Rib stickers!

Strictly speaking the phrase is “stick to the ribs” and it has heaps of different meanings. I think it must be a phrase associated with the North – I've got some funny looks elsewhere. In this instance where associated with food, its meaning is “hearty and satisfying”.

Here's the first to qualify for the rib stickers club :

Go Bananas

Banana cake or pudding

250g self raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

150g unsalted butter

250g caster sugar

3 bananas – pureed

1 tbsp milk

You can make it as a tray bake – you can make it in sandwich tins and turn it into a cake (2x20 cm approx) or even make it posh by using dariole moulds which become Banana Timbales.

Butter your sandwich tins. Sift the dry ingredients together. Cream the butter and sugar – add the eggs gradually. Stir in the dry ingredients alternatively with the bananas and milk. Bake for 30 minutes at 180c/160fan/Gas4. If you are making a cake then sandwich with cream and dust with sifted icing sugar.

If you opt for the Banana Timbales, then you'll use approximately 9 dariole moulds. Bake for 25 minutes. When cooled turn out from the moulds and freeze if you wish – good luck – there won't be any left to freeze!

The tray bake is the standard size – 20 x 30cms approx - bake as for the sandwich cake. You'll get 12 generous portions.

I've frozen the timbales and the tray bake with great success. The timbales in particular are brilliant when entertaining or “in case of emergency” guests. You can take them straight from the freezer and microwave to serve in 1 minute.

This recipe and the next I collected from my Cordon Bleu Certificate training and I've used them many times – I hope you will too – definitely rib sticker stuff!

Spicy Spuds – the leftovers.

For those of us who like their leftovers with extra flavour here are two more ideas :

Spiced Sautéed Spuds

Serves 4

600g waxy potatoes, parboiled, peeled and

sliced into approximate 1cm rounds

2-3 tbsp vegetable oil

Panch phoran – 2 tsp

*see below

¾ tsp turmeric

¼ - ½ tsp red chilli powder

Sprinkle of mango powder

Heat the oil in a large frying pan, add the panch phoran, it should sizzle immediately. Cook for 20/30 seconds, stirring. Add the potatoes, toss well, ensuring they are all covered with the spices. Turn the heat down, cover with a lid and cook for 5 minutes, turn the potatoes and repeat.

Increase the heat, turn the potatoes again so that they are lightly golden brown – 3 minutes each side. For a tangy finish sprinkle with a pinch of mango powder, toss again and serve.

*You can buy panch phoran ready made – it's a blend of spices – all seeds. It's used in Bangladesh, Eastern India and Southern Nepal. Literally it means “five spices”. You can make up your own blend easily.

½ tsp each of the following seeds

cumin

mustard

fennel

nigella

¼ tsp fenugreek

If you are a spice lover then it will probably be worthwhile. I'd remind you that if you are going to mix your own blend buy small amounts of each spice – they will deteriorate and therefore it's not economical to buy in bulk – unless of course you're going to make up the blend and distribute it to all your spice loving family and friends! If you have difficulty in sourcing any of the seeds they are available at Daily Bread Co-operative – www.dailybread.co.uk.

Bombay Spuds

- the quick version

Serves 4

600g cooked waxy potatoes – I use

Charlottes – any variety will do so long

as it holds its shape

1 medium onion, finely chopped

2 tbsp vegetable or rapeseed oil

250g of sieved or creamed tomatoes

(or half a carton/jar of passata)

1 tbsp tomato paste

1 tsp caster sugar

1 tsp of minced ginger

2 cloves of garlic or 2 tsps of garlic paste

1 tsp ground cumin

Salt to taste – 1 tsp

Your potatoes should be cut into cubes of approximately 1.5 cms.

Using a large frying pan fry the onions in the oil until soft, add the ginger, garlic, cumin and salt and cook for 2 minutes, allowing them to release their flavour - then the tomato paste and allow to cook for 2/3 minutes. Add the potatoes and then the sieved tomatoes and sugar. Cook on a medium heat for 10 minutes.

