My March/April newsletter has gone out. It has its usual reader contest where the prizes are copies of my books. If you have not signed up yet, the sign up is on the side bar. I only ever send out the newsletter when my books are out. There is always some writing tips, a recipe and some historical facts. This time the recipe is the rich poppy seed cake featured in both A Question of Impropriety and Impoverished Miss, Convenient Wife. After all it is no good writing about something if you haven't tasted it! The big thing is that it is an old fashioned cake and so there is no leavening. The egg whites provide the lightness so it takes a careful hand.
I have FINALLY updated my website. The big problem has been getting the stupid thing to load. And as I lost the site when my other computer went down, I decided to totally redo the thing. This morning I broke down and telephone the 1&1 help line and the woman on the other end of the phone was very helpful. Within a few minutes, it was done. It is as usual a work in progress, but at least things are up to date with a slightly different look. My books are better arranged now. The problem with these things is you start with one time period or one book and then things just grow...
Tomorrow, I shall be at Unusual Historical and a copy of Impoverished Miss, Convenient Wife is up for grabs to one lucky poster.
Showing posts with label recipes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label recipes. Show all posts
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Wednesday, September 03, 2008
Foraging and a recipe
Rather than going on our normal walk, my dh and I went bramble picking yesterday. Our youngest who normally finds excuses of why going for a walk with his parents is uncool, immediately volunteered to come.
We managed to pick enough for a pie -- blackberry and apple. The younger two squabbled a bit as they made it, but managed to do everything -- including making the short crust pastry without my help.
The sloes are far fewer but look to be nearly ready. Sloe gin is very simple to make and tastes so much better than ordinary gin.
We do not have any damsons.
Because of the continuing glut of Victoria plums, I used them in a chicken pie instead of sumac. They provided the same sweet tartness. The pie is an adaptation of a Bedouin recipe. You could just use the filling for a wrap or a piece of pita bread.
For the filling:
2 large onions chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
5 chicken legs and thighs -- skinned, boned and chopped into bite sized pieces.
6 plums, chopped
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
5 pods of cardamon -- crushed
1/2 lemon
salt and peeper
1 block of puff pastry, defrosted.
To make filling --
Gently fry onions until they start to turn colour, add chicken pieces, continue to cook until chicken has turned colour (about 10 min). Add plums and spices. Cook for a further five minutes or so.
Cut puff pastry into two -- one about two thirds of the block and the other one third. Roll out the bigger piece to fit a 9x 13 oblong pan. Place in pan, spread filling evenly over puff pastry. Roll out the remaining piece to make the lid. Place on top of filling. Brush with oil.
Bake pie in preheated over 180C/375F/gas mark 4/top oven of Aga for 25 minutes. Serve hot.
Can be made in advance and then baked.
Can be turned out of pan after cooking and served on a platter.
Serves about 8.
We managed to pick enough for a pie -- blackberry and apple. The younger two squabbled a bit as they made it, but managed to do everything -- including making the short crust pastry without my help.
The sloes are far fewer but look to be nearly ready. Sloe gin is very simple to make and tastes so much better than ordinary gin.
We do not have any damsons.
Because of the continuing glut of Victoria plums, I used them in a chicken pie instead of sumac. They provided the same sweet tartness. The pie is an adaptation of a Bedouin recipe. You could just use the filling for a wrap or a piece of pita bread.
For the filling:
2 large onions chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
5 chicken legs and thighs -- skinned, boned and chopped into bite sized pieces.
6 plums, chopped
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
5 pods of cardamon -- crushed
1/2 lemon
salt and peeper
1 block of puff pastry, defrosted.
To make filling --
Gently fry onions until they start to turn colour, add chicken pieces, continue to cook until chicken has turned colour (about 10 min). Add plums and spices. Cook for a further five minutes or so.
