 minutes. Because they are smaller they don't take as long to bake and so 10 minutes in a pre-heated oven is fine.

Winter Coleslaw

red cabbage, sliced finely

carrots, grated

onion, finely chopped

salt and black pepper

slug of lemon juice

pinch of sweet smoked paprika

Farrington's Mellow Yellow mayonnaise

sour cream

sultanas, soaked in apple juice and drained

apple cored and diced – preferably a sharp flavoured variety

This recipe is deliberately loose in terms of amounts – it's up to you.

Take a large mixing bowl and throw in two handfuls of cabbage, one of carrots and one of onions – season with salt and black pepper, add a slug of lemon juice and a sprinkle of sweet smoked paprika.

In a small bowl mix 2 tbsp of mayo and the same of sour cream, mix well. Add this mixture to your raw slaw and mix well. Finally add two handfuls of sultanas and ditto of apple.

What I really like about Option 1 is that whatever needs to go in the oven can go in together and come out at the same time – you can if you wish serve everything cold – the chicken and potatoes included. The point of the story is that everyone sits down together – you might even find that you relax and enjoy yourself too!

If you love feeding your family and friends that love travels from you to the table and creates an atmosphere where everyone is laughing, fighting to finish a sentence - as Kenny Everett always said, “in the nicest possible way” - there is nothing to beat it and it cannot be manufactured.

Sounds a bit fluffy and romantic perhaps but who cares!

Now for the best bit.

If you choose Christmas Eve Supper Option 1 you have the basis of your supper for Christmas Night – whatever form that might take – grazing, nibbling or sandwich making - enhanced with whatever meat and/or poultry you are serving on Christmas Day. By the way – cold bread sauce and vegetarian stuffing make for the best sandwich fillings.

Happy Holidays!

The Creaking Table

If anyone mentions the word “buffet” it makes my blood run cold! Drama queen ish I know but there must be some of you out there who remember the 1970ies classic buffet – here's a few reminders :

• sandwiches made at 9am in the morning when the buffet begins at 7pm – curled up or soggy – take your pick
• sausages on sticks – wrinkled and resembling something too unpleasant for words
• the classic hedgehog design spiked with cheese and pineapple or, if you were really posh, those tiny, slimy silver skin onions
• equally posh – the vol-au-vent – filled with either chicken or mushroom in a cream sauce – they were almost always too big to pop into your mouth – consequently when you took a bite the filling splodged down your new frock – is this ringing any bells?

No self respecting buffet table would be complete without everyone's favourite - a Quiche Lorraine – or bacon and egg pie – NOT!

I'm scarred for life!

My version of a buffet is “a creaking table”. The vision is simply that your table is full of different, tasty bits and pieces that everyone wants to eat. This vision isn't difficult to produce provided you're happy to plan a little. With luck, and a following wind, it should just be a matter of pulling boxes and bags out of your fridge and freezer with minimum fuss.

Whilst it might not seem of any consequence, years ago a close friend of mine said, on arriving for lunch, “you should have been a cook in the Forces - there's enough food to feed an army” She was absolutely right of course – I can't help it – mainly because I'm terrified that there won't be enough food. Now I can turn that to my advantage and the next post shows the first of my suggestions for Christmas Eve, which is, you've guessed it, a creaking table.

Toodle Pip!

The dreaded “C” word!

I'm sorry – I can't put it off any longer. By the time the following missives are posted you'll be building up to the festive season – back to atom splitting.

I realise it's not everyone's strong suit but a little planning will go a long way. Rather than turn this into War & Peace we'll toss around some ideas beginning with Christmas Eve supper which tends to get lost in the melée and then the following three days to Sunday 27^th.

There's always so much to do - you know what I mean - doing your excellent impression of a circus juggler - last minute shopping in more than one location – wrapping - and in many cases probably work too. I am trying to avoid spontaneous combustion – you know how it goes, you've been on the go since 6am and when you arrive home, errands completed, some bright spark says, “did you get ….....” “*****” if you get my drift.

Do I have your attention – gather your pad, pen, chocolate, wine, or both - sit down, relax and ponder for a minute or two.

Everyone's family dynamic is different – for example – do you have family and friends at yours or do you visit and contribute food-wise, or is it a mixture of both?

