Wednesday. 23/09/2015. 'Dolcelatte and Leek Soup with Parmesan Crisps.'

This recipe comes from 'Mary Berry Cooks the Perfect, Step by Step.' by Mary Berry. Page 20.

Sometimes you tend to develop a rhythm without realising it. At home, soups are a once weekly regular in Autumn and Winter while they become a once monthly one in Spring and Summer. There is something comforting about sitting by a hot bowl of soup when the nights are getting longer, chillier and darker.

book pic.

This recipe appealed by its combination of ingredients, Dolcelatte and leeks. But it also had that cheesy crisps appeal which my partner was only too kin to master under his grill. The picture in the book makes them look quite enticing.

leeks.

The humble leek is elevated in that lovely soup. There was a time when I was absolutely reluctant to eat vegetables in my childhood, and that leeks and especially a stringy leek soup done by my mum were nightmares on a plate. Eventually I grew up and my taste buds developed as I gave a chance to all veg even leeks. Plus the texture of Mary Berry's soup was silky smooth, unlike the stringy one of my past. It called for two large leeks but as mines were medium in size, I used three of them to combine with the King Edwards, fresh thyme from the garden, milk and vegetable stock.

Dolcelatte.

The other star of the show is Dolcelatte. We do love cheese in our house especially blue cheeses. From Stilton to Roquefort passing by Cambozola , there is always a blue vinney in the fridge every week. Dolcelatte is soft in texture and has a milder taste than his elder italian blue brother the Gorgonzola. It means literally 'Sweet Milk' in Italian and true to its name gave a rich mellow onctuosity to the soup. 

Infusing the milk.

The Parmesan crisps were delightful, however rather technical to do. They intrigued my partner so much that he had to do them. Although fairly brittle they worked really well with the soup, adding an extra texture, that little extra bite, le 'Je ne sais quoi' which completed the dish to perfection. 

parmesan crisps.

We adored the soup. It went five stars all the way. We had enough left over for lunch the following day. But it is also rather inexpensive to make which is perfect. Being on a budget doesn't have to mean that you have to cut down on taste. 

We will have that wonderful number again, with the 'Tutti Quanti'. the Parmesan Crisps. We followed the soup by the 'lemon and limoncello possets' of Mary Berry to keep the menu with those delightful Italian tasty touches. (Page 274, of the same book)
The dinner was simply 'Fantastico'.

  

Tuesday. 22/09/2015. 'Salmon en Croûte with Watercress Sauce.'

This recipe comes from 'Mary Berry Cooks the Perfect, Step by Step.' by Mary Berry. Page 68.  It was accompanied by her recipe 'Buttered Peas with Spring Greens and Mint', Page 202 of the same book.

fish and chips

From the onset this dish was a  slight challenge to pull off for if it is not breadcrumbed and cod, aka fish and chips, my partner will not like fish... Or it used to be very much like that because I love my fish, and coming from a port, and counting many fishermen and sailors as my ancestors, this is one thing I could not consider to give up on my plate. I am fond of fish and chips, don't get me wrong but I also love variety and they are plenty of fish in the sea...:

monk fish tails floured.

 A lot of them, and to discard them all in favour of cod was ethically an option which may have brought over fishing in the first place if it happened in every home in my mind. So I did introduce regularly a different fish every couple of weeks in our home, and from tempura nuggets of monkfish tail, to home made haddock fish fingers passing by a smoked trout paté to snack on crackers, my man started to appreciate his fish a little more. 

Somehow I did evolve into looking for recipes where the fish is covered either by breadcrumbs, a batter of some sort, (beer ones are lovely) or pastry, otherwise I just blitz the fish to introduce it incognito like anchovies which goes so well with lamb. Without the knowledge of the fishy presence, the thumbs were always all up. 


So for a sweet surrender like Tango does best when it concerns fish, we had the 'Salmon en Croûte'. 

Tango

Mary Berry's book Pic.

The recipe is easy enough to follow from the mushroom and watercress mixture to fill the middle of the pastry parcel to the lovely sauce that accompanies the entire dish. 

I could not get skinned salmon fillets so I did it myself. This probably was one of the trickiest part as you do not want to lose too much flesh on those beautiful fish. 

beautiful Salmon fillets.

Pastry  Hic Hup.

But it did not beat for trickery how I beautifully messed up my puff pastry. I left the pastry on the baking sheet on the baking tray, on top of a warming oven. By the time I had to use it, it was pretty much like an unmanageable task just to wrap those salmons up. So guys and girls, place your pastry somewhere not too warm to not get it 'overstrechy' and  fiddly. I learnt my lesson that night with lots of laughter at the look of my 'En Croûte'. It wasn't the most beautiful parcel I ever sent to a plate by far. 


However what it lacked in presentation compared to a proper Mary Berry one, it didn't in flavour. It tasted fantastic, and I still got a massive thumbs up for the result.

watercress sauce

The watercress sauce is a lovely accompaniment to the dish and easy to make. 

Chinese Cabbage.

Book Pic.