Cut puff pastry into two -- one about two thirds of the block and the other one third. Roll out the bigger piece to fit a 9x 13 oblong pan. Place in pan, spread filling evenly over puff pastry. Roll out the remaining piece to make the lid. Place on top of filling. Brush with oil.
Bake pie in preheated over 180C/375F/gas mark 4/top oven of Aga for 25 minutes. Serve hot.
Can be made in advance and then baked.
Can be turned out of pan after cooking and served on a platter.
Serves about 8.
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Making a Meal of it
One of my latest research books is Making a Meal of It -- Two Thousand Years of English Cookery. ISBN 9781850749717
It is a compilation of English Heritage pamphlets about how food and food preparation has changed over the past 2,000 years. Prior to the Roman invasion, there is actually very little solid substance to how food was prepared or cooked as the society was not literate.
The book focuses on seven main times periods -- the Romans, the Medieval period, the 17th century, the Georgian and the Victorian periods. It looks at food was obtained, how it was prepared and how it was eaten.
Examining the eating habits can tell you a lot about a society. Food -- the getting of it, the growing and the consuming is one of the chief preoccupations of much pf society. The type of food stuffs can also tell you about the relative wealth of a society. For example, examining how tea becomes a staple in England and gives rise to a whole new industries (eg the making of tea pots *g* )
For example, at the beginning of the 18th century, the hostess did most of the carving. By the middle, both the host and hostess did the carving. And at the end of the 18th century, the food was carved outside in the kitchen and served by servants.
Breakfast in the 18th century for the upper classes was generally taken about 9-10 am. It generally consisted of chocolate, coffee or tea, toast and hot sweet rolls. However, by the early Victorian period, the cooked breakfast was becoming more popular, in particular with men.
The reason for using silver in the early 19 century for servers, spoons, forks and knives was because steel was consider to spoil the flavour and was easily corroded. Forks were introduced chiefly by Thomas Coryate publishing an account of its use in 1611.
I had not realised until I read the book that prior to the early 19th century, ladies entered the room first in order of precedence, followed by the gentlemen so that the sexes were seated separately. In the early part of the 19th century -- promiscuous seating happened -- ie gentlemen began to escort ladies into the dining room and were seated next to them. However, ladies still had to be served first, and the custom arose of a gentleman serving his lady before himself. As a lady could not ask for wine, he had make sure that she was served with the wine she preferred.
The book also details when various food stuffs were introduced into England. For examples, tomatoes began appearing in recipes in the late 18th century, but were not eaten raw until the end of the 19th century. Garden rhubarb was introduced from Italy in the 17century but not made into tarts until the late 18 th century. Favourite fruits in the 18th century were damsons and gooseberries, with the favourite garnish being the lemon.
Things not introduced until well into Queen Victoria's reign include -- quick acting yeast, baking powder, and self-raising flour, custard powder, bottled gelatin, bulk produced cheeses, sweetened condensed milk, and dried packet soups. Canned baked beans do not appear until after the 1870s...how would my dh and youngest have coped?
Smoking and salting meat remained almost the sole way of long term storage until a cheap way of making and storing ice was discovered in the 1860s.Anyway, the book is full of interesting information and has a variety of recipes at the back.
Thursday, October 04, 2007
Postal Strikes and Lemon Whisky
Today is the start of basically a week long postal strike in the UK. They go on strike at noon today. Go back to work at noon on Saturday. Go back on strike at midnight on Monday. Come off strike at midnight Wednesday. Yesterday, I had neatly packaged up all my Rita and RNA Romance prize submissions from the books I currently have, but ran out of packing tape. Being overtaken by events, I didn't go out and buy more. They will now have to stay in my study for another week. ARGH!!!! And I am waiting for a cheque...
Postal strikes affect large numbers of businesses and individuals. They can have the consequence of driving them to the wall. There should be a way of making the workers' feelings known without actually harming unrelated people. Whatever happened to neither sleet, nor snow nor dead of night will keep the postman from his appointed round?
