One thing I miss over here when we go out to eat (which isn't often) are the lovely Diner Style of Hot Roasted Meat Sandwiches which we used to get back home in North America.  Almost every family restaurant, truck stop, or diner has hot sandwiches on offer.  Hot Roast Beef, Hot Turkey (very popular) Hot Chicken, Hot Hamburger, etc.

Going out for one of these was always a real treat.  With  tender roasted meat with gravy between two thick slices of white bread with more gravy ladled over top, they would be served up hot, on large platters, with plenty of hot chips, veg and coleslaw on the side. You could also have gravy on your chips (fries), or not as per your choice.  In Canada we love gravy on our chips, and here in the UK, they also like gravy on their chips, or curry sauce. (Something I have yet to try.)


Place the appropriate stock in a saucepan, and add the sliced meat.  Cover and cook over low heat until heated through thoroughly.  Place one slice of bread on each of four heated plates.  Top each with one fourth of the hot meat.  Top with some of the gravy, and then place another slice of bread on top.  Place chips and vegetables on the plates, and ladle the remaining gravy over the bread and chips.  Serve immediately with coleslaw on the side. 



Good chips/fries are a must!  If you want to make your own from scratch this is a cracking recipe.  You can also use oven chips.  I like the crinkle ones in that case, or if you are really lucky and have a chippy close by, you can just send hubby out to pick up a large portion of chips. By the time you have the remaining elements ready, he'll be back and you'll be set to go!

When you are ready to fry your chips heat your fat to 120*C/250*F.  Add the chips in batches, without crowding the pan.   Blanch in the fat for 5 minutes, just until cooked through.   Remove, pat dry and drain on paper towelling.  Once you have blanched all the chips raise the temperature of the fat to 160*C/320*F.  Fry the chips again until crisp and golden brown.  Drain well, season with some salt and serve immediately.



Pour all the pan juices from your roasting pan into a measuring cup.  When the fat rises to the top, spoon off 2 TBS and return that to the roasting pan.  Scoop off and discard the remaining fat. Place the roasting tin over a burner and heat gently until the fat begins to sizzle just a bit.  Whisk in the flour and cook through for several minutes, stirring constantly.  Add enough additional liquid to the juices in the cup to make 360ml/1 1/2 cups in all.  Slowly whisk this liquid into the roasting pan and cook for 5 to 6 minutes until thickened and bubbling. If your gravy is too thick, then you can add additional liquid.  Cook for a further minute.  Season to taste with salt and black pepper.  Keep warm until you need to use it. 



Coleslaw is a must.  You won't get any meal at a diner in North America,  that doesn't come with a small container of coleslaw on the side. At some places it might be a vinaigrette coleslaw, but more often than not it will be a delicious creamy slaw.  Just like this.

Serves 8 to 10

A deliciously cream coleslaw that has just the right amount of crunch and flavour!  There is no sogginess here!!

10 ounces of white cabbage, trimmed, cored and very thinly cut
(about 1/2 of a medium cabbage)
5 ounces of carrots, peeled, trimmed and julienned
(1 medium carrot)
4 inches of an English Cucumber, trimmed, seeded and cut into small dice
(Do not peel)
2 - 3 large dessertspoons of good quality mayonnaise
1 TBS of Dijon mustard
2 TBS white wine vinegar
1 tsp caster sugar
1/2 tsp celery salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/2 tsp onion powder

Place the vegetables into a large bowl.  Whisk together the mustard, mayonnaise, white wine vinegar, sugar, celery salt, black pepper and onion powder.  Mix well.  Pour over the vegetables and toss to coat.  Cover and chill for at least one hour before serving.

Note - the amount of mayonnaise you use depends on the cabbage, some cabbages take more mayonnaise than others.  It also depends on how creamy you like your coleslaw!

sea salt and black pepper

I also love Community Cookbooks, filled with everyone's favourite recipes.  You can find a few gems in those as well.   The more I look through cookbooks, and recipes collected through the ages, the more I realise that there is really nothing new under the sun, only new ways of doing things . . .  and fresher ingredients. We are so very blessed in these modern times to have ingredients available to us that our mothers could only dream of. 

3 TBS chopped fresh coriander leaf (Cilantro)
additional chopped peanuts and coriander leaf


 Whisk together the vinegar and mustard for the dressing.. Slowly whisk in the canola/peanut oil. Whisk in the soy sauce, honey, and sesame oil.  Stir in the gingerroot and garlic.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Set aside.

Place both cabbages, carrot and spring onions into a large bowl. Pour the dressing over top and toss to coat. Add the peanuts and coriander leaf and toss again.  Once again taste and adjust seasoning as necessary. Cover and chill until you are ready to serve.  Scatter additional chopped peanuts and coriander leaf on top just prior to serving.

4 TBS soft whole wheat bread crumbs


Prepare your vegetables and then bring a large pot of lightly salted water to the boil.  Add the vegetables and then blanche for 4 to 5 minutes.  Drain well and then refresh in cold water.  Drain well again.  Set aside to finish draining.

Put the flour, milk, water, stock pot, nutmeg, and pepper into a food processor.  Blitz until smooth.  Pour into the saucepan you used to cook the vegetables in.  Cook, whisking constantly, over medium heat  until the mixture bubbles and begins to thicken.  Cook, stirring, for several minutes.  Mix together the cheeses. Remove 2 TBS and mix into the bread crumbs. Set aside.  Stir the remainining cheese into the sauce, whisking until it melts.  Whisk in the mustard.  Remove from the heat.

Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6.  Spray a gratin dish lightly with low fat cooking spray.  Layer in half of the drained vegetables, half the sauce (making sure you drizzle it evenly over all) the remaining vegetables and then finally the remaining sauce.  Sprinkle the breadcrumb cheese mixture evenly over top.

Bake in the preheated oven fore 30 minutes, until bubbling and golden brown.  Serve hot.

I have read a lot  lately about the photographic "value" of brown foods in the blogosphere.  I read a column recently in the Guardian in which Nigella Lawson said the following (In speaking about platforms such as Instagram):

”Of course, Instagram is a visual medium, no less than television, so it’s always going to favour photogenic food, but still, it can make a cook despair. When I post a picture of a stew, I feel I have to remind people – who find the messy brownness unappealing – that 1) stews are brown and 2) brown food tastes the best. It doesn’t really matter to me whether people post pictures of stews on Instagram or Pinterest, but it does worry me if they stop cooking them. Not because it would be a bad thing, but because it would be a sad thing”.








1 TBS tomato ketchup 
 


Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium high heat.  Add the beef, and cook, stirring occasionally, until it starts to brown nicely.  Add the onions, carrots, celery, parsnip and turnips.  Cook and sweat over medium low heat for about 5 minutes or so, then stir in the garlic.  Cook, stirring until quite fragrant.  Add the beef stock, sliced cabbage, sprigs of thyme, bayleaf, parsley, garlic and onion powders and tomato ketchup.  Bring to the boil, then reduce to a very slow simmer, cover tightly and cook on low for 40 to 45 minutes, at which time the vegetables will all be nicely soft and the beef very tender.  Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.  Serve hot.


Note - feel free to add a small handful of pearl barley to this if you wish.  Add when you add the stock.  Cook for 45 minutes, until everything is tender.