Here at Oak Cottage, we love us some nice Roast Pork once in a while. Roasted until it is succulent and brown, with a crispy cracklin on the outside, it is a roast dinner that never fails to please. When I was growing up, I wasn't all that fond of Roast Pork. My mother always had to cook it the night before so that we could have it cold on the day. My dad would only ever eat cold roast pork, with mustard on the side, and so, we never ever had it hot and juicy from the oven.
The most important thing with pork, is that it should come from a traditional breed that lays down a good covering of fat. I like to eat happy meat, and so I choose to buy a free range piece of meat that has had a happy and natural life, filled with lots of access to open fields and woods where it can root around. Middle white, Glouster Old Spot, Tamworth, Berkshire or Lop Eared are going to give you the best tasting meat.
If you want good crackling, you want the skin to be scored properly, so ask your butcher to do it for you with a Stanley knife. (It's notoriously tough and you won't be able to do a proper job of it yourself, unless you are superman, and the risk of injury by doing it all by yourself is not something you want to really deal with!!) I like to remove it from any packaging once I get it home and leave it open to the air. This drys the crackling out really well and goes a long way towards insuring a nice and crisp finish. Sea salt and olive oil are also very helpful. Of course, if your meat is done before your cracklin is crispy tasty, just slice the crackling off, keep the meat warm, and cook the crackling up in a hot oven all by itself until it's just the way you like it!
There' s absolutely no point in roasting a joint any smaller than 4 1/2 to 5 1/2 pounds. Anything smaller than shrinks too much, dries out before you can get the crisp cracklin, and is impossible to carve. Buy yourself a decent sized roast, and then settle in for some tasty leftovers!
That cracklin is sooooo bad for you, but it tastes sooooo good. Once in a while, why not indulge yourself utterly and completely?? Of course a good applesauce to go with it is a must!
*Roast Pork With Crispy Cracklin*
Serves 6 to 8
Printable Recipe
I have always loved a roast pork. Crispy brown on the outside, the tender meat studded with slivers of garlic, and dusted with plenty of salt and pepper, this is a real favourite Sunday Lunch around here. Served with Crispy Roast Potatoes and all the traditional veg, not to mention a tasty gravy. (If you can remember, take it out of it's wrapping the night before and store open to the air in the fridge. This helps to make a nice dry and crisp cracklin)
4 4/1 to 5 1/2 pound leg or shoulder of pork, with a good layer of fat and crackling attached
(Or a chined loin)
sea salt
cracked black pepper
2 fat cloves of garlic, peeled and slivered
olive oil
1 onion, peeled and sliced
Pre-heat the oven to 220*C/425*F. Bring your roast to room temperature before proceeding.
Take a sharp knife and, turning the roast upside down, make some sharp stabs into the meat all over. Insert slivers of garlic into the holes, then massage to close them up. Season the meat well with some salt and black pepper. Place meat side down, on top of the sliced onion, in a large roasting tin. Rub the crackling with a little bit of olive oil and then sprinkle sea salt all over it.
Place into the oven and roast for 30 minutes. Reduce the oven heat to 170*C/325*F. Continue to roast, allowing approximately 35 minutes per pound. The crackling should be crispy and the juices run clear when it is done.
Remove the roast to a platter. Don't cover the joint as this will sog up the crackling.
To make gravy, skim any fat from the pan, and discard the onion. Add about 2 cups beef or chicken stock to the roasting pan and heat over medium heat, stirring to release any crispy bits. Shake 1/4 cup of flour together in a jar with 1 cup of cold water. Strain this into the stock, whisking constantly. Cook, whisking until the mixture bubbles and thickens. Season to taste with a bit of salt and pepper. I also like to add a bit of horseradish sauce for some extra flavour.
Remove the crackling from the roast and chop into pieces to serve. Slice the roast and serve with the crackling and gravy.
It won't be long now before they are all gone . . . beautiful English plums. Those lucious ruby coloured gems that taste so sweet and lovely.
We are fortunate enough to have trees filled with several different varieties here on the Estate actually . . . purple Italian, green gages, mirabels and lovely little ordinary ruby coloured ones, whose name escapes me right now . . . they're all lovely and free from pesticides and other chemicals. I guess you could call them organic, except that the orchards that surround us are not pesticide free so . . .