People depend on the post.
There has to be another way to solve this dispute and address the various issues in good faith.
To find when postal strikes are on in the UK, the Royal Mail site is the best place to check as it has the most up to date info.
One of the things I have been doing is dealing with damsons and sloes. Basically, this means making sloe and damson gin. A very simple process of washing the 8 0z of sloes or damson, pricking all over with a silver fork, putting in a glass large jar, adding 2-3 tablespoons of sugar and about a pint of gin. Then storing in a cool dark place and shaking every so often. After several months, decant and allow to mature (or alternatively drink). Sloe gin is light pink and tastes of almonds. It is also very sweet.
I also made damson cheese. Another 19th century favourite and it goes well with strong cheese such as stilton. I believe it is called butter in the US. It is a very thick paste, made from puree and sugar. It has to mature several months before accompanying stilton.
Ratafia in the 18th century was the name for a liqueur based on peach or apricot kernels and brandy. By the Regency, it had come to mean any brandy based liqueur. here are two simple recipes that I recently rediscovered that will enable you to recreate the taste.
The first is Lemon Brandy or Whisky. Feel free to use house whisky or brandy in these recipes as the sugar and flavourings do change the taste and it would a shame to waste the really good stuff.
Lemon Brandy was the original secret ingredient in Bakewell tart, and it is absolutely delicious in custards or cakes. It is also quite nice as a cold remedy or after dinner liquor.
Take 2 lemons -- wash and using a vegetable peeler, peel rind thinly. In a bowl, place peel and 1 pint of whisky or brandy, cover and allow to sit for 24 hours. Discard peel. In a saucepan bring 1/2 cup/ 1/4 pint/250ml of waters and 2 0z/1/4 cup/50 g sugar to boil. Boil for about 5 minutes. Then allow syrup to cool. When syrup is cold, add to brandy and re-bottle mixture. This can be used right away.
Orange brandy may be made in a similar fashion. Or you can peel the rind off the oranges, cut into small pieces. Add the peel and 4 oz of sugar to one pint of brandy or whisky. Seal jar and store in a cool place for 1-2 months, shaking periodically. Strain before using.
Enjoy.
Postal strikes affect large numbers of businesses and individuals. They can have the consequence of driving them to the wall. There should be a way of making the workers' feelings known without actually harming unrelated people. Whatever happened to neither sleet, nor snow nor dead of night will keep the postman from his appointed round?
People depend on the post.
There has to be another way to solve this dispute and address the various issues in good faith.
To find when postal strikes are on in the UK, the Royal Mail site is the best place to check as it has the most up to date info.
One of the things I have been doing is dealing with damsons and sloes. Basically, this means making sloe and damson gin. A very simple process of washing the 8 0z of sloes or damson, pricking all over with a silver fork, putting in a glass large jar, adding 2-3 tablespoons of sugar and about a pint of gin. Then storing in a cool dark place and shaking every so often. After several months, decant and allow to mature (or alternatively drink). Sloe gin is light pink and tastes of almonds. It is also very sweet.
I also made damson cheese. Another 19th century favourite and it goes well with strong cheese such as stilton. I believe it is called butter in the US. It is a very thick paste, made from puree and sugar. It has to mature several months before accompanying stilton.
Ratafia in the 18th century was the name for a liqueur based on peach or apricot kernels and brandy. By the Regency, it had come to mean any brandy based liqueur. here are two simple recipes that I recently rediscovered that will enable you to recreate the taste.
The first is Lemon Brandy or Whisky. Feel free to use house whisky or brandy in these recipes as the sugar and flavourings do change the taste and it would a shame to waste the really good stuff.
Lemon Brandy was the original secret ingredient in Bakewell tart, and it is absolutely delicious in custards or cakes. It is also quite nice as a cold remedy or after dinner liquor.
