Parker House Rolls are a favourite dinner roll with many people. The original recipe comes from a recipe in the Fannie Farmer Cooking School book. It is said that the rolls were invented by an angry pastry chef at the Parker House Hotel in Boston.
Apparently he threw the rolls into the oven which resulted in a folded over shaped roll.
They are made with milk and are nice and soft.
He did all the cutting and cooking, and with a not so very good knife. My mom's knives are so old and falling apart and somewhat dangerous to use. I need to get some more.
I pretty much left my knives behind. That's okay. New page now. Moving forward.
Brown food. Brown food never photographs well. I think you pretty much need to be a professional photographer to be able to take good photos of brown food.
Don't let these photos turn you off of this very delicious recipe. This recipe is fabulously tasty and really simple to make. It uses simple ingredients as well.
This is a recipe with a real history Back when I was a very young bride I moved far away across the broad expanse of Canada to live on the wild Western frontier.
Ok, so it was really a vast urban centre . . . Calgary. But it might as well have been the wild Western frontier, because I was young and away from my mom and dad for pretty much the first time in my life. I had nobody to call on for advice or help or company.
That is until I met Lil. Lil was the mother of one of my ex husband's best mates. She lived in a small town in the northern part of Alberta called Olds. She was the salt of the earth.
Lil was a fabulous cook, a very unpretentious cook. Her food was lumberjack food . . . as robust and loveable as she was, filling, uncomplicated and quite, quite delicious!
This is one of her recipes. I have been cooking it for and pleasing my family with this recipe for over 40 years now.
It may look a little bit like brown slop. But I can promise you it is anything but brown slop.
It is a delicious gravy, filled with flavour and with tender chunks of beef. I don't eat red meat very often actually. This is one of the few ways I enjoy it. Mrs McNevin's Goulash.
It is simple and unpretentious. Just like her. It is the kind of food that screams Home Sweet Home.
That is the best kind of food you know, Home Sweet Home food. The kind of food that builds taste memories.
It doesn't come in a jar or a package. It isn't something you can touch, but boy oh boy, it sure makes things, even brown things . . . taste spectacularly delicious.
If you are wanting to cook your family something hearty which is simple to make and oh so tasty, you really need to cook them this. Fabulous with rice or mashed potatoes. It also freezes very well in single portions for you to thaw out and reheat at a future date. I think you will love it as much as we do! It might even become a family taste memory for your family as well!
Mrs McNevin's Goulash
Ingredients
- 2 pounds of stewing beef, trimmed of any fat and cut into cubes
- 2 TBS cooking oil
- 1 large onion, peeled and chopped
- 1 garlic clove, peeled and minced
- ½ cup tomato catsup
- 2 TBS Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 TBS soft light brown sugar, packed
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp sweet Hungarian paprika
- ½ tsp dry mustard powder
- ¼ cup flour
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 160*C/325*F/ gas mark 3. Season the meat lightly and coat it in the flour.
- Heat the cooking oil in a large skillet and add the meat. Brown it very well on all sides. Add the onion and garlic, Cook for a few minutes longer until the vegetables are softened and quite fragrant.
- Add the catsup, Worcestershire sauce, sugar, paprika and dry mustard. Stir it all together well. Stir in the water.
- Tip it all into a casserole with a lid and then put it into the oven to cook for 2 hours or so, until the meat is very tender and the sauce is thickened. Delicious!
This is an older photograph of it from a much earlier post. Before I knew how to take better photographs. Brown food is alway only ever going to be brown food I guess!
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com Thanks so much for visiting. Do come again!
This coming Sunday in the UK is what is commonly known as Stir-Up Sunday. Stir-up Sunday is a term which has been used in the Anglican Church in the UK for the last Sunday before the season of Advent.
It gets its name from the beginning of the collect for the day in the Book of Common Prayer, which begins with the words, "Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord, the wills of thy faithful people".
Traditionally this has been the day each year that people make their Christmas Puddings! Its time to pop on some Christmas Music and your apron and begin your Christmas prep for this year's festivities.
Christmas is going to be a bit different for most people this year, but there is no reason why we can't still enjoy some of our traditional treats. When it comes to Christmas Puddings, Mary Berry's Christmas Pudding is a recipe which I have made many, many times. Like all of her recipes it is reliable and fool-proof!
Christmas (or Plum) Pudding is the traditional end to the British Christmas dinner. But what we think of as Christmas Pudding, is not what it was originally like!