I have frozen bags and bags of them to use up in the winter months ahead. I've made cakes and pies and tarts til they've come out my ears, and lovely they have been too.
I like to keep a bowl of them on the counter and eat them fresh. I leave them until they are just about to go over . . . so soft, sweet and juicy, you need to eat them over the sink . . . that is when they taste the best and the sweetest in my opinion . . . little ruby coloured bites of heaven.
When we have had our fill of fresh, and pies and crumbles, cakes and tarts . . .
I make chutney. Delicious. Sweet. Spicy. Perfect to go with roasted meats or in a very tasty cheese sandwich. Even better in a toasted cheese sandwich, all buttery and crisp on the outside and meltingly cheese and chutney-ee on the insides. Ohh . . . yum, yum . . . I know what I'm having for lunch today . . . wish you could join me, truly I do . . .
*Spicy Plum Chutney*
Makes about 3 pounds
Printable Recipe
This is the perfect time of year to make this delicious chutney. Better do it quick before the plums are all gone!
1.5kg of ripe plums
2 pounds of bramley apples, peeled and chopped
2 fat cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
450g cooking onions, peeled and chopped
200g sultana raisins
2 star anise
4 cardamom pods, bruised with knife
200g granulated sugar
400ml white wine vinegar
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
200ml port
Stone the plums and chop. Put them into a large saucepan with the garlic cloves, onions, apples, sultanas, star anise, cardamom pods, sugar and 300ml of the white wine vinegar. Season with some salt and black pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar.
Simmer for 25-30 minutes, until tender. Add the remaining white wine vinegar and the port. Cook for a further 30 minutes, stirring often, or until thickened. If it still seems a bit runny, simmer for another 10-15 minutes.
Place into hot sterilized jars, dividing it equally amongst them. Place a disc of waxed paper directly on top of the hot chutney. (Alternately melt some paraffin wax and pour this immediately over top of the hot chutney. I bring mine over from Canada and it is for the express use of sealing jams and preserves.) Seal with airtight lids and store in a cool dark place for at least one month before using. This will keep up to six months if kept out of sunlight. Refrigerate once opened. Will keep for a further 2 months in the refrigerator.
One of the things I fell in love with right away when I moved over here was roasted potatoes.
Chunky potatoes, roasted in the oven in a pan along side of your Sunday roast, all crisp and brown on the outside, and oh so tender on the insides.
It is just not a proper roast dinner unless it is accompanied with potato roasties . . . this I have come to know to be true. I just love British traditions, and traditional British food.
(Look at all those crispy bits . . . mmmm . . . )
They're not all that hard to make either.
You just need a good floury potato, something like a Maris Piper works very well, or in North America a russet. These are the types of potatoes that make great mashed potatoes.
New potatoes and waxy type potatoes just don't turn out the same.
To make good roast potatoes, you simply peel them, cut them in to large chunks and then par boil them for several minutes, after which you want to rough up the edges and then roll them in a bit of seasoned flour before roasting.
To give mine an added crunch, I also pan fry them until golden before placing in the hot oven.
Goose fat give a most delicious crunch in my opinion, but then again, some people swear by beef drippings . . .
I just knows what I likes. In truth any fat will do, just so long as you have it sizzling hot when you dump the potatoes into it.
Roast potatoes with crispy, golden brown edges. Oh my. So delicious.
*Classic Roast Potatoes*
Serves 4 to 6
Roast potatoes are a weekly institution in most British families and households. When it's time for that Sunday lunch, it's time for roast potatoes. For the very best results it's important to use the right potato. Almost any potato will roast, but if you love that crispy edge with a light, fluffy and creamy interior, then floury potatoes are what's needed. To achieve the right finish, these potatoes will take at least 1 hour to cook; for extreme crispiness, cook for 1 1/2 hours.
6 to 9 medium potatoes, allowing 3 halves each
(You want a floury potato, maris piper are good)
sea salt
goose fat
1/4 to 1/2 cup of flour seasoned with some salt and pepper
Pre-heat the oven to 200*C/400*F. Peel the potatoes and half lengthwise. If very large, cut into quarters.
Place in a saucepan and cover with cold salted water. Bring to the boil and then reduce the heat and simmer for 5 to 6 minutes.
