“Little bean things” were generally meals with the pulse type of bean as a major ingredient, rather than long green runner beans which she liked.
I found the list yesterday so she can have a look at it later. There are 25 items on the list of Faveroit Meals; she was generally pretty good with trying different types of food. She also enjoyed cooking, though didn’t like being supervised (“Mummy, stop being a back seat cooker!”)
In a rash moment a while ago I bought two duck breasts from Tesco. I ate one in a recipe I think, from BBC Good Food, all right, but nothing special. Now what do I do with the other one? Can I pan fry it, after crisping the skin and rendering the fat? and how long? It wasn't a very big duck. Lost a lot of my sense of taste - how did that happen? - so something spicy with it might improve things!
Seems unusually busy outside today - cars up and down every few minutes. Normally only ever see delivery vans since lockdown. Presumably everyone has run out of whatever they panic-bought earlier!
Put it in a cold pan, skin side down. Switch on heat and leave until it is nicely browned. Turn and give the other side a minute or two. Then either put the whole pan in the oven to finish cooking through (10 to 20 minutes depending on how pink you like your duck) or put it in an oven dish you've had heating. Said dish could also have been roasting a few veg, so you could end up with an all-in-one traybake. Eg, carrots and parsnips - add the duck, drizzle over some honey, cook til just caramelising.
I had a very successful foray to the shops and returned with pretty much all the groceries I needed (including two bottles of wine which is strictly speaking more of a "want" although it feels like a "need") plus some trays of pretty pansies for the garden tubs.
We're having chicken in green curry sauce this evening - I've only recently discovered the joys of green curry paste and have added the recipe to my repertoire - with brown rice and puppodums. I need to get cooking actually... I sat on the patio reading after lunch and it was lovely - making the most of being able to do that before the allergies kick in. I've done my Slimming World meeting via Zoom and watched our church's mid weekly meeting on Facebook. I've got another Zoom meeting at 7. All go, innit?
@Bishops Finger If you're after fresh radishes, they're one of the world's easiest vegetables to grow and work perfectly well in a pot. They're ready in about three weeks after sowing. When you've just pulled them up, they are delicious. I like bought radishes but they can't compare with straight out of the ground. I'm fond of them the French way, with butter and salt. We need to plant some on our balcony. We already planted tomatoes, which are growing nicely.
The aubergine is salted, the spuds are microwaving, the ragu is simmering and the Parmesan is grated. Presently I will go fry the aubergine, slice the potatoes, crumble the feta, beat up an egg in yoghurt, and assemble the moussaka.
When asked to suggest something quick and simple for dinner, Mr F has a tendency to say 'moussaka' and then wonder why I scream and hit him with something.
The children used to have the same tendency to think lasagne could be produced in minutes, just like a ready-meal. I found the solution was to give them detailed recipe and instructions when they went off to university.
My daughter has a similar longing for lasagne, complicated by a GF and dairy free diet. The ready made versions are forcing healthy eating by adding oodles of beans to the ragu. The thing that placated her inner carnivore without me wanting to throttle her was Jack Monroe's Sausagne using GF sausages and pasta, vegan "mozzarella" and "cheddar". Apparently it was very satisfying. I don't know because I wasn't wasting unnecessarily expensive ingredients on me when I don't like meat. Which is really an excuse for eating something she doesn't like/can't eat, like cheese. It didn't feel so labour intensive as I made the sausagne for 6 and froze the other 5 portions for later.
Tonight's supper was boiled new potatoes served hot with the last of the duck, wilted ramsoms and a vinaigrette made with balsamic vinegar. I feel almost as if I've overdone the garlic bread at a 80s party.
@Bishops Finger If you're after fresh radishes, they're one of the world's easiest vegetables to grow and work perfectly well in a pot. They're ready in about three weeks after sowing. When you've just pulled them up, they are delicious. I like bought radishes but they can't compare with straight out of the ground. I'm fond of them the French way, with butter and salt. We need to plant some on our balcony. We already planted tomatoes, which are growing nicely.
Thanks for that - I might give it a try, although the deck of the Ark doesn't offer much in the way of shelter from the Stormy Blast (and the air is salty, too).
Butter and salt sound good, but I like CHEESE with radishes as well!