How does your day go :

is it a posh breakfast and Christmas Lunch later in the day?

do you need to produce canapés – will people be dropping in?

do you bolt the door, pull the blinds and “veg” out with that boxed set you've been promising yourself for months – are you a bah humbug kinda person – even a humbug needs a treat.

Whatever combination, the following postings set out to help you plan and give you ideas for all sorts of options - a supper party, a breakfast, a creaking table, late-night snacks, leftovers etc., and some stuff that's a little outside the box.

Letter to Santa, North Pole – Page 2

Best of the Rest

Sorry if I rambled on about Ms. David – if you haven't already realised she is a favourite of mine!

Moving on, now for the best of the rest :

If you are a lover of Indian cuisine and want to learn how to cook it from scratch, then I'd highly recommend “Madhur Jaffrey's Indian Cookery” first published in 1982 – yikes! What is brilliant about this cookery book is that it speaks to you in language that is uncomplicated.

I'd have this book in my collection for three stand-out dishes – cocktail koftas – Mughlai chicken with almonds and sultanas and finally, samosas. These days we take snacks like samosas for granted, mostly because they come ready-made. As I look at my edition of this book the marks around this recipe are there to be seen. I make no apology for these marks – I earned them, struggling with making samosa pastry and then following a diagram to complete them. Please don't be put off – nowadays it it more than acceptable to make samosas with filo pastry – easily I might add. I still refer to this book from time to time – 33 years on!

Ms Jaffrey has published heaps of cookery books over the years – I mention this one because it's close to my heart – Ms. Jaffrey is not only an accomplished cook and author but an established and successful actor too.

If you like a reference book then you might want to add to your collection “The flavour Thesaurus” by Niki Segnit. This book is invaluable, whether you are an inexperienced cook or an old hand. The book contains “Pairings, recipes and ideas for the creative cook”. It's informative and entertaining, cleverly written and a definite “must have”.

Here's a snippet :

“Parsnip & Banana: When bananas weren't available in Britain during the Second World War, mock bananas were made from parsnips....Now that bananas are no longer threatened by U-boats, a mock parsnip might lend a Caribbean lilt to your Sunday roast”.

Despite the fact that it is a reference book it is eminently readable and, as so often happens, you dip into it for help in one direction and finish up in a completely different place!

I hope Santa is in a good mood and you receive all that you wish for – failing which you could always ask for a “book token” - it's like getting a present twice.

Happy reading and cooking!

Letter to Santa, North Pole

If you are writing to Santa with your wish list this year here's some culinary book suggestions.

These days we are drowning in a sea of celebrity chefs and more so at this time of year. I know we all have our favourites, however, in recent years I have to confess disappointment. Style over substance is the expression that springs to mind. So, here are a few that you might like to include. You won't find any of them on any best seller list but they are still available.

This could take some time!

Elizabeth David takes the first spot. I know that I've mentioned Ms. David in a previous post and in particular the first two recommendations but I make no apology for repeating myself!

If it's an introduction that you'd like to Ms. David and not too heavy a read, try “An Omelette and a Glass of Wine” - not a vast tome – it was originally published in 1984 and contains bits of her articles written for various publications and recipes too.

If it's biography then “Writing at the Kitchen Table” - The Authorized Biography of Elizabeth David by Artemis Cooper is compulsive reading if you're into the nitty-gritty – I promise you will not be disappointed. Choose your favourite guilty pleasure, be it a sweetie, a chocolate, or a glass – feet up, snuggle down and be entertained.

If it's not biography but cookery/recipes that is your passion, hold hard!

“French Provincial Cooking” was first published in 1960 and contains everything that is about French food from the different areas of France and the speciality food that each region produces to the basics, like equipment, weights and measures, timings etc., to the specifics from sauces to left-overs and absolutely everything in between.

“At Elizabeth David's Table” is a collection of “Her very best everyday recipes”. For me the glory of a good cookery book is not just a reference or a guide for a recipe, it's personal and has to be received as if the person who wrote it is speaking directly to the individual - surely the secret of great writing about any subject. This book is interspersed with culinary history from “Italian Fish Markets” to “The Markets of France” - an absolute joy.

Finally “Elizabeth David's Christmas” edited by Jill Norman was first published in 2003. It does what it says on the tin, to coin a phrase – everything related to the festive season, from beginning to end. The book is also beautifully illustrated – unusual these days.