Drain in a colander and leave to stand in the colander for 2 to 3 minutes before shaking the colander gently to rough them up a bit. This action begins to break down the edges of the potato and will give you a tasty crunch later on.
Heat a skillet with about 1/4 inch of melted goose fat in it. Once the fat is hot, roll the potatoes in the seasoned flour and then place them into the hot goosefat.
Fry, turning them occasionally, until completly golden brown.
In the meantime, melt some goosefat in a roasting tin large enough to fit the potatoes, 1/4 inch in depth. Add the browned potatoes and roll them in the fat.
Bake in the pre-heated oven for a further 40 to 45 minutes, turning them about halfway through the baking time. You can add a knob of butter over the potatoes at the end for a rich crispy roast taste, but it's not necessary. You can cook them for a bit longer for an ultra crispy edge. It all depends on your taste. My husband doesn't really like them to be too crisp.
He's crazy.
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When I first moved over here to the UK, Blueberries were a very rare commodity, especially up in the North where we were living then.
I never, and I mean never, saw them in the shops, not ever.
Oh, how I longed for them. Something that I had come to quite take for granted, having been surrounded, and abundantly, by wild ones for most of my life.
In fact, as a child, I had come to despise them a bit . . . not the flavour, but the idea of them.
Every summer in late August, my parents always put us
It didn't. We still spent hours and hours of back breaking labour in the hot summer sun, filling up gallon sized ice cream buckets for my mother to put into the freezer for the winter ahead.
Finally, I just gave up and caved into my love of them, and it's been a passion that's been going ever since.
Oh how I missed them over here, that is, until we moved South, and I discovered shops full of them. They are cultivated, of course, and not quite as lovely as the little wild ones from back home, but they'll do quite nicely.
One thing I have learned by being over here, and having been cut off from certain things, is that you never know what you'll crave when you can't get it any more . . .
Like Kraft Macaroni and Cheese, Captain Crunch Cereal, Cheese Whiz, All Beef Hot Dogs, Candy Cane Crackle Ice Cream, Bologna Sandwiches, and . . .
Wild Blueberries.
*Bramley Berry Slump*
Serves 6 to 8
Printable Recipe
This is so lovely with the sweet blueberries and the tart apples. The hidden surprise of creamy mascarpone cheese really makes it special, as does the crunchy biscuit topping!
2 large Bramley apples, peeled and thinly sliced (about 3 cups sliced apple)
1 knob of butter
2 small punnets of blueberries (about 2 cups)
3 ounces sugar
8 ounces of mascarpone cheese
For the topping:
3 ounces cold butter, cut into bits
8 ounces self raising flour
2 ounces sugar
the zest of one lemon
150ml of whole milk
To finish:
2 TBS Demerara sugar
Pre-heat the oven to 200*C/400*F. Butter a 1 1/2 litre baking dish. Set aside.
Melt the knob of butter in a nonstick skillet. Add the apples and cook, stirring, until they begin to soften. Add the sugar to the apples along with the blueberries. Mix well, and then tip the whole mixture into the prepared baking dish. Dot with the mascarpone cheese.
Rub the butter into the flour until it is quite crumbly. Rub the sugar and lemon zest together until quite fragrant. Stir into the crumb mixture. Add the milk all at once and stir to combine. Drop on top of the fruit and mascarpone in big blogs, making it look a bit craggy. Sprinkle the demerara sugar evenly over all. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 25 to 30- minutes, until crusty and golden brown and the fruit is bubbling. Allow to cool for 10 to 15 minutes before spooning into dessert dishes. Serve warm with custard* or vanilla ice cream* if desired.
*Really you won't need it with the mascarpone cheese, that is unless you are feeling totally hedonistic!
I have always had a certain fond for coconut. I love the texture and the natural sweetness, and I am really fond of anything that is made with coconut.
I love coconut cupcakes, and cakey and topped with a lucious frosting and shredded coconut. I adore coconut cookies (especially Aunt Ferns), all crispy and buttery, very, very moreish. I'll have to bake a batch soon, I am thinking . . .
I love, Love, LOVE Coconut Cream Pie, and Coconut pudding . . . much the same thing really, except one is in a crust and topped with meringue.