Taste the potatoes – you should get a spicy hit but not too hot. Adjust salt and sugar to personal taste.

Pop a lid on – allow to cool and then refrigerate. The longer you leave the dish the better since the flavours will deepen. This dish freezes well.

These dishes qualify on the leftovers front and the make ahead and reheat front too – a double whammy!

Mishmash or Hash – III

From Scotland directly east to the North East to finish off our whistle stop leftover tour of the North our final two recipes come from Sunderland and Northumberland respectively.

Panackelty is a stew – it reminds me of how we'd use a slow cooker today – cooked all day on a low heat – there are many variations but originally it was thought to consist of corned beef root veggies and onions.

Panackelty

1 x 340g can of corned beef, sliced

1 large onion, peeled and thinly sliced

3-4 large potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

2 beef stock pots (or cubes) dissolved into ¾ pint of water

salt and pepper

Layer the onions, corned beef and potatoes in a frying pan and finish with a top layer of potatoes, seasoning between each layer. Pour over the stock and cover with a lid.

Cook in a pre-heated oven 190c/170fan/gas 5 for an hour, remove the lid for the last 15 minutes so that the potatoes can brown.

The Northumberland dish is called Pan Haggerty which is potatoes, onions and cheese baked

in the oven – my sort of food.

Pan Haggerty

450g large potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

125g butter

250g onion, peeled and thinly sliced

115g mature Cheddar cheese, grated

salt and black pepper

Melt 40g of butter in a frying pan and cook the onions over a medium heat. Set aside.

Melt half the remaining butter, remove the pan from the heat and arrange a layer of potatoes, onions and then cheese. Season and repeat, finishing with potatoes.

Fry on a medium heat for a 2/3 minutes. Dot knobs of the remaining butter over the surface and place in the oven for 30 minutes (pre-heated oven 190c/170fan/gas5). Raise the temp to 220c/200fan/gas7 and return the pan for a further 15 minutes.

Can serve straight from pan (on a suitable board) or slide on a board and cut into wedges.

I might venture to suggest that if you like the “parrots” idea mentioned in the previous post that you could include another layer in the Pan Haggerty – give it a go!

Mishmash or Hash – II

From Ireland to Scotland – here's two more for you and here's a name to conjure with :

“Rumbledethumps”

This is the Scottish equivalent of bubble and squeak except that it uses leftover mashed potato and swede (turnip in Scotland, just to confuse you). It's served on its own or with a casserole or stew.

Rumbledethumps

600g mashed potato

400g mashed swede or turnip

75g unsalted butter

250g cabbage, finely sliced

25g grated Cheddar cheese

Pre-heat oven 180c/160fan/gas 4

Place the mashed potato and the swede in a large mixing bowl. Set aside. Melt 50g of the butter in your frying pan and add the cabbage and cook on a medium heat until softened but not browned. Add the cabbage to the potato/swede mixture, add the remaining butter and mix together. Season.

Place the mixture back into your frying pan, sprinkle with cheese and bake for 30 minutes until golden brown.

If you are a lover of root vegetables like swede or turnip then there's a second Scottish dish that you'll like – from Orkney, called Clapshot (aka neeps and tatties). Traditionally it's served on Burns Night with haggis.

Clapshot

500g floury potatoes, peeled and cubed, cooked until soft

500g turnip or swede peeled and cubed, cooked until soft

50g butter

1 small onion, chopped

2 tbsp chopped fresh chives

salt and pepper

Mash your leftover potatoes, swede or turnip, using 25g of the butter. Heat the remaining butter in your frying pan and add the onion – cook until soft. Add your mashed potatoes and swede/turnip along with the fresh chopped chives and seasoning. This dish can obviously be made ahead. To serve - you can continue to cook on the hob, turning to get an even crispy finish or alternatively pop into a pre-heated oven for 30 minutes, turning after 15 minutes.