That sausage lasagne looks really nice - I might have to subject S. to it some time. I wonder if it would work with minced vegetarian vegetarian mince?
We had a rethink about supper, and I cobbled together a pasta thing with tomatoes, chopped asparagus, salmon, a few halved mange-touts, onion and garlic, and it really wasn't too bad.
Someone's doing a Tesco's run in the morning, so we've asked for a few things for making a potato curry.
Tonight it was comfort food: some excellent sausagez from our far shop with wilted ground elder (yes, I do mean the pervasive garden weed) and celeriac puree, followed by cheese, and mixed berries with Greek yoghurt.
Tomorrow is Big Shopping Day, for us and for the shut-ins we're supplying.
Tomorrow too the builder should be finishing off the guttering, then sorting out the steps from the new utility/laundry room into the garden.
We had lentil soup with home made rolls again last night. Same as last week, but oh, so delicious. And we had lots of stock made out of vegetable trimmings, so why not?
Wilted ground elder??? Young bits I imagine, why not cook it? The bottom end of my garden is full of it, I'm not exaggerating! Never knew you could cook it. Please tell me more!
Actually I had heard the Roman's ate it, but I dont trust the Roman's!
I think there are quite a lot of plants, normally regarded as 'weeds', that can actually be eaten (some cooked, some raw). No doubt there are numerous books/articles on the subject!
The former Mrs BF once bought a book of Roman recipes (I think at one of the Roman villa sites here in the Sad Southlands - can't recall which).
This is where the Ship is so useful! I had no idea that we had two species of dormice, nor that one of them is edible - but we do: https://tinyurl.com/ya3j9sxo. However both seem to be protected species so your butcher would indeed be a Naughty Boy (or Girl) if s/he were to sell them. The edible variety seem to be pretty massive and can even be dangerous: read the caption: https://tinyurl.com/ycjdgb9d.
PS According to you-know-where, "Wild edible dormice are still consumed in Slovenia, as well as in Croatia. In Slovenia they are considered a rare delicacy and dormouse trapping is a tradition".
The ingredients for the potato curry arrived this morning: I'm going to add curry leaves, which I've never tried before, and chickpeas, lentils, carrots and peas. Shortly I'll head off to the interweb to check the proportions of other spices (why didn't I bring my little recipe notebook with me instead of packing it up with all my other recipe books?). As you might expect, it'll feature a generous quantity of garlic.
This is where the Ship is so useful! I had no idea that we had two species of dormice, nor that one of them is edible - but we do: https://tinyurl.com/ya3j9sxo. However both seem to be protected species so your butcher would indeed be a Naughty Boy (or Girl) if s/he were to sell them. The edible variety seem to be pretty massive and can even be dangerous: read the caption: https://tinyurl.com/ycjdgb9d.
Thought that house looked familiar, then saw the caption detailing which road. I do know it - two or three doors down from some friends of mine - and I used to know (by sight within town) the owner.... Come to that, I'm pretty sure I know the photographer as well!
I suspect the dormouse pot was a thing like a fondue set. Acquired, but not used. There's some reasonable things in Apicius. Lamb chops with lovage, I recall, and I now have lovage.
I was well chuffed with the potato curry - though I say it what shouldn't, I think I got the spices about right.
My nephew, his partner and kids turned up just before we were about to eat, bearing still-warm frittatas and a bottle of wine (I think S. had given them some wine the other day when they'd missed the shops), which they set in the driveway and I picked up. It was just such a nice gesture - and the frittatas were delicious.
It was lovely to see them, but frustrating that we couldn't give the kids a hug, but they were very good about it, bless them.
I suspect the dormouse pot was a thing like a fondue set. Acquired, but not used. There's some reasonable things in Apicius. Lamb chops with lovage, I recall, and I now have lovage.
I suspect the dormouse pot was a thing like a fondue set. Acquired, but not used. There's some reasonable things in Apicius. Lamb chops with lovage, I recall, and I now have lovage.
Is this what being in quarantine does to us? Cannibalism? First Dormouse and now Lamb Chopped, not to mention Piglet! Yikes! I'm glad owls are considered inedible!
150 years ago in the Siege of Paris they were eating cat, dog and rat, and zoo animals - wolf, bear, camel and elephant.