My mom always made Feather Squares for us at Christmas time . . . a lovely sponge cake on the bottom with a layer of jam and then a coconut topped meringue baked on top. Something else I am going to have to make soon . . .
I love curries made with coconut milk, and don't get me started talking about Coconut Mounds bars . . .
Ok, so you get the point I am sure. I love coconut.
Probably why I adore these . . . do ya think?
*Coconut Slices*
Makes 10
Printable Recipe
Scrumptious buttery sponge base, with just a hint of orange, and chock full of dessicated coconut. What could make it any better . . . why a delicious macaroon type of frosting and toasted coconut on top! Moreish, incredibly moreish.
4 1/2 ounces softened butter
8 ounces caster sugar
2 large eggs, beaten
the finely grated rind of 1 orange
3 TBS fresh orange juice
150ml sour cream
5 ounces self raising flour
3 ounces desiccated coconut
Frosting:
1 egg white
7 ounces icing sugar, sifted
3 ounces desiccated coconut
about 1 TBS fresh orange juice
To Decorate:
about 1/2 cup of shredded coconut, toasted
Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F. Butter a 9 inch square cake tin and line it with parchment paper. Set aside.
Rub the sugar and the orange peel together until it gets really fragrant, then cream it together with the butter until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs gradually. Stir in the orange juice and sour cream. The mixture will look curdled. Whisk together the flour and coconut. Fold this in with a metal spoon, then spread the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until risen and firm to the touch.
Place on a wire rack to cool in the tin for 10 mnutes before lifting out to finish cooling on the rack.
Lightly beat the egg for the frosting, just enough to break it up, a bit foamy. Stir in the icing sugar and desiccated coconut, along with enough orange juice to mix to a thick paste. Spread this over the cooled cake. Top with the shredded toasted coconut and then leave to set before cutting into slices to serve.
Note - the frosting contains a raw egg white. If this concerns you, use a vanilla buttercream frosting instead and top with the toasted coconut.
After all the hedonistic, rich and unctuous food (great words there!) that I have eaten lately, I felt a real need to eat something healthy . . . but somewhat crunchy . . . (no, not potato crisps)
Something tasty and moreish, but also good for me . . .
I picked up some tasty looking bean and udon radish sprouts at the shops . . .
And with a few additions, I ended up with a tasty salad that quite, quite fit the bill completely.
It almost felt bad, it was so good, but . . .
well, you decide for yourself. Good or bad?
*Bang Bang Chicken Salad*
Serves 6
Printable Recipe
This delicious salad can be made with leftover cooked chicken salad, or you can do as I do and poach fresh chicken to be used in it instead. I just love the dressing, with it's peanut/Thai flavours. You almost feel like you are eating something naughty when you are eating it, but it's salad, so it has to be good for you, right?
For the Chicken:
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup white wine
cold water
1 shallot, peeled and sliced
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp salt
1 celery stalk with leaves
For the Dressing:
200g smooth peanut butter
4 TBS toasted sesame oil
3 TBS vegetable oil
2 TBS sweet chili sauce
2 TBS lime juice
sea salt to taste
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper, or to taste
For the Salad:
1 TBS sesame seeds, toasted
1 cucumber, peeled, quartered, seeded and cut into thin diagonal slices
4 medium carrots, peeled and cut into thin strips
(I use a vegetable peeler)
100g bean sprouts
1 small handful of udon radish sprouts
4 spring onions, trimmed and cut into thin diagonal slices
Place the chicken into a large saucepan. Add the remaining ingredients, including enough water to barely cover it. Poke it all over with a sharp knife. Bring to the boil, then cover it and remove it from the heat. Let stand until cooked through and the juices run clear. Remove from the liquid and shred.
To make the dressing, warm the peanut butter, sesame oil, and vegetable oil together, whisking until the peanut butter is melted and all are combined. Whisk in the remaining ingredients. Taste for seasoning and adjust as necessary.
Place the salad ingredients in a large bowl, except for the toasted sesame seeds.. Add the shredded cooked chicken and toss all together well, along with a squeeze of lime juice. Drizzle with the dressing and scatter with the sesame seeds. Serve immediately.
Don't forget to put your halo on when you are eating it, coz . . . really, this is quite healthy . . .
One of my absolute favourite dishes of all time has been macaroni and cheese. This is the ultimate in comfort food to me.