Stir-up-Sunday is usually a family affair. Each family member is supposed to stir the mixture from East to West to honour the journey of the Magi. This ritual is also thought to bring the family luck and prosperity in the coming year.
At one time it was also customary to hide a number of small trinkets in
the mixture, a bit like the twelfth night cake. These charms often
included a silver coin (wealth), and a ring (future marriage). Woe
betide the guest who stumbled across a thimble in their serving. A
future of Spinsterhood was a cert for them! Nowadays this generally
isn't done, although my husband does remember his mom putting coins into
theirs.
The fruit mixture of the pudding is usually a mix of dried figs, currants, raisins, golden raisins, cherries and candied ginger. All are mixed together in a bowl the night before you go to make your pudding and a portion of brandy is poured over top and the fruit left to macerate in this overnight on the counter top. A clean towel over top to keep it safe from dust and insects. If you don't like to use alcohol, you can use orange juice in an equivalent amount.
Mary Berry's recipe differs slightly in that there is no figs or ginger, and you have no need to soak the fruit overnight, which is a bonus!
I am all for time saving if I can, and if Mary Berry only soaks her fruit for an hour, that's good enough for me! Softened butter is creamed together with soft light brown sugar, orange zest, and ground mixed spice.
(You can easily make your own mixed spice: Combine 1 TBS ground cinnamon, 1 tsp each of ground coriander and nutmeg, 1/2 tsp of ground ginger, 1/4 tsp each of ground cloves and all spice. Mix well and store in an airtight container out of the light for up to 6 months.)
Eggs also gets beaten into this, a bit at a time so it doesn't curdle. Don't worry if it does, you can always stir in a bit of the flour to fix this.
Fresh soft bread crumbs are also a part of the mix, along with chopped blanched almonds and self rising flour. You can make your own self raising flour by adding 1 1/2 tsp of baking powder and 1/4 tsp of salt to every cup of plain flour needed. I always make my own, especially now during the time of Covid when I can't always access what I need.
Mary Berry's Christmas Pudding
Ingredients
- 1 pound (450g) dried mixed fruit (sultanas, raisins, glace cherries and chopped dried apricots)
- 1 small cooking apple, peeled, cored and chopped
- the grated rind of one medium orange
- the juice of one medium orange
- 3 TBS brandy (plus extra to flame)
- 5 1/2 TBS butter, sofened, plus more to butter the pudding mold
- 1/2 cup (100g) soft light brown sugar, packed
- 2 large free-range eggs
- 3/4 cup (100g) self-rising flour
- 1 tsp mixed spice
- 2/3 cup (40g) soft white bread crumbs
- 1/4 cup (40g) whole blanched almonds, roughly chopped
- scant 1/2 cup (100g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 3/4 cup (8 ounces) sifted icing sugar
- 3 TBS brandy
- 4 TBS brandy
Instructions
- Measure all of the fruit into a bowl. Add the brandy and orange juice. Leave to macerate for about an hour.
- Cream the butter together with the orange zest and sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs, until thoroughly combined. If the mixture starts to curdle stir in a spoonful of the flour.
- Sift together the flour and mixed spice. Fold this into the creamed mixture along with the bread crumbs and nuts. Stir in the soaked fruit along with any juices. Mix well together.
- Generously butter a 2 1/2 pint (5 cup) pudding basin. Cut a piece of baking paper into a circle large enough to cover the bottom of the basin.
- Spoon the pudding batter into the basin, smoothing over the top with the back of a spoon.
- Have ready a large piece of baking paper and a sheet of foil. Place the paper on top of the foil, making a pleat across the middle to allow for expansion. Tie securely over top of the pudding with some kitchen string. Trim off any excess.
- To Steam: put the pudding in the top of a steamer filled with simmering water, cover with a lid and steam for eight hours, topping up the water as necessary.
- To Boil: put a metal jam jar lid, or metal pan lid, into the base of a large pan to act as a trivet. Place a long, doubled strip of foil in the pan, between the trivet and the pudding basin, ensuring the ends of the strip reach up and hang over the edges of the pan. This will help you to lift the heavy pudding basin out of the pan of hot water when it has finished cooking. Lower the pudding onto the trivet and pour in enough boiling water to come half way up the side of the bowl. Cover with a lid, bring the water back to the boil, then simmer for about seven hours, until the pudding is a glorious deep brown colour, topping up the water as necessary.
- Once cooked, remove the pudding from the pan. Remove and discard the paper and foil. Replace with fresh. Store, covered, in a dry cool place.