There's no doubt that all these dishes are variations on a theme. In our house I cook parsnip and carrot together – commonly referred to as “parrots”. Mashed with a knob of butter and salt and pepper they qualify as an addition to the “fly by the seat of your pants”, “chuck it all in” method!

Mishmash or Hash

We have so many different “leftover” potato dishes from all over the UK – I suppose the most common in England is bubble and squeak – there are many more variations with some brilliant names too, so I thought I'd introduce you to a few.

The beauty of the following leftover dishes is that armed with your frying pan suitable for use in the oven - they are one pan suppers.

Adults and kids alike aren't keen on the green stuff like sprouts and cabbage and these days I'd bet that there are many out there who've never eaten swede or turnip! The beauty of swede, in particular, is that it's texture lends itself to mashing.

To kick off, if you'll pardon the rugby analogy, here are a couple of fine Irish examples and both recipes given are from scratch, just in case that's your preference :

Colcannon

Savoy cabbage, finely shredded – half a cabbage

approximately 350g in weight

30g butter

Bunch of spring onions finely chopped

1.5kg Maris piper potatoes,

Salt and black pepper

Cook the potatoes in salted water until tender, drain, peel and mash. You could use a ricer for guaranteed lump free.

Put the cabbage in a pan with the butter and cook over a low heat for 2-3 minutes until tender, stirring frequently.

Add the spring onions and cook for another minute or two.

Mix with the mashed potato and season well.

If you've cooked your potatoes ahead or are using leftovers, pop the completed dish into a pre-heated oven (200c/180 fan/Gas 6) for 20 minutes. You could use oven-proof ramekins and serve straight to the table.

Pea and Spring Onion Champ

1.5kg Potatoes, scrubbed

100g butter

500ml/18 fl oz milk (or if a richer consistency

75% milk to 25% double cream)

450g frozen peas

75g spring onions, chopped

4 tbsp chopped parsley

salt and black pepper

Cook the potatoes in salted water until tender, drain, peel and mash. You could use a ricer for absolute “lump free”. Add half the butter – 50g, after mashing or ricing.

Place the milk/cream in a pan with the peas and onions and boil, gently, for 4/5 minutes. Add the parsley, take off the heat.

Add the potatoes, keep some of the milk back – you may not need it all.

Season to taste and beat until creamy and smooth – add more milk if required.

Serve piping hot with a knob of butter melting in the centre.

N.B. If you wish you could add grated mature cheddar cheese.

Personally I'd never cook a dish like these from scratch – I have a “always cook more vegetables than I'll use” policy – it makes sense to have the wherewithal to create a quick “froven” (meaning frying pan to oven) supper. You can be healthy or not, depending on your mood – and the weather! As a vegetarian these recipes suit me well, but they are practical in that for those who like their meat you can serve with sausages, bacon, corned beef or gammon. You can be fancy if you want to and serve in rings and top with a poached egg, you can be as rustic or not as you wish but the result is the same, bags of flavour and ticks all the boxes.

A Reminiscence

Russian Fish Pie

and

Coulibiac

My passion for food and cooking came from school – long ago in the late 1960ies. It's not until many years later that I realise what an impact that education had. Times have changed – in those days cookery class was called “Housecraft” and “Domestic Science” - then it became “Home Economics”, evolving into "Food Technology" - what next?!

On the funny side, I can remember one of the first results I took home – biscuits – and I use the term loosely. They would have been better used as a crazy paving!

Fortunately for me my then teacher, Mrs. Mann, persevered and I did improve. I still make a dish she taught me, back in the day, although it will be no surprise that I've adapted it over the years.

Russian Fish Pie is not your everyday dish, it's a treat. Recent research shows me that it is very similar to Coulibiac – also Russian in origin. The original pie consisted of cod in a stiff parsley sauce placed in the centre of a puff pastry square, glued with egg wash and brought together to form four triangles all in one. My preference is to use a mornay sauce and to use a variety of fish.