I have tried many, many different recipes. I love it done the old fashioned way which is pure and unadulterated, nothing but cooked macaroni, milk, chunks of cheese and lots of butter. Seasoned with salt and pepper and baked until the milk is almost absorbed by the macaroni and there are gooey patches of delicious cheese scattered throughout . . . it is simple, old fashioned, and really, really good.
I love the boxed ones. I know a sacrilege to some, but lets face it, they can be quite comforting as well and make a great lunch in a pinch. I have a distinct preference for Presidents Choice White Cheddar Macaroni and Cheese mix, which I can only get in Canada and I can't wait until next year when I can go over and stock up on the stuff.
I love to add a tin of chopped tomatoes when I am making the boxed stuff, or some Heinz chili sauce. This takes it beyond the ordinary and turns it into something special. I could eat the whole box all by myself, and when I was younger, my husband and I often ate a box of it for an evening snack before we went to bed. (ahh youth . . . )
When I really want to indulge though, this is the version I make. There is no better way to make a good macaroni and cheese, and I have tried quite a few different versions. This is the culimination of years of testing and trying and this is what I have come to think is the ultimate in Macaroni and Cheese. A rich and cheesy sauce, and lots of it in comparison to the macaroni, and topped with buttery crisp bread crumbs.
You need look no further. This IS the absolute best.
*Ultimate Macaroni and Cheese*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe
This, to me, is the absolute best macaroni and cheese recipe ever. Rich, yes. Lucious, yes. Cheesy, yes. Fattening, who cares . . . The best, ultimately.
8 ounces dry macaroni
2 ounces butter
2 ounces plain flour
1/2 pint milk
1/2 pint double cream
1/2 tsp salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 ounces strong cheddar, shredded
2 ounces Red Leicester cheese, shredded
2 ounces Parmesan Reggiano cheese, shredded
4 ounces fresh bread crumbs
1 ounce melted butter
Pre-heat the oven to 200*C/400*F. Butter a casserole dish and set aside.
Melt the butter in a saucepan. Whisk in the flour and cook, stirring for one minute. Slowly whisk in the milk and the cream, whisking constantly. Add the salt and pepper. Cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture bubbles and thickens. Stir in the cheeses, mixing in until they are melted. Set aside.
Cook the macaroni in lightly salted boiling water to cover until done, according to the package directions. Drain well. Stir the drained macaroni into the cheese sauce. Pour the complete mixture into the prepared casserole dish.
Mix the melted butter with the bread crumbs. Sprinkle evenly over top of the macaroni. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until golden brown and bubbly. Let sit a few minutes before serving.
I spent most of my life living in Armed Forces housing, most of my homes being cookie cutter stamps of the same house . . . the only thing different being it's location, having lived in almost every province in Canada. My father was in the Air Force as was my ex husband. Small, comfortable and sadly lacking in space, something I always wanted to have was a . . . larder.
A lovely room, however large or small, that I could stuff to the rafters with all of the provisions that I could possibly want or need to be able to provide tasty meals for my family . . . something along the same lines as those tasty tuck boxes I used to read about in all those Enid Blyton stories I devoured as a girl . . . but on a much larger scale.
My nan had one as did my first mother in law . . . the shelves filled with jars of preserves, boxes of apples and potatoes, all safely tucked into their newspaper sleeves and beds of straw, nylon stockings full of onions hanging from pegs and smoky hams and sausages hanging from the rafters . . . my grandfather even had
barrels of his own homemade kraut.
Finally I have been blessed with a small room that we call the larder here at Oak Cottage . . . a tiny room with shelves along it's walls which lays just off our back entrance, tucked away behind a sliding wooden door. My shelves are lined with all sorts of food stuffs and I pride myself on being able to go inside and produce a tasty meal out of the goodies on it's shelves without much problem at all.
Here are some of the items I would never be without and that I think all kitchens should have in their storecupboards and larders. My favourites list and things I always have at hand here at Oak Cottage.
Good Quality chocolate, for baking and for eating. Although Todd doesn't really like chocolate cakes or the like, I do like to keep a good quantity of nice chocolate on hand to bake brownies and the occasional chocolate cake. Something with at least a 70% cocoa content. I also like to keep a variety of cocoa powders, both natural and Dutch process.