I hope your appetite is suitably whetted!

To be continued … you might need two sheets of paper for Santa's letter.

Loop the Loop: Classy Chowder

There's a theme here – like the Vichyssoise. Where does the chowder originate? What is a traditional version? We could be here for some time! I must confess I'd always thought of the chowder as American and as far as clam chowder is concerned I think that's true. Originally it was a fish chowder or, if you like, a fish stew made with milk or cream. New England Clam Chowder uses crumbled crackers to thicken it. There are different types – I'd always thought of it as that delicious creamy white soup – but you can have clear and tomato versions too.

The word is thought to have originated firstly from the Latin word calderia – meaning a place for warming and later to mean cooking pot, that then evolved to French – chaudiere, meaning stew pot, moving on to Northern French and English – cauldron and then finally an old English word jowter, meaning a fish peddler. It was a popular with Northeastern American Indians, again principally because they made use of the fish they caught.

Before you get bored, here's a recipe which is vegetarian and uses the potato and flour to thicken.

Sweetcorn Chowder

50g unsalted butter

1 potato, finely diced

1 carrot, finely diced

1 onion, finely diced,

1 red pepper, finely diced

2 cobs of sweetcorn or 175g canned

1 tbsp flour

1 litre of milk

salt and black pepper

chopped flat leaf parsley

Sweat the vegetables in the butter for 10 minutes – covered. Add the flour and seasonings. Pour on the milk. Simmer for 20 minutes, stirring frequently. Check seasoning. Blend a ladle or two and add back to the soup to thicken and enrich. Sprinkle with parsley.

Traditional accompaniments to a chowder are Tabasco and Worcestershire sauce, both should be served at the table.

Whilst it isn't authentic I'd serve the chowder with dumplings. If you wanted to add pieces of cooked chicken breast for the non-veggies, there are no rules!

What does seem to be a common thread, whoever the chowder belongs to, is that there is obviously a connection to fishing and making use of what was plentiful from the villages along the French and Cornish coasts to America.

There's plenty of room for everyone to take a share!

Loop the Loop: Training Days

Remembering the invention tests keeps me in the “Cordon Bleu training days” and so, whilst we're on the subject of soup, here's another :

Cream of Mushroom Soup

1 onion, finely chopped

225g mushrooms, finely sliced

50g unsalted butter

1 tbsp flour

1 litre of milk or vegetable stock

120ml double cream

grated nutmeg

chopped flat leaf parsley

salt and black pepper

Sauté the onion and mushrooms in the butter. Cook slowly with a lid for 10 minutes. Add the flour. Pour on the liquid. Simmer for 15/20 minutes. Season well. Add the cream.

If you wish you can purée the soup if you prefer a smoother texture.

A tip or two for mushroom soup. You can use mushrooms that are past their best – they have a great flavour. A drop of either dry sherry or red wine enhances the flavour of mushrooms – in soups and in sauces – my personal favourite is the dry sherry, but don't be too heavy handed.

The ladle trick. If you are ladling soup, dip your ladle ¾ full, lift out of pan, count to three – hey presto - no drips.

These days we live in a world where we expect perfectly formed, pristine fruit and vegetables, sadly to achieve this result they are “forced” i.e. grown artificially, the result of which is there is little or no flavour. I have a vibrant memory as a child on holiday with my family. Grandad Jack went mushrooming every morning – some days slim pickings, others not. I can still smell those mushrooms cooking and mouthwatering - you bet!

By the way - DON'T PICK MUSHROOMS UNLESS YOU KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING!

Here's a thought - if you live near a market selling fruit and vegetables, check out whether you can get hold of a box of mushrooms – I say box, it actually is a basket shape made out of cardboard. Weight-wise probably about 1–1.5kg. Usually these mushrooms are a bargain because they are not what we'd call Grade 1 – in other words past their best.

Turn that box of mushrooms into a stock and freeze it – freeze it in small amounts – it's much more convenient. Freezing intensifies the flavour and you can use the stock for soup or a mushroom sauce. If you're a lover of steak then a mushroom sauce is a perfect partner.

The “Jaws” moment, or ...

Loop the Loop

“just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water” …... later the same week as the invention test, here comes another. Unlike the previous challenge, this time the core ingredients were raw – leeks, celery and onion. I apologise for the dramatic film quotation – it just seemed to fit!