This reminds me of a poignant sentence towards the end of Corrie ten Boom's "The Hiding Place" when she goes back to the family home and there's no sign of their cat. It goes something like, "In the years of Holland's hunger, few cats or dogs survived."
On a more cheerful* note, I'm busy preparing a bolognese sauce to go into the slow cooker for consumption later. Fridays are busy Zoomy days for Mr Nen and me and meals have to be fitted in somewhere along the line. A busy Zoomy evening means I won't make the Ship's meeting again; I hope to one day soon.
*I say "cheerful" - I guess it's not that cheerful for the turkey who supplied the mince...
Is this what being in quarantine does to us? Cannibalism? First Dormouse and now Lamb Chopped, not to mention Piglet! Yikes! I'm glad owls are considered inedible!
Before anybody gets anymore bright ideas...🤨...don’t even think about it!🐇😟
I suspect the dormouse pot was a thing like a fondue set. Acquired, but not used. There's some reasonable things in Apicius. Lamb chops with lovage, I recall, and I now have lovage.
I suspect the dormouse pot was a thing like a fondue set. Acquired, but not used. There's some reasonable things in Apicius. Lamb chops with lovage, I recall, and I now have lovage.
Hey!!!!
Sorry!!! My mind does not work in such a way that it associates names of people with recipe books! Didn't notice!
I think The Plague is driving us all a bit doo-lally.
I was a bit worried, back there, with all the talk of Severed Fingers...delicious though they might be (or was that on the Coping thread? I get confused so easily these days...)
Well my name comes from Sarasa Comet which is a type of goldfish. I used to have a very large one called Voldemort, that once escaped from the jaws of a heron. I doubt he would have taken kindly to anyone else wanting him for dinner either.
Today I have experimented with left overs in the cupboard to make a vegan lemon drizzle cake. I'll let you know what it's like later.
My son, who is an extremely good cook and extremely dyslexic emailed me yesterday to say he'd made himself a chilli dish for dinner with home made gwokaml on the side. I knew what he meant.
Indeed. I often feel compelled to buy M&S's Salami Firenze pizza.
Sounds delicious!
This evening, we may be patronising the Balerno Fry, as they're offering a delivery service. One of the things I missed whe we lived in Canada was scampi and chips - you could sometimes get it, but like bacon, television and crossword puzzles, it just Wasn't The Same - so I think that might be on the cards.
wilted ground elder (yes, I do mean the pervasive garden weed) .
My one attempt to cook ground elder (over 30 years ago) was an unmitigated disaster - more to do with my cooking than the intrinsic properties of the plant as a foodstuff.
We do not have it in our current garden, but we do have a lot of allium triquetrum, aka three-cornered leek, which is equally difficult to eradicate.
Inspired by TheOrganist's culinary foraging I made lunch with some of it today.
Finely chopped and stirred into beaten egg, it made a lovely omelette, folded round some grated strong red Leicester cheese.
Comments
I found the list yesterday so she can have a look at it later. There are 25 items on the list of Faveroit Meals; she was generally pretty good with trying different types of food. She also enjoyed cooking, though didn’t like being supervised (“Mummy, stop being a back seat cooker!”)
Seems unusually busy outside today - cars up and down every few minutes. Normally only ever see delivery vans since lockdown. Presumably everyone has run out of whatever they panic-bought earlier!
We're having chicken in green curry sauce this evening - I've only recently discovered the joys of green curry paste and have added the recipe to my repertoire - with brown rice and puppodums. I need to get cooking actually... I sat on the patio reading after lunch and it was lovely - making the most of being able to do that before the allergies kick in. I've done my Slimming World meeting via Zoom and watched our church's mid weekly meeting on Facebook. I've got another Zoom meeting at 7. All go, innit?
I have some radish seeds to sow, alongside a bunch of other veg but I’m not up to gardening yet. Need to get my sons to do some hoeing for me.
When my heart rate returns to normal I will be able to drink alcohol and coffee again. My first order is going to be an espresso martini!
When asked to suggest something quick and simple for dinner, Mr F has a tendency to say 'moussaka' and then wonder why I scream and hit him with something.
But since we have world enough and time...
Tonight's supper was boiled new potatoes served hot with the last of the duck, wilted ramsoms and a vinaigrette made with balsamic vinegar. I feel almost as if I've overdone the garlic bread at a 80s party.