Take 2 lemons -- wash and using a vegetable peeler, peel rind thinly. In a bowl, place peel and 1 pint of whisky or brandy, cover and allow to sit for 24 hours. Discard peel. In a saucepan bring 1/2 cup/ 1/4 pint/250ml of waters and 2 0z/1/4 cup/50 g sugar to boil. Boil for about 5 minutes. Then allow syrup to cool. When syrup is cold, add to brandy and re-bottle mixture. This can be used right away.
Orange brandy may be made in a similar fashion. Or you can peel the rind off the oranges, cut into small pieces. Add the peel and 4 oz of sugar to one pint of brandy or whisky. Seal jar and store in a cool place for 1-2 months, shaking periodically. Strain before using.
Enjoy.
Friday, July 13, 2007
On food and celebrations
Today my post to help celebrate Kate Hardy's 25th book is up. It contains my recipe for the Queen of carrot cakes. The giveaway book is a copy of The Roman's Virgin Mistress. If you go to Kate's blog, you will be able to see how to enter. And at the very least, you will see a pretty good recipe for a carrot cake.
Kate and I both share a love of food. Kate put another of my recipes in one of her early books. She calls it Jack's Lemon tart. I call it -- Lemon Lust tart. You can find the recipe on her website. It is sort of upmarket lemon squares.
It is one of the very nice things about writing: discovering people who are sympatico. And Kate's book are delightful, feel good reads with multi layer conflicts and satisfying HEA. What more could anyone wish for?
Kate and I both share a love of food. Kate put another of my recipes in one of her early books. She calls it Jack's Lemon tart. I call it -- Lemon Lust tart. You can find the recipe on her website. It is sort of upmarket lemon squares.
It is one of the very nice things about writing: discovering people who are sympatico. And Kate's book are delightful, feel good reads with multi layer conflicts and satisfying HEA. What more could anyone wish for?
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Store cupboard soup
A store cupboard soup -- or how make a simple soup fast. Also known as Roast corn and chipotle soup.
Roast 2 ears of corn in the over for ten minutes. If you don't have corn ears, take 3 cups of frozen corn , place on bakingtray and roast in hot oven.
Fry 3 minced cloves of garlic and 3 chopped onion gently in olive oil for five minutes.
Add 3 400 grams cans of chopped tomatoes plus 750 ml of chicken stock (okay 3 stock cubes plus water) to garlic mixture. When corn is done, add that. Add several tablespoons of chipoltle chiles in adobe sauce to mixture (you can get this at Sainsburys in the UK and it is good to keep in the store cupboard otherwise add some chiles), season to taste. Simmer for ten minutes. Serve with bread and a salad.
A nice light soup for the summer and easy to prepare when suddenly one is faced with the sinking sensation of there is nothing in the house to eat...because one has spent too long watching Richard Armitage again in North and South. And other excuses.
Roast 2 ears of corn in the over for ten minutes. If you don't have corn ears, take 3 cups of frozen corn , place on bakingtray and roast in hot oven.
Fry 3 minced cloves of garlic and 3 chopped onion gently in olive oil for five minutes.
Add 3 400 grams cans of chopped tomatoes plus 750 ml of chicken stock (okay 3 stock cubes plus water) to garlic mixture. When corn is done, add that. Add several tablespoons of chipoltle chiles in adobe sauce to mixture (you can get this at Sainsburys in the UK and it is good to keep in the store cupboard otherwise add some chiles), season to taste. Simmer for ten minutes. Serve with bread and a salad.
A nice light soup for the summer and easy to prepare when suddenly one is faced with the sinking sensation of there is nothing in the house to eat...because one has spent too long watching Richard Armitage again in North and South. And other excuses.