- On Christmas Day make the brandy butter by beaing the butter until light and fluffy. Beat in the sifted icing sugar until smooth. Stir in the brandy and spoon into a serving dish. Cover and chill until needed.
- Steam or boil the pudding for about two hours to reheat. Turn onto a decorative, heat proof serving plate. To flame, warm the brandy or rum in a small saucepan. Pour it over the hot pudding and very carefuly set light to it with a match.
- Serve the pudding hot, spooned into bowls with a dab of brandy butter on top. Pouring cream goes very nicely with this.
notes:
To make your own mixed spice: Combine 1 TBS ground cinnamon, 1 tsp each of ground coriander and nutmeg, 1/2 tsp of ground ginger, 1/4 tsp each of ground cloves and all spice. Mix well and store in an airtight container out of the light for up to 6 months.
To make your own self-rising flour: You can make your own self raising flour by adding 1 1/2 tsp of baking powder and 1/4 tsp of salt to every cup of plain flour needed.
You really cannot fault any of Mary Berry's recipes. If you follow them scrupulously, they always turn out and are fail proof! I have never had a failure with any of them!
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com Thanks so much for visiting. Do come again!
I remember when my children were growing up, sometimes we would have a "picky bits" supper, a finger food buffet. Especially when we were getting towards the end of the week and close to pay day.
These type of meals were not only fun to make and eat, but they were also interesting and something deliciously out of the norm!
Even my oldest daughter who doesn't really like potaoes loves these! They are simple to make and oh-so-tasty! If you can boil a potato, then you can make these.
I made these as a part of a finger-food supper that included not only these, but also sausage balls and roasted broccoli and cauliflower florets!
I wanted to use up the last of the new potatoes that my sister had put in the room for me. I decided to make these. You only need some fat (I used a mix of becel and oil) and some seasoning. Easy peasy.
You will need to boil the potatoes first until they are nice and tender. This will take betwen 15 and 20 minutes tops. Do NOT peel them. The crispy skins are part of their charm.
You want to cook them until they are quite tender, a fork or the tip of a knife should slide in quite easily. Drain them really well and then pop them back into the saucepan and shake them over the heat of the burner so that they really dry out well.
Once you have done that you can add some fat to them. I used a mix of Becel (because that is what I have) and olive oil. You can use butter instead. Shake them around in the saucepan with both fats and any seasonings.
I used salt and pepper. (DUH!) That is what I had, and then some chili powder that my daughter dropped off to me. She had been going to bring North American Chili powder to me when she came to the UK in April.
I do hope she is able to get her money back from what she spent on the tickets for her and her brother. It will be a darn shame if she can't.
They don't have regular North American style Chili powder there. Their Chili powder is just plain ground chilies and it would blow your socks off. Literally!
I had made the mistake shortly after moving over to the UK of using their chili powder like I would have used the chili powder from home. I about killed everyone. You don't want to be adding a TBS of that to anything if you value your life!
So anyways, I did use some North American chili powder on this day. I also used some summer savoury. Shake them all about in the fat and spices so coat and then you will want to place the potatoes onto a baking tray. (Don't throw away any fat left in the pan)
Place them spaced pretty far apart. You are going to have to smash them down. And I mean gently. You don't want to blow them to smithereens. I used the end of a can of beans and just gently pressed them down.
As you can see, they break apart and you end up with lots of bits that are going to gild and turn golden brown in the oven. I also took a sausag and skinned it and added chunks of it around the potatoes. (Even more flavour!)
Then you just bake them, until they are crisp and golden brown. Yummiliciousy golden brown. (Oh I need a manicure. Reminder to self to buy some nail polish when I can.)
Perfectly crisp and golden brown and ready to dip. I used some of the blue cheese dip I had in the fridge here at the motel. But you can use whatever dip you want. Ranch. Onion. Sour Cream and Chive. Whatever takes your fancy!
I also added some broccoli and cauliflower to the baking sheet, drizzled with a tiny bit of olive oil. I cannot tolerate them raw anymore because of my diverticulitis, but they were lovely lightly roasted.
Moreish even . . . scrummilicious!
They went done really well with the potatoes and those sausage bits. I probably should have rolled the sausage bits into balls, but it was still frozen when I put it into the oven.
This meant it was cooked perfectly in around the same time it took to cook everything else!
Crispy Smashed New Potatoes
Ingredients
- 6 to 8 baby new potatoes
- 1 TBS butter melted
- 1/2 TBS olive oil
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- chopped spring onions
- blue cheese dip
Instructions
- Put the potatoes in a saucepan and cover with lightly salted cold water. Bring to the boil and then cook for 15 to 20 minutes until fork tender.