For the side, I went for the buttered minty peas with spring greens. It worked perfectly with fish. Peas, spring onions, mint are a great combination. For the spring greens, I used one of the Chinese cabbages that I grow in my garden this Autumn. It had a fantastic texture and worked really well. I just treated the cabbage like shown in the tip at the bottom of the recipe called 'Key to perfection'. I must say that side packs a punch and I will definitely do it again to go along meat or fish, or with whatever cabbages available at the time in my pots outside.

Salmon en Croûte and buttered peas and spring greens.

Budget wise, the dish left plenty of leftover for a lunch box. However salmon is an expensive fish and a rather popular one. 

The entire dish, Salmon en Croûte, sauce and all the trimmings was gorgeous. Despite not liking fish that much, my man was won over by it completely moreover he wants it back giving it a five stars. Next time I will not mess up the 'Croûte', having learnt by my mistakes.

Monday. 21/09/2015. 'Twice Baked Mushroom and Camembert Soufflés'.

This recipe comes from 'Mary Berry Cooks the Perfect, Step by Step.' by Mary Berry. Page 40.














First of all, I must confess two things: number one, I never cooked a soufflé before so that recipe gave me the opportunity to learn a new dish/skill. Number two, I never ate one before. Somehow it went amiss somewhere down the line. So I do not have an educated palate able to make comparison about what a good soufflé taste like. I had a rough idea of what it should be like texture wise, which is light and fluffy. 




However just the word 'Soufflé' has that French sex appeal to me, and the picture of Mary Berry's one looked sexy appetising on the plate.

Her book has the superb advantage to give step by step instructions to follow. It does not mean that the recipe are easy however as I found that one rather challenging. One thing I would say which is valid to every recipe in any books, it helps to be prepared. Bring all the ingredients out, then prepare them upon instruction if it is peeled, chopped, washed, just do it before starting to follow the recipe itself. Have all the elements for the dish, ready and measured then crack on with the recipe. That simple element of organisation not only save time, but a lot of huffing and panting which can occur without. I learnt that tiny bit of wisdom by doing a lot of the above, huffing and panting over the pans and realising too late that an ingredient that I need right now is simply unready to use. 



We added two ingredients, cubetti di pancetta, 80g which I fried in the same time as the chestnut mushrooms and a tablespoon of fresh thyme. It worked really well with the rest. 

Flavour wise, coming from Normandy, the use of Camembert made my day, evoking reminiscence of my childhood.







The downside I had, to show that recipe are not idiot proof, after having done the beautiful mixture to pour into ramekins, I discovered that I had only two suitable ramekins. So to remedy that lack of equipment, I used also a bigger dish to pour the rest of the mixture into. So we ended with a larger soufflé and two smaller ones. 

To this was added a mistake. For the second baking I did put the larger soufflé on a different place of the oven than the other two. This meant that it browned quite considerably more. 

Despite it all, the smaller soufflés made it to the table that night on a bed of rocket, baby spinach and watercress salad, drizzled by the grainy mustard sauce and gosh, they were delicious, light and fluffy. Usually on Monday, we tend to have a lighter dinner to counterbalance the heavy Sunday Roast of the day before. This number worked perfectly to fit that bill. 

The following day I had the last soufflé for lunch, and despite its rather burnt, over done appearance, it was moist and lovely. 

Both of us loved that recipe so much that we are getting kitted out with nice new ramekins in order to do it again and again. We gave that little number a five stars. It delivered on taste, but also it didn't break the bank moneywise to do. I can only recommend that recipe for any on a budget.

Weekly Feedback. 'Good Food, September 2015.' (14-19 of September 2015)

Having tried recipes from this magazine for a week in my home every evening, I must say two things about the experience: 

First it was highly enjoyable. No recipes seemed too hard to make nor took an enormous amount of time to do. 

Second it gave a variety of dishes and ingredients which made the trial very entertaining. 

For seasonality, the articles about pies: 'Nice as Pie', and preserves: 'Let's preserve more...' were bang on the money.









At the end of the summer, it can help dealing with a glut for a gardener. It gave me the recipe to sort out my first harvest of beetroot. Gosh, do I love a pickled beet, now I am making my own. 










The cinnamon scented plum jam was a treat that will deliver all winter and I cannot be more thankful for that recipe. My first fruit jam: Yeehaw! Milestone. 









The fig, raspberry and cardamom pie gave me a lovely challenge for the sweet treat of the week and an awesome opportunity to use our raspberries.

I learned to make my own pesto with the Curly Kale of my garden on Thursday. A process I will not forget for my love of pesto and pasta. You have a Mama in this Casa. 

Making it to the homely podium in third position, a recipe which delivered in fragrance was the 'Chicken and Date Tagine with Cauliflower Couscous'. Interesting to make, enjoyable to eat, but with less dates it potentially could have been a clear winner in this home.

The runner up of this week 'Good Food' September 2015 issue sample was the 'Ham and Tarragon Pot Pie'.  Deadly simple and flavoursome, you can not argue with that: Comfort food at its best.

