recipes

[Hudds Lad]

8 minutes ago, IanD said:

Hmm, is "cracking the chocolate concrete" a euphemism?

No, it was a sort of shortbread, lovingly referred to as chocolate concrete. You were given a square of it on one of those melamine plates, and a spoon to eat it with and instructions to not use your hands. Cue the inevitable attempts to break off a mouth-size piece with a spoon applying pressure from above, and shortbreads departing the table at warp speed  

8 minutes ago, MtB said:

 

That explains EVERYTHING...

 

 

Nowt wrong with Ponte Carlo, better than Cas Vegas anyway  

[Athy]

31 minutes ago, MtB said:

 

AND the boulangeries! 

 

On our holidays in northern France we used to buy from the local boulangerie a truly vast crusty white "country loaf" first thing in the morning and eat the whole thing for breakfast. They had a massively open and airy 'crumb' inside and a slice an inch thick was not enough, two or three slices each, toasted with butter was necessary. The whole loaf was usually about 2ft 6in long and a foot wide but weighed only about 2lb. 

 

Do you recognise this description? I ask as I can find no reference at all to these wonderful loaves on the internet, and I want to make them myself! 

 

 

 

 

I'd call it a pain de campagne, but that's a fairly catch-all term. In addition, various loaves have different names in different parts of France (just as people in bakers' shops in London would look baffled if you asked for cobs and pikelets).

   I do recognise the beastie you're talking about, even if the dimensions you mention may be akin to anglers' descriptions of the one that got away. Sorry to be vague; perhaps one our forum French residents can be more precise.

[LadyG]

On 02/03/2018 at 12:29, Goliath said:

And another thing..

is there such thing as a cheap cut of meat anymore? I had some mutton the other month and it cost the same as lamb. Thought I was gonna get a bargain. 

Mutton is now a premìum food, as is everything mentioned by a TV chef. It just means it older than a lamb, ie in its second year. The cheap mutton of days of yore were maybe three years old, very tough, and nowadays end up in processed meats.

I did manage to get fresh lamb ribs last week, but this week I bought a lamb steak, it was flavourless,  some sort of sheep breed which has lots of steaks. Looked appetising, but not marbled with fat, which is why it's tough.

I used to live in farming country, and the village butchers knew what to buy, namely half bred Swaledale born in the Dales and finished locally. 

On 30/01/2018 at 15:30, MIkeyP said:

Anyone got easy cooking recepies currently living of M&S ping meals and its a real struggle and expensive

Any cheaper solutions?

You need to have a proper shop.

Try this list:

Maris Piper potatoes

A small packet of prepared mix veg.

Small pointy cabbage

Snall pack of fresh peas in their pods

Small tasty tomatoes, in a box 

Small hard brown onions.

Shallots

A lemon

Growing parsley in a pot

Tilda basmati rice, blue packet.

Dried noodles

Sweet chilli sauce

Curry powder

Red lentils which can be added to stews soups and curries.

Cold pressed rapeseed oil for salads or any cooking.

Bacon dry cured for flavour.

Proper pork sausages

Cheddar cheese slices for sandwiches and for sprinkling on pasta dishes.

A small pack of chicken.

Medium eggs

Kallo chicken stock cubes.

Seeded brown sliced bread.

You can now make:

Breakfast

Sandwiches

Chicken noodles 

Chicken curry

Mash with sausage

Soup

 

Add Frozen Cod fish fingers (pack of 6) and you can have fish and chips., well almost. Converting spuds to fries takes a bit of practice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited September 18 by LadyG

[LadyG]

On 21/03/2023 at 15:26, Athy said:

From joining the forum to being banned as a spammer, "member" SGP Menu may now hold the record, at just three minutes.

So, you were awake?

 

[MisterP]

Not sure of your dietary requirements, so some of these may need adapting, but I've found this chap's recipies simple and very tasty.

https://www.youtube.com/@Adam_Garratt/videos

 

 

[Sea Dog]

11 hours ago, LadyG said:

It just means it older than a lamb, ie in its second year.

I think you'll find that's a hogget.

[LadyG]

5 minutes ago, Sea Dog said:

I think you'll find that's a hogget.

Trying to keep it simple.

Depends what part of the country you come from: hogs or tegs might be sent to market, but not most gimmers which have a date with the tup in October.

Once the ewes get broken mouthed they may be mutton, but not fit for Sunday roast.

[Sea Dog]

1 hour ago, LadyG said:

Trying to keep it simple.

Depends what part of the country you come from: hogs or tegs might be sent to market, but not most gimmers which have a date with the tup in October.

Once the ewes get broken mouthed they may be mutton, but not fit for Sunday roast.

Fairy snuff. 

[sigsegv]

14 hours ago, LadyG said:

Mutton is now a premìum food, as is everything mentioned by a TV chef. It just means it older than a lamb, ie in its second year. The cheap mutton of days of yore were maybe three years old, very tough, and nowadays end up in processed meats.

I did manage to get fresh lamb ribs last week, but this week I bought a lamb steak, it was flavourless,  some sort of sheep breed which has lots of steaks. Looked appetising, but not marbled with fat, which is why it's tough.

I used to live in farming country, and the village butchers knew what to buy, namely half bred Swaledale born in the Dales and finished locally. 

You need to have a proper shop.

Try this list:

Maris Piper potatoes

A small packet of prepared mix veg.

Small pointy cabbage

Snall pack of fresh peas in their pods

Small tasty tomatoes, in a box 

Small hard brown onions.

Shallots

A lemon

Growing parsley in a pot

Tilda basmati rice, blue packet.

Dried noodles

Sweet chilli sauce

Curry powder

Red lentils which can be added to stews soups and curries.

Cold pressed rapeseed oil for salads or any cooking.

Bacon dry cured for flavour.

Proper pork sausages

Cheddar cheese slices for sandwiches and for sprinkling on pasta dishes.

A small pack of chicken.

Medium eggs

Kallo chicken stock cubes.

Seeded brown sliced bread.

You can now make:

Breakfast

Sandwiches

Chicken noodles 

Chicken curry

Mash with sausage

Soup

 

Add Frozen Cod fish fingers (pack of 6) and you can have fish and chips., well almost. Converting spuds to fries takes a bit of practice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One thing I'd definitely add to this list is pearl barley. Amazing for bulking out dishes, and I've been making something akin to risottos with it recently - it holds its texture really well, is a lot more forgiving than rice in risotto IMO and can also be added to a bunch of other things for bulking up and adding a bunch of nutrients. Mum used to add it to the stews she made us as a kid, and I'm always trying to find more things to sneak it into