I had a “light bulb” moment and the ingredients brought to mind Vichyssoise soup. The previous challenge produced a soup with texture and I wanted to produce a smooth soup. Classically a Vichyssoise “style” fits the bill – a smooth, thick soup made with leeks, potatoes, cream and chicken stock. Most people think of Vichyssoise served cold and indeed it is usually – but it can be served hot too. This is not a classical version it's more a “thinking on your feet, variation on a theme” version.

Here's the result :

Soup de Ssoise

(i.e. not quite Vichy!!!)

One old potato, 2 leeks, remains of a bunch of celery

- approximately 4 sticks and one medium onion

One litre of chicken stock + half a litre later, when thickening

As with the previous invention test, Knorr Touch of Taste was used

but Knorr stock pots would work well

Large pinch of Marjoram

Large pinch of Fines Herbes

Salt and black pepper.

Glug of rapeseed oil

Peel the potato, cut into cubes. Peel the leeks, celery and onion - chop finely.

Sweat the leeks, celery and onion in rapeseed oil with the herbs and salt and pepper until softened. Add the stock and the cubed potato and simmer until the vegetables are cooked – they should retain texture.

Blend until smooth, taste, and adjust seasoning. Blend your soup in batches. To achieve a smooth consistency you may have to blend more than once. Test with a dessertspoon spoon. In each blended amount, dip the spoon into the soup, when removed the back of the spoon should be coated with a lump free liquid. Blend again to achieve the smooth consistency if necessary.

The finished soup should be thick and smooth.

As seems to be the case these days, there seems to be conflict as to who invented Vichyssoise - the jury is most definitely out – French or American – if I were a gambling person, my money would be on French probably because the history seems to lean that way but don't take my word for it!

I hope I get a point or two, or at least a smile for the title of the soup – never take yourself too seriously!

Loop the Loop

“Heebie-jeebies” ...an idiom used to describe a particular

type of anxiety – uncomfortably nervous … curious?

Back when I was working to gain my Cordon Bleu Certificate we students presented ourselves for work and to our horror were given an invention test. For those out there who watch Masterchef you'll be familiar with the concept and understand why the phrase the “heebie-jeebies” is entirely appropriate!

We were given a bowl of cooked peas, sweetcorn, carrot and broccoli. Our task was to produce a “Soup of the Day”.

It's all very well when you are throwing whatever you've got in the fridge into a pan in your own kitchen – being scrutinised and marked to boot is a whole new ballgame!

Here goes nothing :

Soup de Loop

(a catchy title I thought)

1 onion, diced

2 cloves of garlic chopped

1 green chilli, chopped, seeds out

Rapeseed oil

1 old potato, cubed

1 litre of vegetable stock to begin + half a litre later, when thickening.

We used Knorr liquid stock, Touch of Taste – Knorr Stock pots

would be as good if you can't get hold of the

Touch of Taste

Medium curry powder – to taste – 1 dessertspoon used

Mace – to taste – 1 tsp used

Salt and black pepper

Dice the carrots and broccoli should be kept in small florets.

Sauté the onion, garlic & chilli in the oil, add the curry powder and mace. Add the stock and cubed potato and bring to the boil, simmer until the potato is cooked but firm. When ready to serve 2 ladles of stock in blender until very smooth i.e. dip spoon in, look at the back of the spoon it will show the texture of the soup. Should be smooth. Add back to remaining stock, then add the cooked peas, sweetcorn, diced carrots and broccoli. As with all soups, leave the addition of salt until the end.

Taste and adjust seasoning.

Even though I say so myself not a bad effort and an added bonus - a healthy, nutritious soup using leftovers – not too shabby!

Rib stickers! - Awesome Autumn Pud

Here's a seasonal change to an old favourite – the Summer Pudding. We are ringing the changes and using mixed autumn fruits. I'm using the same principles as with the summer pudding, substituting the traditional bread with Madeira cake.

Autumn Pudding

400g of mixed autumn fruits – cox's apples, peeled and sliced

blackberries and plums – stoned and quartered

1 tbsp soft brown sugaar

3 tbsp water

1 x 370g jar of conserve – any variety or combination

that suits your fruit – damson, plum or berries

Madeira cake – I use a cheap and cheerful shop bought cake (265g - approx) – sliced lengthways into quarter inch slices and neatened. Here's where it's difficult to predict whether you'd need one cake or two – cake size varies depending which supermarket you use. I'd err on the side of caution and opt for two. For the size of basin stated, it takes approximately 10 slices of cake.