Thanks for that - I might give it a try, although the deck of the Ark doesn't offer much in the way of shelter from the Stormy Blast (and the air is salty, too).
Butter and salt sound good, but I like CHEESE with radishes as well!
We had a rethink about supper, and I cobbled together a pasta thing with tomatoes, chopped asparagus, salmon, a few halved mange-touts, onion and garlic, and it really wasn't too bad.
Someone's doing a Tesco's run in the morning, so we've asked for a few things for making a potato curry.
Tomorrow is Big Shopping Day, for us and for the shut-ins we're supplying.
Tomorrow too the builder should be finishing off the guttering, then sorting out the steps from the new utility/laundry room into the garden.
MMM
Actually I had heard the Roman's ate it, but I dont trust the Roman's!
The former Mrs BF once bought a book of Roman recipes (I think at one of the Roman villa sites here in the Sad Southlands - can't recall which).
IIRC, honey featured quite prominently, though we were disappointed to find that the local butcher did NOT stock edible dormice:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edible_dormouse
PS According to you-know-where, "Wild edible dormice are still consumed in Slovenia, as well as in Croatia. In Slovenia they are considered a rare delicacy and dormouse trapping is a tradition".
Quite nice in a stew, say, with herbs, carrots, celery, and a white wine sauce...
We also have a lot of ground elder in the garden. But no edible dormice, as far as I’m aware.
MMM
Thought that house looked familiar, then saw the caption detailing which road. I do know it - two or three doors down from some friends of mine - and I used to know (by sight within town) the owner.... Come to that, I'm pretty sure I know the photographer as well!
Methinks the rodent doth protest too much....
Various cake recipes plus a very intriguing sweet potato, oat and peanut butter cookie. Which will be tried one day!
My nephew, his partner and kids turned up just before we were about to eat, bearing still-warm frittatas and a bottle of wine (I think S. had given them some wine the other day when they'd missed the shops), which they set in the driveway and I picked up. It was just such a nice gesture - and the frittatas were delicious.
It was lovely to see them, but frustrating that we couldn't give the kids a hug, but they were very good about it, bless them.
Hey!!!!
For now.
This reminds me of a poignant sentence towards the end of Corrie ten Boom's "The Hiding Place" when she goes back to the family home and there's no sign of their cat. It goes something like, "In the years of Holland's hunger, few cats or dogs survived."
On a more cheerful* note, I'm busy preparing a bolognese sauce to go into the slow cooker for consumption later. Fridays are busy Zoomy days for Mr Nen and me and meals have to be fitted in somewhere along the line. A busy Zoomy evening means I won't make the Ship's meeting again; I hope to one day soon.
*I say "cheerful" - I guess it's not that cheerful for the turkey who supplied the mince...
"but I have never, ever eaten a barn owl, so perhaps I am okay."?
Before anybody gets anymore bright ideas...🤨...don’t even think about it!🐇😟
I'll get me coat...
Sorry!!! My mind does not work in such a way that it associates names of people with recipe books! Didn't notice!
I was a bit worried, back there, with all the talk of Severed Fingers...delicious though they might be (or was that on the Coping thread? I get confused so easily these days...)
(Actually, the porcupine meat was skinned, and hence de-spined, before I got it!)
Today I have experimented with left overs in the cupboard to make a vegan lemon drizzle cake. I'll let you know what it's like later.
My son, who is an extremely good cook and extremely dyslexic emailed me yesterday to say he'd made himself a chilli dish for dinner with home made gwokaml on the side. I knew what he meant.
Some of us have names that represent our saintly demeanours rather than beastly natures...
Sounds delicious!
This evening, we may be patronising the Balerno Fry, as they're offering a delivery service. One of the things I missed whe we lived in Canada was scampi and chips - you could sometimes get it, but like bacon, television and crossword puzzles, it just Wasn't The Same - so I think that might be on the cards.
We do not have it in our current garden, but we do have a lot of allium triquetrum, aka three-cornered leek, which is equally difficult to eradicate.
Inspired by TheOrganist's culinary foraging I made lunch with some of it today.
Finely chopped and stirred into beaten egg, it made a lovely omelette, folded round some grated strong red Leicester cheese.