- Drain well and return to the saucepan, shaking them over the residual heat of the saucepan to dry up any water left on them.
- Add the butter, olive oil and seasonings. Toss to coat.
- Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5.
- Place the potatoes in a single layer on a baking sheet. (Reserve any butter/oil in the pan.) Taking something heavy, lightly squash them down until they are only about 1/3 of an inch thick and cracked open. Drizzle any oil/butter left in the pan over top.
- Bake them in the preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes until golden brown and crispy.
- Sprinkle with chopped onions and serve hot with the blue cheese dip.
notes:
If you are not fond of blue cheese, use ranch or whatever type of dip or salad dressing you desire.
These make for a wonderful finger food when you are getting together with people, a great side dish wih other things, and well, they are just something scrumptious to dig your teeth into! Enjoy!
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com Thanks so much for visiting. Do come again!
One of the first days I was staying here in Quarantine, I decided to make myself a Frittata for my dinner. I was still suffering from jet lag and, although I was hungry, I was lacking in energy and inspiration!
My sister had left me some eggs in the refrigerator. I have always held to the premise that if you have eggs in the fridge, you always have a delicious meal in the making!
On this particular day I had some leftover cooked potatoes which I wanted to use up and some sliced deli-ham. You can use any kind of luncheon meat, or no meat at all. Bacon, sausage, all work very well.
I chopped the ham and popped it into a skillet along with the potatoes. I had Becel for the fat. But obviously if you have bacon you can cook the bacon first in the skillet and then use the bacon fat to cook anything else.
I also had a big package of baby greens my sister had left for me to use in salads and such. It was a lovely mix of kale, spinach, beet greens, etc. I thought they would work very well in a frittata.
I added them to the skillet along with a clove of minced garlic and a chopped spring onion. One thing about Greens is they wilt very quickly and give a lovely touch of colour.
You can really use any kind of vegetable that you want to use, and what you have to hand. Peppers are very good. Asparagus cuts, mushrooms, green beans, etc.
Pretty much any vegetable works well. Just make sure you use a combination of flavours and textures that will work with each other. You know what you like and what you don't like
Once you have your vegetables cooked you will need to spread them out in the pan in an even layer. You will need enough beaten egg and milk to cover them.
I added some cheese to the egg/milk mixture and some chopped rosemary that my sister had left for me. You could use any soft herb, or even a dried herb if that is what you have! You will need enough milk and egg to cover the vegetables in the pan.
Its okay if it doesn't cover them completely. I happen to think a few bits sticking up here and there add interest!
You pour the egg mixture over and let it cook over medium heat without disturbing it until it begins to set. I like it to be set all around the edges and on the bottom. Make sure you have used enough fat with you cooked your vegetables so that it doesn't stick.
The whole thing ended up looking quite festive I thought with bits of red and green scattered throughout! I'll be honest here, I could not finish it. I only had half of it and the other half I had for breakfast the next morning.
Don't worry if you don't have potatoes, you can use cooked pasta, or even bread or rice! I have used all before and they all work very well!
Quarantine Frittata
Ingredients
- 2 large free range eggs
- 2 TBS milk
- 1/2 TBS butter or becel
- 1/4 tsp of chopped fresh herb (I used rosemary)
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 1 slice of deli-ham, chopped
- 2 small cooked new potatoes, chopped
- 1 handful of baby greens
- 1 small clove of garlic, peeled and minced
- 1 spring onion, trimmed and chopped
- 1/3 cup (36g) grated strong cheddar cheese, divided
- 4 or 5 cherry tomatoes halved
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Whisk the eggs, milk, 1/2 of the cheese, and some seasoning together along with the rosemary. Set aside. (If your skillet doesn't have an oven-proof handle, cover it with aluminium foil.)
- Add the butter to a medium non-stick skillet and add the potatoes and chopped ham, seasoning them lightly. Cook, stirring occasion until the potatoes have begun to turn golden brown. Add the baby greens, onion and garlic. Cook, stirring until the greens begin to wilt.
- Spread everything out in the pan and then pour the eggs over top to cover. Cook without stirring until it begins to set on the bottom of the skillet and around the edges. Top with the remaining cheese and halved cherry tomatoes.
- Bang into the preheated oven and cook for 8 to 10 minutes until set through and the cheese has melted.
- Remove from the oven. Let sit for 5 minutes and then serve hot. I served this with a salad.
Social Icons