A good quality Balsamic Vinegar, along with an assortment of other vinegars. Sherry, White and Red wine, Apple Cider, Malt, and Rice Wine. You really do get what you pay for here. I also make my own tarragon and other flavoured vinegars, using a good white wine vinegar.
An assortment of mustards, including a good Dijon, grainy, English, and Dry mustard powder. I use them in vinaigrettes, marinades and you just can't beat a nice ham sandwich on a rustic loaf and adorned with a good slather of a tasty mustard.
Capers. I keep several varieties on hand, salt preserved, regular, those exquisite little non pareil capers and delicious caper berries. They are fabulous in sauces and dressings and salads. A Nicoise salad would not be the same without the adornment of caper berries.
Dried mushrooms, an assortment . . . all woodsey and earthy and just waiting to be steeped and made into a delicious soup or tucked into a tasty stew.
Dried pasta. Of course it is nice if you have the time and energy to make your own pasta, but one cannot overlook the blessing of having good quality dried pasta to hand. I like to keep a variety in my larder, some short kinds such as macaroni, and then the longer ones like Spaghetti, linguine, some noodles of various widths, farfelle, lasagna, and of course fusilli and other twisty types. I prefer Italian brands myself.
French Cornichons. Great with cold cuts and cheeses and an indispensable ingredient for making tartar sauce and certain salsa verdes. I also keep several other pickles and chutneys . . . pickled cipoline onions, mango chutney, Branstons and a good quality piccalili.
Dried Spanish Chorizo sausages. These are fantastic additions to omelets, sauteed potatoes, salads, stews, the possibilities are endless. I wouldn't be without them.
Italian tinned plum tomatoes, whole, chopped and pureed. A tin of them and you always have a ready soup to hand, or a tasty pasta sauce . . . the uses are endless.
I love French Mayonnaise. Rich and glossy and in a class of it's own.
Extra Virgin Olive oil, in a variety of guises. I like a nice mild one for cooking and a stronger more full flavoured one for use in salads. I prefer Greek.
A variety of olives, black and green. I love Greek Kalamata, the tiny nicoise olives of France, spanish black and green. I adore oil cured and dried black and green olives and always have several packets of them to hand, ready to be tossed into salads, baked into loaves or pizzas, and to be used as tasty hors d'ouevres and tapas, or eaten out of hand . . . just because . . . 
Finally I have been blessed with a small room that we call the larder here at Oak Cottage . . . a tiny room with shelves along it's walls which lays just off our back entrance, tucked away behind a sliding wooden door. My shelves are lined with all sorts of food stuffs and I pride myself on being able to go inside and produce a tasty meal out of the goodies on it's shelves without much problem at all.
Here are some of the items I would never be without and that I think all kitchens should have in their storecupboards and larders. My favourites list and things I always have at hand here at Oak Cottage.
Good Quality chocolate, for baking and for eating. Although Todd doesn't really like chocolate cakes or the like, I do like to keep a good quantity of nice chocolate on hand to bake brownies and the occasional chocolate cake. Something with at least a 70% cocoa content. I also like to keep a variety of cocoa powders, both natural and Dutch process.
A good quality Balsamic Vinegar, along with an assortment of other vinegars. Sherry, White and Red wine, Apple Cider, Malt, and Rice Wine. You really do get what you pay for here. I also make my own tarragon and other flavoured vinegars, using a good white wine vinegar.
An assortment of mustards, including a good Dijon, grainy, English, and Dry mustard powder. I use them in vinaigrettes, marinades and you just can't beat a nice ham sandwich on a rustic loaf and adorned with a good slather of a tasty mustard.
Capers. I keep several varieties on hand, salt preserved, regular, those exquisite little non pareil capers and delicious caper berries. They are fabulous in sauces and dressings and salads. A Nicoise salad would not be the same without the adornment of caper berries.
Dried mushrooms, an assortment . . . all woodsey and earthy and just waiting to be steeped and made into a delicious soup or tucked into a tasty stew.
Dried pasta. Of course it is nice if you have the time and energy to make your own pasta, but one cannot overlook the blessing of having good quality dried pasta to hand. I like to keep a variety in my larder, some short kinds such as macaroni, and then the longer ones like Spaghetti, linguine, some noodles of various widths, farfelle, lasagna, and of course fusilli and other twisty types. I prefer Italian brands myself.