Here's my version :

Russian Fish Pie

Serves 4

1 x 500g packet of puff pastry

  Pre-heat oven 160fan/180c/Gas 4

Approximately 500g of mixed fish –

smoked cod loin, salmon, and prawns.

¾ pint/450 ml milk

¼ pint/150 ml cream (you don't have to use

cream, increase to 1pint of milk if preferred)

salt, 8 black pepper corns

bay leaf

50g unsalted butter

50g plain flour

1 tsp Dijon or wholegrain mustard

150g (75g each) Red Leicester and Mature Cheddar cheese, grated

Roll out your pastry into a large square (approximately 24cm x 24cm) and place on a non stick (or greased and lined) baking sheet.

Poach your fish in the milk and cream, season with salt, black peppercorns and bay leaf on a medium heat for 5/10 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fillets. Remove the fish, flake, allow to cool and set aside in a large bowl. Strain the liquor.

Melt the butter and add the flour to form the roux and cook for 2/3 minutes then gradually add the poaching liquor and cook the sauce on a low heat for about 10 minutes until the sauce thickens (it should coat the back of your spatula) add grated cheeses and mustard. The sauce should be stiff. Set aside to cool.

Tip half the sauce over the flaked fish, add the prawns and fold gently so that all your fish is coated. Reserve the remaining half of the sauce to pour over the pie.

Using a slotted spoon place the mixture in the centre of the pastry. Egg wash the edges and pinch together to form 4 triangles in a square. Egg wash the completed pie and bake in the oven for 40 minutes – check after 30 minutes. Cut into 4 individual triangles and serve.

To help you, here's a photograph or three:

Russian or not it's really moreish and the portions are generous so think carefully about what you would serve with it – a spot of fusion as an idea – a winter coleslaw I think would go very well – the rich pastry and filling with a crispy, crunchy fresh slaw – you could even kid yourself that it's healthy – ish!

In reality it's about as far from Russia as you'll ever get. The recipe probably came from Coulibiac – a Russian dish consisting of salmon, rice, mushrooms, onions and dill encased in pastry. It's thought that Auguste Escoffier brought it from Russia to France and included it in “The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery”.

Notes :

I always make more mornay sauce than required for the fish – it's an indulgence to have extra to pour over the pie.

An optional extra is to add chopped hard boiled eggs – it wasn't part of the original recipe from school but seems to be included present day. It's whatever floats your boat.

If you are using cooked, peeled prawns don't add them until you are mixing your sauce with your cooled cooked fish.

Whilst we're on the subject …

...of fish – inspired by the cookery class I took at Charleston Cooks! - after returning home I wanted to try and replicate the Lowcountry blackened seasoning.

Here are the results of my endeavours :

Blackened fish in the UK usually means a base ingredient of

balsamic vinegar or a teriyaki sauce. In the USA blackened

seasoning is very much part of the Lowcountry style of

cooking.

Blackened Seasoning

2 level tsps paprika

4 tsps dried thyme

2 tsps onion powder

2 tsps garlic powder

1 tbsp granulated sugar

2 tsps salt

2 tsps black pepper

½ tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp sumac

1 tsp oregano

¾ tsp ground cumin

½ tsp nutmeg

Place all the above in a jar, shake and store in a cool dark place. Use for fish, chicken or seafood.

Blackened Cod

Allow 110-150g cod per person and cut into portions – it depends on the size of the appetites.

Using kitchen roll, pat the fish dry.

Coat the fish heavily on both sides with the seasoning.

Heat a frying pan over a medium heat. When the pan is hot, add either vegetable or rapeseed oil enough to cover the bottom of the pan.

When the oil is hot add the fish to the pan. Cook until the spices have blackened on the bottom, cooking times will vary according to the thickness of the fish.

Turn the fish and allow to cook through, reduce the heat as necessary.

Serve on a bed of samphire with baby new potatoes.

Samphire is a sea vegetable – there are two types, marsh and rock. It's similar to baby asparagus and is crisp and salty to taste. Wash thoroughly and then steam.

If you like gutsy flavours then this is the seasoning for you!