Friday, April 06, 2007
Good Friday and hot cross buns
Today is Good Friday -- one of the most solemn and sacred days of the Christian calender. Without Good Friday, the promise could never have been fulfilled. The date is set because of the Jewish Passover. We know it was a Friday because the next day was the Jewish sabbath. The days of the week were also just beginning to be used. It goes back to astrology and the belief that each of the planets govern a day. The major change was calling Sunday -- the day of our Lord. If you look at the week days in French or another Romance language, you will see what I mean. English days are derived from Anglo Saxon/Nordic gods.
In many Catholic countries such Spain and Italy, the day is one of processions. Years ago when I visited Spain during Holy Week, I was surprised at how many processions happened. It was Catholicism at its most raw -- robes, whips and chains. The procession on Palm Sunday in Grenada frightened me as the dark was falling and these men were solemnly processing, cowls hiding their faces. A few years later, we happened to be in New Mexico going from Santa Fe up to Taos and passed by the Chimayo pilgrims -- many were carrying crosses. The guidebooks all said that unless you were taking part, it was best to steer clear of the festival...Given my experience in southern Spain, I agreed.
In Britain, spiced buns first became popular during the Tudor period. Elizabeth I forbade the making of hot cross buns on any day except Good Friday. I forget when the edict was relaxed. I tend to like the British version of hot cross buns much more than the American. This is mainly because you have a dough or pastry cross in the UK as opposed to an icing cross.
I adapt the Elizabeth David recipe for her definitive guide to English Breads for my recipe.
It is basically -- warm 10 oz milk to blood heat, add 1 tablespoon of yeast -- allow to soften. Mix 1 lb strong bread flour (4 cups) with 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp nutmeg, ground allspice, and ground cloves, and 2 oz dark brown sugar (1/3 cup). Add yeast milk mixture, and then two eggs. Make into a soft dough, add more flour if required and then add 4 oz (1 cup) currants. Allow to rise until double (about 45 minutes.
Shape into 16 balls. Make a short crust pastry ( 4 oz flour plus2 oz butter. Mix into a fine crumb add2 tablespoons approx water) Make snakes of the pastry. Put crosses on top of buns. Brush with milk. Allow to rise for about a half hour. Cook in a hot oven for 20 minutes until nicely browned.
Far better tasting than the hot cross buns one purchases in the shops.
In many Catholic countries such Spain and Italy, the day is one of processions. Years ago when I visited Spain during Holy Week, I was surprised at how many processions happened. It was Catholicism at its most raw -- robes, whips and chains. The procession on Palm Sunday in Grenada frightened me as the dark was falling and these men were solemnly processing, cowls hiding their faces. A few years later, we happened to be in New Mexico going from Santa Fe up to Taos and passed by the Chimayo pilgrims -- many were carrying crosses. The guidebooks all said that unless you were taking part, it was best to steer clear of the festival...Given my experience in southern Spain, I agreed.
In Britain, spiced buns first became popular during the Tudor period. Elizabeth I forbade the making of hot cross buns on any day except Good Friday. I forget when the edict was relaxed. I tend to like the British version of hot cross buns much more than the American. This is mainly because you have a dough or pastry cross in the UK as opposed to an icing cross.
I adapt the Elizabeth David recipe for her definitive guide to English Breads for my recipe.
It is basically -- warm 10 oz milk to blood heat, add 1 tablespoon of yeast -- allow to soften. Mix 1 lb strong bread flour (4 cups) with 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp nutmeg, ground allspice, and ground cloves, and 2 oz dark brown sugar (1/3 cup). Add yeast milk mixture, and then two eggs. Make into a soft dough, add more flour if required and then add 4 oz (1 cup) currants. Allow to rise until double (about 45 minutes.
Shape into 16 balls. Make a short crust pastry ( 4 oz flour plus2 oz butter. Mix into a fine crumb add2 tablespoons approx water) Make snakes of the pastry. Put crosses on top of buns. Brush with milk. Allow to rise for about a half hour. Cook in a hot oven for 20 minutes until nicely browned.
Far better tasting than the hot cross buns one purchases in the shops.
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