French Cornichons. Great with cold cuts and cheeses and an indispensable ingredient for making tartar sauce and certain salsa verdes. I also keep several other pickles and chutneys . . . pickled cipoline onions, mango chutney, Branstons and a good quality piccalili.
Dried Spanish Chorizo sausages. These are fantastic additions to omelets, sauteed potatoes, salads, stews, the possibilities are endless. I wouldn't be without them.
Italian tinned plum tomatoes, whole, chopped and pureed. A tin of them and you always have a ready soup to hand, or a tasty pasta sauce . . . the uses are endless.
I love French Mayonnaise. Rich and glossy and in a class of it's own.
Extra Virgin Olive oil, in a variety of guises. I like a nice mild one for cooking and a stronger more full flavoured one for use in salads. I prefer Greek.
A variety of olives, black and green. I love Greek Kalamata, the tiny nicoise olives of France, spanish black and green. I adore oil cured and dried black and green olives and always have several packets of them to hand, ready to be tossed into salads, baked into loaves or pizzas, and to be used as tasty hors d'ouevres and tapas, or eaten out of hand . . . just because . . . 
I love honey and I always have several jars in the larder. Runny varities, Italian, French sunflower and lavender, Greek with it's lovely licorace flavour and good old clover honey. I also love set honey, all creamy and white and spread onto thick slices of toasted and buttery home made bread . . . carrots are delicious steamed and then glazed with butter and honey . . .
A variety of flours, organic and stone ground, French, plain, self raising, strong (both white and brown) whole wheat, malt, spelt. They all have their uses, but, please, only keep what you are going to use within a few weeks to hand on the shelves. Store the rest in the freezer as it can go rancid very quickly.
I like to keep quite a few different sugars . . . light and dark soft brown, caster and granulated white, golden caster, icing sugar, dark and light muscovado, demerara, lump sugar. They all have their uses. I also keep a variety of syrups such as Golden, Dark Treacle, Molasses and Maple.
I love Maldon Sea Salt and French fleur de sel. I use them in almost all my cooking. I do keep a large tin of household salt as well, along with a variety of pepper corns . . . green, pink, black and a lovely mixture of the three.
Garlic both regular and smoked, and shallots and onions, both brown cooking and red. These are a must for me, and used often.
A variety of good quality dried herbs and spices. I have quite a few different ones and I use them all frequently. I do love fresh herbs, but the uses of a good quality bottled herb cannot be underestimated.
One thing that I absolutely love and adore is unearthed barrel aged feta cheese. I know this is kept in the fridge but I just couldn't not mention it. It's wonderfully delicious and worth every penny. I also keep a good Parmesan Reggiano that I grate myself and a variety of different strengths of cheddars.
I also have a weakness for Danish butter. It's very good, and I always have several pounds of it in the fridge and freezer, sweet and salted, not to mention some good vegetable shortening.
This is by no means an extensive list of all the things that one should have in their larders, but just a few of my favourite things. It goes without saying that one should keep a variety of tinned fishes as well as fresh fruits and vegetables amongst other things, and I do. I just thought it would be fun to talk about some of my most beloved ingredients.
One thing that you are never short of if you keep bananas, eggs and milk around is a tasty bowl of bananas and custard, my Todd's dessert of choice. Old fashioned yes, delicious yes, satisfyingly comforting, yes . . .
*Bananas and Custard*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe
You can call it many names . . . creme de la vanille, creme anglaise . . . it matters not. It's all vanilla custard and it is wonderfully delicious when properly made and homemade. Why anyone would ever bother with the powdered version when they can make it so easily from scratch is beyond my comprehension!
1 pint whole milk (2 cups)
1 vanilla pod
4 egg yolks
1 TBS caster sugar
4 medium bananas
Put the milk in a saucepan. Slit the vanilla pod down the centre and scrape out the seeds into the milk with a sharp knife. Drop the split pod into the milk as well. Heat the milk over a medium heat, just until you see bubbles forming around the edges. Remove from the heat and remove the vanilla pod. (Just rinse it off and dry it and you can then stick it into your sugar bin where it will give your sugar a lovely flavour and fragrance . . . no worries and no waste.)