1 litre (1&3/4pt) basin.

A plain sided cutter slightly larger than the base of the basin.

Cling film

Method

Stew the fruit gently with the sugar and water in a medium saucepan over a medium heat. Simmer for 5 minutes until the fruit releases its juices. Cool.

Line the basin with cling film ensuring that it overlaps the basin.

Cut out a circle of cake for the base and place it in the basin. Line the rest of the basin – I overlap each piece of cake – but it's whatever you'd prefer.

Add half the jar of conserve to the cooled fruit and then pour the mixture into the cake-lined bowl. Top with slices of cake to cover completely. Fold the cling film over the pudding to seal.

Place a slightly smaller plate or saucer on top of the basin and weigh down with a can. Refrigerate for 12-24 hours.

To serve, remove the can and plate, unseal the cling film, cover the bowl with a large plate. Invert the pudding onto the plate and remove the cling film.

With the remaining conserve warm it through, gently in a microwave. Pour over the top of the pudding to serve, adding cream, ice cream or custard. For a grown-up version you could add a shot of liqueur.

The feedback from the “Sumptuous Summer Pudding” was really complimentary - “We all loved it, adults and children all had a slice, there were no leftovers – very easy to make” which is why I think this pud qualifies for an autumn tweak!

Rib Stickers! - Tempting Tansy

Here's a brief piece of history – tansy is a perennial herb, with yellow flowers producing a bitter sweet taste. Back in the day it had many uses, from an addition to puddings to a medicinal tea. Thankfully, it is not used in desserts these days, – too much is thought to be poisonous - it's only the name that remains which sounds like a good plan!

Damson (or plum) & Apple Tansy

Serves 4

2 large Cox's apples, peeled and thinly sliced

225g damsons, halved stoned and quartered (or plums)

15g unsalted butter

40g sugar

pinch ground cloves

pinch ground cinnamon

4 eggs, separated

3 tbsp double cream or soured cream

Put the apples, damsons (or plums), butter and half the sugar into a large frying pan.

Cook over a gentle heat until the fruit is softened, stirring continuously. Stir in the cloves and the cinnamon, remove from heat.

Beat the egg yolks with the cream and stir into the fruit. Whisk the egg whites until stiff, then carefully fold in.

Cook over a low heat until the mixture is set. Sprinkle the top with the remaining sugar then brown under a hot grill. Serve immediately, straight from the pan with clotted cream. You could even serve it with home-made vanilla ice cream – or both!

This is another candidate for the “straight from the pan” pud and not a tansy in sight.

Minimum effort – maximum yum!

Rib Stickers! - Figgy fun

Most people remember Figgy Pudding because of the Christmas carol, “We Wish You A Merry Christmas” - “Now bring us some figgy pudding”. Not surprisingly it goes way back, probably 16^th Century and is thought to be English. It's a lighter version of a Christmas Pudding and there are loads of recipes out there, some more complicated than others.

Here's my favourite :

Figgy Pudding

50g unsalted butter

110g dried apricots, chopped

110g dried figs, chopped

110g pineapple, chopped

(I use dried, cubed pineapple)

110g sultanas

200g self raising flour

1 tsp mixed spice

1 tsp baking powder

3 eggs

Pre-heat oven 180c/160fan/Gas4

Melt the butter – you could use a saucepan or the microwave. Tip all the fruits and the spice into a large bowl and add the melted butter and mix with the fruit. Leave to cool.

Add the beaten eggs, flour and baking powder. Fill your dariole moulds – the mixture makes approximately 9 puddings.

Bake for 20 minutes.

I've mentioned dariole moulds in both these recipes – I've added a photograph to illustrate – they are easy to get hold of – check out Lakeland Plastics. Normally I wouldn't suggest buying kitchen equipment for one recipe and I'm not doing so here. I invested in dariole moulds a while back and you can get good deals, i.e. buy 4, get 4 half price. They are a neat piece of kit. I use mine for both sweet and savoury stuff and they've been a really good investment.

Keep your eyes peeled for deals!