On the top spot we have an humble soup: 'The Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Carrots Soup' . It warmed our hearts big time. Our beautiful carrots got used beautifully. The Chorizo addition was inspired and we will keep it to make that soup again and again. It is crowned our dish of the week. 

When the star of the show last week was the simply marinated 'Sticky Glazed Chicken Sticks', this week it was another simple number which delivered on taste. 

The following week was a trial on a culinary book by Mary Berry given at my leaving do... 

Sweet Treat of the Week. 'Fig, Raspberry and Cardamom Pie.'

This recipe is from 'Good Food' September issue. Page 14.

From the onset the article 'Nice as Pie' in the magazine grabbed my attention by its rather fabulous pictures of pies. I was determined to attempt to make one of those glamourous babies from the selection of the three on display in those glossy pages. 

All sounded rather nice: 'Bramley and Blackberry pie', 'Plum and Marzipan'. But all presented also an advantage, for the first one, I have a big Bramley apple left from last week 'Rustic Apple Tart' in the kitchen screaming at me: 'Use me' from her bowl. For the later, my partner is fond of marzipan, and I of plums. But I chose to do the 'Fig, Raspberry and Cardamom' one.

The reasons behind the decision are multiple. First, 'come', look at that picture: isn't she a gorgeous pie that you would love to be able to make and present proudly with a 'tada!' ? 
Second, to add to the temptation, I happen to love figs and the use of cardamom was a little exotic twist which is exciting in pudds. 

















But my big third, which heavyweight pushed the balance in the mode: 'I have to do this particular pie', was the massive glut of raspberries we had this year in the garden. Our mature raspberry bush is about 2,5 metres long and 2 metres high running along part of the fence. It has been very productive year on year, so much so that the freezer is jammed pack with raspberries to use up. If I had 'one' apple asking to be used up, I had hundreds of raspberries making their pleas in my head: 'Eat us, eat us, pretty please. Look at your freezer: free some space.' 


So I could not miss that brilliant opportunity. Now, I cheated a tad, a tiny bit on that recipe: I am still not confident into making my own pastry, so I used a shop bought sweet pastry. In my excuse, it was rather an incentive to not mess up the pie. I will forgive myself in the knowledge that I am learning one step at a time. After rolling a beautiful casing and lining it into the dish, :0) came the hard task of filling it. 

I retained myself from eating the figs, I was quartering. One year, 
really back in the days, I bestowed a baby fig tree but it died six months later attacked by some pests. I am kin to give it another good go in the future, knowing that my gardening skills have much improved since. However our garden is a patio one which means, we have to make the most of the space we have. Any fruit trees would have to be trained in pots or large containers, like my lemon tree which grew from seed and followed me from flat to flat, and gave me its first lemon last year and plenty this year. 


It is a very joyous pride to have a tree that grows with you. It gives you a sense of time, of the seasons, of the years going by as it grows taller and stronger. In my case it started with just a pip and a dream which challenged what people told me then: 'you can't grow lemons in England'. Almost twenty years later or there about, the pip from that shop bought lemon is doing his show in my garden, proving me that dreams can come true, providing they are given the right amount of TLC. The funny thing is: the year that tree produced his first lemon, I published my first book. Never give up on your dreams. Keep them alive. 

On that bitter sweet note, I will add a constatation, the only person that can fit your shoes is you, and live your life is you. You can not be made to fill a hole, a pigeon hole that does not suit you. To be able to walk, head high in the sky, feet steadily on the ground, follow your heart and your path will be drawn before you. Trying to fit significant others ideals and dreams, even if you love them, destroy the essence of you, your own purpose in life. Peer pressure or family do not own your feet or life: you do. Take a glimpse of who understood how to deal with a Cardamom. The answer is none because both have generic basic lids for all their products. One has generous holes which allows you to pour heavily and spend more on the long term, the other has tiny ones which doesn't allow peanuts unless you screw the top off and let it go. Ideally, make the world accept your uniqueness, and like the Cardamom spicing my pie, make it understand your particular taste. You are unique and you are bringing something to the table. We need everyone to make a World. 

Right, I made a pie, with a glorious mix of raspberries and figs, all mixed together with rosewater and cardamom, golden caster sugar, cornflour and ground almonds. It looked like a mountain, a big hill to climb with a sheet of pastry. 

With the glorious task to make it look nice, picture perfect, I must say I was so crap at it that it kills me with laughter. I tried to do the hearts thingy things with no bespoke damn cutter. When I realised I would destroy the pastry to oblivion trying to match that picture with my tools, I stopped at four hearts, sticking the cut out ones on the side as decoration, which made eight  altogether. 

'Give me Hearty'! When the result came out of the oven, it was not picture perfect. But it was what it was: a very nice home made pie. It tasted great with just one little problem: the texture. Figs are grainy, raspberry just as well and cardamom also. Thinking about it, I would have blitzed the ingredients, sieved them and do some sort of cheesecake instead for their combination works awesomely. 

We gave the pie a joint three stars. I enjoyed the experience although it was more challenging than the first time. It was a big learning curve on what goes together taste wise in a dessert, I must say.