Beat together the egg yolks and the sugar. Pour the hot milk over top of it very slowly, whisking constantly. Strain the mixture into the top of a double boiler. Place over the top of the bottom of the double boiler over simmering water and cook ove rvery low heat, stirring all the time. When it thickens to the consistency of double cream (it should coat the back of your spoon), remove it from the heat and pour it straight into a bowl to reduce the heat. Let cool to warm, before proceeding.
The secret to successful custard is to not be in a hurry. If the worse happens and it starts to separate, whizz it in the blender. You can of course, pre-empt this problem by adding a small teaspoon of cornstarch to the egg yolks before adding the milk.
Peel and slice the bananas into four dessert dishes. Spoon the warm custard over top of them and serve.
A variety of flours, organic and stone ground, French, plain, self raising, strong (both white and brown) whole wheat, malt, spelt. They all have their uses, but, please, only keep what you are going to use within a few weeks to hand on the shelves. Store the rest in the freezer as it can go rancid very quickly.
I like to keep quite a few different sugars . . . light and dark soft brown, caster and granulated white, golden caster, icing sugar, dark and light muscovado, demerara, lump sugar. They all have their uses. I also keep a variety of syrups such as Golden, Dark Treacle, Molasses and Maple.
I love Maldon Sea Salt and French fleur de sel. I use them in almost all my cooking. I do keep a large tin of household salt as well, along with a variety of pepper corns . . . green, pink, black and a lovely mixture of the three.
Garlic both regular and smoked, and shallots and onions, both brown cooking and red. These are a must for me, and used often.
A variety of good quality dried herbs and spices. I have quite a few different ones and I use them all frequently. I do love fresh herbs, but the uses of a good quality bottled herb cannot be underestimated.
One thing that I absolutely love and adore is unearthed barrel aged feta cheese. I know this is kept in the fridge but I just couldn't not mention it. It's wonderfully delicious and worth every penny. I also keep a good Parmesan Reggiano that I grate myself and a variety of different strengths of cheddars.
I also have a weakness for Danish butter. It's very good, and I always have several pounds of it in the fridge and freezer, sweet and salted, not to mention some good vegetable shortening.
This is by no means an extensive list of all the things that one should have in their larders, but just a few of my favourite things. It goes without saying that one should keep a variety of tinned fishes as well as fresh fruits and vegetables amongst other things, and I do. I just thought it would be fun to talk about some of my most beloved ingredients.
One thing that you are never short of if you keep bananas, eggs and milk around is a tasty bowl of bananas and custard, my Todd's dessert of choice. Old fashioned yes, delicious yes, satisfyingly comforting, yes . . .
*Bananas and Custard*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe
You can call it many names . . . creme de la vanille, creme anglaise . . . it matters not. It's all vanilla custard and it is wonderfully delicious when properly made and homemade. Why anyone would ever bother with the powdered version when they can make it so easily from scratch is beyond my comprehension!
1 pint whole milk (2 cups)
1 vanilla pod
4 egg yolks
1 TBS caster sugar
4 medium bananas
Put the milk in a saucepan. Slit the vanilla pod down the centre and scrape out the seeds into the milk with a sharp knife. Drop the split pod into the milk as well. Heat the milk over a medium heat, just until you see bubbles forming around the edges. Remove from the heat and remove the vanilla pod. (Just rinse it off and dry it and you can then stick it into your sugar bin where it will give your sugar a lovely flavour and fragrance . . . no worries and no waste.)
Beat together the egg yolks and the sugar. Pour the hot milk over top of it very slowly, whisking constantly. Strain the mixture into the top of a double boiler. Place over the top of the bottom of the double boiler over simmering water and cook ove rvery low heat, stirring all the time. When it thickens to the consistency of double cream (it should coat the back of your spoon), remove it from the heat and pour it straight into a bowl to reduce the heat. Let cool to warm, before proceeding.
The secret to successful custard is to not be in a hurry. If the worse happens and it starts to separate, whizz it in the blender. You can of course, pre-empt this problem by adding a small teaspoon of cornstarch to the egg yolks before adding the milk.
Peel and slice the bananas into four dessert dishes. Spoon the warm custard over top of them and serve.
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